Public Speaking Tip – What’s Your Outcome?
It never ceases to amaze me how many people give talks and speeches without having a clear idea of what they want their audience to be doing as a result of their talk. In my book this is a recipe for disaster. Many moons ago I learned a simple but profound process for success. Step…
Read MoreNegotiation Tip – A Lesson From Sir Alan Sugar
Last night, like millions of others around the UK, I was glued to the TV to watch the penultimate episode of the Apprentice. After a gruelling round of interviews, the five remaining candidates were to be whittled down to the final two. Lohit and Tre were dispatched in usual Alan Sugar style but the real…
Read MorePublic Speaking Tip – Confidence Through Breathing
Many people who come to me for help with their public speaking and presentation skills suffer from pre-speech nerves. One of the things they want is a simple effective cure. The good news is that there are a number of tried and tested techniques proven to alleviate this problem. I’m a believer in going for…
Read MoreSelling & Influencing Tips – Building Rapport – FAST!
The key to a successful and mutually beneficial sales relationship is the ability to establish rapport with your prospective client quickly. Some people believe that rapport is a “chemistry” thing that depends on both people and that you either have it or you don’t. Whilst there is an element of truth in this, consider the…
Read MoreNegotiation Tip – Aim For A Happy-Happy Result
When I first started learning about negotiation skills, everyone talked about win-win as being the most desired outcome. As a negotiating rookie, I had a lot of trouble with this concept. Surely negotiation is about getting what I want so how can I do that without the other person losing. Is win-win really possible? As…
Read MorePowerPoint Tip – Slides Are Not The Same as Handouts!
I remember working with a team from a company to help them with their sales pitch presentation. As part of the day we reviewed the content and design of their PowerPoint Presentation and, unsurprisingly, their slides were very wordy, “corporate”, and dull. When I asked them why they designed their slides this way, there was…
Read MorePublic Speaking Tip – Mental rehearsal technique
Almost every book on public speaking I have ever read has emphasised the importance of rehearsal in ensuring a successful presentation or speech. The problem is that, for many of us there seems little or no time to have a full blown practice delivery session.Now this may or may not be true but for now…
Read MoreAssertiveness Tip – Develop An Assertive Stance
Assertiveness is not just about the words you say and the way you say them. It’s also about the body language you adopt. If your words are saying one thing and your body language is saying another, people will give more weight to what your body language is communicating. Here’s a quick and simple tip…
Read MoreSelling & Influencing Tips – Match The Clients Style
One of the common traits of successful influencers is their ability to instantly read their customers and adapt their communication style to suit that of the client. Once I was coaching someone who was seeking to influence the senior partner in an accounting firm. The consultant’s natural style was extrovert, chatty and very positive. When…
Read MoreNegotiation Tip – Think of Everything as Negotiable
Negotiation is the art of getting the best deal for you and the other party.Most people think of it in a limited number of restricted contexts like selling and buying houses or buying goods at a market OR in big corporate deals. People have self imposed rules on when and where it is OK to…
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