A participant in a recent presentations seminar called it PowerPoint’s most valuable real estate, which, in addition to being a great metaphor, is also an accurate description of the key portion of any slide. That is the headline. Build on Solid Ground Imagine a chart in a sales presentation displaying growth of the different players …
Your body “talks” and it frequently communicates unintended messages that weaken the impact of your actual content and story. Your mouth is saying one thing, but the audience is picking up that you are nervous or not sure of what you are saying or, worse, not interested in them Your anxieties may be normal, but they can be fatal to your success. What can you do? Happily, the latest Harvard body chemistry research shows how you can strengthen your body language impact with just one simple exercise.
Surprises are fun, except when they’re not! So, what do you do when you have been asked to present your ideas at a follow-up meeting and you find (surprise!) a new person, or (bigger surprise!) several new people, in the room?
Like mining for gold, it is often difficult to find nuggets of fresh information that are worth picking up. I found one such nugget I would like to share with you that nails a problem we all face.
Unless you have been living under a rock for the last week, you are well aware that Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg has a new book out called “Lean In: Women, Work and the Will to Lead.”
Bill Clinton and Mike Bloomberg spoke at Ed Koch’s funeral this morning. As practitioners of effective communication, treat yourself to the videos of their eulogies for the former Mayor. They are wonderful examples of the happy blend of content and delivery.
In a world of 140 character tweets and sound-byte messaging (which have their place), there’s nothing like an inaugural speech to provide a refreshing look at older timeless techniques for effective communication.
Marketing guru Seth Godin can generally be relied on for thoughtful observations that frequently apply to sales as well. Recently, he made a distinction worth noting for anyone who persuades for a living.
We don’t need any ghosts to scare us today. Hurricane Sandy already took care of that. If you have been following the storm’s story, then you have seen the horror of her destruction and are speechless at the scale and depth of the human tragedy involved.
The pundits will decide the political consequences of last night’s debate between President Obama and Governor Romney. But from a pure sales and presentation point of view, Romney was clearly on his game and Obama was just as clearly off his.
For any who doubt the power of pictures and props to make a point, consider Prime Minister Netanyahu’s use of both in his speech to the United Nations Thursday on the dangers of Iran’s nuclear plans.