Make Your Point with Pow'R

The basics are the basics for a reason

2008-11-19T10:32:00.003-05:00

Sometimes we are tempted to overlook the basics. How many times do you see a driver speed through an amber light, forgetting that amber lights are intended to warn you to stop before the light turns red?

The basics are the basics for a reason. The basic rule is that we should stop on amber lights, if given enough warning.

Similarly, as presenters, we know that we should always rehearse our presentations and always test our equipment if we will be using technology. Don't be fooled into thinking that your projector and laptop will automagically function as expected, unless you have tested them.

I am preparing for a presentation today at the November chapter meeting of SNEC-PMI. I tested my slideshow through my projector and lo-and-behold, it did not work. I have given presentations in the past with this laptop and projector, so what could have changed?

Puzzled at first I soon realized that I replaced my laptop a few weeks ago. The new one looks the same as my old one and I forgot that I had not tested this combination yet. Thank goodness for rehearsals. My new laptop has different function keys when connecting to a projector and so I saved my audience the embarrassment of learning the new function keys from the platform.

Don't be fooled. The basics are called the basics for a reason. Go ahead and rehearse your presentation using the actual equipment that you will be using for your presentation.

Parents earning merit badges

2008-11-16T19:10:00.002-05:00

This week I accompanied my son to earn his Coin Collecting Merit badge at Scouts. My wife and I supported him in this. (In fact, we put in significant effort).

I thought we were the only parents who supported their scouts to this extent. Well, it turns out that the other parents also support their scouts. To the casual eye, it may even look like the parents are earning the merit badges and the scouts are incidental in the process.

Mothers and fathers were coming over to the scout leader asking "Did Johnny pass his merit badge? Are there any other requirements?" Little Johnny was off playing tag while mom or pop were studying up on the requirements for a merit badge.

These are the joys of parenting a scout. And I love every minute of it. You should also enjoy your children and loved ones because we pass this way but once.

Strategic reading to increase your expertise

2008-11-12T17:15:00.002-05:00

I firmly believe that we get paid in direct proportion to the amount of expertise that we apply to help other people solve their problems.

The more expertise we have, the more we can help people, thus increase our value and income.

Specifically, as presenters, the more we learn and increase our presentation skills and expertise, the better we can communicate our message to better serves our audience.

Therefore, we all need to continually study and increase our expertise. One way to drastically increase your expertise is to strategically select and study commercially books. For under $20 you can study the results of years of an author's experience.

Purchasing a good book is the best investment you can make. I recall when I purchased Think and Grow Rich, I had to take my lunch money that day to purchase the book. My copy of Think and Grow Rich allowed me to live my dream life in the USA and influence my family for generations to come. Not bad for a single missed lunch 15 years ago!!

I urge you to always be looking for skills you would like to acquire, and then strategically select five or more books on this topic for your reading list. Skip an hour of TV and read a book that will improve your expertise from an expert in the field for the rest of your life and watch your income increase. You have my word on this. Don't just read whatever comes your way in the form of newspapers and tabloids - seek out material that helps you and your audiences.

This week I am re-reading Money Talks by Alan Weiss. Every time I re-read Alan's books, I understand more than the previous time - which is just one indicator of an outstanding author.

I want to highlight this point for you, as a presenter. Alan states that we are not on stage to deliver a speech. We are on stage to meet an objective and work towards an outcome.

Think about this in your next presentation. Establish the outcome before you start to develop your speech. What is the desired outcome of your presentation? Then build your presentation around this desired outcome.

And always, continue increasing and improving your expertise by strategically selecting the books for your reading pile. Keep a book with you and in your car. You never know when you will be waiting in a Doctor's room, having a car serviced, or waiting for UFOs to land, and the fifteen minutes invested in your education will provide better dividends than filling out last week's crossword puzzle.

Customer Disservice

2008-11-09T17:04:00.003-05:00

I was down at the local T-Mobile store this week, looking for a phone with a full keyboard, to send text messages easily. After waiting for a customer rep to finish up with her boyfriend, she shouted that we should cross the store and approach her desk.

At her desk, while chewing bubble-gum and listening to music she "served" us. Each bubble popping in my face increased my dissatisfaction. Finally, she understood what we were looking for and showed us three models of phones that suit our needs. All three are ridiculously priced and I went to the Verizon store where I was treated like a paying customers. Very much appreciated, thank you.

I called T-Mobile to terminate my account, and the customer rep told me "I see that you have been a valued customer since since 2001, and we don't want to lose you. The termination fee will be $200 per line". "What? Are you telling me that it is $200 per line, for each of the phones, which both have various malfunctions and are now out of warranty?" "Yes".

Before these incidents, I was considering switching all of my phones to Verizon. Now after being insulted in person and on the phone, it is good bye, and good riddance to T-Mobile in my household.

As a presenter, this is good material for my speeches. I can make a few points with this story. Firstly, the customer rep blowing bubble gum in my face is probably clueless about the impact of her actions. (The store manager is probably also clueless, if he was even in the store). As speakers we can also have distracting and irritating habits that we are not aware of until someone points them out to us. Which brings me to the suggestion that you should record some of your presentations with a video recorder to see what you actually do on stage. A video recording of this customer rep would hopefully suck the wind right out of her next bubble.

A second, and obvious point to make, is that customers don't need to tolerate poor service. If your service is bad, then the customer goes elsewhere. Sometimes without you even having the opportunity to discuss or correct the situation.

Treat your audiences with respect and remember that we earn the right to the "Privilege of the Platform". Come prepared to your speech and do everything that you can to deliver a good performance for the audience.

Tolerations. Stop them.

2008-11-05T17:26:00.002-05:00

I am reading "The Portable Coach" by Thomas J. Leonard. Very interesting material. I got interested in the benefits of personal coaching since my coach asked if I would accept coaching while he completes his training and works on his certification. My interest in coaching led me to research personal coaching, which led me to purchasing a copy of "The Portable Coach".

One of the many lessons in this book, that I want to pass on, is to stop tolerating things in your life that suck up your energy. What are you tolerating today that is taking up energy? Is your desk a mess? Then invest some time and clean it, to remove the toleration and give yourself more energy.

Does you car need repairs? Is there something small broken around the house that you tolerate, but should just have repaired? If so, then there is no time like the present. Give yourself an energy boost and remove some of things that you are unhappy with in life and are currently tolerating. Stop tolerating them to improve your life.

Innovative time tips when you don't have a designated timer

2008-11-01T07:02:00.005-04:00

Do you lose track of time when you are presenting? Every presenter is subject to going overtime and getting off schedule. Going over time is an occupational hazard of public speaking, but you have no excuse for going over time.

I have seen experienced speakers, including Distinguished Toastmasters completely ignore all timing signals and blissfully sail way over the allotted time for a presentation. The best way to keep on time, is to find a reliable audience member to give you signals as listed on your Speech Timeline Tool.

In addition, I have found these techniques helpful to stay on time. Feel free to use any or all of these proven techniques to benefit your audience.

Firstly, you can put a clock on the lectern. Keep it in your pocket as you go forward to speak and then put the clock on the lectern out of sight of your audience.

Analog clocks are easier to read as you can see the hands on the clock with just a glance. I find that digital clocks are harder to analyze and instantly realize how much time I have left for the presentation.

Secondly, look around the room when you enter it. Are there clocks on the walls of the meeting room that you can glance at to keep your presentation on time? Free bonus hint. If you see a clock on the wall, make sure that it is functioning and accurate (Don't ask me how I came to learn this tip).

Finally, have your audience help you stay on track. Tell your audience that you will handout a prize for the person who interrupts you at 5 minutes and 32 minutes of your 40 minute presentation. Then, everyone in the audience will be watching the time and at 5 minutes you hand out a prize when the person interrupts you. You can be sure that this will train the audience to make sure you will know when you reach 32 minutes, and you can start to wrap - up your presentation.

You have no excuse for going over your allotted time in your presentation. Be creative and find ways to stay aware of the time.

You can read more innovative presentation tips in my monthly newsletters, and subscribe to get it delivered each month, for free.

Exceptional Mentor Coach - Jerry Wistrom

2008-10-31T18:25:00.003-04:00

Today I attended the monthly meeting of ICF-Connecticut chapter. ICF is the International Coaching Federation which is the foremost governing body of Professional Coaches. Today's meeting was a panel discussion with some of the most experienced and leading professional personal and business coaches in Connecticut.

The panel answered questions and gave honest advice and feedback on many aspects of the business side of professional coaches. Five coaches served on today's panel.

An exceptional Mentor Coach - Jerry Wistrom

Jerry has been there, done that. As a coach focusing on helping small business owners achieve remarkable results, and serving the coaching profession as mentor coach and at national level of the ICF, he has the experience. Jerry answered questions about accreditation and what it takes to get to ACC, PCC and MCC. The ultimate compliments were paid as successful coaches in the audience greeted Jerry warmly and shared testimonials relating the exceptional impacts of Jerry's coaching on their own careers. Jerry is the best of the best, and as we say in South Africa, "What a nice guy!!"

I thoroughly enjoyed today's panel discussion, and met other interesting people who are Professional Coaches. The authenticity and of coaches and the fact that successful coaches are living out "Who I am" versus "Doing what I do" is unstoppably attractive. If you have not yet worked with a coach who is working from the abundance of "Who I am", then you owe it to yourself to take up the opportunity when you get a chance. Listening to the panel answer questions helps me to understand work/life balance.

On a side note, as a presenter, I was grateful to enjoy a live panel discussion today, and not a boring PowerPointless presentation. I have come to cringe at the thought of being invited to meetings and watch the presenter begin his "Death by PowerPoint" routine. Fortunately, the stars aligned for me this morning, and my horoscope excluded PowerPointless presentations for me today :)

Project Management Super - Speaker: Lee Lambert

2008-10-30T13:13:00.002-04:00

Yesterday I had the pleasure of attending another Lee Lambert presentation. This one was held in Avon, CT. Every workshop that Lee presents is distinguished by his humor, showmanship and exceptional insight into the challenges that project managers face every day. Yesterday's presentation lived up to Lee's high standards and set an enviable example for all presenters to follow.

Some of the presentation techniques that Lee applied are:
1. Opening the workshop with stories and questions from the audience. This immediately grabbed audience attention and got the audience involved.

2. Walked around the audience, among the audience members while presenting. This breaks the fourth wall and disintegrates the "space" that forms between speaker and audience.

3. Great eye-contact with various individuals in the audience.

4. Using specific examples from his vast experience in Project Management to make points.

5. Complimenting the specific people and the larger organization that hosted the event.

6. NOT reading the slides to us. (This alone puts Lee way in front of the "PowerPoint Abuse" pack).

7. Starting the workshop on time after breaks. Lee started talking and telling stories to indicate to the 190 participants it was time to quiet down. This very polite way of communicating beats the often-used technique of telling the audience that it is time to start.

A true professional integrates the components of a profession seamlessly so that the craft looks easy. Lee makes it look easy to present well, and is a true master of the art of public speaking. We have a distinct lack of public speaking exemplars. The reason most people accept poor presentations and don't demand better presentations, is because most people don't know what a good presentation looks like. We are so used to seeing presenters read PowerPoint slides to us, that we accept this poor example. Lee sets the example for other presenters to follow.

Lee touched on issues that project managers like myself and project managers in all large organizations face. We laughed at the proliferation of "standardized templates" that well intentioned but sometimes misguided PMO's enforce with the zeal of a new convert. We laughed with him, and at ourselves at the way we start projects with poorly defined requirements, insufficient resources, and wonder why we get into the mess that many projects get into.

Lee reminded us that we are likely to continue to face current challenges of not having dedicated project teams, but instead will continue to share resources who are working on many projects simultaneously. This makes it hard for teams to form lasting relationships, because "teams" resemble a revolving door more than a group of people working towards a common goal.

If I were asked to coach Lee on PowerPoint use, then the only comments I could offer would be to never apologize for a slide which is "busy". As posted elsewhere on this blog, we should never have slides that don't clearly convey our message. If in doubt, leave it out. Also, to put off the projector (with the "B" button) when telling a story, so that all focus is on the presenter without any distraction.

As a trainer, I know how hard it is to keep an audience engaged for a full-day workshop. Lee is a master trainer, and in his own words " he makes his audience learn without even realizing it".

If you ever get a chance, then attend a workshop with Lee Lambert, even if you are not a project manager. You will learn more in a day about presentation skills from observing Lee Lambert, that you will in a year of attending club meetings at your Toastmasters club.

Timeboxes

2008-10-27T18:01:00.002-04:00

How much time should you invest when creating a presentation? Winston Churchill is said to have invested one hour preparing for every minute that he delivered a prepared speech. Winston's rule of thumb still holds true. If you are going to prepare, craft and rehearse a seven minute speech, then seven hours is a reasonable amount of time to set aside for preparation.

You can also invest too much time when crafting a presentation. I am currently preparing a presentation on South Africa that includes PowerPoint slides, to co-present with a friend at his Rotary club. My research on Flickr.com revealed hundreds of possible photos of South Africa that are candidates for inclusion in this presentation. I have so much to share with this audience about South Africa, the history, current situation, why my wife and I left with 6 suitcases, $400 and a dream to come to the USA back in 2001,

Every photo brought back memories and I soon realized that I could easily invest 40 or more hours just in creating the PowerPoint slides. This is without even talking about the rehearsal for the presentation.

The way to avoid getting into time pits, is to place a box around the activity. For example, this Rotary club speech is a 20 minute speech. Using Winston's rule of thumb above, I should invest about 20 hours in total for preparation. From experience, I know that co-presenting always takes more time to rehearse than if I presented solo and allowing for an additional five hours, the total preparation should not exceed 25 to 30 hours.

As a rough estimate then I should invest fewer than ten hours in selecting photos for this slideshow. The best way to stick to this limit and place the appropriate value on my time is to timebox the various preparatory activities. No more than 10 hours to select photos, no more than 5 hours to create the PowerPoint slides, no more than 5 hours to create the script, which leaves no more than 10 hours to rehearse with my co-presenter.

Although we all want to give the best presentation that we can, every single time, we need to keep this in perspective. As Alan Weiss says "Your presentation is not going to change world history". (In fact, I consider my presentation to be an outstanding success if the Rotarians can remember what I spoke about after the bar closes.)

I am sorry to say that I see this all too often in new Toastmasters. New Toastmasters want to write the perfect speech, and invest 30 or more hours in a single 5-7 minute speech that is given once to a Toastmasters club. This is a poor investment of your time. Your time is better managed when you put an upper limit on the amount of time you will invest in an activity. Then stick to your time limit, and stop to reassess your progress when the time is up. Don't invest limitless time into speech creation - it is dysfunctional.

So, keep your presentation in perspective as well. Put a box around your time investment for your next speech or presentation, then get up and deliver.

The TextUnread Rule

2008-10-22T16:40:00.002-04:00

The Great TextUnread rule states: "The more text displayed on a PowerPoint slide, the less likely the presenter will read or explain the text, and the more likely the presenter will skip over the slide with a lame excuse.

Such excuses include, but are not limited to those listed below" (My comments are in parenthesis).

1. This slide is busy on purpose. (Why, why would anyone purposely create a slide that is busy? Your purpose as a presenter is to clarify and assist your audience to understand your message. Why would you place obstacles in the path of your communication to the audience?)

2. I know that you can't read this slide, but it illustrates my point. (What point? That you are an idiot to create a slide that you know no-one can read?)

3. I won't go through this now, but you can read it after my presentation. (Wait - let me understand how little you value my time in the audience. First, you created a slide that you did not intend to discuss with me. Then you did not rehearse your presentation where you would have seen that this slide should clearly have been culled from your presentation. Now, after you have insulted me by wasting my precious time, you think that I am going to invest more time trying to decipher your slide. I don't think so. Your busy slide does not motivate me to want to invest time reading your slide as a result of your lack of preparation.)

Over the next few weeks, as you observe presenters wade through "busy" slides with poor excuses, make a pledge to yourself to never, ever fall foul of the Great TextUnread rule yourself. keep your visually impactful slides simple and to your point.

Always limit the amount of text on your slides. Remember that less text on the screen means more probability that it will be conveying your carefully crafted message.

It was YOU all along

2008-10-19T18:49:00.003-04:00

I just read a new book by Gary Spinell. The title is "It Was YOU All Along".

Very interesting read. Covers similar ground and includes the Law of Attraction, which I firmly believe in.

Gary starts off a bit slow, with a lot of his life experiences to set the foundation. If you continue past this foundation then you get into very strong truths.

I actually got goosebumps when Gary describes how he was laid off, and then unemployed for 6 months, but he found a job once he changed his beliefs in himself. This personal example illustrates how valid and powerful his message is to all of us today. I have twice gotten hired mainly because I believed I was the best person for the job and the job was perfect for me.

Knowing that we create our own reality has no value, unless we are able to take actions that help us create the reality we desire. Gary details in Chapter 17 how we can work towards creating the reality we desire.

The multitude of personal examples in this book illustrates the points that Gary makes. I would like to have seem other examples as well though, and not just examples from a single perspective.

In summary, if you accept the sameness of the many personal examples then you will enjoy the book. It will generate food for thought and shed new light on things you thought "happen" to all of us.

You will also learn tools to create your own reality, which is the most important reality for all of us. If you want to change your actions and your income, then get Gary's book.

WAH, WAH, WAH

2008-10-17T21:45:00.001-04:00

This week the SNEC-PMI (where I am VP Of Membership) held our monthly meeting. The topic of Working at Home came up for discussion at my table.

Work At Home (WAH is one of the common acronyms while another is W@H) refers to modern day telecommuting. As Project Managers with teams located all over the globe, many of us are as effective working from home as we are when working from the office. We have high-speed Internet connections and reliable telephones in our home offices.

The appeal to W@H is naturally the lack of commute and flexible work hours. You don't have transportation expense, traffic nor frustration when you W@H, which results in less time wasted on the road, more time for productive Project Management, and a better work/life balance.

The consensus around our table was that W@H has advantages such as higher productivity and "to-do" lists becoming "got-done" lists. My dinner mates testified that you are more productive when you W@H.

The W@H downside is a complete lack of water-cooler chat and office gossip. My informal survey showed that when given the choice, 80% of Project Managers prefer to work from the office if their team is also located at the office. Productivity may be lower, but our social needs are met in the cube farm, even with the inherent disadvantages of zero privacy and frequent interruptions.

A few years ago, I frequently heard the wailing from colleagues "If only I could work from home, I would be more productive and a happier Project Manager".

So there you have it – no more crying allowed to Work at Home. WAH, WAH, WAH no more. Because W@H also has a downside.

We agreed that a combination of W@H and work in the cube farm for some days of each week is the best of all worlds. Two days at home and three days at the office seems to keep our scales in balance.

Work Less, Do More

2008-10-17T18:11:00.003-04:00

I just finished "Work Less, Do More", by Jan Yager, Ph.D.

Great book. Here is my review. This book will save you time, right off the bat. I answer over 100 emails a day as a Project Manager on multi-million dollar projects.

Page 54 alone is the worth the price of this book. Now I know how to categorize emails and respond appropriately, depending on who sent the email.

I like the structure of this book. One chapter per day is bite sized chunks that readers can absorb and apply, one day at a time. (We are busy people, which is why we are looking to learn how to work less and do more).

Jan has packed the book with logs and worksheets, placed throughout the book to keep it interactive, with permission to photocopy the worksheets for personal use.

I agree that Self-esteem is the key factor in Time Management that is rarely addressed, as Jan quotes on page 38. I would have liked to see more discussion on how to improve self-esteem, or at least a reference to a good book on improving self-esteem, which is a key factor.

I would also like to have seen more focus on how to deal with the volume of meetings that Professionals deal with today. No-one in my office has a paper-based calendar like professionals had ten years ago. We have 6 hours of virtual meetings a day, mostly with team mates in other states and countries. Meetings are scheduled days and hours in advance. As such, it is not possible to see your meetings for the week, when you walk into the office on Monday morning. I would have like to have tips on the best ways to prioritize and attend meetings, beyond the appointment book on Page 76. Today's workplace is far more dynamic than a week-at-a-time calendar.

Page 50 has a nice tip on how to get motivated, that I have not seen before.

Overall, this is a wonderful book, jam-packed with tips and for employees, self-employed professionals and even students. Jan goes far beyond the simple "to-do" lists and her tips help all readers to prioritize better, make better decisions on where to invest time, so that we can have more time to do what is truly important to us.

I highly recommend this book and it has a special place on my bookshelf, so that I can reread it should my time get out of balance again.

What is the example of a good speech?

2008-10-17T15:31:00.002-04:00

When last did you see a very good speech? How about a mediocre presentation at your office? During your college lectures? What about your Toastmasters club where a member completed Project #8 - Visual Aids?

I bet that you can't remember when last you saw a presentation that had you sitting on the edge of your seat, anticipating every word. (Although you have a better chance of enjoying such a presentation in Toastmasters than anywhere else)

We have come to accept poor presentations, especially when PowerPoint is used, because we don't know what a good presentation looks like. Most of our corporate presentations are terrible, and we accept this as the norm, because all we see are Pointless Presentations.

Today, I challenge you. Pay attention when you have the pleasure of watching a good presentation or speech. Then judge all presentations by this standard, including your own.

If we don't all start raising our own standards, eschewing text on PowerPoint slides and continue to read our slides to our audiences, then we will get the presentations that we deserve. And I am not satisfied with the presentations that I currently observe all over the USA.

The AmountaSize Virus - coming soon to a conference near you

2008-10-16T21:21:00.002-04:00

Have you noticed how many PowerPoint Presentations invoke the universal AmountaSize virus of inverse proportions? I observed two presentations yesterday and was again astounded at the impact of the thriving AmountaSize virus. This dreaded virus continues to grow and mutate in polite society, despite my unwavering and vocal support for the visual slide revolution.

The effect of the AmountaSize virus is described as follows: "The usefulness of a PowerPoint slide is inversely proportionate to the amount of text on the slide, complicated by the smallness of the font."

In other words, your slides become less useful and tend towards complete uselessness, as the volume of text increases with the accompanying decrease in font size.

The lesson is clear for all presenters - "Text on PowerPoint slides is your enemy." Tread carefully as you add text to your slides. Use visual images on your slides. Remember that the best content for your slides is impactful and emotional photographs on your slides, not clip art.

Don't fall prey to the AmountaSize virus. Keep fonts large and limit the amount of text on your slides.

Remember to tune in for the next installment right here on this blog, when you will learn how to stay clear of the dreaded TextUnread rule...

Leadership Training

2008-10-12T14:41:00.002-04:00

Do you want to be a better leader, but don't know where to get it? This week CIGNA After Hours Toastmasters Club in Bloomfield, CT held an Open House event. I am President of this club this year, but take no credit for the outstanding success of this Open House event.

Our Vice President of Education took the lead and organized the whole event. This is just one example of leadership training that Toastmasters provides. One can define leadership as the process of getting things done with the help of other people.

Planning, Leading, Organizing and managing a team of volunteer Toastmasters to successfully host an Open House is just one opportunity to develop Leaderships skills in your Toastmasters club. The greatest benefit of Toastmasters is the emphasis we place on supportive and constructive feedback. After the open house, our VPE received feedback in her Competent Leadership Manual on how she did and identifying possible areas for improvement.

If you are looking for current and pragmatic leadership training that goes beyond memorizing text books and studying the troop movements of military officers , then take a leadership role in your Toastmasters club. You will be surprised at the quantity and quality of training waiting for you at a nominal cost.

Toastmasters Fall 2008 District 53 Conference

2008-10-12T14:25:00.003-04:00

Yesterday's Fall 2008 District 53 Conference in Trumbull, Connecticut was an outstanding success, as you see in these photos. I had the privilege of presenting my popular Panic to Power educational session that helps presenters overcome the fear of public speaking.

The audience enjoyed:

- Jana Barnhill's Presidential Visit as the current International President for Toastmasters International

- Evaluation Speech Contest

- Humorous Speech Contest

- Educational Sessions

- Good food and networking in a friendly and supportive environment

Congratulations to District 53 Leadership and the Fall 2008 Conference Organizers for putting together this successful event.

How to retain new members in Toastmasters clubs?

2008-10-02T19:15:00.000-04:00

Today I answered a question on LinkedIn, on how to retain members in a club with 70 members and large new member turnover. My response is applicable to all Toastmaster clubs and is posted here for your convenience.

***
To improve your situation, assign a mentor to each new member. As President of a smaller club and having filled various officer roles in the past, I have experienced the same universal problem.

The way to improve the situation is usually to ask more experienced members to guide new members through all the technicians roles and the first 3 speeches. The challenge is that seasoned members become worn out from always mentoring new members.

Also, mentorship is not all that it takes to keep members.

Mentoring increases retention, but members also leave for other reasons such as finding that the challenges of public speaking are just too much for them, the TM program consumes too much time or have higher priorities. You can't solve these personal decisions through mentoring.

Mentoring new members helps to retain members and eliminates some of the reasons people leave Toastmasters, such as:
1. Not understanding the meeting roles
2. Not feeling welcome in the club meeting
3. Not knowing where to turn for answers and guidance

Try to get a mentoring committee together so that the full load does not fall on your VPE. Also, try to find creative ways to mentor. We used a teleconference every week for new members and covered a different topic on each call. This allowed 3 seasoned TM's to lay the groundwork for mentoring the 10 new members.

We also often overlook the benefits that the Mentor gets out of the relationship. As a mentor you learn how to provide information in small doses so that your mentee can absorb your wealth of TM knowledge at a moderated pace. This trains mentors to be effective mentors as business leaders and mentors as well. You can also look for mentors outside your club. Perhaps your district officers can assist with conference calls, or a nearby club has members willing to assist?

In summary, Mentoring will increase retention, but is not the silver bullet. Even so, I recommend that you work to institute a mentor program.

Be a better speaker

2008-10-02T18:20:00.005-04:00

"Wayne, how do I become a better speaker?" is the question I am often asked by new Toastmasters.

The answer is simple, although it takes some effort. It requires the new Toastmaster to invest time to develop, rehearse and present new speeches. You can only become a better speaker by practising the craft.

Then you get to a point where mere rehearsal and practise is not enough. If you limit yourself to only seeking advice, instruction and feedback from your fellow Toastmasters club members, then you are holding yourself back. To grow exponentially, you need to seek out advice, instruction and feedback from the best speakers in the world.

But how can the average Toastmaster afford coaching from top-flight professionals? Top speaking coaches charge over $10,000 per day.

I had this same problem. I was at a crossroads in Toastmasters in 2006. I had outgrown my club and the feedback from my Advanced Toastmasters club was only as good as the club members. I was about to quit Toastmasters when I found out about the best speaking membership program in the world.

Learn how you can get advice, instruction and feedback on public speaking, especially geared to members of Toastmasters. Sign up for this inexpensive program and then you will find new inspiration along your Toastmasters journey.

Rehearsal - The simple word that speaks volumes for presenters

2008-09-29T16:39:00.002-04:00

Rehearsal - The simple word that speaks volumes

It is said that Winston Churchill invested one hour of preparation for every minute that he presented a speech in public. This week I was subjected to yet another instance of PowerPointledness. I was in the audience where a University professor presented the results of his research on best practices. Our presenter obviously did not rehearse the presentation.

His comments such as "This slide is purposely too busy for your to see all the details because it is so complex you won't understand it", and "We have to many slides here for the time tonight, so we will just flip through some of them", builds resentment in the audience.

Our presenter invested all of his time in collecting slides from previous presentations and mixing up a brew of disparate thoughts with no clear message. He seemingly invested less than 30 minutes in preparing for a 60 minute presentation - which he also exceeded due to his incessant rambling.

In this presentation, I wondered - and your audience will also think to themselves - "Why am I listening to this presenter? He is insulting me and wasting my time". Let's share the solutions to presentations like this that take place all over the world, every day, so that you can excel in your presentations.

Let's do our part to make the world of PowerPoint Presentations better again by committing to set the example. How do you overcome these issues? Through rehearsal - The simple word that speaks volumes.

Learn how to improve your presentations through rehearsal in the October 2008 Pow'Rful Presentations Newsletter.

Project Management Speaker Excellence

2008-09-25T17:48:00.002-04:00

Last night, at the Southern New England Chapter of PMI (SNEC-PMI) in Meriden, Connecticut, our speaker addressed the topic of a schedule. All PMP's and Project Managers know that the basis to manage any project is a project schedule. On the face of it, this topic seemed to be a non-starter for experienced Project Managers like myself.

However, as the presenter acknowledged the fact that all of us have mastered schedules, she further reinforced the need to constantly reinforce the basics of our Profession. Comments of "She is so right", and "Amen" were heard around my table as we nodded in agreement. Sometimes, in the heat of the project we all tend to buckle under the pressure from project sponsors and devote all attention to putting out the hottest fire while allowing the project schedule to become out of date. Without a current schedule, our project soon becomes unmanageable and easily meanders off track.

This is the same in speaking. Just because you know the basics, such as to "Speak hungry" and to drink 1/2 a gallon of water every day, doesn't mean that you are not tempted to sometimes speak after consuming a hearty bowl of pasta. The basics are the basics because they are the basics. This holds true in Project Management and in Public Speaking.

I cover many of the basics of public speaking in my new audio CD for Professional and Public Speakers in most situations.

P.S. As usual, the presenters PowerPoint slides left much room for improvement. I am too drained of blogging on the topic of text-laden and eye-chart slides to comment on yet another terrible waste of a projector bulb.

How to Give a Better Speech - Proven and Practical Speaking Strategies That Anyone Can Use

2008-09-23T20:26:00.003-04:00

How to Give a Better Speech - Proven and Practical Speaking Strategies That Anyone Can Use is now available.

This is the product that I wish had been available when I started my Toastmasters journey in District 53. I made many mistakes over the past four years and there is no reason for you to make the same mistakes.

Purchase this CD today and get the best lessons that I have learned from 20 years of public speaking crammed into a packed 65 minute audio CD. You can't go wrong for this price.

Triple Crown Winner Again

2008-09-19T04:58:00.003-04:00

I have just received notification that I am again a Toastmasters District 53 Triple Crown winner, for the third consecutive year. I presented the Toastmasters module "How to conduct productive meetings" this past Tuesday to complete the requirements for my Advanced Communicator Gold award.

Have you considered the coveted TRIPLE CROWN ? It is doable. What is holding you back? Is it the fear of growing too much, too quickly as a speaker?

D53 Fall 2008 Educational Session - Panic To Power

2008-09-15T19:40:00.004-04:00

After runaway successes at the Fall 2007 and Spring 2008 conferences, I have been invited back to present another educational session at the Toastmasters District 53 Conference. This time, I will help my audience to go from Panic to Power on the platform.

If you attend this session on October 11, 2008, you will learn the Swift and Simple Speaking Strategies that anyone can use.

Specifically, we will cover the following public speaking techniques, that public speakers can use to overcome the fear of public speaking:
1. Physiological and Psychological tips and tools to eradicate the fear of speaking in public.
2. The Ten X Phenomenon
3. The benefits of "You are in my house" attitude.
4. Diaphragmatic breathing,
5. Foods to avoid before making a presentation and,
6. How to prepare for the "moment" before a presentation.

Three lucky participants will also win a free "Panic to Power" audio CD (which alone is worth the price of the conference, if you ask me).

If you are going to be in the area on October 11, 2008, then come on down to the District 53 Fall conference, and learn the Swift and Simple Speaking Strategies that anyone can use, to go from "Panic to Power" on the platform and banish your fear of public speaking forever.

Screen Captures

2008-09-14T21:11:00.004-04:00

I was in the audience the other day, and we were subjected to a MEGO presentation. (MEGO = Mine Eyes Gloss Over).

Our presenter did the following, and I warn you about this, so that you can rethink your strategy if you are tempted to follow this example.

Our presenter demonstrated a website, live on the Internet, and then clicked on "View" then on "Source". This shows the audience the code on a webpage.

Here are the problems with this setting, and the solution follows:

1. Never, ever, demo live websites during a presentation. You run the risk of at least the following, and possibly much more going wrong. Firstly, you may not be able to connect to the Internet. Who knows what can go wrong - your PC card fails at the last minute, your ISP account is cancelled, or martians land on the roof of the building. If you plan to demo a live website during your presentation then don't cry to me when you are left apologizing to your audience for your stupidity. Secondly, the website may not look the same as when you prepared for your presentation. You look stupid when you point out the ingredients for your case study and your case study is no longer valid. Thirdly, the website may look very different through the projection equipment. The vibrant yellow on the website may be a dull, dark distortion when the audience sees it through the aging projector. The audience sees this as your poor preparation.

2. Believe it or not, people at the back of the room cannot read the details of a page full of 10 point font. Yes, yes, I know, some people drool at their ability to decipher HTML code from a projector screen. The rest of your audience will politely (and soon become less polite) allow their minds to visit the beach while MEGO prevails.

3. You turn to the screen and point out the code which makes headlines, sub headlines and graphics while your audience looks at your back. If your audience did not mentally visit the beach in point 2 above, they are sure checking out now.

So, what is the solution? Put in some effort and use Camtasia to capture the screens you believe will cure world hunger, and highlight the all-important html code. Then put up your slides and go to the back of the room to see if you can read it from where your audience is reading from. If not, then put the code on handouts, with larger font and highlights so that your audience can play along with you at home.