Archive for November, 2005

The McKinsey Mind is a good read – mostly because Chapter 5 “Presenting Your Ideas” directly supports our Decker Grid system of developing content.

Authors Ethan Rasiel and Paul Friga state that using inductive over deductive reasoning—that is, stating your conclusion up front—is a win-win for both the presenter and the audience.

If you begin with the end, here’s what you’ll accomplish:

1. Lay out a roadmap to get everyone on the same page: By stating your point of view, action step and benefit for your audience up front, they know what’s in it for them, and why they should listen to you for the duration of your talk.
2. Be ready for the elevator pitch: If your key decision maker, buyer, or boss has to leave a meeting early, you’ve already got your key point across – they know what action they should take to support or oppose your point of view.
3. Be flexible to alter your presentation on the go: If you’ve got buy in on one point before getting to the detail, you can quickly move along to the next.

And if you can make it past that beginning, continue on with the old salesperson adage,

Tell ‘em what you’re going to tell ‘em…Tell ‘em…T hen tell ‘em what you told ‘em.

We’re big fans of Seth Godin. Much of his work is based on the same underlying principles and practices that Decker Communications espouses. His latest best-seller, All Marketers Are Liars pinpoints the importance of storytelling to ignite word-of-mouth marketing and propel business growth and profit. 

While the title is intriguing, it is slightly misleading. All marketers aren’t actually deceiving their consumers. Rather, Godin says that effective ones tell stories that correctly frame the consumer’s worldview. And, the most successful marketers are those that tell consistent stories we believe, and live the story with authenticity.

You may be thinking, "Thanks Bert, but…I’m not a marketer." Not so! ALL communicators are marketers. We’re all selling something all the time – to our co-workers, children, friends and even our church group. Follow these two suggestions to increase your effectiveness and sell!

1. Tell a story to make contact. Next time you’re preparing a formal presentation or informal talk, make sure you strike a chord with the audience – one or one hundred – by tying your point of view to a story, or other SHARP Principle (See 10/2 Post: “Make Contact”).
2. Do it authentically. Communicate with the innate authenticity and passion that you have about your product, idea, proposal, or suggestion. You’ve Got To Be Believed To Be Heard! Master your natural self – that special combination of your unique personality, mind, attitudes and behaviors – to influence others. Maintaining a lasting connection with your executives, your team, and your friends and family will quickly fall away if you’re not authentic. 

I cannot pretend to feel impartial about colors.

I rejoice with the brilliant ones and am genuinely

sorry for the poor browns.

                                               -Winston Churchill

Countless studies have been done on the psychological effects of different colors. Many prisons and hospital facilities use muted blue tones on the walls because blue has been found to be a calming color.

The colors you choose for your visual aids play an important role in your presentation’s impact on the audience. The effect on your listeners is subliminal, but you can control that effect consciously by selecting colors that will enhance, not harm, your message. For example:

• Red can be a disastrous color to use if you’re speaking about a budget deficit. It’s a color  we associate with danger. It motivates fear and panic.
• Green inspires action. You might consider using green for visual aids about an organizational change – it could help illustrate that this new approach is a step forward.
• Yellow and orange ask the audience to make up their minds – pronto. You could use yellow to generate quick decisions, not lengthy discussion, on agenda items.

Remember, when faced with inconsistent messages, your audience will key into the visual – not the verbal. Make sure your visuals – including the color – are consistent with your message.

Terry Paulson is a wonderful speaker and thinker. He told the following story to our Speakers Roundtable group, and it has lasted….

Terry and Russ Walden both create a unique communication experience!

Russ Walden, President of Ridgecrest Properties, a subsidiary of Intermark, likes to limit his business philosophy to one page. When he brings people on board to his company, he gives the sheet to each new employee. He makes his position clear: "You don’t have to follow this, but it’s important for you to understand that I will."

Russ Walden’s list of mostly true and mostly plagiarized thoughts on the management process (in no particular order):

*Weak leadership will destroy the finest strategy, while forceful execution of even a poor strategy can often bring victory. (Sun Tzu, 400 BC)

*Authority to manage is delegated downward; the right to lead is delegated upward.

*A person may be appointed to high position, but never to leadership. Leaders are effective only through the authority conferred on them by those upon whom they depend for results.

*Leaders produce consent; others seek consensus.

*Manage a business by its economics, not by the accounting numbers.

*It is better to be approximately right than precisely wrong.

*Ethics are non-negotiable.

*The personal dignity of each individual is inviolate. A manager who often breaks this rule will eventually self-destruct, but I will probably get him (or her) first.

*As a manager, ask yourself, "How would I like it if my boss treated me the way I treat those who work for me? " If you are unsure, read Luke 6:31.

*Authority is not inherently useful, but you can greatly influence most of the things which you cannot directly control. A manager without influence is a contradiction of terms.

*Create real values and the earnings will follow. Never sacrifice tomorrow’s values for today’s reportable earnings.

*Spend your time with people who contribute to your energies; avoid those who drain them.

*A person has a right to know the significance of his work.

*We will only do things of which we can be proud. If our people are ashamed of a project it will be a disaster.

*If you aren’t having fun in your work, fix the problem before it becomes serious; ask for help if you need it. If you can’t fix it and won’t ask for help, please go away before you spoil the fun for the rest of us.

*Never let well enough alone. (Just because it isn’t broke; doesn’t mean it can’t be better.)

*Build some regular customer contact into the job of every person in the company.

*Defending yesterday is far more risky than making tomorrow.

*Manners are the lubricating oil of organizations. (Peter Drucker)

Russ Walden not only wrote his page; he uses it when facing difficult decisions. He asks his leaders to have and use their own page in support of company values. What would you want on your page?