The beginning of the presentation is your prime real estate. It’s when your audience decides if you are worth paying attention to or not. In my workshops, I call this the HOOK. You can do this by either asking a question, making a bold statement or telling a story that relates to your topic.
I co-wrote a book called Own Your Space a couple of years ago. One of my favorite chapters is called Own Your Confidence. Here is an excerpt.
Exuding a level of ease and confidence is critical to your career success because confidence has the power to create self-fulfilling prophecies.
Success may not be an easy journey for anyone, but when you’re navigating your way to the next level,
When you present information or answer a call, how would you rate your level of energy?
Do you exude the level of energy that says, “I am here, I am present, and what I have to communicate is important?” Or do you sound tired and disinterested? Energy is one of those intangible non-verbal qualities that is most noticeable when lacking.
Exuding a level of positive energy takes work, especially if you are in back-to-back meetings.
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| I spent the month of January in South Africa, where 11 official languages are spoken.
Something I have tried to do each time I get into an Uber or pay for an item is ask how you say thank you in the language of the person I am interacting with. The look of sheer delight on the person’s face is always worth the effort, even if I butcher the pronunciation. |
When most people think of Networking, they think of awkward cocktail party banter, reaching out to power players to ask a favor, and contending with shameless self-promoters.
The good news is that it doesn’t have to be any of those things!
Let’s reframe and take the negative association from a natural human inclination to build genuine, mutually beneficial long-term relationships.
This is by no means an exhaustive list,
I recently had the pleasure of interviewing Henry Winkler, aka The Fonz, at the MJCCA book festival in Atlanta.
He is probably the warmest, most entertaining, and authentic veteran actor out there! Winkler told stories about meeting Robin Williams as a young unknown comedian and how he immediately knew Williams was a genius. He also shared details about his lifelong friendship with Happy Days co-star Ron Howard and how much he enjoyed directing Dolly Parton.
I grew up in South Africa, where the Zulu greeting, Sawubona, is much more than a polite way of saying hello. Sawubona means “I see you.” They are words that embody the importance of recognizing the worth and dignity of each person, something I strive to do in both my personal and professional lives.
I love the concept of seeing people deeply. People want to connect.
What stops you from speaking up in a meeting?
What stops you from reaching out to someone when you need their advice?
What stops you from going up to someone you have never met and starting a conversation?
What stops you from exercising more?
What stops you from eating more protein and complex carbohydrates?
What stops you from waking up earlier?
