Executive Communication: 6 Strategies for Communicating As a Leader
The essence of leadership is communication. Although Creating Personal Presence: Look, Talk, Think, and Act Like a Leader covers four “parts” to developing and strengthening the ability to persuade,...
View ArticlePresentation Skills: Speak Up; We Can’t Hear You: 3 Tips on Voice Projection
“You’re hoarse. Sounds like you may be coming down with a cold. Do we need to reschedule our interview?” This question has come to me repeatedly in the past 7 years from media people, teleseminar...
View ArticleLeadership Communication: 5 Tips to Motivate With a Shout-Out (Part 1)
Just because praising others comes easily as a leader, don’t be lulled into thinking that your commendations and congratulations are effective and welcomed. Praise, just like constructive feedback,...
View ArticleLeadership Communication: 6 MORE Tips to Motivate With a Shout Out (Part 2)
As we start the new year, what better way to inspire your team and build stronger relationships with coworkers and clients than to communicate sincere words of appreciation? As Mark Twain once...
View ArticleWriting Skills: 6 Common Mistakes Proposal Writers Make
A new year means new budgets for your clients and prospects and new opportunities to propose your services and products. You may find yourself offering a proposal in one of two situations: 1) You...
View ArticleCommunication Skills: Guest Blog by Jessica Sanders–3 Ways to Use Numbers for...
“If you’re a regular reader of the blog, you know I don’t often run guest columns. But the following guest blog by Jessica Sanders presents an argument for leaders communicating with specificity—with...
View ArticleHow Ignorant Are You About Communicating Clearly, Concisely, Competitively?
“…Conscious ignorance is the prelude to every real advance in science,” insisted physicist James Clerk Maxwell. At a time when there was no comprehensive theory of electricity and magnetism, Maxwell...
View ArticleCommunication Tip of the Day: Avoid Hostile Repetition of the Same Words.
If someone does not understand your instructions, don’t assume a patronizing or irritated tone and repeat the same words: “As I told you earlier, the equipment needs to be cleaned thoroughly.” If you...
View ArticleDo You Communicate Authentically As a Leader? 3 Tests
“I LOVE ice cream.” “No, you don’t,” Mrs. McGowen, my 5th grade English teacher insisted. “You LIKE ice cream. You LOVE people.” Okay, if she insisted. I’d tone down the tenor for my essays, but I...
View ArticleCommunication Skills: 10 Ways Salespeople Kill Deals by Their Communication
Many times I’ve felt the urge to give a salesperson a piece of my mind after some obnoxious communication habit, insensitive comment, or ineffective process. But then I need my mind—all of it—so I...
View ArticleCommunication Skills: 7 Secrets in Communicating With Know-It-Alls
You may have met these people. They sit in the stands at sporting events and tell the rest of the fans what they did or didn’t just see on the field. These clients know more about how your business...
View ArticleLeaders Ought to Know: Maintain Honesty and Confidentiality
Guest Blog by Phillip Van Hooser Honesty builds respect; respect builds trust — leaders ought to know that, but sometimes it’s hard for leaders to maintain honesty and confidentiality. Leaders Ought...
View ArticleCommunication Skills: 8 Clichés to Cut From Your Conversations
Now and then, almost everyone falls into lazy language. Imprecise words, weak verbs, unimaginative descriptions. But sounding like a parrot who’s been watching a TV sitcom with a cast of teenagers...
View ArticleSales Presentations: The 6 Biggest Mistakes That Will Drive Buyers Crazy!
Two invitations for investment seminars landed in my mailbox recently—two that I accepted, that is. One ended in a new advisor relationship; the second ended with half the room empty before the...
View ArticlePresentation Skills: How Learning to Present Is Like Learning to Golf
“Can you give me information on golf lessons,” the voice on the other end of the line says. “Topics? Schedule? Fees?” “Sure can,” the golfing instructor responds. “Okay. I can give you all that kind...
View ArticleCommunication Skills: When to Use—and Not Use—Jargon
Who wants to go under the knife of a brain surgeon who walks into the operating room and says to the staff, “Okay, staff, let’s get ‘er done. Check the WhatChaMaCallIt to see if the patient is stable....
View ArticleWhy Let Someone Put Words in Your Mouth? 7 Tips for Making Quotations Pay Off
Why let someone else put words in your mouth? Why look for that perfect quote to illustrate your point when you can make the point so well yourself? Several reasons: To add authority. To gather...
View ArticlePresentation Skills: 5 Ways to Measure Your Success as a Presenter
You give the big sales presentation, management briefing, or all-hands overview. And then you wait to see how you did. Smiles or frowns? Thunderous or polite applause? Objections or nods of...
View ArticleBusiness Writing—Does Your Layout Make Matters Clear or Make People Angry?
A surge of email has recently hit my inbox so today I did the periodic purge. That is, rather than just delete all those nice-to-read emails, I decided to officially unsubscribe. Holy smokes! What a...
View ArticlePresentation Skills: 10 Tips to Calm the Fear of Presenting or Speaking in...
“There are only two kinds of speakers in the world—those who are nervous and those who are liars,” according to Mark Twain, a renowned speaker and author in his own day. No matter how polished the...
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