One of the most important things for business communicators to understand is the distinction between a speech and a presentation. They are not the same. The problem is not that people struggle to articulate the difference between the two or have a hard time distinguishing one from the other as an audience member. The problem...
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Many presenters ask us about the best way to get their presentations started. They say that once the conversation gets going, they’re fine. But getting through the opening is always uncomfortable. Getting past the presentation nervousness that builds up before and at the start is a struggle. This is a tough issue for us to...
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In previous blogs, I’ve written about the need for meeting facilitators to initiate and manage the conversation that takes place during meetings and about how team presentations bring special challenges. This post is about the other people in the room, the meeting participants who are not responsible for facilitation or the presentation of information. They, too, need...
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Business people step into the role of facilitator in a variety of situations. Because of this, we provide facilitator training options to meet the range of needs our clients face. The different types of facilitators we work with include Business Presenters – It’s not unusual for presenters to facilitate group discussions in order to gain...
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This infographic is intended for printing and hanging in your conference rooms. Please let us know if you have any feedback. Business meetings are held to get a specific piece of business done during a specific period of time. Everyone attending shares responsibility for the meeting’s success. Showing up on time, being prepared, and silencing devices...
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Over the weekend, I was having coffee on the deck with our friends, Paul and Olive. We were discussing the week ahead. “I have nothing but meetings lined up next week,” Paul said. “I hate meetings. People show up late. Nothing ever gets done. Decisions aren’t made. And no one does what they’re supposed to...
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As a leader, you expect your employees’ business communication to be effective and efficient. But is it? Too often, it’s not. (I’ve written about the business implications here.) However, it doesn’t have to be that way. To be effective and efficient, business interactions must succeed on two levels. Helping your employees understand this concept is the...
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You’re a detail-oriented person working in a highly technical position. You probably wonder how much detail you should go into when presenting to managers and leaders. You may even have been asked not to go into information overload again. You’re not alone. This is a topic that comes up a lot in our presentation skills...
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This article was originally published on PresentationXpert.com, an online magazine devoted to helping people take their presentation skills to the next level. Think back to the most recent meeting or presentation that you led or participated in. Was it effective? Was it efficient? If you’re like most business people I’ve asked, your response is...
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I listened to a really interesting NPR story last week about workday meetings. It said that “the average American office worker spends more than nine hours of every week preparing for, or attending, project update meetings.” That’s a lot of time. And the problem, as the story pointed out, is that most of these meetings last...
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