7 Communication Tips for Productive Meetings
Meetings can be productive or painful. Exorbitant amounts of time are wasted in meetings that are poorly planned, managed and executed. To many people, meetings are the equivalent of a sleeping pill.
Here are 7 tips to help your meetings run more efficiently. Notice they are all based on communication.
1. Plan an agenda and stick to it. Everyone should know the purpose before they enter the room.
2. Schedule 30-minute meetings (ok, maximum 60 if it’s a big project). If it runs longer than an hour, you may not be properly prepared. Also, refer to #4.
3. Invite only the people who are directly involved with the project.
4. Stay on message. Appoint someone as the “moderator” to keep everyone on track and focused.
5. Assign “next steps” with deadlines to everyone so they have clear direction once the meeting concludes.
6. Agree on a convenient time for the next session before you leave.
7. Send a follow-up e-mail or written communication to all attendee’s summarizing the main points and “next steps.”
People will appreciate good use of their time when you are focused and productive. Stephen Sondheim said, “Everything depends upon execution; having just a vision is no solution.”
Niche Marketing and The Naked Cowboy
You don’t have to be very familiar with New York City but you may have heard that “The Naked Cowboy” is running for mayor. That’s right, the 39-year-old man who spends his days at one of the busiest corners in Times Square with his hat, cowboy boots, briefs and guitar (strategically placed so it looks like he’s naked), is entering politics. (Yes, that’s me and The Naked Cowboy last September. My kids were mortified. ) And sure, I paid $2 to have my son take the picture. But I digress.
Now that The Naked Cowboy, born Jack Burck in Ohio, has announced his mayoral campaign against incumbent Mike Bloomberg, he has developed a slogan or tag line.
“Nobody has done more with less.”
I love that line and after giving it some thought, I’ve come to realize there are a few wise lessons I have learned from The Naked Cowboy. We can apply them to our own organizations and lives:
1. Go deep. Find your niche and market the hell out of it. Don’t be a jack of all trades. Differentiate yourself from others with your own personal brand.
2. Dress the part.
3. Create a buzz. Chances are The Naked Cowboy won’t come close to winning the election. If his only goal is to increase his visibility and get people talking, mission accomplished.
4. Have the courage to be yourself. You can’t make a mistake when you are authentic. You can only trip yourself up when you are trying to be someone else.
5. Balance fun and professional. The Naked Cowboy is an ace at customer service. He smiles, makes people feel comfortable and is polite. He’s got charisma. He only wanted $2 for the ”photo op” but he was so nice, I may have paid him $5. He provided an “experience”, not simply a picture. As crowded as Times Square was, he made me feel like it was just the two of us. No distractions.
This all happened on a crowded street corner in Manhattan. After that, it was over to Juniors for cheesecake. Only in New York.
3 Ways to Connect with Your Readers on Your Blog
Writing your blog is an excellent way to connect with people. It can help to build your credibility as an expert in your field, generate a loyal following in Social Media, and share value and insights with others. You may find it’s much easier to connect and engage with people in person or with short Tweets on Twitter. Writing can be a challenge.
I’ve been writing for 25 years. Here are a 3 quick tips to engage people with your blog posts.
1. Be yourself. Write the way that you speak and avoid “talking down to your reader.” People enjoy authenticity more than a stage show.
2. Bring your reader into the post. Ask questions like: “What do you think?” or “What about you?” Connect them to the point of your message. Bring it full circle to get them engaged: thinking, feeling, reacting and involved.
3. Reveal something. While being professional, it’s perfectly fine and recommended to give readers a peak into your personality. Show a brief example of a situation that brings your message home. It can be a quote from your favorite grandparent, a holiday ritual that ties into your theme or a lesson you’ve learned on your journey.
Blogs are your personal podium and microphone that allow you to offer your unique views, expressions and insights. The words will come easier when you write from the heart. Can you do it? Can you be yourself? Remember, when you are genuine, you’ll never make a mistake!
Proactive Blogs Lead to Business Growth
Being proactive in your public relations, marketing and online networking is critical to your business growth, relationships and revenues. I’m hearing great feedback on my free webinars next week from people who are also beginning to understand the concept of how quality blogs are building online relationships and showing value. Your presence affects your prosperity.
Check out the free webinars on August 5 & 6. I promise the 30 minutes will be packed with amazing story ideas and nuggets to help you grow your organization. Join me on either August 5th or 6th (different content and story ideas for you each day! ) at 12:00 pm Central, for an opportunity to learn how to create compelling, consistent and timely blogs that directly connect back to your organization, customers and prospects.
Professionals are “tweeting” about my concept and programs. They are spreading the word..they are registering for the preview webinars on “Building the Buzz that Builds Your Businesss” because they know they have to be proactive. The world and technology are leaving too many of us behind. Social Media is not a fad. We have to learn and grow with the new tools we have available. It’s all here for you. Commit to learning and using them, one at a time. If you don’t, your competition wins.
Your blog is an untapped vehicle to drive traffic to your website. Learn how to use it as an integral part of your business development.
I invite you to register for the preview call now and spread the news!
The Ice Cream Cone of Success
July is National Ice Cream Month. President Ronald Reagan made it an official observance in 1984, noting that 90% of people enjoy this fun and nutritious snack.
Let’s use ice cream as a metaphor for your life or business. Remember to think in the context of ice cream! Do these sound familiar?
1-You melt as soon as it gets too hot.
2-You see yourself as someone who easily gets licked!
3-You wait to get picked by someone else and find yourself competing with the other flavors. You may be sweet, but others are sweeter, better, more colorful, nuttier, more appealing, on and on.
4-You’re always in a container; surrounded by barriers.
5- When things get untidy, someone else has to clean up the mess.
6-You often feel like you are getting “eaten alive!”
7- You are secretly dying to be the famed “Flavor of the Month.”
You may want to use the month of August to assess your results and determine if it’s time to make a change.
Success is not about melting, being contained and being envious of the other flavors. It’s about running your own race.
Attitude Adjustment 101: 7 Tips for Success
“Work on your career and you’ll make a living. Work on yourself and you’ll make a fortune.” - Jim Rohn
Regardless of the number of college credits or degrees you have, the truth is that much of your success is determined by your attitude. Education is worthwhile but a good attitude is priceless. If you search for a college that has a concentration of study entitled “Attitude,” you will likely come up empty-handed. Yet, the world would be a better place if we could major in “Attitude.”
If attitude is not taught in school, then why do some people have great attitudes and others seem poisonous? More importantly, how can you shift your attitude from mediocre to magnificent?
Here are seven tips for Attitude Adjustment 101.
1- Take responsibility for your attitude. Be brutally honest with yourself about who you are and how you behave.
2- Recognize warning signs. Your mind is like a computer—garbage in; garbage out. If you tell yourself that you are “just okay,” you will be “just okay.” What you think about, you bring about. Plant seeds of optimism and hope; not weeds of pessimism and doubt.
3- Use positive affirmations. Tell yourself every day that you are an outstanding person.Your self-talk is critical to your success.
4- Make mental movies. Your subconscious mind operates on images and pictures. Learn and apply creative visualization and see your ideal life in absolute detail. Envision your ideal day and your mind will begin to make it happen. You are the director, producer, writer and star. Make it a winner!
5- Write down your goals. The subconscious mind kicks into action when you put your goals in writing. List three short-term and three long-term goals. Be sure to include a target date of accomplishment. Outline the steps you will take every day to achieve your goals.
6- Put your head down and focus. Successful people do not focus on negative water cooler gossip, complainers and time wasters. Set your goals and get to work.
7- Surround yourself with successful people. Think about the people you admire and what kinds of characteristics, traits, habits and values they have. Success leaves clues.
It takes 21 days to form a new habit. If you practice these ways to adjust your attitude for at least 21 days, you will begin to see changes.
President John F. Kennedy said, “The human mind is our most fundamental resource.” Your mind is a fertile garden that will grow whatever you plant in it. Life is better when you have a good attitude.
Leadership and Success Tips from One of the Greats
Napoleon Hill’s classic book Think and Grow Rich was first published in 1937. As much as things have changed in our world, so much remains the same. Here is Hill’s list of eleven major attributes of leadership.
1. Unwavering courage based upon knowledge of self and of one’s occupation.
2. Self-control (“Self-control sets a mighty example for one’s followers, which the more intelligent will emulate”)
3. A keen sense of justice
4. Definiteness of decision
5. Definiteness of plans- plan your work and work your plan
6. The habit of doing more than paid for- a leader does more than is required of his followers
7. A pleasing personality-no careless person can become a successful leader
8. Sympathy and understanding
9. Mastery of detail
10. Willingness to assume full responsibility
11. Cooperation
Hill goes on to say that leadership by consent and with the sympathy of followers is far more effective than leadership by force. He concludes that “the man who makes these eleven factors the basis of his leadership will find abundant opportunity to lead in any walk of life.”
I have to agree, especially with that last line. Do you?
Having A Vision for Success
Have you ever been given dilating drops at a routine eye exam? Last week, I went for a check-up, got the drops, and stumbled out of the office with distorted vision. For the next few hours, I began to think about people who don’t have clear vision.
In my Public Relations and communications training business, I have worked with eye doctors who had no vision. No, they didn’t have drops to dilate their eyes; they were bright, educated professionals with tunnel vision and closed minds. I have seen graceful and poised dancers and actors who can make all the right moves on stage but can’t seem to step out of their own way. Ever spend leisure time with teachers who know everything? Have you talked to truck drivers who have no sense of direction in life?
Too many of us are stumbling around in mediocrity without a clear picture of success.
Do you have the vision, the right steps, the willingness to learn and the direction to be successful? If you are “stuck”, check out my “25 Success Habits to Master Your Life.” Read one, think about it and live it. In less than a month, your world can significantly change for the better.
The Most Important Communication You’ll Ever Have
The most important communication you will ever have is with yourself. Your “self-talk soundtrack” plays relentlessly in your head 24/7, 365 days a year. It will either make you or break you.
You may be hearing negative self-talk from years ago that cuts your self-confidence and leads you to doubt your skills, talents, and self-worth. Do these sound familiar? “I’m no good at bowling; my brother Joey was always great at bowling.” “Don’t drive downtown, you always get lost, You’re so stupid.” “Everyone is dressed in formal clothes. I should have worn my tailored suit. I’m not as good as they are.”
The messages we hear in our heads are what we come to believe. Positive self-talk leads to “Can-Do” positive attitudes.
Here are 5 Tips to Improving Your Self-Talk:
1-Write a list of 10-20 affirmations and positive things that you can use to replace the negative ones.
2- Be aware of the negative messages and immediately replace them with positive affirmations. Refuse to feed the voice of the Gremlin.
3- Acknowledge (out loud if necessary) that you are hearing the negative thought and you are dismissing your Gremlin. Simply state in a powerful voice: “Thank you but I don’t believe you.” Then focus on something more upbeat.
4-Avoid repeating your negative self-talk in conversations with others. This will only drag you down.
5- Practice for 21 days.That’s how long it takes to form a new habit.
Self-confidence is an “inside job”. So is self-talk. (A book you may want to read is “What to Say When You Talk to Your Self” by Shad Helmstetter, Ph.D.)
Improve Your Communication with Vocal Vitality
Making your words come alive is an integral component of your communication.
Many of you know I was an on-air radio news anchor and reporter for many years. In my college broadcasting classes, my favorite professor taught me that radio is “theater of the mind.” He then showed me and my classmates the importance of using our voices and vocal vitality to capture the essence of our words so we could create mental images for our listeners. After all, on the radio, there are no visuals or body language to fall back on. It’s all in the voice. We had to make our words come alive with vocal vitality. Give it life!
Your ability to use your voice to enhance your overall communication is essential. Even if you’re not on the radio, you probably still have to speak to people on conference calls, voicemail messages, in sales meetings, and for presentations. You don’t have to sound like a blustery game show host to have a vibrant and energetic voice.
A strong voice exudes confidence, authority, integrity, passion and enthusiasm. It builds instant credibility. A weaker sounding voice can diminish all of the above. The actual sound of your voice, which includes the timber, is something you are born with. Even with coaching and training, the true sound of your voice probably won’t change a great deal.
The good news is that you can learn how to improve your delivery and vocal habits and work with what you have. After all, you are the message.
Here are five tips to improve your vocal vitality and delivery:
1. Avoid timidity. If you sound nervous or unsure of yourself, your professional credibility will be diminished. Be sure to drop your voice down when completing a sentence. If your voice goes up at the end of the sentence, you sound as if you’re asking a question, not stating a fact. Be strong and confident.
2. Listen to yourself. For the sole purpose of learning, tape record a few casual conversations in your home and on the phone. Let your answering machine record your conversation. Pay attention to your inflection, pacing, tone of voice and vocal habits. Critiquing yourself can be a real eye-opener.
3. Emphasize important words. By stressing a key word or phrase, you truly drive your point home. Conversely, emphasizing the wrong word can add to confusion for your listener.
4. Take advantage of silences and pauses. These are especially powerful in business and sales. Many people feel uncomfortable with quiet. Silence is critical in sales meetings when you drop the gauntlet and ask your prospect the golden question, “Are you willing to give it a try?” or “Are there any concerns you have that are stopping you from signing the contract and getting started right now?” That moment of silence can make or break the deal.
5. Express passion in your voice. If you sound bored, dull or monotone, the people listening will be bored as well. If you are excited and truly believe in your words and message, you have a great shot at capturing their attention. Enthusiasm is contagious.
The two cornerstones of success are excellent communication skills and self-confidence. Improving your vocal viality will help you to succeed in these areas.
