You’re preparing to give a presentation to a group of your peers. As the time draws closer you notice your heart is beating twice as fast and your palms are getting sweaty. Your mind is plagued by thoughts of how this is going to go wrong. You tell yourself that your colleagues don’t even care what you're about to say, they’ll be bored of you after the first 30 seconds and all be playing with their phones by the time you reach your conclusion.
A polite round of applause welcomes you to the front of the room. You feel a small bead of sweat trickle down from your brow and you stutter in your first sentence. A polite cough echoes around the eerily silent room. The computer has frozen and isn’t moving onto the next slide. Make a joke about it? Pretend like you don’t need the power point you worked so hard on? People shuffle in their seats, growing impatient as the temperamental soul that is technology brings your whole presentation to a halt.
Panic overwhelms you. You’ve lost sight of where you were and frantically look through your notes that now seem like a language unknown. You start to rush your words, desperate for the ordeal to be over. You care no longer whether your presentation makes sense or conveys the point you intended. You conclude your message half heartedly and the same polite applause accompanies you back to your chair. You sink back, wishing you would fall straight through the chair, the floor and into a place where presentations were not a part of your job.
Any of that sound familiar?
Dale Carnegie work with thousands of individuals who have felt the same worries, anxieties and doubt over their public speaking as you do and seek to develop those skills to ensure they no longer need panic when in front of a crowd. We can work with you to make sure you engage your audience, use positive tone and body language and provide you with confidence that once you’ve finished your presentation, you can sit down knowing the message you wanted to put across, has been received.
We will be running a complimentary preview to one of our Presentations development programmes (High Impact Presentations) on Thursday 10th May. For more information give us a call on 0207 379 4323.
Brett Mills
Showing posts with label public speaking. Show all posts
Showing posts with label public speaking. Show all posts
Monday, 23 April 2012
Wednesday, 18 April 2012
Stand by your Principles
At the heart of everything we do as an organisation is Dale Carnegie’s thirty human relations principles. These principles have been with the organisation for many years and the Dale Carnegie itself is celebrating its Centenary in October of this year.
Below is a list of the first 9 principles which covers the foundations of becoming a friendlier person.
Don't criticize, condemn, or complain.
Give honest and sincere appreciation.
Arouse in the other person an eager want.
Become genuinely interested in other people.
Smile.
Remember that a person's name is, to that person, the sweetest and most important sound in any language.
Be a good listener. Encourage others to talk about themselves.
Talk in terms of the other person's interest.
Make the other person feel important – and do it sincerely.
At first glance you may think to yourself that these prinicples are common knowledge. This is true, however they are not common practice.
Look at the list and again and really ask yourself:
How many of these principles am I actually applying?
How often do I apply them?
Which ones do I find really challenging and why?
If these priniciples and questions resonate with you I would encourage you to attend the opening session of our Skills for Success course on the 8th May for free.
You can register for this event by getting in touch with any of our consultants on 0207 379 4323
Amar Garcha
Below is a list of the first 9 principles which covers the foundations of becoming a friendlier person.
Don't criticize, condemn, or complain.
Give honest and sincere appreciation.
Arouse in the other person an eager want.
Become genuinely interested in other people.
Smile.
Remember that a person's name is, to that person, the sweetest and most important sound in any language.
Be a good listener. Encourage others to talk about themselves.
Talk in terms of the other person's interest.
Make the other person feel important – and do it sincerely.
At first glance you may think to yourself that these prinicples are common knowledge. This is true, however they are not common practice.
Look at the list and again and really ask yourself:
How many of these principles am I actually applying?
How often do I apply them?
Which ones do I find really challenging and why?
If these priniciples and questions resonate with you I would encourage you to attend the opening session of our Skills for Success course on the 8th May for free.
You can register for this event by getting in touch with any of our consultants on 0207 379 4323
Amar Garcha
Monday, 26 March 2012
Practice makes Permanent
Only three days to go and I am starting to get nervous. I am about to co-host a 2 hour workshop this Thursday and I am finding difficult to focus on anything else. Public speaking played a big part in a previous role and all I can remember is that I loved it. I managed a large sales team and was responsible for motivating them daily. I also had opportunities to speak at large national conferences and lived for it. I actually couldn’t remember what it was like the first time I stood up in front of my team or when I spoke to a large audience. Was I nervous? Was I any good?
Our flagship programme, the Dale Carnegie Course has five key drivers and these are developed over a period of time through, facilitation, practice and coaching. Another medium that is used to develop some of these skills is public speaking. I have spoken to many people over the last 18 months for whom confidence was a fundamental challenge that needed to be overcome. I have assured many people that it is natural to feel nerves when speaking in public. I have advised my clients that everyone gets butterflies, even the most polished presenters. It’s just a matter of turning that into excitement and using it in your favour. I believe there are only two instances where you would not feel nerves before presenting. One is if you don’t care about what you are presenting and the second is if you don’t care about the audience.
I have realized however that it is very easy to fall back into my comfort zone. It has been a while since I last presented and the nerves have kicked in big time. I guess it’s time for me to take my own advice and try to make it work for me. I know the only way for me to become a better presenter is to practice and practice.
If you would like to attend some of our free seminars and course previews and find out how we have supported individual’s, teams and companies to over come challenges and get better results then please follow the link below.
FREE SEMINARS AND PREVIEWS
Hopefully, I’ll be presenting at one of these events.
Have a great week,
Amar
Our flagship programme, the Dale Carnegie Course has five key drivers and these are developed over a period of time through, facilitation, practice and coaching. Another medium that is used to develop some of these skills is public speaking. I have spoken to many people over the last 18 months for whom confidence was a fundamental challenge that needed to be overcome. I have assured many people that it is natural to feel nerves when speaking in public. I have advised my clients that everyone gets butterflies, even the most polished presenters. It’s just a matter of turning that into excitement and using it in your favour. I believe there are only two instances where you would not feel nerves before presenting. One is if you don’t care about what you are presenting and the second is if you don’t care about the audience.
I have realized however that it is very easy to fall back into my comfort zone. It has been a while since I last presented and the nerves have kicked in big time. I guess it’s time for me to take my own advice and try to make it work for me. I know the only way for me to become a better presenter is to practice and practice.
If you would like to attend some of our free seminars and course previews and find out how we have supported individual’s, teams and companies to over come challenges and get better results then please follow the link below.
FREE SEMINARS AND PREVIEWS
Hopefully, I’ll be presenting at one of these events.
Have a great week,
Amar
Monday, 12 March 2012
Overcoming Self Built Barriers
I am sitting in a room full of professionals, all experienced in their fields and all investing in the development of fundamental interpersonal skills. It is the first session of the Dale Carnegie Course and our coach Charlotte is encouraging us all to mingle, meet and greet. During these few minutes, I ask people what are their expectations of the course and the response is mixed. Some are anticipative, some are rather nervous and of course there are a few skeptics.
Once we had all sat down, Charlotte ran through the introduction of today’s session and out of nowhere, picked on me first! This didn’t surprise me, being the only one sitting on a front row of eight seats. I casually took the few steps needed to stand at the front and face my newly found class mates when tunnel vision set in. This is what happens to me when I am asked to present in front of a group. This is a real bug bearer for me as I am a confident girl and I know that even the worst outcome of this situation is not really one I need worry about, it’s hardly life or death. As it turns out all I had to do was introduce myself to the group and whilst doing so, emphasize both my first and last name. This I did with ease, still feeling a little red faced but already starting to feel more comfortable. I watched everyone else do the same and we were then asked to note down the first and last names of our class mates. When asked to see how many we could remember, I shamefully could only rattle off four names.
After a little more coaching on memory techniques, we were given another challenge. I was now feeling way out of my comfort zone as it was different and definitely unusual challenge.
‘Tell us your name through imagery, using your physical body to create these images, and then present this as expressively as you can to your class mates.’
Ok, let’s throw myself into this I thought, this is a great opportunity, it would be a shame if I played shy and didn’t push myself. The challenge was hilarious; the class was divided into groups of fours so we could help each other and feedback the effectiveness of ideas. When presenting our name, I was first after the lovely Charlotte. Tunnel vision set in once again, but this time the ‘silliness’ of the situation evoked so much laughter from everyone that I instantly felt more comfortable. By the end of my turn, tunnel vision had left me and I was absolutely chuffed with this mini break through. After all had presented their names using that technique, we were asked how many we remembered. I remembered everyone’s.
For the first time ever, I had presented my ideas to a group of people I believed were all more experienced than me, and when finished, I had a smile on my face and my palms were perspiration free.
Session 1- My classmates and I learnt to have an open mind with regards to the effectiveness of less conventional activities, and not to be afraid to be creative.
Michaela Foden
Once we had all sat down, Charlotte ran through the introduction of today’s session and out of nowhere, picked on me first! This didn’t surprise me, being the only one sitting on a front row of eight seats. I casually took the few steps needed to stand at the front and face my newly found class mates when tunnel vision set in. This is what happens to me when I am asked to present in front of a group. This is a real bug bearer for me as I am a confident girl and I know that even the worst outcome of this situation is not really one I need worry about, it’s hardly life or death. As it turns out all I had to do was introduce myself to the group and whilst doing so, emphasize both my first and last name. This I did with ease, still feeling a little red faced but already starting to feel more comfortable. I watched everyone else do the same and we were then asked to note down the first and last names of our class mates. When asked to see how many we could remember, I shamefully could only rattle off four names.
After a little more coaching on memory techniques, we were given another challenge. I was now feeling way out of my comfort zone as it was different and definitely unusual challenge.
‘Tell us your name through imagery, using your physical body to create these images, and then present this as expressively as you can to your class mates.’
Ok, let’s throw myself into this I thought, this is a great opportunity, it would be a shame if I played shy and didn’t push myself. The challenge was hilarious; the class was divided into groups of fours so we could help each other and feedback the effectiveness of ideas. When presenting our name, I was first after the lovely Charlotte. Tunnel vision set in once again, but this time the ‘silliness’ of the situation evoked so much laughter from everyone that I instantly felt more comfortable. By the end of my turn, tunnel vision had left me and I was absolutely chuffed with this mini break through. After all had presented their names using that technique, we were asked how many we remembered. I remembered everyone’s.
For the first time ever, I had presented my ideas to a group of people I believed were all more experienced than me, and when finished, I had a smile on my face and my palms were perspiration free.
Session 1- My classmates and I learnt to have an open mind with regards to the effectiveness of less conventional activities, and not to be afraid to be creative.
Michaela Foden
Friday, 20 January 2012
Can a lack of communication be the difference between life and death?
I was shocked about the news this week regarding the Costa Concordia crashing into rocks off Giglio Porto and subsequently sinking. This has resulted in the death of at least 11 people with another 24 still missing. A sad loss of life’s that simply should have been avoided.
In the aftermath, Captain Francesco Schettino has been arrested on suspicion of multiple manslaughter with some reports suggested that he was amongst the first to leave the ship after the crash.
As some of this is unsubstantiated at this moment in time I will refrain from passing my own judgment on the man.
However, recently video footage has been released in which a female crew member is urging passengers to return to their cabins. Passengers were also told that the problem was electrical and confined to the ships generator. Apparently, the footage comes from the period after the ship hit the reef. In another audio tape aired yesterday a crew member is heard describing the situation to a port authority official as a blackout.
Wherever the truth lies regarding what actually happened in the time before and after the crash, I can clearly tell that there was a distinct lack of communication from the crew to the passengers as well as to the port officials.
I work for an organisation that appreciates the importance of communication, whether that is internal to your peers and bosses or external to other stakeholders and clients. We have spent the best part of a century coaching and training people in this area, who are looking to gain credibility, increase team member engagement or simply to develop their own careers.
I love the work I do, so much so that I about to undergo my training to become a trainer / coach for the company and so will be dedicating my life to improving the communication skills (amongst other key soft skill areas) of individuals, teams and companies in the years to come.
I understand that in the current tough economic climate a lack of communication has a massive impact on the ability of an organisation to thrive or survive.
However, after reflecting on the aforementioned events it really saddens me to think that many innocent lives were snatched away under these circumstances.
My thoughts are with everyone that lost their life, the people still missing and all their respective friends and family.
A lack of communication can really be the difference between life and death.
Amar Garcha
Friday, 30 December 2011
Christmas Wish
Did you get your Christmas wish this year?
Ok, how about your ideal Christmas gift? A quick search on ebay using the term “unwanted Christmas gifts” returns 1018 items. A search under “unwanted gifts” returns more than double!
Personally, I am keener to give gifts than receive. However, I do accept any gifts with open arms. So if anyone feels that they want to get me an ipad 2 after reading this, please do not let me stop you.
All jokes aside I want to share a couple of things about two people I admire. These two people have worked very hard and smart to get to where they are.
The first is one of my mentor’s, who just the other day mentioned that he was sitting with his fiancé looking at their respective and collective 2011 to do list. Marking off all the things that have been achieved and getting ready for the things that need to be achieved in 2012. He is always clear on want he wants to achieve in the business and personally. In fact he could describe a 3 year plan for the business “off the cuff” because he has spends so much time and energy on it.
I am sure you have been told that writing down goals makes them more real. Let me explain why I believe this is the case. By writing down your goals, instead of having a vague idea of what you need you force yourself to be more specific. Secondly, if you look at your goals on a regularly basis, you will be continuously reminded of what you should be focusing on each day.
The second is my best friend (sister and another one of my mentors). She has done really well for herself. She always has goals for the short term, mid term and long term. In fact, I am sure if you were to bump into her today you will find that she carries a notepad with all these respective goals written down. A few years back she wrote a five-year plan on where she wants to be. She then went about trying to connect with people that are doing the very thing she would like to do. Emails, phone calls, whatever it took to get some time with these people to find out how they got there and what they like, dislike about what they do. By doing this she created a clear path that she knew (provided she was willing to work extremely hard) would get her to where she wants, nay, needs to be.
Both of these people are a massive positive influence in my life, so much so that I have made out my game plan for 2012. As opposed to a list I have written my vision in a document which details all the things I want to achieve both professional and personally over the course of the next year. I have also ensured that I used positive and powerful language in the document. I also talk about my feelings on reaching my goals, so it is written in the present tense.
It will not cost you anything to do this. Spend some time leading up to 2012 thinking about everything thing you want to achieve then articulate this in the form of a vision. I recommended you keep somewhere you can see it regularly, whether that is by your desk or by your bed side so that it is the first and last thing you see everyday.
I will leave you with a couple of quotes.....
Robert Collier
Imagination gives you the picture. Vision gives you the impulse to make the picture your own.
Peter Marshall
Give to us clear vision that we may know where to stand and what to stand for - because unless we stand for something, we shall fall for anything.
HAPPY NEW YEAR!
Amar Garcha
Ok, how about your ideal Christmas gift? A quick search on ebay using the term “unwanted Christmas gifts” returns 1018 items. A search under “unwanted gifts” returns more than double!
Personally, I am keener to give gifts than receive. However, I do accept any gifts with open arms. So if anyone feels that they want to get me an ipad 2 after reading this, please do not let me stop you.
All jokes aside I want to share a couple of things about two people I admire. These two people have worked very hard and smart to get to where they are.
The first is one of my mentor’s, who just the other day mentioned that he was sitting with his fiancé looking at their respective and collective 2011 to do list. Marking off all the things that have been achieved and getting ready for the things that need to be achieved in 2012. He is always clear on want he wants to achieve in the business and personally. In fact he could describe a 3 year plan for the business “off the cuff” because he has spends so much time and energy on it.
I am sure you have been told that writing down goals makes them more real. Let me explain why I believe this is the case. By writing down your goals, instead of having a vague idea of what you need you force yourself to be more specific. Secondly, if you look at your goals on a regularly basis, you will be continuously reminded of what you should be focusing on each day.
The second is my best friend (sister and another one of my mentors). She has done really well for herself. She always has goals for the short term, mid term and long term. In fact, I am sure if you were to bump into her today you will find that she carries a notepad with all these respective goals written down. A few years back she wrote a five-year plan on where she wants to be. She then went about trying to connect with people that are doing the very thing she would like to do. Emails, phone calls, whatever it took to get some time with these people to find out how they got there and what they like, dislike about what they do. By doing this she created a clear path that she knew (provided she was willing to work extremely hard) would get her to where she wants, nay, needs to be.
Both of these people are a massive positive influence in my life, so much so that I have made out my game plan for 2012. As opposed to a list I have written my vision in a document which details all the things I want to achieve both professional and personally over the course of the next year. I have also ensured that I used positive and powerful language in the document. I also talk about my feelings on reaching my goals, so it is written in the present tense.
It will not cost you anything to do this. Spend some time leading up to 2012 thinking about everything thing you want to achieve then articulate this in the form of a vision. I recommended you keep somewhere you can see it regularly, whether that is by your desk or by your bed side so that it is the first and last thing you see everyday.
I will leave you with a couple of quotes.....
Robert Collier
Imagination gives you the picture. Vision gives you the impulse to make the picture your own.
Peter Marshall
Give to us clear vision that we may know where to stand and what to stand for - because unless we stand for something, we shall fall for anything.
HAPPY NEW YEAR!
Amar Garcha
Friday, 22 October 2010
The few who do are the envy of the many who only watch
What a week in the world of football. As a Manchester United fan and like many of the Red Devils, I was shell shocked by the revelations made by the club regarding the imminent departure of Wayne Rooney. There have been many stories plastered in the papers, uploaded on to websites as well as the extensive coverage on television and radio whilst this saga unfolds.
However, I would like to shift focus altogether on to Sir Alex Ferguson. Arguably the greatest manager in English football history. I believe he has achieved his success not only because of his managerial and coaching ability but also through the use of key principles.
Many players have left United in the past, such as Cristiano Ronaldo, David Beckham and countless others and not once in all of Sir Alex's reign has he criticized, condemned or complained. Even when the Glazers took over the club and placed a huge debt over its head, he simply got on with his job. Sir Alex has also developed raw potential into world class talent and achieved this through honest and sincere appreciation of his players. Many of his players have talked of his continual support and how they see him as a father figure. He has the ability to create a winning team, but more importantly has been able to keep them hungry for more by arousing an eager want for success within his team. He always makes other people (namely his players) feel important.
With Rooney, Sir Alex has shared that he is a special player and the door is always open to him. Rooney has since closed the door and thankfully for United fans he will stay at the Theatre of Dreams after agreeing a new contract with the club.
These are just some of the fundamentals Sir Alex has applied in order to become and then remain successful. These principles are inherent in highly successful people. Just take a moment and think about what has been achieved by Richard Branson and Warren Buffet. Now, consider other high achievers you know; friends, a teacher, colleagues or your local businessmen and women, who have gained phenomenal success and you will see they also apply these simple and effective principles.
These qualities are not reserved for the gifted few. Anyone can gain the same success, by applying the proven techniques described by Dale Carnegie in his book How to Win Friends and Influence People.
If you aspire to the successes of people such as Warren Buffet then follow his lead and enrol on the Effective Communications and Human Relations programme which is based on the aforementioned book.
Not convinced?
Then come along to the free preview of the programme on November 4th and see for yourself. Click here to register
Amar Garcha
Sales Consultant
www.London.dalecarnegie.com
However, I would like to shift focus altogether on to Sir Alex Ferguson. Arguably the greatest manager in English football history. I believe he has achieved his success not only because of his managerial and coaching ability but also through the use of key principles.
Many players have left United in the past, such as Cristiano Ronaldo, David Beckham and countless others and not once in all of Sir Alex's reign has he criticized, condemned or complained. Even when the Glazers took over the club and placed a huge debt over its head, he simply got on with his job. Sir Alex has also developed raw potential into world class talent and achieved this through honest and sincere appreciation of his players. Many of his players have talked of his continual support and how they see him as a father figure. He has the ability to create a winning team, but more importantly has been able to keep them hungry for more by arousing an eager want for success within his team. He always makes other people (namely his players) feel important.
With Rooney, Sir Alex has shared that he is a special player and the door is always open to him. Rooney has since closed the door and thankfully for United fans he will stay at the Theatre of Dreams after agreeing a new contract with the club.
These are just some of the fundamentals Sir Alex has applied in order to become and then remain successful. These principles are inherent in highly successful people. Just take a moment and think about what has been achieved by Richard Branson and Warren Buffet. Now, consider other high achievers you know; friends, a teacher, colleagues or your local businessmen and women, who have gained phenomenal success and you will see they also apply these simple and effective principles.
These qualities are not reserved for the gifted few. Anyone can gain the same success, by applying the proven techniques described by Dale Carnegie in his book How to Win Friends and Influence People. If you aspire to the successes of people such as Warren Buffet then follow his lead and enrol on the Effective Communications and Human Relations programme which is based on the aforementioned book.
Not convinced?
Then come along to the free preview of the programme on November 4th and see for yourself. Click here to register
Amar Garcha
Sales Consultant
www.London.dalecarnegie.com
Wednesday, 22 July 2009
Public Speaking
I was watching American Gangster with Russell Crowe and Denzel Washington at the weekend. For those of you who haven’t watched the movie, it’s based on a true story and it’s about someone who, against all odds, establishes himself as the number one importer of drugs in America.
Russell Crowe plays a police officer who’s taking adult classes to get rid of his public speaking fear. He says: “You know the number one fear of most people isn’t dying; it’s public speaking. They get physically ill”. Fascinating, isn’t it?
In the short space of time I’ve worked for Dale Carnegie, I have found variations of this fear that a lot of people have. Some are nervous throughout their presentation and calm when it gets to the Q&A part. For some it’s the opposite, they are totally comfortable until the end…and then it starts…the fear of being asked something they might not know the answer to.
Don’t get me wrong, I’ve learned that it’s good to be nervous when presenting; it shows you respect your audience and you care about the outcome.
So whether you join an Association, Club Talk organisation or take one of our courses, if you want to get better at public speaking, TAKE ACTION TODAY!
Corina Balaneanu
Sales Consultant
www.London.Dalecarnegie.com
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