The Power of Practice!

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It’s through Practice, that people who give presentations can work on their presentation to give maximum impact to their audience. It’s one thing to talk about what you want to speak about, its another thing completely, whether your audience understands the points you are delivering.

Even the most experienced presenters practice their speeches, fine tune their messages, understand the timings of their presentations so their audience really gets the most out of attending and ultimately wants to hear more and wants to do business with the presenter.

So , what is the Process of Practicing a Presentation?

PREPARE – this is where you gather your information, write your presentation, look at your objectives for giving the speech and what your message is. Use stories that are yours , this will help you to remember what goes next. This is where most of your time is spent. The SpeakersTrainingCamp® has a wonderful structure that can really help you to look at every aspect of a presentation.

REHEARSE – you have your presentation ready, now to get your delivery smooth and confident, you need to rehearse a number of times so that you really feel that you know it inside out. Then you can present your speech not relying on notes, you can have them there ,however, it really helps your presentation if you are not glued to your notes and you are looking at your audience.

AUDIENCE
– you are delivering your presentation to inform, inspire and guide your audience. You can make a difference with your presentation – whether it’s an important presentation to an executive committee , a work group or its a social presentation. Your presentation is for your audience.

CONNECTION
– Practicing your presentation will give you the opportunity to maximise your connection with your audience. The more confident your presentation, the more you know your message, the more authentic you are, the more eye contact you have with your audience, the more you know about your audience – the better your connection with your audience and the more you will be successfully able to get your message across.

TIMING – Always ,and I mean , Always respect the timing of your presentation. Know your presentation, and by going through this process you do now, Know how long it takes and suite the timing to what is expected. You may be given 20mins, then , have your presentation going for 20minutes. This point is really important. Speakers that think they can go on for hours instead of minutes loose their audience’s respect as well as credibility. By practicing, you can fine tune the timing and increase your confidence.

IMPROVE – Professional speakers practice and improve their presentations so that they can confidently present their speech and achieve maximum impact. Don’t wing it, practice and Improve then you will get maximum impact from your presentation.

CONSOLIDATE
– Now you have Prepared, REhearsed , thought about your Audience, built a Connection wtih your audience, worked at the Timing, Improved – all these tasks have Consolidated your presentation so that you can really achieve what you would like from your presentation – and that is Impress them!

EXCEL – when you follow this process , you will Excel and do your best. Ok, there’s always areas to work on ,however, by continuing along this path of Continuous Improvement and Practice of your Presentations , you will Excel! this is the Power of Practice.

Consider joining The Speakers Practice – Speakers Forum. Attendees are like-minded Business People who are wanting to promote their businesses by speaking to networking groups, associations ,etc. We discuss presentation skills , present current speeches and get audience feedback on delivery, objectives , on how we understood the message, and so on.

Enjoy your Presentations, Practice your Presentations and appreciate the Power of Practice!!

The Speakers Practice – Presentation Skills workshop for Professionals

What would you get out of  The Speakers Practice – Presentation Skills Workshop for Professionals ?

A fabulous day was spent with Professionals who were keen to work on their presentation skills. The SpeakersTrainingCamp formula is followed – taking rather nervous attendees through a process of developing their presentation skills and building confidence to speak in front of a group.

What did they like most about the workshop?

  1. Helped me to speak naturally and from the heart
  2. very relaxed , comfortable atmosphere bringing out people’s openness
  3. Good to get feedback from everyone in the group
  4. Having a solid structure for a presentation
  5. Gaining confidence via constructive feedback
  6. Practical tips
  7. Safe and supportive people and feedback to get better
  8. Opportunity to practise
  9. Indepth knowledge
  10. Good facility

What were the most important things they learnt?

  • How to structure a presentation
  • being natural when delivering a presentation – speaking from the heart
  • being in control of the situation
  • Good valuable tips
  • The GRABM concept
  • Importance of body language
  • Controlling nerves and the exercises to help with nervousness
  • Importance of posture and breathing
  • Feeling more confident to deliver a message

A testimonial to summarise the day –

“Adrienne opened doors for me that have been closed for a long time. Her course has initiated a process that I can confidently build on helping me personally and with my work in architecture.”

Rob Geoghegar,  Architect

The Speakers Practice – Presentation Skills workshop for Professionals will be available quarterly – check in with The Speakers Practice for the next workshop.

 

                                                                                                                     

Video is the Business Tool for Today for Real Estate Agents

shutterstock_171921824Real Estate Agents need to build a strong bond with their clients to help them sell or purchase a property. Being in a position of helping out with large purchases or sales is a big responsibility.

But how do people who are wanting to buy or sell a property choose an agent?

Real Estate agents are using the benefits of websites to promote properties. Clients like this approach as they can view the properties. So the Agent Profiles are a very big credibility builder and the personalisation to really connect with potential clients the better.

By adding a video to your Agent profile, this allows you to:

  • Introduce yourself
  • Share some details that connect you to your audience
  • Display knowledge of the area and community
  • Talk about market updates

You can build a strong reputation by building a presence on Youtube. This also assists with your Google Ranking.

  • Posting semi-regular video on Youtube
  • Posting worthwhile content
  • personalised video with your personality shining through
  • Using content ideas from your day-to-day Real Estate activities

For your agent profile, it is worth going through the process of creating a personalised, professional video that represents your brand. You can be proud to display on your agent profile. Then, more casual smart phone video can be taken and displayed on Youtube – these could be of your current properties, etc.

What do you need to be aware of when preparing a video –

  1. Connect with the people viewing your video
  2. Your scripting needs to be structured and fast paced.
  3. Catch the viewers attention straight away.
  4. Your whole presentation needs to be engaging
  5. Allow your personality to shine through.
  6. Understanding the video process is essential
  7. Also understanding the marketing of your video will help with the success of building a following.

Learning about the ways to prepare and use video is really important in todays digital world. Have fun and enjoy – it is the way to connect with your potential clients!

For more details on The Speakers Practice – Video Program for Real Estate Agents – see – Presentation and Video Program for Real Estate Agents.

Interview techniques for getting that Job!

photo-1459499362902-55a20553e082Interviewing is one of the most stressful activities imaginable for many people.  It’s a long process – you have to find the right job to apply for, then go through quite a process to get your resume to the key people, get short listed and finally if you’re lucky get onto the interview list. So by the time of the interview , it can be quite emotionally challenging already before setting foot in the interview room. One thing is for sure, by feeling more confident with interviewing skills this will help.

Most people don’t feel confident because they are not adequately prepared.  Here are some easy tips to help you become more prepared and to nail every interview you go to.

1. Research the company

  • What does the company do?  What are their major products and services?
  • Who are their competitors?
  • What opportunities and challenges are ahead of them (and how you can help)?
  • What is the press is saying about them (a quick Google search or search in your local paper can tell you that).
  • What is the “word on the street” about them?
  • What is their financial position?


2. Research the interviewer

  • Do you know someone who works in the company?  Find out what you can about the interviewer and drop little hints throughout the conversation that shows you’ve done your research.
  • Look them up on Linkedin to familiarise yourself with their background.
  • See what Google has to say.
  • Look at their Facebook account (if it’s public).


3. Know how to answer their questions

  • Statistics show that people who “win” interviews take between 30 seconds to 2 minutes to answer a question.  Anything less than 30 seconds is not thorough enough, anything more – you’re waffling – no matter how interesting you might think you are, an interviewer loses attention (and patience) after about 2 minutes.
  • Prepare your answers in advance.  Get a list of Behavioral Based Interviewing questions from the Web (there are loads out there and most interviewers don’t put a lot of thought into their questions so you’ll find 80% of what they will ask you from one of these lists of questions), choose 10 questions that you might ask if you were interviewing you for the role and write out your answers. 
  • It’s very important to write your answers out so you can recite the details comfortably in a stressful situation.
  • It’s also important to answer these questions with real, live examples of what you’ve done in the past and not what you would do.
  • Know your strengths and your weaknesses and don’t try to spin your weaknesses into strengths.  There is nothing worse than drawing a blank to this question.  It’s one of the most common questions asked and being unprepared for it demonstrates a total lack of preparedness.
  • Don’t try to spin your weaknesses into strengths.  Very few people do this well, it’s trite and inauthentic.  After all, everyone has weaknesses, no one is perfect. 


4. Know how to ask your own questions

  • Companies find out as much or more about you by the questions you ask them than by how well you answer theirs.
  • Challenge yourself to ask questions no one else may have thought about.  Business related, thought provoking questions.  Pre prepare based on your research.
  • Ask the interviewer about their background, people love to talk about themselves.  It may also give you insight into the company culture.
  • Determine the qualities you want in a boss and ask them questions about how they would handle situations.  Interviewing is a 2 way conversation.


5. Don’t let nerves get the best of you!

  • Prepare the night before so you know what to wear, where you are going and where your notes are.
  • Make sure you’ve got the name(s) (spelled correctly!) of the people you’re meeting!
  • Show up early!
  • Make sure you ask for a glass of water (don’t bring your own bottle) so that you can stall or pause as you’re structuring your answers!


6. Make a great first impression

  • With a great smile, direct gaze and firm handshake.


7. Follow up

  • Ask for the job (even if you don’t want it, you can always turn it down later!)
  • Send both Email and Snail mail thank you notes.
  • Give detailed feedback to your recruiter including positives, negatives, your interest on a scale of 1 – 10 and how the opportunity compares to any others you may have in the pipeline.
  • Follow up with the company 1 day after they tell you when they will make their decision or take the next step.

Adrienne McLean DTM – SpeakersTrainingCamp International Instructor and the Founder of The Speakers Practice – Adrienne specialises at The Speakers Practice helping clients to confidently deliver presentations for maximum impact. You can contact Adrienne on adrienne@thespeakerspractice.com.au or ring on 0414 367 960.

8 Blogs to follow on Public Speaking

There are many blogs on Public Speaking and Presentation Skills. When developing your skills in this area, you will encounter many teachers who will influence your journey. Here are my favourites who are my teachers, I’ve met or followed on the web. photo-1470145318698-cb03732f5ddf

1. No-Choke Zone Blog… by Sue Gaulke    http://www.successworksusa.com/resources/blog/

Interesting , topical and valuable information on where Presentation Skills can and do have an impact. Expert information on the skills required and approaches that can be used. Worth following! Sue Gaulke is a Presentation Skills expert. Sue is the founder of SuccessWorksUSA and the creator of the SpeakersTrainingCamp presentation skills program – been presented to the US and Internationally for over 30 years. 

2. Manner of Speaking – John Zimmer

John Zimmer goes into detail with speech writing and devices used to create a speech. This is an interesting blog to follow – thought provoking and constructiv advice. See – https://mannerofspeaking.org/author/mannerofspeaking/

3. Darren La CRoix   http://stagetimeuniversity.com/toa

Being a Toastmasters World Champion of Publc SPeaking , Darren has developed skills to create impact with his presentations. Following Darrens blogs and video will help deveop skills in selling as well as promoting and presenting with skill.

4.  Nancy Duarte | www.duarte.com/blog

This blog is all about building communication skills esoecially how creating speeches works and what to do to create impact. Nancy Duarte is a communications expert and influencer.

5.  Patricia Fripp | www.fripp.com/blog

Patrica Fripp is a Presentation Skills coach specialising in sales training – these blogs are business based and discuss presentation skills from the work place needs. Interesting and useful with approaches that can be implemented.

6. Craig Valentine  http://www.craigvalentine.com/blog

Story telling and the way to create a captivating story is Craig Valentines speciality – breaking down how to prepare a speech that works. Interesting tools and advice

7. Lucy Cornell Voice Coach  http://www.voicecoach.net/blog

The use of the voice is important in delivering presentations – Lucy Coornell s a Voice specialit and her blogs are how the voice impacts on presentations. Useful and thought provoking.

8. Steal the Show Podcast – by Michael Port  http://stealtheshow.com/podcast/archive/

Here’s a wealth of information on delivering of presentations – discussions and interviews on every topic around delivering of presentations and public speaking. Michael Port has developed a significant resource on Presentation skills.

To conclude:

Read, listen and watch information on Presentation Skills. It will give you a great background. The secret is though (and its not really a secret) the way to build presentation skills is to go out and do as many presentations as you can. Then, test out and implement some of the advice to discover how to really connect with your audience.

Adrienne McLean DTM – SpeakersTrainingCamp International Instructor and the Founder of The Speakers Practice – Adrienne specialises at The Speakers Practice helping clients to confidently deliver presentations for maximum impact. You can contact Adrienne on adrienne@thespeakerspractice.com.au or ring on 0414 367 960.

Developing Confidence in Public Speaking ( is a Personal Development journey)

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Speaking in front of people can be daunting. No matter what size of group, the nerves start, the negative self-talk is almost shouting at you to stop plus you see all these people looking at you waiting to listen to you.

These’s alot of pressure, what can you do to build your confidence?

1. First, you have to be brave and get out of your comfort zone. Developing Public Speaking skills is an incredible personal development journey – you will keep learning and learning – it is not always easy but the rewards are incredible. Just be brave and take the opportunities that come your way.

2. Start believing in yourself. You CAN DO IT! You need to have POSITIVE SELF TALK and if that negative voice is there push it away and concentrate on the POSITIVE!

3.Keep a track of what you are saying to your self. Watch out when it is going negative and reword what you are saying to build yourself up.

4. Prepare early and know your speech very well. Preparation is really important – if you know your topic, what the message is that you want to convey, have all your equipment working, it all has a big impact on how you present yourself.

5. Nervousness is something we all face , some more than others. If you do get nervous, then preparation is really helpful, practise is also essential. Catching yourself with negative thinking is important. Saying positive, encouraging words to yourself, finding ways to relax before a presentation, taking deep breaths before stepping in front of the group, find a way to manage your nerves – the rewards will be there for you.

6.  Building confidence to speak in front of people means you need to get used to speaking in front of people. Do some training, join a group you are interested in and participate. Get  practise, participate as much as you can, this really helps with getting you feel comfortable in front of a group.

7. You need to go and give your presentations. Find places where you can practise. In the work place, get comfortable with short presentations in front of managers, staff and clients. Community groups, P and C, Rotary or Lions Club. Work on a topic you are interested in and find venues to present this – it could help the community – become an expert in your field of interest.

8. After you have given your speech, no matter how big or small, CONGRATULATE yourself. Always keep in mind how far you have come, how well you did and how many people you spoke in front of. That will be an amazing boost to your confidence to speak in front of people.

Good luck, as you get used to speaking in front of an audience, eventually you will enjoy the experience and be the confident person you want to be.

Adrienne McLean DTM – SpeakersTrainingCamp International Instructor and the Founder of The Speakers Practice – Adrienne specialises at The Speakers Practice helping clients to confidently deliver presentations for maximum impact. You can contact Adrienne on adrienne@thespeakerspractice.com.au or ring on 0414 367 960.