Archive for the 'Presentation Skills' Category

Individual Coaching Offer

Special Offer
Individual Coaching

Have you been considering polishing your presentation skills? But maybe your company doesn’t offer it right now, and you fear that hiring individual coaching on your own will be too expensive.

Effective presentation skills are more important than ever in today’s tough economy.  Whether you’re selling a product, a service or yourself, you want to come across confidently and credibly.

So I’m making a recession-busting offer on individual coaching in presentation skills.  I have revamped my pricing structure so any individual can afford to improve their presence. Normally a $1,000 to $1,500 value in the corporate marketplace, I’ve restructured my offering so that I can convert my fee to an hourly charge, and my rate is no different than a lot of counselors, accountants—even plumbers!

For $100 an hour (there is a $250 minimum + plus the materials charge, below), you can receive specific, customized coaching on your skills, learning where you rock and how you can get even better.

You will receive my Compelling Speaker audio CD/notebook set, plus my Compelling Speaker Audio CDsbook Stand Out When You Stand Up.  That’s a $50 value that I’ll discount to $35. You will use these materials to prepare for our session. Then we’ll get together and fine tune your delivery skills, your content and even your PowerPoint slides.  You can choose how much time you want to spend, but the average coaching time is between two and four hours. By the way, some of this coaching can be done remotely if you want me to tweak your content or PowerPoint.  And I’m also experimenting with “virtual coaching.”  If you’re not located in Charlotte but have a video of yourself making a presentation, I can offer some critiquing of that. Of course, real time coaching is the most valuable.  I do videotaping and offer extensive feedback and coaching on your skills with actionable tips to help you get even better. You will walk away with improved competence and confidence!

Here’s what some people have said about my coaching:

“Barbara Busey understands what it takes to give a Dynamic Presentation.  As a personal coach, she assisted me with my presentation delivery, increased my level of confidence and worked with me on how to immediately create a “hook.”  Barbara’s coaching style is really as easy as reciting the alphabet as outlined in her phenomenal book, Stand Out When You Stand Up.”

“Barbara has a gift of not only her skill, but her heart that shines through. She cares about helping you improve so you can add value to others.”

“Barbara is wonderful! She offered constructive ideas on how I could improve.”

“Barbara is a great coach. Patient, knowledgeable, funny and gave me a sound critique for improvement.”

Please contact me for more information and to schedule your Charlotte-area session.  Or, let’s talk about “virtual coaching”!

704-527-8210

bbusey@presentationdynamics.net

Published on Wednesday February 10, 2010 in Presentation Skills and Uncategorized. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , .

Don’t be in the Dark

Recently I was the speaker for a large group in a Convention Center break-out room. When I arrived early to check everything out, the room was dark. Not because no one was in it — no, there were probably a couple hundred people there listening to a speaker. But they were sitting in the dusk. And the speaker was virtually in the dark at the front of the room. Now, the screen, oh yes, you could see the screen…

When that session broke up and I began my set-up, I asked several different people what could be done about the lighting. Every single one of them responded to me by saying, “The lights are turned down so the audience can see the screen.”

Aaugh! Let me pose this to you:

You’re an expert on something. You’ve been invited to speak to a group of hundreds of people about your expertise. It’s an opportunity for exposure, for credibility-building, for connecting with and relating to people about your subject matter. Given that, what’s more important? That your audience be able to see your PowerPoint slides? Or that they see you?

If you had no PowerPoint slides to show, would you stand in the front of a room in the dark?  When you’re sitting in an audience looking at these bright visuals on the screen, can you see the speaker at all, who often is simply silhouetted against the bright screen? When you attend an event or a program or a convention session, do you go because you can’t wait to see the PowerPoint slides?  Have you ever heard audience members exclaim before a presentation, “Man, I can’t wait to see this speaker’s visuals!”  Or afterwards, have you ever heard any of them say, “Wow, weren’t those PowerPoint slides really worth the time?”

No, no, no, no and no.  So why do speakers and venues do it in the dark?

One of my continuous refrains in my training business is, as a speaker you want the focus on you. So what if the screen is not quite as bright as it could be in a dark room? Trust me, with today’s bright lumen projectors, most screens are very visible in room with normal lighting. If you have good visuals (that’s another topic for another day!), you don’t need to turn the lights off or even down low. Your only concern is to make sure there are no spots or other lighting shining directly on the screen. If you’re speaking in a small- to medium-sized conference room, classroom or auditorium, you can probably take care of this yourself with a few tests of the light switches. In a larger facility that specializes in hosting speaking events, the staff should be able to work with you on this.

Other than the obvious difficulty created when lights shine right on the screen, I’ve never seen a problem with keeping normal lighting in the room. Remember, the objective is for the audience to see you.  And, don’t forget, it helps for you can see the audience.

Ironically, at this convention I was at recently, after I had to ask three or four people how I could get the lighting changed, my conference host ended up having to pay a convention employee to do it! That, of course, should not have been necessary. For a speaker to be in the light should not be an extra charge!

Published on Tuesday September 22, 2009 in Presentation Skills and Visual Aids. 0 Comments Tags: , .

My Book Wins Award and Publishing Contract

A few years ago, I decided to self-publish my book, Stand Out When You Stand Up.  There is still somewhat of a stigma about it out there in the publishing world — like it’s not a “real” book.  But the reality is that it’s extremely difficult to get a publisher to take on a first-time author.  Self-publishing is a great way to get your book “out there” and to see what the market thinks.

I’ve been blessed to receive all the validations an author yearns for: One is when someone else “legitimate” gives accolades and recognition of the quality of your work.  And this year, my book won an Eric Hoffer Award,   First Runner-up in the Business Category!

Another validation is when a publisher sees its values and chooses to option it. And that has just happened for me! A publishing house called InterPub Group is taking on marketing and distribution efforts and has been granted exclusive, worldwide rights for publication of the next edition. Read more about these two great events here.

The final validation, of course, is how much it sells and what readers think about it. And I am honored every day by the sale of my book and the feedback I receive from it.  Here’s one of my latest testimonials, from Angela, an arbitrator and mediator in Canada:

Barbara – what a fantastic book! You have so many good ideas and suggestions in there that it will definitely have a special spot in my reference collection.  I had many “uh huh” and “ahh” moments while reading it. I especially liked your discussion and examples about “the hook.”  And I really liked your ideas on humanizing – some of them I incorporate, but the way you explain the use of anecdotes, stories and analogies is a key for me. In addition, your information on “resting places” was very helpful for me – and the differences about being symmetrical and asymmetrical while standing vs. sitting was something I had never heard about – really helpful!

Lastly, I must tell you that I thought your A – Z format was brilliant. I thought the book, based on the title, might be more like a long set of discrete tips, but the content in this format had incredible flow and connection, was very comprehensive, and yet at the same time, it will act as a neat reference guide if I have to look up something quick. I wanted you to know how much I truly enjoyed your book and the sharing of your knowledge – you have a real gift, Barbara! Thank you, Thank you, Thank you!

My thanks to all my readers and clients!

Published on Friday September 18, 2009 in Presentation Skills and Products. 0 Comments Tags: , , , .

Improve Your Presence

Standing out is a function of your presence. The best definition I ever found for that word came from a book about the ancient and universal wisdoms of our world’s indigenous peoples. Ancient tribal beliefs recognized three universal powers essential to a “leader”:
The Power of Communication
The Power of Position
The Power of Presence

In this context, “presence” is defined as:

  • choosing to be present and visible
  • showing up energetically
  • bringing all four intelligences forward: 
mental, spiritual, physical, and emotional

I can’t do anything about your mental intelligence, and your spiritual intelligence is your own personal journey. But your physical and emotional intelligence are definitely improvable. And improving them will help you stand out among the crowd, making it more likely you’ll get that job, earn that promotion, grow your business-that you’ll be more successful in both your professional and personal life.

Let’s start with some definitions.
Physical presence is everything about your appearance: your posture, facial expressions, hairstyle and grooming, clothing choices, gestures, physique, and vocal qualities.

Emotional presence is how you handle yourself and others. It includes everything from your social graces, presentation power, and people skills and to your teamwork, dining manners, and tech etiquette.

These are the kinds of things I cover in my monthly newsletter Stand Out Strategies (sign up for the newsletter on this web site). In this inaugural article, I’ve chosen something from the definition of presence above: “showing up energetically.” Energy, or enthusiasm, is a powerful attribute of presence. We generally don’t look to shy, reserved, “wallflower” types for leadership and guidance. People’s enthusiasm about their company, their products, their service, and themselves is contagious. Their presence is powerful, motivating, inspiring.

It’s worthwhile to note that credibility—or believability—includes three elements:
Competence—your knowledge, experience, expertise
Trustworthiness—your honesty and reliability
Dynamism—your enthusiasm and passion.

Keep in mind that you may possess the knowledge and be scrupulously honest, but if you don’t possess that third element, dynamism, people may not perceive you as credible.

So showing enthusiasm is crucial. It reflects on your credibility and impacts your presence. There are countless ways to convey energy—how you speak, how you move, how you carry yourself. Those are some of the topics I’ll cover in SOS. For now, just recognize its importance. Monitor yourself in all your interactions to see if you project “good energy.”

Published on Monday June 22, 2009 in Business Etiquette, Communication Skills and Presentation Skills. 0 Comments

What’s Attire Got to Do With it?

No matter how important the content of your presentation is, it’s meaningless if your delivery is not engaging and compelling. Research has confirmed that 93 percent of your communication impact comes from how you look and sound, which is what your delivery is all about. I have captured the seven key delivery skills a speaker should master with the acronym S.P.E.A.K.E.R.

Smile

Posture

Eye Communication

Appearance

Kinesics

Expressive Vocals

Resting Places for Your Hands

This article is about the A for “Appearance.”

When you’re in front of a room, does your appearance command attention, give you credibility, imbue you with power? Or is it weak, sloppy, uncertain? How you appear to your audience has an impact on your believability and how receptive they’ll be to your message. And while most of the other points in my SPEAKER acronym also deal with some aspect of appearance, I created this category to deal with two very specific subsets of your appearance: attire and distracting mannerisms. The focus of this article is on Attire.

Looking good. In today’s business casual world, the traditional business suit is far less common than it used to be. But just because business casual has become the predominant dress code, it doesn’t mean you shouldn’t strive to look your best.

When you’re standing in front of a group, with several sets of eyes focused on you, it’s not the time to wear the pants that are a little snug, the panty hose with a run in it, or the shoes that are scuffed. At the very least, your garments should be clean, pressed and well-fitting. Don’t choose an outfit based on what looks good, but rather on what makes you look good.

Fabric choices. To stay cool, literally, don’t wear heavy material and make sure you wear a fabric that breathes. Polyesters and other man-made fabrics don’t breathe and will make you sweat all the more. Stick with natural fabrics: cotton, wool, silk.

Appropriateness. Consider what’s appropriate for the audience and the occasion. What’s fitting to a board of directors is not the same as what’s suitable to a group of construction workers in jeans and flannel shirts. Remember that a jacket is the great equalizer: take it off if you feel over-dressed; throw one on if you need to upgrade your look.

Remember this great business casual guideline: the more skin that’s exposed, the more casual the look. Therefore, a sleeveless top is more casual than short sleeves, and short sleeves are more casual than long sleeves. A short skirt is more casual than a long one. Sandals are more casual than shoes. Even in your casual attire wardrobe, you can still make choices that are more professional than others.

Color. While black or navy is often considered a “power color,” the fact is many of us don’t look good in those colors. If you choose a color that’s complimentary to your skin tone, hair and eye color (either warm tones or cool tones), you’ll find that you’ll look better. Poor color choices can either wash you out or literally clash with your coloring, which will not enhance your appearance in front of a group.

Keep in mind that whenever you wear two contrasting colors, such as dark pants with a light shirt, you are essentially cutting yourself in half. This creates the illusion of a shorter, wider figure. If you want to cut a taller, more slender figure, then choose the monochrome look, a top that matches the pants or skirt in color.

If your clothing choices make you look good, then you’ll feel good. And if you feel good, you’ll perform well. And audiences will love you.



Published on Thursday April 2, 2009 in Delivery and Presentation Skills. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , .