19 Feb Creating Conversation at Conferences
One of your goals when attending conferences is meeting and connecting with other attendees.
Building relationships starts with a conversation. Many of my clients are not entirely comfortable striking up conversations with strangers. I am often asked, “What do I say?” I work with clients to create conversations based on the Three Ws.
1st: Where are you? Think about where you are physically.
2nd; What do you have in common with the person? What do you share with this stranger?
3rd: What do you say? The first two W’s will help you with what to say.
Here’s an example:
You are attending a conference out of state, and you are at a meet-and-greet event.
1st: Where are you? 1. At the Conference, in a new setting (hotel, state, city), 2. At an event (dinner, lunch, cocktail hour, or session).
2nd: What do you have in common? 1. The conference, 2. Everyone travels to the event; 3. You all have a job related to the industry; 4. You are all enjoying food and drink.
3rd: What do you say? 1. “What sessions have you attended?” 2. “Where are you from?” 3. “What company are you with/what do you do?” 4. “Have you attended this conference in the past?” 5. “They have some food; have you tried anything yet?”
Remember, the intent is more important than the content when creating a conversation with a stranger. It’s more important that you start a conversation. We need to start conversations with basic questions that anyone can answer.
24 Sep Simple & Effective PowerPoint Strategies for Non-Technical Listeners
When presenting to non-technical listeners, remember that your PowerPoint slides should clarify and emphasize your key business points. As a presenter, you may think all the information on the slide is important, but do your listeners need to understand it? Avoid overcrowding them with text and complex charts. Remember, your listeners should be listening, rather than reading your slides.
Here are four tips:
- Identify the main takeaway for each slide.
- Remove any unnecessary information.
- Add value by conveying information not shown on the slide.
- Ensure every slide is essential.
27 Feb Conference Presenting: Back to Basics
It’s that time of the year when organizations are gearing up for client conferences. Below are three suggestions that I find myself reminding all of my clients to include in their presentations.
- Give your listeners a reason to listen. We call this a benefit statement, or I often refer to it as W.I.I.F.M. (What’s In It For Me). It answers the question, “What is your presentation going to give listeners?” Think about your overall message and not what’s on your agenda slide.
- Include one or two sentences about yourself in your introduction. This information is not your title or your department you work in. I suggest that you include something that is unique about your experience as it relates to your topic. A great example of this is a recent conference presenter who only used her title as she introduced herself. When I asked her about her experience, I found out she was a top influencer who had been working in retail for over 20 yrs. Two pieces of information that create instant creditability for this presenter.
- End with an action statement. When you are wrapping up Instead of saying, “Thank you,” I suggest you use this as an opportunity to direct your listeners to do something with the content you just delivered. A great example is, “Let’s continue this conversation. I am available after we finish up. Come find me.”
23 Feb Vocal Variety and Its Role in Virtual Presenting
Now that virtual presenting is here is stay, keep in mind that your oral delivery is more important than ever. Our colleagues, clients, and anyone else who is listening at home or in their office are most likely multitasking. Some of us have two monitors that allow us to be watching/listening and doing multiple tasks simultaneously. Since a few of your listeners may not be directly looking at the screen, your voice is what captures their attention. Therefore, I am coaching clients to incorporate “vocal variety.” Vocal variety is when you choose a specific word or phrase to add vocal emphasis to convey a meaning. A very easy way to add vocal variety is to increase your volume. (more…)
13 Jul Does virtual presenting level the speaking field?
Last week, I worked with a client who shared with me that her nervousness associated with public speaking was not as much of a problem since the world went virtual. I was curious about what changed for her or what had helped her. When working with clients on controlling their nervousness, there are many things to be considered. A major focus of the help we bring is with thoughts. The thoughts are what people say to themselves before, during, and after the presentation. We all talk to ourselves. It’s what we say that has a tremendous impact on how well we can control nervousness. She said, “Kristen, we are all equal now. Everyone is in the same size box. No one takes up more space than anyone else on the screen.” Hearing this brought a smile to my face. This client has successfully changed her thoughts to be more positive and productive. So whether or not you believe that virtual presenting levels the speaking field, the more important takeaway is that changing the way you think about something and internalize it helps create a more positive outcome.
22 Jun Are cell phones hurting the next generation?
A recent article on CNN was about government-run camps to treat teen internet addiction in South Korea. After reading the article, I thought what a fantastic idea. I wonder how many parents think their kids are addicted to their cell phones. The South Koreans may be on to something.
According to South Korea’s government, in 2018, 98% of South Korean teens used a cell phone. The article mentioned a 16-year who, after spending 13 hours straight on her cellphone, signed herself up for the camp. Her phone gave her continuous entertainment, and when she got bored, she moved on to the next video or game. She felt detached from reality when on her phone. Her grades were slipping, and she fought with her dad about her phone usage daily. (more…)