DECEMBER 2010
IN THIS ISSUE Catherine DeVrye 2010 Speaker of the Year tips for presenters How to influence with authenticity PowerPoint Tips Avoid networking nightmares! The Emotional Intelligence of Sales
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How to Present Magazine
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DIARY DATES INFLUENTIAL PRESENTATION SKILLS (2-day Public Program) Join Michelle at her next public program IN SYDNEY on: • 22-23 February • 22-23 March • 28-29 April Join Michelle at her next public program IN MELBOURNE on: April 5-6 For details please email: michelle@michellebowden.com.au
Who is Michelle Bowden? Michelle is an expert in influential presentation skills in business. Michelle has run her 2-day Influential Presentation Skills program over 550 times with many thousands of people and sheʼs been nominated in 2009, 2010 and 2011 for Educator of the Year. Michelle is one of only 25 Australian females who is a Certified Speaking Professional - this is the highest designations for speakers in the world. For a list of Michelleʼs clients please go to: www.howtopresent.com.au www.howtopresent.com.au
Michelle’s Update Welcome to How to Present! The magazine designed to give you invaluable tips and techniques for presenting your ideas in business. Oh my goodness - it’s nearly Christmas! I’m sure you will enjoy our final exciting issue of How to Present for the year. The corporate conference circuit begins as early as the first week back in January, so don’t forget to get started on writing your presentation now - so you have time to rehearse your key messages and leave a favourable lasting impression on your colleagues! Also in this issue we have my friend and mentor Catherine DeVrye 2010 Speaker of the Year who generously agreed to pose for our front cover and give us her tips for business presenters! You simply must read this! Influencing others with Authenticity is a fundamental skill in business so I hope you love reading my tips. Plus as the Christmas party season hit’s full swing we’ve included a special article on how to Avoid Networking Nightmares and Kirsty Spraggon shares her thoughts on the Emotional Intelligence of Sales to help you make the most of opportunities that present this month. Plus we have our regular Parents Corner to help parents help their children to speak in public and a new section called Save the Word for those of you wishing to expand your vocabulary! So grab yourself a ’cuppa’, put your feet up and have a read! And most importantly, make sure you put the invaluable advice into immediate action so you see some fast results. And if you’ve enjoyed the magazine, please forward it to a friend or click the “like it” button on the magazine pages. Merry Christmas!
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SUCCESS STORIES! ANNIE CRAWFORD CAN TOO FOUNDER & DIRECTOR
resources before helping to set up a biotechnology start-up in San Francisco, California. After returning to Australia in 2003 Annie decided that rather than re-enter the paid workforce, she would devote herself to a new project that was all about “making a difference”. An accredited running coach and self-confessed “running addict” – Annie decided to combine her passion for running and fitness with raising money for a non-profit organisation. And so, the idea for Can Too was born. Five months later, in May 2005, the first Can Too program was up and running. “Losing my father was easily the biggest thing to ever impact on me,” said Annie. “I liked the idea of raising funds that went directly to cancer research – and so all of the money we raise goes directly toward funding researchers in all areas of cancer, through Cure Cancer Australia,” she said.
CanToo is a non profit program that matches fitness incentives with a good cause. Novices and experienced athletes alike are given professional coaching as part of a team to run or swim in endurance events - including half-marathons, marathons, 10km runs; as well as ocean swims. In return, participants raise valuable funds that go directly towards funding cancer research. Who is Annie Crawford? (pictured above) Having lost her own father to bowel cancer at age 51, Can Too founder Annie Crawford knows first hand the devastating impact that Cancer can have on an individual and their family. Originally a social worker, working in community mental health and later as a sexual assault counsellor, Annie successfully moved into human www.howtopresent.com.au
A competitive runner in high school, Annie started distance running some 20 years ago and continued running through the full-term of the pregnancies of her sons – now 18, 20 and 21. “Running keeps me sane – I absolutely could not live without it,” said Annie, who runs at least 50 kilometres a week and has completed eleven Can Too run and swim events since the organisation’s inception. “I hoped that the idea of matching fitness incentives with a good cause would resonate with Australians, but never in my wildest dreams did I think we would raise $4 million in our first four years and we are on our way to raising five million in five years!” said Annie. “For many of our participants, completing a Can Too program is totally life changing. It’s not just about the physical challenge. The transformation that occurs from making the impossible achievable, from putting yourself out there, taking
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risks, setting goals and doing something for others – is profound. I get such a kick out of this – it keeps me inspired and motivated every single day to keep doing what we’re doing,” she said. What kind of presenting do you do at work? As the Director of Can Too I present at Fundraising Events, Can Too goal events and training sessions, Strategy Meetings, potential sponsors pitches,!small corporate functions and all the one to one conversations and meetings in my day. What prompted you to attend Michelle's Influential Presentation Skills program?
Annie addressing an enthusiastic crowd on the steps of the Sydney Oprah House
I was recommend it by Stacey Martin at the National Australia Bank who had just done the program and thought it was fantastic. She knew that I had to do a lot of public speaking and that I was always looking to improve my skills and presenting technique. How did Michelle's program change your attitude to presenting in business? It gave me a structure that I had not used in the past. Having the structure gave me a confidence that I previously had not had in my public speaking - itʼs really been fantastic! What positive outcomes have you achieved from improving your presentation skills? Doing Michelleʼs course, improved my technique which in turn improved my confidence which in turn improved my technique. By being a better public speaker I will be able to motivate people more and inspire them to achieve their goals.
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In what specific ways have your presentation skills improved since completing Michelle's training?! I had previously been quite nervous before presenting. Working with Michelle gave me some great self talk to minimize my anxiety levels, and taught me to be less focused on myself and more focused on my audience. I also liked learning how to replace an ʻumʼ with a pause and how to make better eye contact with my audience so I can really connect with my audience. Plus of course, just being aware of what not to do and what to do has helped me incredibly. I was quite surprised that there is so much to learn to be as effective as possible when inspiring and motivating others! What were your top three take aways from Michelle's program? 1. Preparation is the key. 2. Use the ʻ13 Stepsʼ so youʼre influential when # you speak. 3. Rehearse, rehearse, rehearse.
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HOW TO PRESENT WITH AUTHENTICITY BY MICHELLE BOWDEN The concept of authenticity has received a significant amount of attention recently as people search for meaning and happiness, particularly in their work lives. And, there also seems to be a lot of information zooming across my inbox lately about authenticity as a presenter. So this month I thought you might enjoy some tips on how to influence others whilst maintaining ‘authenticity of self’. Well firstly what is authenticity?
want when they present in meetings, conferences, updates or business pitches. So here are my 10 tips for you:
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Understand your audience
It’s critical to spend some time analysing the audiences’ current state as well as your desired state for them. This way you know where you are shifting them from and to.
2
Structure your message
If you have a nice, tight, well crafted message and you have designed it with a model that allows you to remember the information without relying on And it’s clear that people who are notes or reading out your all these things are certainly more PowerPoint slides then you’ll be likely to get more of what they more likely to influence. It’s an undisputed credibility, genuineness or legitimacy, a trustworthiness. In Australia we might call it ‘the real McCoy!
3
Rehearse
Exceptional presenters rehearse. Make sure you rehearse (rather than rote learn your presentation) in as many locations as possible. Then when you have to present in a new place you won’t feel as nervous.
4
Rapport, rapport, rapport
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Connect with the audience
Before you can influence others you must build rapport with them. Rapport is a connection with the other party and it’s most easy to build rapport with people who are like us. We like people who are like ourselves. So from the first word you say, make sure your voice, body and language patterns reflect the similarities between you and your audience members rather than the differences.
When it’s time to deliver your presentation make sure you remind yourself: It’s not about me, it’s all about the audience’. www.howtopresent.com.au
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HOW TO PRESENT WITH AUTHENTICITY BY MICHELLE BOWDEN yourself and look at your audience in the ‘whites of their eyes’, really see them, whether it be one person or one thousand people. This is the key to reducing your nervousness, connecting with and influencing your audience.
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Relax your Muscles and Breathe
Breathing is something we take for granted. But when we are nervous one of the first things that goes is the deep breathing. Deep breathing will help you feel calmer, give you a more powerful and convincing voice, and it will also help you retain your clarity of thought. If you breathe deeply you can’t go blank and lose credibility.
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Stimulate the Senses
People have different visual, auditory and kinesthetic learning preferences. Make sure you do something to stimulate people no matter their learning preference. Don’t just present in a way that is interesting to you because that will only entertain and persuade one third of your audience.
10
Positive Self Talk and Get Feedback
Use the power of positive thinking. Remind yourself you’ve done the hard work. Tell yourself you are the expert and you know what you are talking about. Congratulate yourself on the things that went well in the presentation and seek feedback Storytelling from people you respect who can tell you where you were Telling interesting stories that link impressive as well as where you to your content and bring it to need to improve for next time. life can reinforce key points and have your audience walking Try these tips and let me know away with your key messages how you go. firmly embedded in their minds. Happy Presenting! Vocal Variety
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Your voice is one of your most powerful tools as a presenter. Learn how to warm up your voice so that your authentically interesting voice is what your audience hears.
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THE 10 TIPS 1. Understand your audience 2.Structure your message 3. Rehearse 4. Build Rapport, rapport, rapport 5. Connect with the audience 6. Relax your muscles and breathe 7. Tell Stories 8. Use Vocal Variety 9. Stimulate the Senses 10. Positive Self Talk and Get Feedback
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SAVE THE WORD Words are so important. They are the cornerstone of our language. The more words we have the richer our vocabulary. Words allow us to communicate precisely. Without the right word to describe something we’d be speechless! So welcome to this new column called ‘save the word’. It is based on a website by the Oxford English Dictionary. Go to http://www.savethewords.org/ to register and receive your word for the day.
This month’s word is:
SEVIDICAL
Example 1: The heckler’s sevidical tongue was no match for Jerry Seinfeld and he soon had him reduced to tears. Example 2: I will not tolerate you speaking in such a sevidical manner.
TESTIMONIAL “I am blown away. I loved the high energy throughout Michelle’s 2-day Influential Presentation Skills program - it was so positive! I have learned a huge amount. It was practical, useable and I can’t wait to use what I learnt. It has given me the confidence that I can do this! Thank you so much Michelle!”
Meaning: Speaking cruel and harsh words.
Sophie Bilinsky, AMP
DID YOU KNOW...
Penny Burke, Director of Essence Communications, has worked in the field of marketing and advertising for over 25 years. Penny believes building greater commitment is the key for any marketer, and that real marketing success lies in the ability to deliver both functional benefits, and an inspiring emotional promise. Have you heard of prezi.com for your presentations? I suggest you log on and have a look. It is a presentation program that is animated, and allows you to drop in pictures and moving clips kind of like an animated PowerPoint. We have used it a few times for a pitch - it works best if the content is SIMPLE and not too type heavy. Too many words and not only is it hard to work with, you end up feeling sea sick when you watch it! But for simple presentations it is an excellent tool that will make an ordinary PowerPoint look sensational. With a little bit of perfecting on the software, I think these sorts of programs will become the benchmarks of presentations in the not too distant future!
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ARE YOU PRESENTING AT YOUR COMPANY CONFERENCE IN 2011? You probably know that January is conference time in Australia.!And if you’re presenting at your company conference in the new year you might be like most people and put it off until next year thinking that it's 'ages away'! !I know what it’s like to just want to get all the urgent work out of the way before Christmas! Guess what? ! • 43% of people say they don't generally allocate enough time to preparing for presentations (after all, January comes straight after the 'silly season'). ! • And, 63% of people use PowerPoint to remember what to say - that's not very engaging for the audience. • And sadly, 62% of people say they are frequently nervous presenters. ! • And guess what else? !Only 39% of audience members find their company conference presenters persuasive and engaging with only 28% moved to action! ! So please don't be one of these unfortunate statistics! All this is EASILY fixed! ! Start preparing at least three weeks out from the presentation. Be sure to analyse your audience and decide what you want to achieve. Design your message so it’s as audience-focused and persuasive as possible and then rehearse the beginning and ending so you don’t have to look at your slides or your notes. If you need help you should grab a copy of Don’t Picture me Naked - How to Present your Ideas and Influence People using Techniques that Actually Work from our gift shop. Oh - I almost forgot don’t forget that presenting can be, and is supposed to be FUN!
POWERPOINT TIPS Laser Pointers are torture - Colour Code your slides In an attempt to highlight the most important part of a diagram, graph or picture, many people use that annoying little red laser dot that jumps everywhere and makes even the most competent presenter look 'shaky' and nervous! Make no mistake the laser pointer is a slow and painful way to torture your audience. The other torturous way people indicate what to look at on their slides, is they stand in-front of the projector light and they reach up on their toes to point to something on the screen. This is unsophisticated and distracts the audience from the message as they check out your shadow on the screen - I don't know many people whose nose looks fabulous in profile! Instead of these methods, try colour-coding your slide so you can refer to the different colours from the other side of the room so everyone knows where you want them to look. For example: "notice that in the last 12 months, the figures in blue indicate a rise in our share price" or "you can see the area shaded yellow in NSW represents our top performing regions, whereas our poorer performers are coloured navy". This way you make it clear that the audience should be listening to you, and looking at the screen. Good luck! www.howtopresent.com.au
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TIP FROM A PROFESSIONAL SPEAKER CATHERINE DEVRYE SPEAKER OF THE YEAR 2010
audience’s needs and add value. 2. Understand your audience’s needs and how you can add value – this is the PURPOSE of your presentation. 3. It’s not about you – it’s all about them and how you can add value to them. 4. Have a skeleton of key points and them flesh out the rest with stories. 5. Live your life and collect stories as they happen.
Catherine is an inspiration. Sheʼs a best-selling author of 8 books, in multiple languages, 2010 Keynote Speaker of the Year & past Australian Executive Woman of Year. She helps teams improve customer service & manage change. From an orphanage to IBM executive; carrying the Olympic torch, trekking to Timbuktu & scaling summits, her content & humour earn her repeat bookings on 5 continents. WOW! Some of Catherine’s tips are: 1. Listen! Listening is important if you want to reflect your
6. Be yourself – don’t try and be something that you’re not. Use your real life experiences, show your real personality, stick away from other people’s material and stories, admit when you don’t know – be authentic. 7. Be sure you are leaving something of value behind – something that improves people’s lives or business. 8. Mental preparation is everything. Do whatever you need to do to change your mindset so that it’s all about them – and in the moment allow yourself to go with the flow of the audience – meet their needs.
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How to Present Magazine
9. Stick to your passion and your area of expertise – don’t present on things you don’t know about – it will affect your credibility and you’ll struggle to be authentic. 10. Remember the successes they will help you stay keen and get back on the right track so you can continue to add value as a presenter. Catherine demonstrates the need to really get into the audiences shoes and add value. Her website is: www.greatmotivation.com
How to Present - Presentation Skills Tips from the Masters features presentation skills tips, from 14 of Australia’s top keynote speakers. You can listen to all the interviews plus much more from the generous Catherine DeVrye by purchasing your very own copy of this essential business resource. Go to http:// howtopresent.com.au/giftshop December 2010
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IS YOUR SPEECH PREVENTING YOU FROM CONNECTING WITH YOUR AUDIENCE? BY MICHELLE BOWDEN The Washington Examiner
people and really connecting
featured an article back in April
with them as fellow humans in
where!Former Vice President
your audience. !If you’re senior
Walter Mondale said on CNN
and have the chance to use a
that President Obama’s reliance
teleprompter and really feel
on teleprompters when
you must – then rehearse and
speaking to the American
rehearse so that you are able
people, prevents him from
to really look at your audience
connecting with his audience.
for most of your presentation. !
You can access the article from
If you regularly present in
the Washington Examiner here.
smaller meetings then be careful not to write out a ‘script’
The point for business
and just read that out to people.
presenters to glean from this
This lacks credibility and is
article is the importance of
boring for the audience. The
‘connecting’ with the people
alternative is to consider
who are there to hear what we
learning how to Storyboard a
think about something in our
presentation. Storyboarding is
business presentation. !It’s
part of the!repertoire!of an
important to remember that the
excellent presentation skills
purpose of a business
training program. !
presentation is to shift our audience from where they are
Storyboarding is the trick
on arrival to where we want
excellent presenters use to
them to be on our departure. !
brainstorm all their content,
It’s much easier to do that if
then sort it, then recall it
you’re actually looking at the
without notes and it really
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HowtotoPresent PresentMagazine Magazine How
works – even for people who think they have a dreadful memory and are nervous presenters! ! For more info read Chapter 4 in Don’t Picture me Naked – you can buy the book here.!! ! Storyboarding allows you to present so you truly connect with your audience through complete eye contact so you are much more likely to get what you want from the!meeting or interaction. Happy Presenting! December 2010 2010 September
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AVOID NETWORKING NIGHTMARES BY ANDREW GRIFFITHS
with 300 people, it really can be hard to stand out and as much as we might really want to blend in, standing out will get us noticed and that leads to new contacts, being memorable and new business. 2. Hang out near the the food When people are eating they are far more likely to strike up a conversation. They are relaxed, often a bit guilty because they are eating something they think shouldn’t and there is of course a common topic for discussion – the food. 3. Look for groups of people rather than individuals
Andrew Griffiths is an entrepreneur with a real passion for small business. Inspired by a constant desire to see others reach their full potential, Andrew has written ten hugely successful books (eight are bestsellers), with many more on the way. I guess most of us have struggled with the sense of awkwardness that often goes with being in a room full of strangers. So here are 10 of my favourite networking tips. I hope they really help you with all those Christmas parties you’re booked in to attend this month! 1. Wear something distinctive This is an oldie but a goodie. Some people make a point of wearing something distinctive so they stand out and can be remembered at networking functions. It might sound corny but in a room www.howtopresent.com.au
It is always wise to find a group of people where you can kind of muscle your way in, stand and observe quietly and then slowly become a part of the conversation. When we are in a group we behave a bit like penguins – we will shuffle to let other penguins in and then huddle back together. My advice here though is to be quiet when you first enter a group, wait a while and someone will talk to you. If you enter a group and start taking over the conversation, the group will disband and you will be left on your own. 4. Enlist the aid of others to introduce you If I am going to a networking event where I know one or two people who I know are very well connected I will often ring and ask them if they would mind introducing me to people at the event. In fact I have done this many times and it works really well. The person then has a mission and a job, that is to drag me around and introduce me to as many quality contacts as possible – so it is an express form of networking. Best of all, if we get stuck in a scenario where we don’t want to be, the host can easily excuse us with the statement “Sorry we can’t chat, I am trying to introduce Andrew to as many people as possible tonight”. Perfect.
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AVOID NETWORKING NIGHTMARES cont. BY ANDREW GRIFFITHS
8. Use the other person’s name in the conversation. As Dale Carnegie stated “the sweetest sound to any person is their own name”. When you are introduced to a person, respond using their name and use it repeatedly in the conversation. If you are someone who forgets a name as soon as someone says it, this technique will help.
9. Make sure you are enthusiastic in your responses when asked about your business.
5. Offer a compliment (but be sincere) If you struggle with an opening line when meeting new people the oldest tried and tested method is to offer a compliment. You may choose to go up to someone and compliment them about something they are wearing or something they have done (if you know a bit about them). The biggest key to making this work is to make sure your compliment is sincere. If it’s not, people will dismiss you, and deservedly so. 6. Focus on the person in front of you It is important to give 100% of your attention to whoever is in front of you, even if they may not be a potential contact or business lead. Rather than acting bored, excuse yourself and move on.
7. Go with a target in mind. Often heading to a networking event with a specific “target” in mind will give you a sense of purpose and an outcome from the event. Do your homework, know who you want to meet and why you want to meet them and then go for it. Setting goals always gets results. www.howtopresent.com.au
When you meet a person at a networking event, the one question they are bound to ask is “so what do you do?”. Now, how you answer this is vitally important – remembering that the words don’t mean as much as your body language and the emotion in your voice (non verbal communication accounts for up to 90% of meaning we take from any encounter). So, it is important to have a positive, energetic and memorable response to the question “so what do you do?”. Easier said than done, but be playful,try new ideas, have a laugh at yourself and people will remember you.
10. Fast follow up get’s results. Many people are great at networking but lousy at following up. So why bother to network in the first place? Great networkers will follow up the next day. If you say you will do something, do it. This will impress people and show that you are not only professional but also keen. http://www.andrewgriffiths.com.au
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THE EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE OF SALES ! ! ! ! !
BY KIRSTY SPRAGGON
Sympathy Understanding Emotion Trust Connection
Rapport stems from a person feeling you care enough to understand their world. It is often said people do business with people who are like them. If you had the choice between someone like you or someone completely the opposite who would you feel more inclined to do business with and to trust? The person matching and mirroring your own personal style or the one completely disregarding it and doing their own thing? Kirsty Spraggon is a relationship building expert that assists you to increase, your sales, networks and connections for life & business success. With 15 years experience in every facet of the sales industry. Her outstanding career saw her ranked in the top 1% of individuals in REMAX’s global network of 121,000 sales agents worldwide. www.kirstyspraggon.com.au When it comes to sales, networking, presenting and relationship building, one of the most important skills we can develop is our ‘emotional intelligence’. Emotional intelligence, which is our ability to connect and build rapport, to have empathy and understanding for others. I believe these are the most important skills we can develop. They assist us in all areas of our lives. What could be more important in life than our ability to build relationships? Rapport is said to be one of the most important characteristics of unconscious human interaction. It means having a commonality of perspective; being ‘in sync’ and ‘on the same wavelength’ as the person with whom you are talking. Some important core elements of rapport include:
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Building rapport doesn’t take long when it’s done correctly and with integrity. I mean, I genuinely like people and the art of rapport building came naturally to me from a very young age. My granddad is originally from Italy and speaks fairly poor English and my best friend immigrated to Australia from China when she was just eight years old. Because of this, I think I learnt how to talk with people who struggled with English. I spoke more slowly and I learned how to ‘mirror’ and ‘pace’ their tone. This is just one way of being understanding of people’s needs so that they know you really care about them. Under the surface human beings are all so alike. I find it really helps to remember this and think about how you would feel and what would you need to feel comfortable if you were in the other person’s shoes.
SPECIAL GIVE-AWAY FOR READERS Be one of the first five readers to email me: michelle@michellebowden.com.au with ʻWork as If you Own Itʼ in the subject line and receive your very own copy of Kirstyʼs excellent book of the same name which shows you how EQ can be used to build rapport in business.
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SUCCESS STORIES! SEAN LOMAS Policy and Advocacy Manager, Spinal Cord Injuries Australia
Sean Lomas is a former Royal Navy Officer who now works for Spinal Cord Injuries Australia in the role of Policy and Advocacy Manager, where he manages a team of three advocates. Sean is responsible for increasing the organisation’s systemic profile, resulting in over $21.1 million worth of extra program and services funding. He lives in Sylvania, Sydney with his wife Tina and their two sons—Harry, three years and Dylan, one year.
www.howtopresent.com.au
What kind of presenting do you do? In my role as Policy and Advocacy Manager presenting challenges are many and diverse. It’s not just a question of regular team meetings or public gatherings, I need to present to all levels of government as well as politicians, state and federal. I also need to present to groups of people living with a disability and other like minded disability and social organisations. The differing methods needed to get across the same message in these different scenarios and environments were covered in depth in Michelle’s course. What prompted you to attend Michelle's Influential Presentation Skills program? I needed, and that is a pretty powerful word, to attend Michelle’s course. In my work I need to get things right the first time and having the ability to be able to present complex matters in a positive way certainly helps me be more effective for the people that I represent. How did Michelle's program change your attitude to presenting? Influential Presentation Skills assisted me by giving my
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presentations a very logical structure. I’m still amazed that the same structure works for such a variety of situations from addressing a federal government minister to a group of disability organisations. In general, what positive outcomes have you achieved from improving your presentation skills? Completing Michelle’s two day course has assisted me with numerous meetings. A recent meeting with a federal senator on the topic of taxation resulted in some very promising commitments—before attending the course these may either not have materialised or required several meetings to get the same result.
In what specific ways have y o u r p re s e n t a t i o n s k i l l s improved since completing Michelle's training? In all honesty one of the most specific ways that Michelle’s course has helped me is to recognise that a sales pitch and a social pitch can be one and the same. If you strip a pitch down to its basics and add structure you can deliver social outcomes with the same techniques that you would use to increase ‘buy in’ to your business.
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SUCCESS STORIES! What were your top three ‘take aways’ from Michelle's program? My top three take aways from Michelle’s program would have to be: 1. Keep the structure of your argument together and do not deviate from your point. 2. Speak to and engage your audience. 3. Enjoy your presentation – really!
SEAN’S TOP THREE TAKE AWAYS
workplace, and the organisation strives to develop programs to educate and support the SCI community. The organisation endeavours to provide the relevant information and services to assist those with a spinal cord injury, their family, friends and the wider community and to ensure that advances in research and service development throughout the world result in advances for those with a spinal cord injury here in Australia. SCIA works tirelessly to assist in the elimination of barriers that prevent social inclusion for people with a spinal cord injury— ensuring that the society in which we live is fully accessible to everybody. For more information go to http://scia.org.au/
My top three take aways from Michelle’s program would have to be: 1. Keep the structure of your argument together and do not deviate from your point. 2. Speak to and engage your audience. 3. Enjoy your presentation – really!
More Information About Spinal Cord Injuries Australia Spinal Cord Injuries Australia is all about promoting independence and continues today its proud history of providing consumer based support and rehabilitation services to people with physical disabilities. The organisation’s focus is to get people ‘back on track’ following a spinal cord injury—finding the solutions to obstacles that may arise and providing support to ensure people with a spinal cord injury remain actively involved in personal, social and vocational activities. Services encompass all of life, from hospital to home to
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PARENTS CORNER Parents Corner is a dedicated section designed to give adults tips for equipping their children with one of the most fundamental skills they can develop in life - the skill of public speaking. If you are a parent and want to help your children prepare properly for a school presentation keep reading these helpful hints… Preparation Tips To prepare the presentation: •
Select a topic and do the research.
•
Write out the main topic, then divide into three subgroups.! Put some brief information and a little story into each of the three subgroups.
•
Read and re-read the material, making sure they understand the content.
•
Make sure the presentation is in your child’s words – don’t write it for them!
•
•
Practice it at least three times.! But realistically – if they want to be really good they should practice many, many times over before and after school. Reading in front of a mirror will help your child see how terrific they look while presenting and can reduce possible fears by putting it all into perspective for them.
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•
The majority of practice should happen standing up and moving about as they would do if were the real event.
•
Professional presenters rehearse the breathing and the gestures. When you practice make sure you plan what you will do with your breathing and your arms.!
Stay tuned for more helpful tips for parent who want to help their kids be confident communicators in our January issue! Happy Presenting!
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SPEAKERS BUREAU
STAY FRESH
Speakers Bureaus are organisations that operate a bit like a broker. They will find you the perfect speaker, trainer or entertainer for your conference or event. Take a look at Saxton Speakers Bureau www.saxton.com.au/
Girls! Want beautiful glowing skin when you’re presenting at that next meeting? A single MAC Wipe removes all your makeup, even waterproof mascara, and smells fresh and clean (like flowers and soap). And best of all the wipes don’t leave a sticky film on your skin.
BOOK OF THE MONTH
MICHELLE RECOMMENDS
Here are some of my favourite things for you
www.greatmotivation.com
If you find yourself on planes a lot then check out this fantastic Travel Kit from Bobbi Brown. It has compartments for every beauty item you own and check out how stylish it is! www.bobbibrowncosmetics.com
Powerful Points will design an outstanding presentation for you, help you improve your template, spruce your current presentation or train you or your staff in how to build presentations so they stand out, make an impression and get results! www.powerfulpoints.com.au
BOOK OF THE MONTH
Catherine’s latest book, endorsed by Edward DeBono, contains 100 practical tips on how business owners & managers can reduce costwithout reducing value to customers.
TRAVEL TIP
POWERPOINT SERVICES
HYDRATE YOURSELF Perfect for an energy lift just before presenting. Aurora Spa Rituals Rose Hydrating Facial Hydrosol which contains essential oils of rosewood and calendula to tone the skin and reduce redness. RRP $35
www.howtopresent.com.au
How to Present Magazine
OK, I know it’s MY book, but if you are serious about really improving your presentation skills then I highly recommend Don’t Picture me Naked. Go to www.howtopresent.com.au/ giftshop
ELIMINATE THOSE NASTY SWEAT RINGS People are ALWAYS asking me how to get rid of the nasty sweat rings when presenting - try Mitchum deodorant. It is the deodorant many professional speakers wear on stressful days. Available at the supermarket and chemist. December 2010
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www.howtopresent.com.au
How to Present Magazine
December 2010
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