Q: I provide training, education and technical support to prosthetists and the national sales team. I loved it. However my love for what I was doing did not shine through in my 4 and 8-hourpresentations, as I felt I was extremely focused, serious and intent on covering all of the material and have it understandable to the audience.

Everyone felt I was knowledgeable and confident. The only negative feedback was I lacked passion. Someone suggested I speak with the expressiveness I have when I read my children stories. I understand what they meant, but it was easier suggested than accomplished. I read to the kids for about an hour, not four or eight, and I could not maintain that level of energy.

~ Rhonda

A: This is a common challenge for people who present for a long period of time.

Even some of the best presenters, who can have intensity in energy for one-hour, often cannot maintain it for eight.

My team, after training for one, two, three days, will always get the compliment from our clients “I cannot believe the energy you have, and how you maintained it for the entire time“. My team is all different communications styles, so it is not just because they are expressive people.

So what can you do? Here are some suggestions.

You mentioned you focused on the audience; good for you. But focusing on the audience it is much more than the words you use. It is the physical connection you have with them.

1. Smile – this can help your pitch (I will tell people to put a smiley face in their notes to remind them. Silly, I know, but it works).
2. Reading stories like you read to children also does help. This needs practice. It is not a one time master made exercise. You will want to tone it down when speaking to adults as it could affect your credibility, however this does work!
3. Many people have a challenge with modulating, so we encourage them to use gestures in a controlled fashion. Keep your hands above your waist and use them to explain concepts. This will change the pitch of our voice, making you sound more energetic and therefore more engaging.
4. Use movement to change the energy in the room. At Ignite Excellence we speak about ‘moving with purpose’. This works extremely well and is a great tool to camouflage that you have a challenge modulating and it help with connecting with the audience. The closer you are to the audience the more engaged they will feel. Move from one side of the room to another (when appropriate, around the room)- and the audience will feel the energy has changed.
5. Using eye contact – really looking into people’s eyes will also ensure that you are staying focused on the audience and their receipt of the message. Don’t look too long, or they will think you are staring. Every time you pause, just look into someone else’s eyes. This technique takes a lot of practice, but is extremely powerful, once mastered.
6. Lastly, all these techniques are really about giving INTENTION. Being so focused on the receiver of the message that you can’t help but give each person all the energy that you have in you.

Now all of this doesn’t happen overnight. The key is PRACTICE, PRACTICE, and PRACTICE. If you are expecting all that energy just to show up at the most important time – a presentation – then our expectations are too high.

Now I will warn you, after four or eight hours of presenting, you will need a rest. But you will be satisfied that you connected not only with your message, but with your energy to everyone in the room.

Keep in mind: Sometimes to get the best out of yourself is to have someone push you to the edge of your comfort zone while you practice.

Traveling through Africa 2011/2012 – conducting Wisdom Exchange tv Leading Lady interviews

Suzanne F Stevens, is the Chief Edge Optimizer of the Ignite Excellence Inc. Group of Initiatives. As Keynote Speaker, Trainer, Coach, Host and Philanthropist, she inspires, develops and invests in people to push their edge to personal and professional potential from backpack, to briefcase to boardroom. As a trainer, Suzanne’s influential business communication training arms individuals and organizations to influence, differentiate and engage more people and more business. Visit igniteU - online influence university. Self-paced business training for career growth!

Visit our other Ignite Excellence Group of initiatives’ websites with corresponding blogs.
Suzanne F Stevens – Profiling women leaders who have pushed their edge to personal or professional potential from backpack to briefcase to boardroom
igniteU - Online influence university. Self-paced learning to develop your business skills for your business success.
Ignite Excellence Foundation – Leadership, Advocacy, Education – following donations to scholarships for women in developing countries
Wisdom Exchange TV – A forum where women will be inspired from the achievements of African women in business, education, philanthropy and politics.
You Me & We – a husbands and wife’s journey through Africa in 2011/12
Ignite Excellence Inc. – Influence, Differentiate, Engage more people and more business – a training & development company

“Let’s do lunch” is just one symptom within a much larger problem: people’s inability to follow-up.

What causes us to become laissez-faire?

In contemplating this very important question, there are many possible answers: we do not have (make) time; we fear being rejected; we are not organized enough (Ignite Excellence’s socioValue Influencer™ Research states that much of society does not value the technical tools to help optimize their time); or we just forgot. Oops.

The danger is many may perceive this as an absence of common courtesy. The impact goes far beyond not being polite to someone; it affects our personal and corporate brands, not to mention the opportunities for future business. In times of change and economic uncertainty, your reputation is fundamental in forging your personal value with your clients and your company. You need to be top of mind when your prospect or client finally does need you.

So what should you do now to reengage clients?

It is highly effective to contact people when we do not need anything from them. Our goal is to provide them with something of value. This approach will ignite a very powerful concept when it comes to influence: reciprocity.

If we make this an individual, or better yet, a corporate philosophy to take the upper-hand and follow-up with clients, a  reciprocal cycle is initiated, and you will drastically increase the chances of your clients returning your call and considering you for new business opportunities, if they were to arise.

Here are ten proactive tips to help you stay top of mind, as it is your responsibility to forge the relationship for the future.

1. Call people when you say you are going to call.
2. Acknowledge email within a day, maximum two, even if you can’t respond.
3. Go to networking functions to reconnect, let people know that you and your firm are active in your clients’ industry and community.
4. Call more than once. Do not just wait for the client to call you back. They may think you will eventually stop calling and go away. Demonstrate that they are important to you. Let them know when you will call back and make sure you do.
5. Send your clients information that would be relevant to them. Something you heard, read or saw. For example: articles, news in their operating markets – this could be information on a new project, or insight into culture in a country where they have a project or insight on a new legislation. Personally address your message to your client so they will perceive this is information selected exclusively for them.
6. Call a client to set-up a time for a conversation to find out what they are working on (face-to-face is the best, but not always possible). The more you know, the more you can keep your ear to the ground on information you can provide. You may even uncover an opportunity for your firm.
7. Provide your client and/or your network with business leads.
8. If you do have a conversation and it requires a follow-up, send an email summation of the conversation and the date you will follow-up. Make sure you then follow-up on the specified date.
9. Ask permission to keep in touch. “Can I call you in a couple months to see how things are progressing?” or “When should I touch base with you?” Once you have permission, you can follow-up when you call with “As you suggested, I am follow-up with you…” Again make the message compelling. Offer them the opportunity to receive some insight.
10. Do not cancel once a commitment is made – or at least do not do it more than once.

It is never too late to start being proactive. Outreach to clients is not only the job of the Marketer, but also Project Managers, Consultant, Sales person  and anyone who interacts with clients and stakeholders. Remember, when you make contact it is always wise to ensure there is something is in it for the recipient – this will increase your chances of a call back.

Now, if you do run into a client and you say, “Let’s do lunch,” they just might offer to buy!

Action: Which clients or prospects have you not contacted in more then six months? Commit to contacting two. You may be surprised, they may have been expecting your call.

Traveling through Africa 2011/2012 – conducting Wisdom Exchange tv Leading Lady interviews

Suzanne F Stevens, is the Chief Edge Optimizer of the Ignite Excellence Inc. Group of Initiatives. As Keynote Speaker, Trainer, Coach, Host and Philanthropist, she inspires, develops and invests in people to push their edge to personal and professional potential from backpack, to briefcase to boardroom. As a trainer, Suzanne’s influential business communication training arms individuals and organizations to influence, differentiate and engage more people and more business. Visit igniteU – online influence university. Self-paced business training for career growth!

Visit our other Ignite Excellence Group of initiatives’ websites with corresponding blogs.
Suzanne F Stevens – Profiling women leaders who have pushed their edge to personal or professional potential from backpack to briefcase to boardroom
igniteU - Online influence university. Self-paced learning to develop your business skills for your business success.
Ignite Excellence Foundation – Leadership, Advocacy, Education – following donations to scholarships for women in developing countries
Wisdom Exchange TV – A forum where women will be inspired from the achievements of African women in business, education, philanthropy and politics.
You Me & We – a husbands and wife’s journey through Africa in 2011/12
Ignite Excellence Inc. – Influence, Differentiate, Engage more people and more business – a training & development company

Golf is a sport I have always found expensive, unphysical, a waste of time, and something you can never perfect. If I was not going to make money at it, win at it, or perfect it, why bother? Ernie Els may not agree with my evaluation of the sport, but then, he does make money at it.

Then it occurred to me, being a professional speaker, that presenting has some similar elements to golf. You don’t need to be perfect to win. The more you do it, the better you get, and you often play against yourself, striving to improve with each game or in this case, with each presentation. The difference is a person can learn to present persuasively and make a living on the rewards of their successful presentations a lot faster than most can master the game of golf.

As a marketing professional, presenting persuasively can differentiate you, your offering and your company from the myriad of colleagues, products, services and competitors that are waiting in the wings silently hoping you’ll add a stroke.

So what can possibly interfere in the process of mastery? One of the biggest obstacles to overcome is fear itself. Fear is really just False Evidence Appearing Real. The key to dealing with fear is to embrace it, along with preparation and practice.

But with anything worth striving to achieve there are obstacles, the rough or sand traps, to overcome. During presentations there can be equipment problems, late arrivals, interruptions, noise or audience distractions…All of these barriers can be overcome with good planning and persuasive presentation delivery.

When preparing a presentation the more you know about the audience, and your equipment, the less likely these barriers will become crippling obstacles.

I am sure you have heard the mantra echoed by many experts in regards to delivering presentations – ‘It is not what you say, but how you say it.’ Although I agree with the general sentiment, I think what you say is just as important as how you say it. I believe audiences show up for the ‘what’ you say, they share it for ‘how’ you say it, which is ultimately the goal when conducting a business presentation. You want people to talk about your presentation, as discussion can leads to positive action.

What do you need to do to differentiate yourself?

1. Present with intention – this includes focusing all your information and your energy on the audience.

Your intention will gain the audience’s attention.

 How you will do it?

2. Ignite your edgeness ™ –This is pushing your edge of your comfort zone enough that you are more engaging presenter.

How do we find our edgeness ™ in business presentations? My program, Persuasive Presentation skills that Move Minds speaks of ten planning components to a persuasive presentation, and although you can ignite your edgeness ™ in most of the components, I will focus on a few techniques that make a big impact.

• Get personal, by being personal- Start your presentation with a personal story. It needs to be relevant to the overall objective of the presentation. This is a great way to relax you and connect with your audience on an emotional level.

• Saying it is so doesn’t make it true – Use evidence in your presentation to support the claims you make, ‘we are the best’ is your opinion not a conclusion.  To ignite your edgeness ™, firstly, you need to make sure you are actually providing the information that is relevant to this particular audience, not just any audience.

 Secondly, many people provide facts, charts and other data to try to convince their business audiences of their point of view. Try something more engaging, like stating a case study, an anecdote, or using a provocative visual as a prompt. Again, you will gain a more emotional connection with the audience.

• People build relationships, visual aids don’t- Aids are just that: they are an aid and should not dominate the presentation. So challenge yourself and don’t use them for the beginning and the end of you presentation. Because they help retention, in business presentations they should be used. However, once or twice during your presentation type the letter ‘B’ on your keypad, this will black out the screen and put all the attention you.  Being front and centre creates the perception of confidence, credibility, and control.

• Be inclusive, not exclusive – Eye contact is the most effective way to demonstrate intention. The key is who to look at, when to look at them and for how long. Ignite your edgeness ™ by talking to one person at a time. One thought, one person. Easier said than done, but whenever you have a natural pause, switch to a new pair of eyes. And please, don’t forget to look at someone.

• Gestures illustrate, so you illuminate – Are you standing in front of your audience with no personality, some personality or too much personality? Your gestures can be the key to unlock or control the energy you exude. Ignite your edgeness ™ by thinking of what you are saying and add the appropriate gesture. Gestures can be the best form of visual aid, and again, they connect you to the audience.

• Vocal variety creates vitality – If you want your message to be heard and understood, how you project, modulate, and emphasize is key. Ignite your edgeness ™ by taking the time to consider your key messages, and what you want your audience to remember. Rehearse those messages so they resonate and garner a positive response.

• Moving with purpose – It takes a real master to utilize movement with grace and purpose. The knowing where to be and when to be there can have huge impact on the tone and energy in a room. The audience is often completely unaware of your motives, yet they feel the implications. Your subtle movement will take control of the room. You need to challenge your perceptions of what is right and wrong in movement and start moving with purpose to engage each corner of the room.

• Therefore practice may not make perfect, but it will make you persuasive – You want to rehearse out loud! We all sound fluid in our heads.  Rehearse beyond where you sound like a ‘presenter; to the point where you are engaging in conversation with your audience. Practice is fundamental to ensuring that you are transferring your energy to the audience – in other words, demonstrating intention.

There are a number of ways of challenging yourself to perform better in each presentation. The key is to practice, demonstrate intention by ignite your edgeness ™, and evaluate your development. Like golf, if you don’t practice, challenge yourself and evaluate your stroke, you may get lucky with a good shot now and again, but you won’t know how to repeat it. With each presentation not only will your performance improve, but also your ability to persuade will be evident in the audience’s positive reaction. Now go ignite your edgeness ™!

Action: Pick one of these skills and start practicing it in every day communications. When you get up to the front of the room, it will be a lot more comfortable to use when you want to persuade people to a positive outcome.

Ignite Excellence Inc. is launching online, influential communications programs March 2012. The first program launched will be Persuasive Presentation Skills that Move Minds.  If you are interested in receiving a early-bird rate for this programs click this link  Influential Communication Program(s) Inquiry. Use the following code to receive the introductory rate WE050.

Visit our other Ignite Excellence Group of initiatives’ websites with corresponding blogs.
Suzanne F Stevens – Profiling women leaders who have pushed their edge to personal or professional potential from backpack to briefcase to boardroom
Ignite Excellence Foundation – Leadership, Advocacy, Education – following donations to scholarships for women in developing countries
Wisdom Exchange TV – A forum where women will be inspired from the achievements of African women in business, education, philanthropy and politics.
You Me & We – a husbands and wife’s journey through Africa in 2011/12
Ignite Excellence Inc. – Influence, Differentiate, Engage more people and more business – a training & development company

I recently had the pleasure of trekking in the Virunga Mountains in Rwanda to visit the Gorillas in Volcanoes National Park. An experience of a lifetime! Unlike a safari where you sit comfortably in a truck and the highlights of your excursion appear before your very eyes with little effort on your part, visiting with the Gorillas was an experience you had to work for. We needed to be prepared to trek vertically for four hours to find the objects of amazement. A matter of fact in trip guide notes it said:

“Tracking gorillas in the dense forest can sometimes be wet, muddy and uncomfortable. The terrain is by no means easy either, so it can be pretty strenuous and often humid …You need to be prepared and fit enough to walk up to 4 hours – up and down hill.”

Now for many, depending on your fitness level, climbing up four hours would not be a challenge, but for others this may be the most physical exercise that you had done in quite some time. We had one woman on our trip that was challenged by this task. A matter of fact on a previous hike she had to turn back as she was not physically fit enough to complete the journey. Upon discussing the even more challenging hike ahead, seeing the Gorillas, she informed us traveling companions that not seeing the Gorillas was not an option. This was a life long dream. Although we all supporter her and wanted her to fulfill her dream, I couldn’t help question what had she done to prepare to realize that dream? Paying for the ticket and showing up is not enough.

This is often how sales representatives enter into business meetings, presentations or negotiations – unprepared.  Getting the meeting, showing up and having a desire is not enough to demonstrate success.

Here are some preparation tips to ensure you are able to reach your objectives for the meeting, presentation or negotiation so that what ever your ‘dream’ is at least you will have won enough business to financially support it.

Sales meeting preparation strategy:

• Research the company –
  Have your colleagues or network dealt with them before?
  What is their mission and vision of the organization?
• How do you fit in with that mission or vision?
  What are their latest news releases? (Often found on their website).
  The most pressing issues for the organization?
• Who will be in the meeting?
  What are their titles, areas of responsibility?
  What might those individuals in that role concern themselves with?
  Based on their role, what may be their possible communication style?
• Why did they take the meeting?
  What did I say to capture their attention for the meeting?
• What are some key values that the prospect may possess based on your research?
• What is your objective for the meeting? Be clear, as that will dictate questions you formulate.
• What questions should you prepare? Remember don’t over prepare your questions as you want to have a conversation not an interrogation.
  What are some big questions (Macro questions) that would start the conversation and elicit business objectives for this individual and for the company? (Prepare three, just in case one of the questions doesn’t elicit enough of a response. Include a question that focuses on the future. Such a question will uncover opportunities to work together long-term.)
  What are some questions that would challenge your perspective clients’ thinking? These questions are the most important to use in a meeting as they demonstrate your expertise while often creating an opportunity that was not as obvious to the prospect.
• What evidence should you prepare to share based on the prospect’s industry and possible objectives?
• Lastly, email or call the day before to confirm the meeting and the location.

Presentation preparation strategy:

Following is a quick reference guide to questions you should ask yourself while preparing for a presentation, formal or informal. Keep in mind, if you haven’t had a conversation with key stakeholders prior to the presentation, you will limit your level of success.

1. Audience Analysis

• Who is my audience?
• Who are the decision-makers?
• Who are the key influencers?
• What is their level of understanding?
• What is important to them?
• What are their key issues?
• What is their communication style(s)?
• What is their level of understanding of my subject?
• What is their decision-making process?
• What do we have in common with them?
• What are their expectations of the presentation?
• What will motivate them to accept the information or recommendation? (Emotional, rational, political & cultural motivators.)
• What will they tell their peers as being the reason(s) we won their business?

2. Collect Relevant Information

1. Do I have the right amount of information?
2. Is the information I have relevant to the audience to whom I am communicating?
3. Has the audience asked to hear specific information?
4. What else would they be interested in based on their industry, experience and issues?

3. Set an Objective

1. What do I want the audience to think, feel or do as a result of my presentation?
2. Is the objective reasonable and achievable?
3. What needs to change in the listeners’ minds?

(For the complete list of Ten Planning Components to a Persuasive Presentation subscribe free to Wisdom Exchange TV (www.wisdomexchangetv.com), the form is on the right hand side of the site. Wisdom Exchange TV is a leadership website discussing leadership and business strategies from Women leaders all over Africa. Use promo code WE096)

Negotiation preparation strategy:

The Ignite Excellence negotiation game plan will assist you in achieving your objective of negotiating the best possible outcome. Consider the following planning steps as a start to prepare the Game Plan for your next negotiation. To receive the remaining steps click:

Complete Negotiation game plan preparation techniques

1. Set your Objective

1. Do you have a clear objective? It may seem obvious, but the more clearly and succinctly you define what you are trying to achieve, the more likely you are to prepare an effective Game Plan.
2. Are you aware of the objective of the other party?

2. Issues

1. What are all the issues (i.e. anything of value that needs to be split among the parties)?
2. What are your issues? Do you and your manager agree on the issues?
3. Do you know for certain what the issues are of the other party? If not, you must plan based on your assumption of their issues and then verify during the process.

3. Assess Strengths & Weaknesses (Ours and Theirs) “SWOT”

1. By assessing Strengths & Weaknesses you can continue to remove yourself from the ‘emotional’ aspects of the negotiation and think rationally & critically about the factors that may impact your ability to negotiate.
2. Consider your strengths & weaknesses and those of the other party.

Complete Negotiation game plan preparation techniques (use promo code WE097)

My travel companion did make it! The guides ensured she had the shortest distance to hike. Prospects are not that accommodating. In a first time sales call, if you do a good job of asking the right questions to solicit understanding of your prospect’s situation you may be able to compensate for bad preparation. However, without due diligence for a presentation or negotiation your ‘getting the meeting, showing up and having a desire’ will not be enough to achieve winning results.

We all have aspirations and dreams; with proper preparation your success rate increases drastically!

Action: Before your next sales meeting, presentation or negotiation ask yourself, “Do I know enough about the prospect, their company, their situations, values, issues to ensure I ask the right questions, present the right information or negotiate to my strengths? If not, you have more work to do to put yourself in a position to realize your dreams.

Suzanne F Stevens

Visit our other Ignite Excellence Inc. Group of initiatives’ websites with corresponding blogs.
Suzanne F Stevens – Profiling women leaders who have pushed their edge to personal or professional potential from backpack to briefcase to boardroom, keynotes & Coaching
Ignite Excellence Foundation – Leadership, Advocacy, Education – following donations to scholarships for women in emerging countries
Wisdom Exchange TV – A forum where women will be inspired from the achievements of African women in business, education, philanthropy and politics.
You Me & We – a husbands and wife’s journey through Africa in 2011/12
Ignite Excellence Inc. – Influence, Differentiate, Engage more people and more business – a Leadership & sales training & development company

Looking out on Kenya’s famous game reserve, the Masai Mara, at the millions of wildebeest, I could not help but be intrigued by their behaviour. To watch the wildebeest  roam the vast open space with no semblance of order, to all of a sudden fall in line behind this one wildebeest.

One wildebeest would start moving to a new frontier, and another would fall in behind, another, then another. Before long there were hundreds of wildebeest migrating, following one after the other headed in the same direction, seeing no further than the one right in front of them. As an example, after hours and sometimes days of contemplation,  when finally one dares to cross a river infested with crocodiles in order to go to green pastures, the others follow blindly, often to their demise.

During our safari, I heard sounds of distress. Eighteen game drives has now made me an expert in the calls of the wild. Our guide drove closer to examine the situation. On one side of a line of bushes there were zebra staring in the direction of the bush, making calls. On the other, wildebeest were also looking towards the bush and becoming skittish. Upon further examination, we saw the source of their concern. It was a lion with a baby wildebeest in its mouth, still moving while being dragged further into the bush for its final breath. The lion as the king of the jungle prevailed.

As we headed back to our campground we observed a family of female elephants welcome a bull (male elephant) wandering by itself into their herd. The matriarchal female welcomed the new bull by banishing the one that had already been traveling with them. The matriarch just slightly moved toward the bull that had been their traveling companion, and gestured with her trunk that the bull be exiled. Immediately after, she welcomed the new bull to the herd. A subtle movement of authority and all was under control.

In watching all these interactions it was evident in every case that a different leadership style was being utilized. Some obviously harsher than others, but in the end, they all achieved their objective regardless of the approach. The wildebeest crossed the river. The lion had its dinner; the elephant brought a new bull into the herd.

In my recent interview on Wisdom Exchange TV with Jane Wathome, the founder of Beacon of Hope, a registered faith-based and community non-governmental organization that addresses the HIV/AIDS pandemic among women in poor communities. She suggests there is a “different leadership style for each season,” meaning that a different leader is required at different stages of a company’s growth.

In another recent interview, Joyce Muraya accentuated the need for different leadership styles depending on the organization’s mandate. Joyce, Kenya Country Director for Amani Au Juu, is a quiet leader.  She tends to methodically walk in one direction; occasionally checking behind her to ensure her team is following, but continues knowing they are there. As Joyce is always seeking greener pastures, and is always moving forward, perhaps her leadership style would be similar to a wildebeest’s.

Joyce recognizes that this is the right type of leadership for Amani Au Juu, a not-for-profit organization that provides a safe haven for women refugees and local women who have fallen through the cracks of the system . The objective of the organization is to help women to regain their dignity through contribution to their families by creating and selling a variety of merchandise. For Joyce to implement a more forceful leadership style may actually alienate these women from feeling the comfort and reassurances of a safe haven.

I would have to agree with both Jane and Joyce. I do think certain organizations need a certain type of leader to prosper, but I also believe that during the growth of a business a leader needs to transform from one style to the next.

I have seen these leadership styles in action many times over the years.

The lion’s aggressive leadership style, if used, would be most appropriate at the beginning stages of an initiative, when the leader has most of the vision and the team needs to be highly managed to understand it and execute. However, this approach could be fatal if taking on a leadership role in an established organization. This style would also be effective when the leader is putting together the right team to grow the business, or if they are parachuted in to save the business. I will call this leadership style Imperious Leadership.

The elephant’s leadership style would be most effective in growth mode of an organization. Where some members of the team are operating efficiently and strategically, however, other key individuals still need continued guidance to achieve the objectives. The team needs some tweaking, not an overhaul. This style could also be utilized when most of your team is performing at a high level but a mentor is required for some individuals to really excel.  This leadership style I will call Proficient leadership.

The wildebeest leadership style is most affective in later stages of an organization’s life cycle, assuming it has been operating at a high performance level. Little daily direction from the CEO is required as the management team has fallen in line and understands, and is capable of executing the objectives in line with the organizational vision. This style would also be effective when each member of an organization had direct stake in its success.  I will call this leadership style Directional Leadership.

There seems to be a logical flow from Imperious Leader, to a Proficient Leader to a Directional Leader as an organization progresses. This could take a year, to years to span the entire cycle.

It has been said that wildebeest lack intelligence, however their critics never had leadership insights. Which begs the question, are wildebeest really lacking in intelligence? It depends, if the leader is just the leader because she is the only one brave enough to be out in front, or if she is out in front because she is moving to greener pastures.

So I challenge you, which leader are you? Is it the appropriate leadership style for this stage of your organization or for the individual you are leading? Are you being an Imperious Leader, when you should be a Directional Leader? Or are you being a Directional Leader when you should be a Proficient Leader? Making sure you are using the right style at the right time, under the right circumstances is key to the continued growth of your people and organization.

If you are finding your team restless, uncomfortable, or skittish, you may be using the wrong style to get them to fall in line.

Action: Look at your leadership style, and challenge yourself to see if it is appropriate for what your organization, project, initiative or individual needs now. If it isn’t you may have to change your leadership style to get the best out of your people. If you are a follower, are you content with the vision of the organization and its leadership style to get to that vision? If you are not, it may just be the wrong leadership style to get the best out of you.

Suzanne F Stevens

Visit our other Ignite Excellence Inc. Group of initiatives’ websites with corresponding blogs.
Suzanne F Stevens – Profiling women leaders who have pushed their edge to personal or professional potential from backpack to briefcase to boardroom, keynotes & Coaching
Ignite Excellence Foundation – Leadership, Advocacy, Education – following donations to scholarships for women in emerging countries
Wisdom Exchange TV – A forum where women will be inspired from the achievements of African women in business, education, philanthropy and politics.
You Me & We – a husbands and wife’s journey through Africa in 2011/12
Ignite Excellence Inc. – Influence, Differentiate, Engage more people and more business – a Leadership & sales training & development company

I often wonder how as adults we know it is so important to instill manners into our children, but we so often forget to practice what we preach.

This blog is not to educate anyone on manners, but to remind us what our mama taught us. Listed below are top ten manner reminders that are often not observed regularly enough in business. Reflect on these childhood rules, and think about how many you might have accidentally broken recently (I counted 3 for myself).

10. Our mother always said to say thank you to anyone who helps us or gives us something.  ‘Thanks you’, is so simply done, but so often forgotten. I have observed, and heard that employees often don’t thank their bosses when taking them out for lunch. It is almost like it is expected. A little more appreciation and a little less expectation will bode well when you want something, like a raise. We would remember to thank a client if they took us out for lunch, so why would we forget when our boss, who also impacts our future, foots the bill?

9.  You may remember being dragged across the schoolyard by your Mama to apologize for hitting little Billy. You stood there until you muttered the words “I am sorry.” How about trying a form of an apology when you make a mistake at work. This is a new trend that I have stumbled upon. Someone makes an error, sometimes costing the company money, sometimes a lot of money, and there is no acceptance of an employee’s role in the situation. If you are a contributor to a mistake, take ownership! It will gain you more respect than avoidance.

8. When we were kids, while at a restaurant our mama’s often gave us something to colour to distract us. This is a lesson we have retained, in our adult life.  We continue to have a distraction now in the form of a cell phone on the table. The reality is she gave it to us so she could focus on her conversation. Remove your cell phone from the table during a dining experience, unless you have told your dining companion you’re expecting a call.  I am being very forgiving here; as I believe your phone should never be on the table while socializing or conducting a meeting it can subconsciously imply someone is more important than your dining companion. Now that may be the case, but do really want to remind them of that through out the entire meal?

7.  When our mama told us to ‘sit down’ when in a restaurant, it was with the intention not to disturb others. This also applies with turning your cell phone off for the benefit of the person you are sitting across from and everyone else in the restaurant. People often go out to dinner to get away from the phone. Even in this world where technological communication is everywhere, some of us just want to communicate with the people around us.

6. Do you remember when Mama said, “Say hello to adult or a child when you walk in the room?” Well this also applies when you write an email.  To get the attention of the reader and more importantly, to set the tone of the email use a salutation – It is arrogant of us to think that someone is just waiting to hear from us, and as a result we set up an email as if we are in a conversation. The consequences are that we often sound abrasive rather then conversational. And a bonus tip: If you and the sender of the original email don’t know each other well then attach the email thread, it will jog their memory. Bonus reminder, still say hello to individuals when you walk into the room.

5. We have all heard this one, “don’t talk with your mouth full”. Not only will we see what is in your mouth, but also we won’t understand you. The same applies when getting the attention of someone in business, use their name or if you don’t know it, use Mama’s ever-popular phrase, “Excuse me.” – Two words that are void in the busy businesspersons life. Gaining the attention of the person you are communicating to prior to commencing conversation will promote an active listener and possibly a desired action. If they are not ready for the message, they may not be responsible for acting on it.

4. This one is still ringing in my ear, ‘respond when someone is speaking to you.’ This can refer to returning phone call when someone is trying to speak to you. Ok, so how many calls do you get? We can become overwhelmed with returning calls, but it does say a lot about someone who takes the time. If you want to set yourself apart, return calls. You never know when that person may be your client.

3. “Hold the door for elders.” Hold the door open for everyone! Now somewhere along the way this piece of etiquette went by the wayside. Perhaps one too many women may have said they can open a door for themselves. That being said, open the door for anyone, male, female, it is just common courtesy to be respectful. Challenge, next time you are in an elevator, hold it and let people go first, you just may make their day!

2. Mama’s favourite word, not ‘no’ but ‘please.’ Yes, even if you are in a management position. If you demonstrate respect for your employees, it is amazing the respect they will give you in turn. Besides, without this proper courtesy you may sound demanding and breed resentment.

1.  I am sure you remember this manner mandate “Look at someone when they are speaking to you.” By looking at someone, you should also be listening when someone is speaking to you. Really listen – don’t be on your computer, or distracted with your Blackberry. Give the person your undivided attention. If culturally appropriate, look them in the eye. It will pay dividends for years to come.

Excuse me, I am sorry if I was too straight forward, but I wanted to impart some of what our Mama’s have wanted to continue to tell us all our lives, if you please. But if they did, we would not listen, therefore I thank you for allowing me to remind you that in business, in society, and in government, like in schools, is a place where we could use some manners. Without them, we are affecting our emotional relationships, which can jeopardize colleague co-operation, increased sales, and job promotions.

I welcome you to comment, and add to the list manners you would like to see using more of in business. I also challenge you to go back to basics and not only listening to what mama said, but also applying it, it will make the difference in who follows us, who works with us and who promotes us.

Action: Take note of yourself over the next week. Notice how many times you forget your manners, and fail to promote positive impact as a result. Then next week, change it.

Bonus Manner Mandate: Don’t interrupt when someone is speaking, no matter how tempting it is.

Visit our other Ignite Excellence Group of initiatives’ websites with corresponding blogs.

Suzanne F Stevens – Profiling women leaders who have pushed their edge to personal or professional potential from backpack to briefcase to boardroom
Ignite Excellence Foundation – Leadership, Advocacy, Education – following donations to scholarships for women in developing countries
Wisdom Exchange TV – A forum where women will be inspired from the achievements of African women in business, education, philanthropy and politics.
You Me & We - a husbands and wife’s journey through Africa in 2011/12
Ignite Excellence Inc. – Influence, Differentiate, Engage more people and more business – a training & development company

I see the use of empathy through three different lenses.

As a sales professional, coach and trainer, I encourage my clients to use empathy as a way to connect and build rapport with their prospects or clients. By ‘walking in their shoes’ and appreciating their areas of concern, they are better equipped to understand their client’s perspective and provide information in a way that is more compelling to them. This will often result in influencing the client to feel that your solution or product will meet their objectives.

This is all well and good, however this same technique used in different environments can have negative consequences. As a leader if you are coaching an employee or peer, you may find that by using empathy and trying to ‘comprehend’ you have actually picked up the emotions of the coachee.  You find their ‘dissatisfaction with a colleague,’ now has become your dissatisfaction with a colleague. Somewhere along the way you have picked up the negative energy of your coachee by over empathizing, resulting in your inability to be an effective coach. In order to show empathy while coaching you can ask questions that allow the coachee to come to their own conclusions without bringing your feelings or emotions into the situation. As a leader in an organization, it is best in the coaching environment to sit back and allow individuals to come to their own conclusions first, as that will increase the chance of commitment to the outcome, and you still have demonstrated a genuine interest.

Now take empathy and apply it to a social situation. You are having a conversation with a friend, and you have a lot on your mind. You ‘need’ to talk (some of you guys may be wondering what I am talking about). You start sharing a story about something that has been preoccupying you. From your perspective, it is quite unique circumstance and very important to you. As you start sharing your preoccupation, your friend listens and then says, “I understand, I remember when I felt that way,’ and proceeds to tell their  story. So after some time you continue to air your frustration with your own situation, only to again be followed by ‘I understand, I remember when…’ Committed to expressing your frustration with your situation, you persist. During this conversation all attention is now on the empathizer, leaving you void of feeling any genuine empathy.

So the question remains, what is the appropriate amount of empathy? I think we can take lessons from all three situations. In a sales environment, it always wise to understand and appreciate the other person’s perspective. As a coach and leader, it is advantageous that we remove ‘us’ from the emotional element of someone’s situation, and truly be an active listener. From a conversational perspective, control the need to continuously engage in the tennis match of saying ‘I understand and here is my story and why…’, making the conversation about you and not the person with the issue.

The skills of a honed empathetic individual are active listening, verbal and kinetic acknowledgement, and seeking to understand without judgment. Utilizing such well-managed skills would make us better salespeople, leaders and quite frankly, friends.

Action: If someone has an issue to discuss regardless of the circumstance, I challenge you to just listen with friendly eyes, and an occasional nod. Let them have their time to explain their situation, further inquire, which will be empathy enough.  I guarantee at another point you will have an active listener and it will be amazing how your issue just dissipates.

Now, have you ever heard a six-year-old say to you: “Explain it to me AND make sure I understand it”?

Last weekend, I had the pleasure of being in the company of my niece. I imagine that she is similar to many six year olds; curious, with a lot of questions. “What is that?” “How does that work?” “What does vandalism mean?”

Not being a child psychologist, and not having a child of my own, I couldn’t help being surprised by her astute comments that acknowledged not only the need to hear, but also the need to understand. Her request to “explain it to me so I understand it” is a statement that, if asked in business, would drastically reduce the amount of miscommunication that occurs when leading a team or selling to a client.

As leaders and sales people, wouldn’t it be nice to say to many of our colleagues or prospects, “explain it to me so that I understand it.” This is really what communication is all about. However, to put such a demand on our fellow communicator may compromise the perception of our own intellect.

So what can we do to ensure that, when communicating, both parties actually understand the intention of the communication and the clear action to take?

In communication, our dialogue may veer off course. This happens because we are going back and forth without completely understanding the other person’s perspective prior to providing information. We often see this occur when we lead, or in sales and service where we are anxiously trying to get to our message without completely understanding the perspective of the other person.

Before we can decide if someone understands us, we need to understand what they think, what they know, what they have experience with, in regards to the topic that is being discussed. By understanding their view of the situation, circumstance, or information we are much better prepared to provide them with information that will ensure they “understand”.

At Ignite Excellence we use a concept called “probing to understanding”. This technique can be used to lead a colleague to the real reason they feel or do something, or it can be used in sales to isolate a situation or an opportunity.

The six-step process to “probe to understanding” is:

1. Ask the other person their perspective on a particular situation
2. Ask what other criteria is important in that perspective or in making a particular decision
3. Ask them to prioritize that criteria
4. ‘Dig Deep,’ meaning probing deeply and logically on specific issues or cues. Ask more questions to isolate the reason beyond the importance and identify that the reasons are in fact the REAL reasons, and not just the reasons they were comfortable in communicating to you
5. Clarify all areas of confusion or uncertainty
6. Provide a possible solution to the situation, problem, or opportunity.

By the time you have done the first five steps, you have acquired a lot of knowledge about the other person’s perspective. That knowledge will actually lead to your UNDERSTANDING. When you then provide a solution, based on your understanding, inspired by your colleague or client, identifying their criteria and priorities, you will be in a much better position to provide a solution that they actually UNDERSTAND. More importantly, will feel compelled to act upon.

Action: When communicating to someone, ask yourself “do I understand enough about their perception and situation to provide council on how to move forward?” If not, dig deep, probe to understand their perspective. Your understanding will lead to theirs.

of the major tennis tournaments. Although we enjoyed the energy of the stadium and the alternation of baseline to net shots played by Federer, I could not help but notice how many mistakes he made. At this level, to see so many serves and returns go into the net, or be hit out, seemed excessive. It appeared he was out of control.

Andre Agassi, another tennis great, wrote, in his biography, advice he received from a friend: “Quit going for the knockout. Stop swinging for the fences. All you have to be is solid… Stop thinking about yourself, and your own game, and remember that the guy on the other side of the net has weaknesses. Attack his weaknesses. You don’t have to be the best in the world every time you go out there. You just have to be better than one guy. ”

This is true in the sales world.  I would suggest, however,  not “attacking” the weakness, but perhaps just letting the prospect explore it. Ask him the right questions, would do the trick.

As professional sales people, how many mistakes do we make while in play? How many times do we go for the ‘knock-out’? And is that actually what is causing us to lose control?

Mistakes, or missteps, can increase tension in a sales meeting. This is often due to opposing agendas, conflicting values, or polar personalities.

There are ways to reduce tension and gain control in any sales environment. Although not an exhaustive list, here are some techniques that can be immediately applied to gain control:

1. Start your meeting with a loose agenda. Something like, “I will tell you a little about our organization for context (2 minutes max). Then spend most of your time focusing on your business objectives, and see if there is an opportunity to work together, now or in the future.” Gain agreement – “Is this OK?” If they respond favourably, which usually happens, the prospect has agreed to you running the meeting and will less likely try to take control.
2. When you feel there is an increase in tension, or you’re losing control. Ask a question and then be quiet and listen. I know this can be challenging , but it will be important as tension rises. Keep reminding yourself, “It is not about me”.
3. Probe deep into a particular issue until you completely understand their perspective. With further inquiries, you demonstrate empathy and genuine interest, not to mention that it provides you with time to think, WHILE LISTENING.
4. Never let them see you sweat!  Something we, at Ignite Excellence, always teach in our presentation training is: “It is not what happens to you, it is how you deal with it”. Make sure your body language is relaxed. Place your hands in the centre of your body. Your voice will tend to sound calmer and you will appear more in control. Furthermore, over-using gestures could create an opposite impression. Lastly, relax your shoulders, as the perceived impressions are often emulated from the shoulders. The more relaxed your shoulders are, the more relaxed you will appear (without slouching of course).  A relaxed appearance will promote a contagious effect.

Another way to remember some of these techniques is to maintain control – Hear, Acknowledge, Inquire, and Respond; otherwise known as ‘controlling your H.A.I.R’.

It is imperative in any interaction with the prospect/client that they have confidence in you and your company’s ability to provide the solution put forth. How you deal with tension and maintain control may be perceived as a direct reflection of how you and your company will execute or deliver a product or service.

The best tool to combat the unexpected, prior to the heat of the moment, is preparation. Know the industry; know possible issues in the industry; know the history of the company; know who will be in the discussion. Even the experienced sales person will sometimes forget that preparation is King –  without it, it becomes a lot more challenging to get the ball over the net.

Action: For your next meeting, internal or external, start with an agenda. Really focus on the other person by probing deep into a particular issue until you completely understand their perspective. When you leave, they will feel that your interaction was a good use of their time and you will be one step closer to influencing the sale.

Volunteerism according to Suzanne F. Stevens:

• Giving your intelligence, insight, and time to a cause.
• A social phenomenon that provides opportunities to rub shoulders with diverse individuals with similar interests.
• Exposing yourself to learning new skills, industries, or perspectives.
• An opportunity to expand your horizons, your community, and your network of influence.
• A selfless act that demonstrates your commitment to giving and will bolster your professional image!

Volunteering is… well, what you make it.

I have the pleasure of working with several volunteers for a number of initiatives and it prompted me to think about the reasons people volunteer.

There are several reasons one may choose to donate their time:

• Develop a new skill
• Expand their Network
• Feel part of a community
• Heighten their profile
• Demonstrate leadership
• Add to their resume
• Pure altruistic reasons

The one sentence that we hear often about working with volunteers is “remember, they are  volunteers”. What does that really mean? I assume it means that because they are volunteers we cannot expect much from them. However, when I look at the variety of reasons why someone would choose to volunteer, most of them will impact the impression people will have on you or your organization as a result of their volunteering.

I think anyone who raises their hand to volunteer should be commended. However, I also think that if you are going to raise your hand, you really should consider why you are volunteering. What do you hope to gain from the experience?

Have a clear objective in your mind when volunteering; it will assist in making several decisions on your time allotment. For example, when something else that you perceive more important is scheduled at the same time as your volunteering time, your decisions will be easier. Another consideration is how you conduct yourself in a volunteering environment. Many people volunteer to enhance their professional careers, while interacting with other volunteers in ways that may jeopardize their professional impression.

Points to consider as a volunteer:

• Am I on time for the meetings?
• Do I actively contribute?
• Am I being open to others’ perspectives?
• Am I just offering advice or am I offering to implement (remember everyone else is also a volunteer too)
• Do I continuously demonstrate respect for other volunteers?
• Do I see my task through to completion?

One of the best pieces of advice I can provide to a volunteer is to treat the opportunity as if it was your client, and each volunteer is a decision-maker. This will ensure that we continue to respect the process and not take anyone’s role for granted.

Keep in mind, if you make the commitment to your job and you get busy, you wouldn’t just quit.

PS: I am so grateful to be working on the Success to Significance Conference with such a great group of professionals!

Action:

When volunteering, have a clear objective in mind on what you hope to receive in exchange for your time, insights, and actions. Treat the opportunity like a client; this will guide every interaction.

Recently I had the pleasure of learning about a new industry, new research, new program, new brands and new processes for a new client. This process was so mind-consuming that I actually challenged myself to question, “When was the last time I learnt so much in such a short period of time? When was the last time I felt this stretched?”

“Stretch to the edge of your comfort zone, as this is where you perform at your best.” This philosophy has always been my mantra and although I chose a career that I continue to have to stretch, one cannot help but crave comfort. In business, comfort perpetuates mediocrity, which may be our demise.

It is human nature to gravitate toward a comfortable approach, the one that has worked before and surely will continue to work again. But in the process of staying within our comfort zone we are missing opportunities to stretch our ability to perform better or win more.

As the owner of a training and development business, I am at a vantage point to experience firsthand what people are willing and not willing to do to improve their performance. At Ignite Excellence we speak about being “unconsciously incompetent” which means we don’t know what we don’t know. The reality is there is always someone one who will have more knowledge, or a different perspective than we do. The question is, are we open enough to hear it and try it?

Six suggestions to keep you at the edge:

1. Get out of your own way; your experiences brought you to this point in your career, however, to get to the next level, we need to be open to others’ perspectives.
2. Try something new; a sport, a business technique, a sales approach
3. Stick to it. Masters were not born in a day. Learning a new skill takes practice. Changing behaviour takes time. Give it an honest effort.
4. Do something that gets your adrenalin going. Something adventurous that makes you completely uncomfortable. This will give you the thrill of what you can achieve when you push yourself.
5. Learn something that you have never had the time for but always wanted to do; pick up the guitar, take singing lessons, or take an improvisation class.
6. Pick a book that writes about a perspective on history, culture, your city that you don’t believe you will agree with, and finish it.

By trying something different, learning a new skill, listening to a new perspective you open yourself up to possibilities.

If we take this same approach in business, we may just find out that our perspective is not always the right perspective; and our approach is not always the best approach. Being open to others’ perspectives and approaches can be the best skill we ever embrace in sales calls, leadership and in negotiating in the boardroom.

Action:

Do something on your ‘bucket list’ — start it today. You don’t want to be 90 years old and saying I should have, could have, would have… Besides you just may learn what you really are capable of!

As a very proud Canadian, I felt a little disappointed when the Canadian Olympic women’s pursuit skaters made the decision to not communicate with their coach during such an important race. That decision may have cost them the podium. The Canadian men’s team used trackside signs to communicate with their coach which told them how far ahead or behind they were from their opponents with winning results. An unexpected Gold medal was won. The women decided to focus on their own instincts to assess their performance.

Not being an Olympian, I won’t criticize the approach, but as a trainer and salesperson I see this approach taken far too often. Sales people often do not want feedback on their performance. Often we think, “I have been selling for so long, there is little more I can learn”. This method should not preclude checking in to see how well we are doing so we are able to measure our performance.

I often coach very experienced business developers. Their superiors force some into the sales training environment; some make the choice to improve their performance; and others just want to know how they are faring. Under any circumstance, I admire the individuals who look into the mirror to see their performance.

The sales people I admire most are the ones who are the most accomplished; like the Canadian women’s pursuit team prior to the Olympic race. These sales people are the individuals that know they have performed well historically. Unlike the women’s team however, the sales people I admire are the ones who know that sometimes you don’t know what you don’t know. Without feedback on an ongoing basis, they will never know how they fare. I too attend training in a number of areas, sometimes to learn a skill or a new business practice, sometimes to check if I have covered all my bases.

If no one ever provides us with feedback how will we ever know if we are doing everything in our power to be successful? Some managers are hands-on and you will get that continued feedback. Others are not. Whether a part of, or your entire job is focused on building business, you will need to get feedback in order to perform at your best.

When it comes to the biggest business opportunities, you don’t want to find out that you don’t know what you don’t know after the business is awarded…or while you are watching your biggest competitor receive the Gold.

Action: After every meeting ask yourself, what went well, what could I have done better? If you are with a colleague, as them for the two things that they thought you did well, and the two things they thought you could do more effectively next time. By asking for two things, you will receive specific information, rather than vague — “it was good” or “you were fine.”  This type of feedback will limit your ability to perform better the next time.

Now that I have that off my chest, how many people will actually remember my name? Over the course of my life, I always thought I was blessed with a simple name, yet just different enough because I had the more ‘formal’ variation of “Susan”. But my blessing has now become my demise.

If you Google Suzanne Stevens, you will find thousands of results. As a speaker, this makes it very difficult for people to find me. Now I go by Suzanne F. Stevens. Beyond being difficult to be found, there is a bigger challenge – people continuously say my name incorrectly. Over the past year, many people have decided to call me something different, whether I am in a professional or personal environment or whether they have known me for a day or for years. The good news is I do believe they are trying to call me by what they think my name is, rather than using less flattering adjective.

What happened? Have people stopped paying attention? Are we moving so fast that we are not listening to each other anymore? Do our iPhones, Blackberries or expansive to-do lists distract us? Or are we just too shy to ask, “Can you please pronounce or spell your name?” None of these excuses are acceptable when it relates to establishing a business relationship.

Dale Carnegie said in his book How to Win Friends and Influence people: “Remember that a person’s name is to that person the sweetest and most important sound in any language.”

Mispronouncing a name can happen, and social environment, for the short-term, I let it go. In a professional environment however, you are tampering with a person’s brand, and this is where I hear mispronunciations happen most often.

I think the only thing more inexcusable than saying someone’s name improperly is writing it incorrectly. Although, writing my name incorrectly has a lot less impact, in my environment. I am amazed how often people will start emails to me with “Hello Susan”, even after I have sent them an email signed “Suzanne”, or “Dear Mr. Stephens”; someone entered this name in a database incorrectly. I do not respond to the emails addressed to Mr. Stephens; in my view, that is a surefire way of alienating the recipient.

I can only imagine if my name were Dolores, Leah or Zain…

These observations of distracted, lazy, or just uninterested human behaviours are less about getting my name correct than conducting a due diligence when it comes to clients’ names. These missteps can be obstacles to winning business. If you repeatedly get your client’s name wrong, you may leave them with amnesia of your name when they need your services.

Action:Stop. Make sure you have the correct name. If you can’t get it right, your clients may ask themselves, “What else are you not paying attention to?”

“That’s not my name“ – a great tune that says it all.

I was flattered and impressed. As a businessperson I could not stop but think about the implications of receiving this gesture. Did everyone get one?  Did Jenny know we were coming in today? Did she have some spare cards and chocolates in her purse just in case a particular customer came in? The biggest question – did it matter?

Here is someone who took some time to think of her patrons and bought a little something to show her customers that she appreciated them. A little time and a little money I believe created a huge result. I couldn’t help but feel a little more loyal to Jenny as a result of her kind gesture.

What are you doing in your business to create that same sort of loyalty? You may often feel as if you are interrupting your clients if you give them a call to inquire how they are doing.  If you don’t have a purpose for the call or an established relationship, you could be right about your call being an interruption.

Think about your clients. What would they appreciate?

• An article that is focused on their business
• A referral
• Insight into their business
• A note of congratulations on an achievement
• A hand-written note, perhaps thanking them for business
• Setting-up a conversation that discusses strategy
• An invitation to an event that is important to them

The more personal the gesture, the more meaningful it will be to the recipient. If you are sending articles about business, be sure to mention to your client that you remembered they had expressed an interest in a particular subject and thought you would enjoy this article.

I tend to keep it simple. Over the years, whether I was bartending in my younger days or now leading an organization, I send thank you cards to demonstrate appreciation. Many of my clients with whom I have the best relationships, often say, “It was so nice to receive a hand written card”.

When was the last time you gave a client a Hug or a Kiss? Symbolism is important here.
What are you doing to keep client loyalty? I would recommend that you make it genuine. People want to connect; they don’t want to feel like they are a means to an end.

Action: Call a client that you haven’t spoken to in a while, or send them a note. I promise, your genuine consideration will pay dividends.

In my last entry, I spoke about looking in the mirror, knowing when to look closely and when to avoid constant scrutiny. In this entry I am asking you to look closely at who is in your audience when you are presenting to win business.

Let’s say you decide to buy a new computer. The sales person starts explaining to you all the bells and whistles of the Mac OS X (my latest purchase). While he is giving his sales pitch, you are growing noticeably impatient. At no point during the one-way data dump does he find out how you plan on using the computer; what you do for a living; who your clients are; if you need to share information internally; what you may need to be successful; or why are you are considering a Mac, when you have been a long-time PC user!

By finding the answer to such specific questions the sales person would be able to learn that:

You work in a business environment;

Yes, you need to share information with PC users (affecting what software you buy);

You are using it for video editing;

You plan on creating DVDs;

You will be editing pictures.

He would be finding out your expectations for a new computer, why you feel a Mac would meet your requirements, and whether you are impressed with this Mac. These important details might secure the sale of not only the Mac, but also all the related software.

Now, you may think: “I wouldn’t want my retailer to ask me so many questions”. On the other hand, if a sales person is going to help you with the “right” solution rather than just “a” solution, then why not? This information might save you time and money as you try to set up the Mac to meet your business needs.

Let’s take this philosophy and apply it to your high-stakes business presentations.

I often find myself at the back of a training room critiquing very qualified individuals making business presentations that could potentially win them lucrative contracts. No matter what industry I work with- finance, engineering, media, architecture, research, or public relations – it seems presenters always start their presentations with “our company, its history, and what we can do for you”. It’s like watching ‘Ground Hog Day’. Many of these companies are very successful in their own right, so they must feel confident that their presentations are effective. But will this approach work some of the time, most of the time, or all of the time? My experience tells me it works some of the time. Nothing works all of the time, so I will focus on most of the time.

To increase the chances of winning business, “influencing tools” are the magic wand. The power of influence comes from knowing the other party. If we don’t know who we are speaking with, how can we influence them? We can’t.

Learning about your audience by looking online, searching their name, and asking your network are all good places to start, but your preparation is far from complete. To find out what clients want (notice, the intentional use of WANT, not NEED—“need” is to survive, “want” is to prosper), you need to ask questions about their previous experiences and listen to how they are motivated emotionally (ego, trust, safety), politically (hierarchy, how we do things), and culturally (their unspoken biases).

Before getting up in front of a room to present, you should know as much as possible about everyone in the audience. Seems like an insurmountable task? Maybe, but remember these tips as you plan your next presentation: the more you know, the more you can address their specific issues; the less you know, the more fatal assumptions you will make. Without information or understanding of your audience’s perspective, the more you are throwing information against the wall in the hopes that it will stick.

Your next presentation will be improved if you can answer the following questions:

• Who is in my audience?
• Who are the decision-makers?
• What is their decision-making process?
• Who are the key influencers?
• What are their experiences with providers?
• What does my audience value?
• What is the level of understanding of my topic?
• What are their key issues?
• How do they like to receive information?
• What do I have in common with them?
• What are their expectations of the presentation?
• What will motivate them to accept the information or recommendation? (Emotional, rational, political & cultural, motivators)
• How will they describe my presentation to peers?

Even if you know how only one member of the audience would answer these questions, it will help, but it usually is not enough. In any presentation, it is the unknown that is your enemy; you don’t want to find yourself in a pack of wolves as you describe “our company, its history, and what we can do for you”!

Next Steps: When preparing your next presentation, take the time to ask your clients what they want, in order to increase your chances of winning the opportunity. What are their experiences? What do they hope to gain from your presentation? What is important to them? Why are they changing providers or starting a new initiative? Watch how your audience listens to your entire presentation. Better yet, watch them take positive action after your presentation.

Proceed with Caution!

She received a mirror that acts like a microscope highlighting all the facial flaws. I too have this mirror. I have found that, when I take a peek, I ask myself: “Where are the years going?” “Where did that line come from?” “When did I get that age spot?” Looking into the mirror is almost like an addiction: I am not perfect! OH I KNOW… but who else will find out?

Then I realized no one looks at me that closely, except myself. I realized that flaws are there because of the years of living and without all these experiences, I would not be the person I am today.

My girlfriend decided never to look in the mirror. She told her husband to return it. Perhaps a wise decision.

As we look at our goals for 2010, we cannot help but reflect, with some satisfaction, on the past year and what we have achieved; then we look, perhaps with some regret, at what we were going to achieve and never did. This is the process I went through personally and professionally.

I always challenge myself to do better. Last year, I puzzled over how much time I should be spending on social media. As a speaker, trainer and coach, other speakers questioned me not once, not twice, but a hundred times: “Aren’t you on Facebook yet? Do you have a blog? How often do you tweet?” Between the social media inundation and the learning curve of Search Engine Optimization, I was a sales person gone mad.

I listened to their advice and considered every possible way to improve the marketing of Ignite Excellence to our potential clients. I can see now that I was looking too closely in the mirror at our social media presence. I was trying to hide every age spot, hydrate every line, and pop every pimple.

Then I took a holiday. I turned off my computer and cell phone. The world was going to wait while I took a well-deserved break.

I returned to work on January 11^th, looked at all my marketing initiatives and discovered that nowhere do we say that Ignite Excellence is a sales development company! How could I have missed that? All our marketing initiatives promoted how Ignite Excellence works with people to influence, differentiate, and engage more people and more business. But nowhere was it clear that we are a sales development company.

For the first time I saw the problem clearly. There were no lines, (ok, a 40-something woman can hope), my skin was clear and I felt great.

This epiphany opened other channels of discovery. For months I was challenged with coming up with a way to position Suzanne F. Stevens as a keynote speaker. I looked at our client list. All our clients are highly educated, smart people. I was challenged at positioning how our sales training takes us beyond the process and to understanding the real emotions, culture and politics of individuals and an organization. Even the highest producers in organizations would say “Ignite Excellence Programs are different” but I couldn’t come up with one title to bring it together. Finally, it came to me…Suzanne F. Stevens – Maven Sales Mobilizer!

So bring on 2010! Go ahead… set your goals and make your plans on how you will achieve them. But I caution you: don’t be so focused on your goals that you stop seeing what is right in front of you. Back off once and a while. Turn off the phone, and clear your head.

And please, put that that nasty mirror away, at least temporarily. Often, what you need to improve the most is so obvious that seeing all those imperfections may only distract you from an inspiration waiting to be discovered.

Today I launch my blog. It may not be perfect, but, for now, I am stepping back from the mirror.

Next Steps: Be cautious about over-analyzing your faults. Take a break, refresh, and come back to the problem with fresh eyes. Then, insights that were masked by day to day flaws will appear obvious.