In case you ever find yourself in a situation where you have to present someone else’s slide deck, watch this video to learn what to do!
Engage and involve your audience early and often, especially on Zoom. Conor Cunneen (IrishmanSpeaks) asks the audience a question as attendees are entering the Zoom room, before he has even been introduced. One of his favorite questions to ask: “What was the first live concert you went to and how was it?” Simple enough but wait till you see the energy, excitement and connection that happens as you respond to the audience’s answers with questions such as, “Jack, was everyone dancing at that concert?” or “Mary, so your father went with you?” This is a better icebreaker than any staged one.
Next time, vary the question: “What was the first wedding you attended, and what do you remember?” or “What’s your favorite city and which one do you hope to go to some day?” or “Which movie would you gladly watch over and over again and why?”
Just like Conor, jump in and talk to your audience even before you are introduced, and prime them for a good time! Just make very sure you are not focusing on only one of your buddies. Nobody likes to hear ‘in jokes’…it reminds them of high school!
When you are asked by an outside group for a tour of your facility, don't just think of it as a marketing activity. Instead think of the audience. Who are they? What will help them solve their problem? Why did they pick your facility?
Do they really need to know how many trauma surgeries you did last year, or instead do they need to tour your trauma department and talk to the surgeons and nurses? Do they really need to endure the standard dog-and-pony PowerPoint program or do they actually need a time to have a robust Q&A with, not your CEO or CNO, but rather your most endearing ED nurse?
When you are asked for the tour, first find out what your visitors actually want and need.
Recently, I had the privilege of witnessing an individual demonstrate exceptional professional integrity and skill in their field. It was a powerful reminder of the impact that dedication and mastery can have, not just on the quality of work produced, but on inspiring those around them. Watch this video to learn more and let's discuss how we can all apply these principles to enhance our work and inspire our teams.
Next time you invite someone to update your team, try interviewing them instead of asking them to give a presentation. They will like it better (no formal prep!) and you and your team will be able to ask questions that really get to the heart of what is needed. This works great with quality and safety data, financial information, construction updates, and finding the mood of some of the staff.
Top tip: get rid of the tables and bring the chairs up close to you and the one you are interviewing. This creates a sense of community and intimacy and helps support the one being interviewed. Distance of any sort (as well as tables!) creates spectators instead of participators.
Try it! Take the risk and see what happens. Let me know how it goes!
Mission. Moment. Mess. Elevate your public speaking skills by embracing a simple yet impactful framework I share with my professional speaking students: Mission, Moment, Mess. Dive deep into your personal narrative by reflecting on your core mission, a life-altering moment, or a challenging mess you've navigated through. Transform these reflections into compelling stories, and practice telling them aloud. Watch this video to learn more…
When is the last time you took a risk? Calculated perhaps, but none the less risk. A leap of faith? A time you spoke up first at a meeting? A time when you silenced your usual meeting speech or even a time when you realized you didn’t need to be at that meeting at all!?
It’s amazing to look back over our lives and notice the risks we did take, the ones that worked and the ones that didn’t, and to then ask ourselves what we now know even more about ourselves.
Richard Rohr wrote, “It is never a straight line, but always three steps forward and two backward—and the backward creates much of the knowledge and impetus for the forward.”
In a world where opinions seem to dominate every conversation, how about we try something different? Let's be the individuals who prioritize understanding over asserting, who ask the questions rather than rushing to provide the answers. Imagine the impact we could make by choosing to be voices of kindness, seeking to comprehend every perspective. Watch this video to learn more...
Notice your inner expert by listening to your audience. I noticed something about a group I was working with recently that hit me in the face, and in the heart.
After my presentation, a few came up to me to thank me and then they went into an extended description of what I did that apparently was especially meaningful to them. I was touched and I discovered a bit of what they experienced from me, my inner expert.
It reminded me to do the same when I am in the audience. A simple “Thank you” is certainly very nice. However, a “May I tell you what you did that helped me, touched me, encouraged me…?” is much, much better for the one telling and the one receiving.
Why did you hire me? What a powerful question to ask your boss or your client. Hidden in the answer are the unnamed expectations which we’re often unaware of, but that really tell us what’s important to them. Watch this video to learn more!
Do you live and work on a vertical level with those ‘above’ and others ‘below’? Some marriages are like that. Some corporate teams operate like that too. The one on ‘top’ as somehow superior to the others. Some even relish this superiority. Those ‘below’ understand that this set up is meant for obedience and conformity, to be careful, stay in line, don’t rock the boat.
Other teams operate on a horizontal level: with each person being respected as ‘social equals’ who are contributing to the whole. Not all are the ‘same’ but all are contributing with collaboration and mutual respect.
How is it where you live? Where you work? In your family of origin? What I find interesting about the vertical set up is that the real power belongs to those below: if they move, guess who falls!?
Next time you give a technical presentation, REMEMBER while the data and insights you share are crucial, what truly captivates your audience is YOUR unique perspective. You're the expert in the room - the voice they've come to hear. It's your interpretation, your take on the information that adds invaluable depth and makes the session truly enriching. Watch this video to learn more!
Facilitate your next presentation instead of simply presenting. In every presentation you do consider how to involve others. Without participation you will simply have spectators quietly judging you and your content. With facilitation you will have fellow participants engaged.
Nora Dunn from Saturday Night Live in the 80s told my class of actors, “Your job is not to please the audience, your job is to engage the audience.” (And it is in the engagement that they will be pleased.) You cannot engage if you only talk, no matter how good you are. The audience, especially today’s audience, has far more wisdom than we do. Let them talk to one another and learn with them.
Pro tip: Never say,” Turn to the person next to you”. Instead get them moving with “When I give you the signal I want you to get up find two other people who are not at your table and go and sit with them to form a group of three AWAY from the tables (you will have to enforce this). Then tell them what to discuss for 5-8 minutes (not too long or they will start talking about sports and their kids) then ask, “What did you just LEARN from your group?” (rather than “What did you just talk about?”) and then wait in silence. When they start talking you have engagement.
Reflecting on the essence of our lives amidst the hustle of business, work, family, and friendships, a profound question emerges: What is the way life should be for you? When was the last time you paused and thought, "Life is good"?
In the relentless pursuit of success and fulfillment, it's essential to carve out moments for introspection, to identify what truly makes life worth living for each of us. These moments of clarity not only refresh our perspective but also anchor us in gratitude and purpose.
Whether it's the joy found in small daily achievements, the peace of early morning solitude, the laughter shared with loved ones, or the satisfaction derived from making a positive impact—these are the experiences that weave the tapestry of a fulfilling life. Watch this video to see what one of mine was recently.
I encourage everyone in my network to take a moment today to reflect on this: What aspects of your life bring you the most joy and fulfillment? How can you incorporate more of these moments into your everyday life? Let me know in the comments!
Let's share and celebrate the diverse and personal ways we each find meaning and happiness in our lives. Your insights could inspire others to pause and appreciate the beauty of their journeys.
When you present your facility and its people to the Board of Directors, your city council, or your state representatives remind yourself that they will remember the feeling you portray, not the content alone. Your statistics need to have heart as well as head in them.
Not only stories about patients but perhaps people telling the story, willing patients and families, doctors and housekeepers, nurses and maintenance. What would it be like to have them present? Interview them, bring the face and feeling of your place to the meeting. This is what they will remember long after the meeting is over. This brings excitement about your place to your audience’s understanding.
“There you are!” Ever wondered about the vibe you bring when you enter a room? Your presence has power! Whether it's at work, home, or anywhere else, the energy you carry can truly light up the space. Next time you step into a room, remember, you've got the magic to make it brighter! Watch this video to learn more.
Have you ever considered leading your boss? What your boss, maybe every boss, needs is a fellow traveller to notice what they did well, to suggest a next step, to console, and to consider a possible ‘plan B’.
Make sure you don’t tell them you are mentoring them or leading them. Instead take yourself out of your appointed role from time to time and instead of “speaking truth to power” consider your own power to speak to a fellow struggler, a fellow traveller, a fellow person who is doing the best they can at this very particular moment.
They are just like you with all the fears and chaos and worries that you have. They might just need you to be their “boss whisperer”!
I challenge you to embrace the power of presence. Whether it's a meeting, a conversation, or any moment of connection, bring not just your head, but your heart and all of your energy into it. Truly engage, listen deeply, and fully immerse yourself in the experience.
Let's transform ordinary interactions into meaningful connections. Are you ready to bring your whole self to every moment today?
I regularly see posts about 'staying curious' on social media. How often do you find that others are curious about you, or do they instead seem to want you to be curious about them? So let's be curious and help them figure out their unarticulated question.
I wonder if so many of us look to the presenter, homilist, teacher, boss, meeting planner for what we ought find within ourselves. That special question that we could articulate, and even let them know what we want from them instead of wishing and hoping. I write to my priest when his words have really moved me. I think he needs to hear it because Catholics tend to thank him or say nice things about his homilies, but I want him to know WHAT he said that moved me and why. I need to articulate first for myself and secondly for him.
Same with my mentors and teachers and customers and clients…I want to articulate for them what they may not know about themselves…what they did or said that moved me. I do it first for me. Then for them. How about you?