Politicians like Barack Obama, Mitt Romney, Michelle Bachmann and all the way back to JFK, Nixon, Truman, Lincoln and Washington had what is called a Stump Speech.
It’s a series of talks they give over and over on the road in a campaign. They adjust them as they go in all of the primaries and the election – a little tweak in Iowa; a subtle nuance in New Hampshire; a new flourish in Florida; and an extra pinch of passion in California – but it’s basically the same speech.
They even find signature lines along the way. Romney’s “opportunity society” or Obama’s “pass this bill”.
Try that as a leader. Pick small gatherings and try stuff out. Build your own library of repeatable messages about your company. It makes your life easier, not harder.
Politicians are run ragged on the road – so are you. Don’t be creative. Find messages that work and use them over and over and over.
Saturday, December 31, 2011
Listen for Lunch
If you’re the Big Boss at your place, your HR team is likely to arrange small employee roundtables entitled Lunch with Larry or Dinner with Diana. Big Bosses often go to these occasions prepped to empty their gas tank of platitudes, pronouncements, progress and pitfalls for their business.
Switch things around.
Ask participants to come with their one best idea for the business, the company or the culture. Go round the table and ask each person to articulate their idea. Facilitate discussion. Weave the threads. Only talk if you follow up on something they said.
Ask one of them to recap the meeting. Then tell them what you think. If you can, pick out one or two ideas to go after in earnest. Enlist participants in giving their ideas life. If someone's idea doesn't get picked up this time, urge them to keep thinking.
It may be the best Big Boss roundtable they (and you) ever had.
Switch things around.
Ask participants to come with their one best idea for the business, the company or the culture. Go round the table and ask each person to articulate their idea. Facilitate discussion. Weave the threads. Only talk if you follow up on something they said.
Ask one of them to recap the meeting. Then tell them what you think. If you can, pick out one or two ideas to go after in earnest. Enlist participants in giving their ideas life. If someone's idea doesn't get picked up this time, urge them to keep thinking.
It may be the best Big Boss roundtable they (and you) ever had.
Smooth the Seams
Watch the best conversationalists in your life or business. Can you see and hear the seams of their conversations or does it flow smoothly based on a mutual sharing of information with their counterparty? Usually they make it look effortless. It's not based on inborn ability. It's based on years of practice.
Too many times in business meetings we ask a question and respond immediately and abruptly with our next point. We either don’t follow up with a question to find out more or we don’t share our side of a similar story, observation, conclusion or experience. It’s like watching ping pong being played on the wrong kind of table.
Smooth the seams by drawing the other person out and then giving back. Follow your own curiosity until you reach a point of more natural transition. Relationships in life and business are built on sharing experiences. It helps us connect with people.
Too many times in business meetings we ask a question and respond immediately and abruptly with our next point. We either don’t follow up with a question to find out more or we don’t share our side of a similar story, observation, conclusion or experience. It’s like watching ping pong being played on the wrong kind of table.
Smooth the seams by drawing the other person out and then giving back. Follow your own curiosity until you reach a point of more natural transition. Relationships in life and business are built on sharing experiences. It helps us connect with people.
The Tuck Rule
Justin Tuck is a great defensive end for the New York Giants pro football team who has played with a variety of injuries all season. Before a victory against their rivals, the Jets, a sportswriter speculated that Tuck’s coach may have pulled him aside for a talk to remind him to watch his body language. As a leader, he could bring his teammates down if they see him slumping and looking defeated on the sidelines, no matter how he was feeling.
Justin came out with a different look and energy against the Jets and played a key role in leading his team to a much-needed win. I'm sure part of his success was a result of the improvement in his assorted injuries but part of the team's success was a result of getting their leader back.
Leaders are required to be actors at times. Followers feed off their positive or negative energy, especially in times of crisis. As a great salesman said, “people hear what they see”. Make sure your people see (and hear) what you want them to, especially in the big "must win" games in business.
Justin came out with a different look and energy against the Jets and played a key role in leading his team to a much-needed win. I'm sure part of his success was a result of the improvement in his assorted injuries but part of the team's success was a result of getting their leader back.
Leaders are required to be actors at times. Followers feed off their positive or negative energy, especially in times of crisis. As a great salesman said, “people hear what they see”. Make sure your people see (and hear) what you want them to, especially in the big "must win" games in business.
Wednesday, October 5, 2011
Women and Men
One of my clients told me about a previous coaching experience she had in her career. The (male) executive coach sat down in the conference room and said to her: "You've been assigned to me because I'm the coach who understands women".
Wow! My first reaction to that outrageous statement was: "how can any man be that arrogant or that stupid?" I've been married for 25 years and still don't understand women. I share that ignorance with 3.5 billion other men on the planet Earth.
What I do know is when it comes to communication, most people tend to focus on what is different about men and women. After coaching 3000 people in the business world (roughly 65% men and 35% women), I'd like to take another approach. Let's focus on a few things we have in common as communicators:
We talk too fast. Try to pause after big points; punch key words; breathe between sentences and vary your pace - brisk for matter-of-fact information and deliberate for critical information.
We listen too fast. Try to listen quietly with less head nodding; use fewer "right, right, rights or sure, sure, sures"; take a silent breath before you respond and occasionally build your point off what the other person said to build a bridge between their point and yours.
We slump in our seats. Try to sit up toward the front of your chair; take up more real estate at the table by freeing up your elbows and aim for an upright neutral posture while speaking.
We lean too much. Try to keep a level head and when making a key point get your hands and arms off the table or chair to gesture with purpose.
We smile at the wrong times. Try to keep an appropriate "mask for the moment". You don't have to look like a prison guard, but avoid smiling while talking about serious things. It diminshes your gravitas.
We breathe weakly. Try to breathe from the belly up, not the neck up. Lie down on the floor at home, put a big heavy book on your stomach and breathe in and out. You will discover your diapraghm - the "bellows in your belly" that powers your voice.
We don't cut to the chase. Try flipping your message on it's head and lead with your conclusion. Your audience will love you for it. It you meander your way to the point, your audience will want to strangle you.
There are many other things we share as female and male communicators, but I'll stop here. If we focus only on gender-specific weaknesses, we can fall into the trap of thinking of only gender-specific strengths. We all face the same hurdles and demons as communicators. As Indira Gandhi once said:
Wow! My first reaction to that outrageous statement was: "how can any man be that arrogant or that stupid?" I've been married for 25 years and still don't understand women. I share that ignorance with 3.5 billion other men on the planet Earth.
What I do know is when it comes to communication, most people tend to focus on what is different about men and women. After coaching 3000 people in the business world (roughly 65% men and 35% women), I'd like to take another approach. Let's focus on a few things we have in common as communicators:
We talk too fast. Try to pause after big points; punch key words; breathe between sentences and vary your pace - brisk for matter-of-fact information and deliberate for critical information.
We listen too fast. Try to listen quietly with less head nodding; use fewer "right, right, rights or sure, sure, sures"; take a silent breath before you respond and occasionally build your point off what the other person said to build a bridge between their point and yours.
We slump in our seats. Try to sit up toward the front of your chair; take up more real estate at the table by freeing up your elbows and aim for an upright neutral posture while speaking.
We lean too much. Try to keep a level head and when making a key point get your hands and arms off the table or chair to gesture with purpose.
We smile at the wrong times. Try to keep an appropriate "mask for the moment". You don't have to look like a prison guard, but avoid smiling while talking about serious things. It diminshes your gravitas.
We breathe weakly. Try to breathe from the belly up, not the neck up. Lie down on the floor at home, put a big heavy book on your stomach and breathe in and out. You will discover your diapraghm - the "bellows in your belly" that powers your voice.
We don't cut to the chase. Try flipping your message on it's head and lead with your conclusion. Your audience will love you for it. It you meander your way to the point, your audience will want to strangle you.
There are many other things we share as female and male communicators, but I'll stop here. If we focus only on gender-specific weaknesses, we can fall into the trap of thinking of only gender-specific strengths. We all face the same hurdles and demons as communicators. As Indira Gandhi once said:
"My theory is that men are no more liberated than women."
When it comes to communicating, she was absolutely right!
P.S. If you want to learn from someone who really knows something about gender linguistics, read Deborah Tannen's work.
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
Reagan's Planned Effortlessness
We've had 44 presidents so far. Only one is known as the Great Communicator - Ronald Reagan. Some people think that speakers like Reagan were born with charisma.
Turns out he had a little help, from himself.
Douglas Brinkley, the historian and author of The Reagan Diaries, was on the evening news telling how Reagan would write down stories and even jokes he heard on index cards in long hand. He'd keep them in a shoe box or photo album and pull them out periodically to help him prepare for talks and speeches.
People would then hear him recount the stories or jokes at an occasion and they'd ask the pople around them; "where the heck does he get all this great material?". Easy: he's been collecting it for the last 30 years!
You can use Reagan's way or you can use a little web camera to record a personal "greatest hits" video album of stories or jokes on your desktop or IPad for easy retrieval on the run.
Like Reagan did using pen to paper technology, you can build a mental library of great material - all ready for prime time.
If you think great communicators just wing it - think again!
Turns out he had a little help, from himself.
Douglas Brinkley, the historian and author of The Reagan Diaries, was on the evening news telling how Reagan would write down stories and even jokes he heard on index cards in long hand. He'd keep them in a shoe box or photo album and pull them out periodically to help him prepare for talks and speeches.
People would then hear him recount the stories or jokes at an occasion and they'd ask the pople around them; "where the heck does he get all this great material?". Easy: he's been collecting it for the last 30 years!
You can use Reagan's way or you can use a little web camera to record a personal "greatest hits" video album of stories or jokes on your desktop or IPad for easy retrieval on the run.
Like Reagan did using pen to paper technology, you can build a mental library of great material - all ready for prime time.
If you think great communicators just wing it - think again!
Sunday, May 1, 2011
Marking the Moment
Tonight President Obama marked a pivotal moment in American history - the killing of Osama Bin Laden - with a magnificently understated yet powerful speech. The speech hit every note perfectly and spoke to the gravity of the announcement without arrogance or celebration.
He connected the victory to the heart-wrenching deaths of 3000 Americans and the empty spaces left at their family dinner tables and inside their loved one's hearts. He honored the service of every brave American who had contributed to the war on terror, many of whose names will never be known. He wove a thread between this event and our national pride as Americans - that we will never bow to tyrants or give up the search for the murderers of our citizens.
This was Barack Obama's signature presidential speech.
Lincoln had the Gettyburg Address. FDR had his Pearl Harbor speech. Reagan had his Challenger speech. Kennedy had his Berlin speech. George W. Bush had his address to Congress after 9/11. To that pantheon we must add this speech, not in terms of soaring rhetoric, but in terms of the historic combination of message, moment and man.
Certain speeches make Presidents seem tall and others seem small. This speech highlighted President Obama's ability to switch gears from the levity of the White House Correspondent's Dinner to the seriousness of tonight. He was able to display great humor and trump his detractors deftly, all the while knowing full well what was afoot back in the Situation Room at the White House.
Congratulations Mr. President. You nailed this speech and delivered the message directly into the camera - to all of us.
He connected the victory to the heart-wrenching deaths of 3000 Americans and the empty spaces left at their family dinner tables and inside their loved one's hearts. He honored the service of every brave American who had contributed to the war on terror, many of whose names will never be known. He wove a thread between this event and our national pride as Americans - that we will never bow to tyrants or give up the search for the murderers of our citizens.
This was Barack Obama's signature presidential speech.
Lincoln had the Gettyburg Address. FDR had his Pearl Harbor speech. Reagan had his Challenger speech. Kennedy had his Berlin speech. George W. Bush had his address to Congress after 9/11. To that pantheon we must add this speech, not in terms of soaring rhetoric, but in terms of the historic combination of message, moment and man.
Certain speeches make Presidents seem tall and others seem small. This speech highlighted President Obama's ability to switch gears from the levity of the White House Correspondent's Dinner to the seriousness of tonight. He was able to display great humor and trump his detractors deftly, all the while knowing full well what was afoot back in the Situation Room at the White House.
Congratulations Mr. President. You nailed this speech and delivered the message directly into the camera - to all of us.
Friday, January 14, 2011
Connecting with Emotion
We can learn many lessons from the Tragedy in Tucson. I won't try to enumerate them here. I will leave that to others more eloquent than I and simply join in mourning the loss of so many cherished lives and hopes and dreams.
President Obama's talk at the Arizona memorial service for the shooting victims of this horrific rampage has been widely hailed as "pitch perfect" by pundits and politicians across the spectrum of popular opinion. It worked for a lot of reasons. Above all, I think it worked because the President connected emotionally with the audience at the University of Arizona and with all of us watching on television.
Watch the speech on You Tube. Throughout he personalizes the victims as real people. Then, at 25:30 into the speech, he speaks of Christina, the lovely 9-year old girl who lost her life. For one of the rare times in his presidency, he spoke directly from his heart to our hearts, as a father first, then as a President. You could see the President catch himself, almost as if the enormity of the loss of that extraordinary young life hit him for the first time, as the father of his own 9-year old girl. It was a moment of genuine emotion we've rarely seen him share in public.
He did an excellent job in his speech and properly honored the dead with his measured and magnificent message. His tone was reverent, respectful and restrained.
There was another example of extraordinary communication yesterday on the evening news with Brian Williams of NBC.
It was a brief interview with Senator Kirsten Gillibrand of New York. She described visiting her friend, Congresswoman Giffords, in the hospital. She paints a picture for us of the miraculous moment Gabby Giffords opened her eyes for the first time since the shooting.
Go watch and listen to Senator Gillibrand in the link below.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3032619/#41065211
This is what I call "all-in speaking". When someone is mentally, physically and emotionally connected with their message to the point where you feel it's coming from their soul. Obviously she was amped up from relating a personal and tremendously emotional experience with a friend she loves who has been enduring a trip to hell and back.
The moment is instructive from a communication perspective. This was Kirsten Gillibrand at her absolute best as a communicator. She owned her stage, her message and herself.
Could she be this good in other communication situations? Absolutely! If she chooses to do so. The same as the rest of us.
It's not about skill - it's about choices. Yesterday Senator Gillibrand did it without trying. Her thoughts just poured out of her. Yet she could also achieve the same emotional connection with the audience by design.
Commit to your message. Own it. If you speak as President Obama and Senator Gillibrand did (from your head, heart and gut), you will connect with any audience, anytime, anywhere, on anything. Take a look and see what you think.
God didn't make the President and the Senator good communicators. They had to earn it. You can too.
President Obama's talk at the Arizona memorial service for the shooting victims of this horrific rampage has been widely hailed as "pitch perfect" by pundits and politicians across the spectrum of popular opinion. It worked for a lot of reasons. Above all, I think it worked because the President connected emotionally with the audience at the University of Arizona and with all of us watching on television.
Watch the speech on You Tube. Throughout he personalizes the victims as real people. Then, at 25:30 into the speech, he speaks of Christina, the lovely 9-year old girl who lost her life. For one of the rare times in his presidency, he spoke directly from his heart to our hearts, as a father first, then as a President. You could see the President catch himself, almost as if the enormity of the loss of that extraordinary young life hit him for the first time, as the father of his own 9-year old girl. It was a moment of genuine emotion we've rarely seen him share in public.
He did an excellent job in his speech and properly honored the dead with his measured and magnificent message. His tone was reverent, respectful and restrained.
There was another example of extraordinary communication yesterday on the evening news with Brian Williams of NBC.
It was a brief interview with Senator Kirsten Gillibrand of New York. She described visiting her friend, Congresswoman Giffords, in the hospital. She paints a picture for us of the miraculous moment Gabby Giffords opened her eyes for the first time since the shooting.
Go watch and listen to Senator Gillibrand in the link below.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3032619/#41065211
This is what I call "all-in speaking". When someone is mentally, physically and emotionally connected with their message to the point where you feel it's coming from their soul. Obviously she was amped up from relating a personal and tremendously emotional experience with a friend she loves who has been enduring a trip to hell and back.
The moment is instructive from a communication perspective. This was Kirsten Gillibrand at her absolute best as a communicator. She owned her stage, her message and herself.
Could she be this good in other communication situations? Absolutely! If she chooses to do so. The same as the rest of us.
It's not about skill - it's about choices. Yesterday Senator Gillibrand did it without trying. Her thoughts just poured out of her. Yet she could also achieve the same emotional connection with the audience by design.
Commit to your message. Own it. If you speak as President Obama and Senator Gillibrand did (from your head, heart and gut), you will connect with any audience, anytime, anywhere, on anything. Take a look and see what you think.
God didn't make the President and the Senator good communicators. They had to earn it. You can too.
Saturday, January 1, 2011
Lessons of 2010
Here are a few things I learned from working with my clients this past year. Maybe they can be of some use to you as you reflect on your own communication style in 2011.
- CEOs get nervous. Even more than us since they perceive the fall if they fail as longer and harder than ours. They stop taking risks as speakers - the exact opposite of what they need. Many settle for boring and safe vs. daring and dangerous. I encourage them to take choreographed risks on stage, relax and live a little.
- Screw the slides - before they screw you. I see executives agonize over how to speak to slides created by someone else. Create arresting visual formats for (10 or less) slides, then make the information fit the design - not vice versa. If all you do is plow through a 30-slide data dump in front of an auditorium, you've failed yourself and your audience.
- Practice with peers. There's no better way to hone your client skills than to practice in front of colleagues and get support, feedback and suggestions. Don't just talk about clients. Role play with colleagues as the clients. You're among really smart people who do what you do. Share client stories, tips, techniques and make each other better.
- Master your core stories. There are probably half a dozen core stories that explain your business. First, identify them (philosophy, process, structure, products, brands are all candidates as core stories). Then write them out in 500 words. Then practice out loud till they become second nature. Then have a long and short version - an electric and acoustic version. Then take them on the road and try them out on clients. It builds a masterful mental IPod.
- Videotape the "other" you. If you are quiet and reserved, videotape your "inner evangelist" talking about a passion of yours. If loud and expressive, videotape your "inner librarian" whispering in a more understated style about something important. You get to see the other side of your communication self and expand both your verbal and nonverbal versatility.
- Connect with your people. Grab a few free minutes and bring someone who works for you into the office and try to draw them out. Focus on finding out as much as you can about how their job is going and how they're doing. You become a better questioner and listener. They will leave feeling you heard and understood them. We all spend too much time talking, when we shoud be listening.
Much more to come in 2011. As you take whatever stage you will communicate from this year, remember my motivational mantra: If You Believe It, You Will Be It.
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