So how well do you communicate? Or do you think you can ask someone else to do that for you? We all know that the most successful people in business today are the most influential communicators. The people who can get the bosses attention, convince a client to sign on the dotted line, and persuade employees to buy into an idea and run with it. Is that you?

If it isn’t, you need to get to work. We can all think of a highly competent person we worked with in the past who couldn’t keep an audience’s attention. This was the person who avoided getting up in front of the company. This was the person who delegated the presentation to a staff member. The person who sat in the back of the room—guiding, leading, and motivating—but not communicating to the organization. Sometimes, this was the person who also lost his/her job after a merger, acquisition, or downsizing.

This was the person who failed to communicate directly. The one who, in Goizueta’s words, “delegated communication”. If this is you, it’s time you stepped up to the plate of becoming a superior communicator. Take this quiz and see how you do:

____ yes _____ no I can give an excellent presentation without PowerPoint.

____ yes _____ no I know how to control my anxiety in front of a group.

____ yes _____ no I can plan a presentation in 20 minutes or less and do a great job.

____ yes _____ no People tell me that I am a compelling communicator.

____ yes _____ no I can organize my thoughts and speak well on the fly.

____ yes _____ no I don’t stumble on my words or get tongue-tied.

____ yes _____ no I know how to use my hands during a presentation.

____ yes _____ no My audience members always look engaged when I’m speaking.

Score:
If your score is 7-8, you get the Goizueta award for good business communication. Congratulations!

5-6 You need to work on your communication. Practice in front of groups more often.

4 or fewer “yes” answers, consider some presentation classes with professionals to assist you in polishing your speaking and communication skills.

Want to become a better speaker? Start speaking in front of groups. Whether the groups consist of customers, staff, colleagues, Rotary Club, your favorite networking organization, or your house of worship, get the experience. You may even want to consider Toastmasters. You’ll only improve the more you speak.

Lastly, here are 5 hints and tips for communicating more effectively from the front of the room:

• Use ONE PowerPoint slide for every 5 minutes—instead of 5 slides for every 1 minute. This will force you to have to think and not read from the slides.
• If anxiety is an issue for you, practice deep breathing before you speak. Either stand or sit tall and breathe from your diaphragm. Slowly. This will help relax you before you speak. (A trick-of-the-trade from professional speakers.)
• Need a shortcut to planning your presentation? Learn to mindmap and you’ll save valuable time in your preparation. (Don’t know how? We’ll show you.)
• Are your hands a problem? Learn to control them. Gesture naturally and then keep them relaxed at your sides. Please…no hands in pockets, behind backs, folded over your chest, or grasped together in front of your waist.
• If your audiences look bored, guess what? Change your inflection, move around the space, turn on the lights (if they were off), give the group a break, ask questions. Oh, and turn OFF the PowerPoint slide. You just might wake them.
  

(c) Renee Walkup, SalesPEAK, 678 587-9911 www.salespeak.com