By Tina Rowe

That Add to Your Message - Telling the Stories of Your Life

The Value of Personal Anecdotes: Almost every great speaker–and some not so great ones–use personal stories. Politicians love them! Now, you can too! If you are a supervisor, manager, trainer, parent, coach, or conversationalist (that fits most of us), personal anecdotes can add color and sparkle to conversations. You do not have to have something new happen every day, simply use the many stories of your life. You can:

• Reinforce a learning moment.
• Share a human situation in your work or life history.
• Add humor, inspiration or energy to a meeting or presentation.

However, as you have likely discovered, effectively telling an anecdote of any kind is not easy, and telling a personal anecdote is even more challenging. If you have ever sat in a meeting or in an audience and mentally grimaced with embarrassment, frustration, boredom or irritation while someone told a story, you know you don't want to get the same reaction!

Some negative reactions to personal anecdotes:

• If you talk about your experiences or accomplishments excessively–even for the purpose of encouraging others or sharing what you have in common with them–you can seem to be bragging or living in the past.
• If you frequently talk about your mistakes, listeners may laugh with you but start viewing you as an incompetent who has no right to critique their work or offer advice.
• If you nearly always follow-up something someone else has said with, "That reminds me of the time when……" it can seem as though you have a "war story" for every situation or that you are trying to top that persons story.
• If your anecdotes are lengthy, very detailed or not particularly entertaining, you may be considered boring–especially if you have told the same story repeatedly.
• If you tell stories that clearly are very exaggerated or not true, even for a good purpose, you will lose credibility and people won't believe the true stories you share.

Don't get shut off! If you are not skillful at telling stories and anecdotes, listeners will shut you off mentally the moment you start to use a personal illustration–and eventually they'll groan about them to others. That is not the way you want your conversations or presentations to be remembered!

• Practice the story. Practice before you tell it the first time, and occasionally after that, so you don't misspeak, or cast about mentally for the times, dates or details, and so you can tell it concisely and clearly.
• Have a purpose for the anecdote. Do you want to reinforce a point, connect with people on a personal level, redirect thinking, or share a smile? Choose a story that is right for your purpose, rather than tossing in a story just to say you told one.
• Tell the truth. If you tell it as though it really happened, it should have really happened. Otherwise, it isn't a personal story, it's a lie. You can change details or put a funny or dramatic spin on it, but keep it true, especially your role in it.
• Keep it brief. You may enjoy replaying every tiny detail in your mind, but others may wish you would hurry up and get to the point.
• Keep the emotions you display and the tone of voice you use, appropriate for the story you are telling. If you laugh about details that a reasonable person would not find amusing, or tell an otherwise amusing story in a somber way, listeners may misunderstand your purpose, or think you are not very discerning about the situation.
• Put energy into it. Tell an interesting story, don't just ploddingly recount an event. You should nearly always speak a bit faster when telling an anecdote. Be appropriately and comfortably animated and speak with forcefulness. Act it up a bit!
• Finish and move on. Finish your anecdote with a few words to remind listeners once again of what the story was designed to illustrate, then segue back to the original conversation or presentation.

Keep an anecdote notebook: Consider keeping a notebook or computer file to remind you of situations that have illustrative potential, and review your file occasionally or when you are preparing a presentation, so you don't forget.

The python story: One of my brothers once reminded me of a situation I had told him about, and said, "That python story was the funniest story you ever told me." I had completely forgotten that incident–but now I use it in presentations quite often to illustrate several key points. The python story is one of the stories of my life. Look for ways to effectively share yours.

By Carol Heady

I continue to discover the power of language particularly from some recent experiences as a facilitator. I have spent the last six months working with one particular client on leadership development. What's been interesting about this experience is that no matter how long a person has been in a leadership role, or what industry language is everything.

How we communicate, the words that we choose, and the non-verbal communication "cues" have such a profound impact on the quality of our relationships, the results or outcomes we achieve whether positive or negative, and the experiences we create for ourselves and others. This is not new news, but what's fascinating and worthy of discussion is the timeless nature of this aspect of work life and professional development.

For the purposes of this article I will focus on performance management. A significant component of the leadership development work that I am doing consists of helping leaders manage performance. This really becomes a lesson in human behavior and communication. At the end of the day, it's about how we have influenced peoples behavior to achieve desired results. Whether that's setting an example, setting expectations, coaching a person for success or providing feedback on area that may need further development. So what's my point, it comes back to language is everything.

Let me give you an example to illustrate my point. Let's take the common question, "What about the employee who has a "bad" attitude or it's his "personality"? I don't let managers "talk" attitude or personality. An attitude or a person's personality is displayed by particular behaviors, so that's what you have to "talk" to. In other words, what behaviors are you observing? Are they rude or curt to a customer, are they displaying body language that may be interpreted as stand offish, aggressive, or condescending?

Telling a person they have a bad attitude isn't helping them understand what they may need to change or do differently? By being specific about the unacceptable behavior and the impact or consequence of that behavior you will make a difference in desired outcomes. It will always come back to language.

By Matt Somers

If we're going to put so much effort into framing coaching questions in the right way then it follows that we should be equally concerned with really listening to the responses we get. We need to employ the skill of active listening.

Listening happens at 3 levels:

Active

Conversational

Superficial

The bottom level, Superficial, is what we do when we're hearing but not listening. We might have a conversation at a party trying to take an interest in what another guest is saying but really having our attention elsewhere, perhaps on some other conversation we suspect would be far more interesting.

The problem is that we are only hearing what the other guest is saying, not listening, so we often get confused, lose track of the conversation or end up having to ask them to repeat what they just said.

This would be extremely damaging in a coaching conversation. People instinctively know if we're only listening to them superficially. The fact that our mind is elsewhere will be revealed in our body language. This will dismantle any trust that has been built up and lessen the chances that the coaching will produce a useful outcome.

The second level, conversational, is the type of listening that we do throughout the day. In conversational listening, we listen while our partners talk and vice versa. However the danger here is that while the other person is talking, we are concentrating on making our next point, rather than truly focusing on what the other person is saying.

This is not an easy thing to do when we start out as coaches. When you're not used to this approach, it can be hard to keep the questions flowing. It's usually better to wait until the person has finished speaking and then decide upon the next question.

We should also avoid the habit of finishing other people's sentences for them. Only rarely do we pick the words they would have chosen themselves and we end up jarring their flow and causing hesitation or confusion.

So we need to work hard to reach the top level, Active Listening. Put simply active listening is about clearing our minds of all other distractions and really tuning in to what the other person is saying with as much focus as we can muster. This is easier said than done and takes a lot of time and practise to develop but is well worth the effort.

On a practical level it means we should try not to coach when we're in a hurry or preoccupied with something else. Neither should we run a coaching session in a noisy environment or one that is likely to get to hot or too cold. In such circumstances it is impossible to actively listen.

By Hani Masgidi

The remarkable growth of Call Center Industry has ushered to the opening of Call Center Training schools. Training schools may be accessed on line where all claim to be best in the field. There are two constants in the area of training; one is that training costs and it is actually consuming large portion of call center's resources; two is the accounting of the result of the training, there must be an improvement in the performance that would justify the resources spent.

Training is made so as to improve and further develop the performance of an agent. The training satisfies two areas such the personal and individual professional growth of the agent and his delivery of good productivity to the company. With good training, the call center should expect the following results:

- Agents could handle themselves more professionally and with confidence.

- New hires could no longer be distinguished from the experienced agent.

- Better customer satisfaction.

- Better productivity.

Training is not a one time deal, it is continuous. It is an indispensable tool that would help to keep the performance of agents on target. Best agents are those that have both the training and the experience. A call center agent is developed as he faces and handles the widest set of situations in the day to day performance of his job. But an experienced and consistently trained agent performs best. Good training provides additional knowledge and confidence to the agent. An effective training is one that derives its training objectives from the business objectives. There are two truths with training; it could only claim to be effective when the results are seen and it is a continuing program.

Training is a part of growth and development resulting to a better performing individual. Here are some good reasons why a call center executive should be an advocate of continuous training:

1. It boosts morale. An agent would feel motivated will the newly acquired knowledge and added skills.

2. It costs less than recruiting and hiring. Call centers have the reputation of having the greatest turn over and this could be reduced if not eliminated through training.

3. Training stimulates the desire of an individual to improve.

4. Training keeps the pace with the rapidly changing technology.

5. It develops teamwork and thus results to better productivity.

6. Training is an investment that returns many times over. Because it raises morale it directly boosts efficiency and therefore productivity.

7. Training raises the rookie to a professional. Investing in training your staff or agents gives the feeling of being valued that could help build their loyalty to the company.

8. It eliminates stress. A good training provides agents with the skills and tools needed to handle stressful situations, especially in dealing with angry customers.

Considering all of these, management and supervisors can rest assured that the call center operation will run smoothly and customers will be satisfied with the service they receive from a motivated call center agent. All Center training is not mere compliance to a system; it is an essential part of development and an absolute requirement, just like computers and head sets to a call center.

Copyright (c) 2008 Hani Masgidi

By Damian Sofsian

Call center training takes many forms. The participants can be trained in a classroom setting, by observing other participants on the call center floor, or by monitoring calls from a remote location. A more prevalent form of call center training is computer based training (CBT). Computer based training aims at maximizing the effectiveness of the training experience. Call center training also equips the participants with the basic skills of communication.

Call center training aims to build relationship and find out solutions for grievances. It teaches you how to listen, clarify, explain, and manage conversational flow. It also helps to handle complaints, manage upset customers, redress grievances, and hold negotiations in challenging situations. Call center training helps to avoid misunderstandings, pacify customers and soothe situations. Call center training enables you to please all customers in any situation. Call center training can be helpful for agents as well as managers and front line staff.

Call center training enables you to answer phone calls from a number of different companies. Some call center training courses teach you how to keep a professional appearance, how to earn the customer's trust, how to establish credibility and demonstrate sympathy, how to use telephone skills including questioning, listening, responding and voice modulation, how telephone communication differs from talking face-to-face, how to maximize time spent on the phone, how to perform effectively under pressure, how to establish and meet individual goals, how to probe for information from callers (even from confused callers) and how to ensure that your customer's needs are met.

To sum up, call center training is designed to improve customer satisfaction, increase sales revenue, raise collection rates and help to challenge and retain the best people. Online call center training is also available.

In the moments, hours or days before a presentation we can be very anxious. Anxious about ourselves, anxious about our audience and anxious about our presentation style.

Such anxiety can be deep rooted. It can become all pervasive and threatening. But fortunately there are techniques to both overcome anxiety and actively use it to our advantage.

There are 3 main techniques to master.

1. Preparation. Being prepared counts for everything. Effective planning, preparation and rehearsal are essential. Our planning should include audience research; conference themes; presentation timings and audience expectations. Our preparation should encompass our working mission, objectives, title and the main points we want to make. And don't forget an explosive start and a powerful finish to the presentation. Allowing time and space for rehearsal is also vital. Rehearsal ensures that we can run to the time allotted. It ensures that our word and sentence structures are clear and consistent. We won't become tangled with over complexity. And importantly it also ensures that we are fully familiarized with both content and subject. Familiarization helps us to be fully prepared for eventualities that might otherwise throw us off track.
2. Mental Preparation. Being ready to give a good presentation requires a state of mental preparedness. Being prepared is one thing. Being up for it is another. We should remember why it is that we are speaking; because we have the expertise, we are the best and we are professional. Mental preparation requires us to remind ourselves of our own capabilities. We boost our own esteem and belief as a result.
3. Breathing. The best rule for public speaking is: keep breathing, without it all is lost. Droll, but true. Before we begin our presentation we need to control our breathing with effective breathing exercises. We breathe in deeply through the nose and exhale slowly through the mouth. We repeat this many times before we need to speak. These exercises, channeling our anxiety and slowing the heart rate, are best performed standing up. In the presentation our breathing should be moderated with our talk. Talking at the rate of 150 to 200 words a minute is about right. It could be slower but should not be faster. When we accelerate our speech we lose our breathing control, the heart increases its beat rate and we become more anxious.

Our presentations become effective when our underlying anxiety — our nerves — are channeled to better effect. Our natural nervous state will result in a polished performance when we are in control. Preparation and planning ensure that we are confident. But not over confident. With our mental preparation complete we know that we are the best one for this presentation — that's why we are asked to speak. And our breathing is optimized for a presentation. It's controlled and measured and timed with our speaking. We are ready to present.

Thousands web pages dedicated to giving all kinds of tips and why should you choose to read this one? After all, I am beyond claiming that these are the missing links to make you the best presenter in the planet or anything close to it.

No Pun Intended.

There are no magic bullets that I, or anyone else can give you, to make an unbelievable change in the way you present. However, I can help you with a tip or two to make the presentation a little more presentable and enjoyable.

Making a presentation enjoyable is quite an alien concept to many presentation specialists, especially the ones who feel that a presentation should be more a demonstration of your power point skills than your skills of influence. I belong to the latter group who think a presentation is just a simple tool to make good use of your skills of influence and if you do not have such skills, you have two options. Learn it or leave it. Stop boring audience with mindless oratory or graphic interference.

If I have caught your attention, that is good news. If you got a little ticked off about how I approach this topic, even better because there is an important presentation tip at work here. Many people approach the idea of a presentation as being this nice person who everyone would appreciate by the end of a seminar or the course. My line of thought is slightly different and it comes from Richard Bandler who said as presenter or a trainer your job is to shake people up and take notice. People will have to be challenged into thinking differently. Being polite takes a back seat in comparison to making people take action based on your presentation. So, excuse me if you do not agree with this line of thought. If you decide to continue reading, congrats You are the kind of person that needs to read on.

A Good presenter is one who forces you to have change of perspective, the one who helps you look at things differently. He not only gives you an idea to think over but also points you in the right direction. To be in this position, you will have to come from a position of honesty and integrity. You cannot sell a dug-down, worthless used car by this method. People are perceptive and your karma will catch up to you, eventually.

So assuming you are person with Integrity, I put forward the following presentation tips to help you communicate your ideas more effectively to your audience

1. Dare to be different:

Your ability to capture and lead an audience's imagination will directly influence the results you get so if plan to get the best out of a presentation. Dare to be different. You will raise some eyebrows, especially from the ones wearing black Suits, but that is ok. When you have their attention, by being the exception, you can do quite a bit with their attention.

2. Minimize use of technology- (read as power point)

No one enjoys reading load of paragraphs of information from a screen, especially in a darkened room. Most of them will actually doze off and you may not even realize this

3. Focus on audience in the entire room.

This means you have to step out of your comfort and move into the audience zone. As much a challenge it s for you, it will before the audience too.

4. Keep your awareness externally focused.

It is easy to get lost within your own words. However, you will gain more by focusing externally. Looking at your audience, noticing the differences and shifts in their body language, moments within the group of people etc… Will help guide your next actions.

5. Measure your success by the number of people who take action.

Even before you begin your presentation, Put a clear action funnel in place, it might be filling up of a form, or flashing their credit cards to buy your product, or booking of the next appointment, no matter what it is, make sure it is ready and visible. At the end of the presentation, do not wait for or do a vote of thanks. When the audience is at the height of their energy, direct them to the next action step

6. Do not wait for a survey form to tell you how you did.

Like I mentioned in section 4, by keeping your awareness externally focused, you can notice the in energy in the room, adapt your words and behavior to accommodate and magnify this shift and once they reach the peak press the magic button, and make them take the next step.

7. Ground yourself before the presentation and keep your energy balance all through the presentation.

What next? Head over to our presentation skills page mentioned below to get the most out of your next presentation.

When we were kids, we went to school, and we sat through class every day, and our teachers taught everyone pretty much the same way. It didn't really matter if you were a visual learner, an auditory learner, or a kinesthetic learner. The teacher pretty much did whatever s/he felt most comfortable doing. Times have changed, and teachers are more aware of learning styles now, and other issues that affect children's learning.

But the principles of adult learning are still pretty new to most people. If you're a speaker, and you're doing any kind of education or training with the groups you're speaking to, this applies to you.

First, a little history. Malcolm Knowles is considered the "father of adult learning", although the topic had been discussed and researched over a century earlier.

Knowles' assumptions were that adults:

1) move from dependency to self-directedness;

2) draw upon their reservoir of experience for learning;

3) are ready to learn when they assume new roles; and

4) want to solve problems and apply new knowledge immediately.

In his book, "The Modern Practice of Adult Education: From Pedagogy to Andragogy," Knowles opposes the view that adults are unable to learn: "…the rapidly accelerating pace of change in our society has proved this doctrine to be no longer valued. Facts learned in youth have become insufficient and in many instances actually untrue; and skills learned in youth have become outmoded by new technologies."

The term "andragogy" has come to mean self-directed learning for people of all ages, as opposed to the term "pedagogy" which defines teacher-directed learning. In practical terms, it means that when educating or training adults, process comes before content.

Knowles may not have invented these terms or concepts, but he was the first to put them together into an organized theory. Additional theories of adult learning have been developed since Knowles' time, as well. Here is an overview of adult learning principles that will greatly improve your understanding of how and why adults learn. This will allow you to tailor your presentations and training more effectively to the groups you serve.

1. Adults are autonomous and self-directed

Adults want to decide for themselves what, when, how and why to learn. Speakers/instructors should allow adults to direct some of their own learning. Here are some ways to facilitate this:

* Ask your participants what they already know about your topic and what they're interested in learning. Find out what their goals are for being there.

* Share your agenda and ask for input. This might lead to switching around the order of your workshop to better serve the group's needs. You might find you spend more time on certain subjects than you had planned, and less on others. Be flexible.

* Act as a facilitator, guiding the group and encouraging them to reach their own conclusions, rather than force-feeding information in a lecture format. Allow them to be responsible for their own learning.

* Do your research on the group and organizational needs beforehand, so you can provide a combination of information that meets their perceived needs and their actual needs.

2. Adults have a lifetime of knowledge and experience that informs their learning

Adult learners can be a valuable resource for you as an instructor/speaker. It's also important for them to connect learning to those previous life experiences. Here's how to make the most of your audience's experience and knowledge.

* Don't assume that your participants are "blank slates" and know nothing about your topic. Nothing is more insulting than a speaker who launches into a lecture without first finding out the needs and knowledge level of the audience. Do your research and ask first to find out what they already know.

* When appropriate, ask your audience to share their experiences, and create activities that call on them to use their experiences, for example, in small group discussions.

* Prepare activities that involve choice, so the learning process can better fit the individual levels of your participants.

3. Adults need relevancy in learning

It's important to adults that they are learning something relevant and applicable to real life, whether it's work-related or personal. Here's how to make learning relevant to your audience.

* Identify learning objectives and ask participants to share their goals.

* Discuss and ask for sharing of real-world applications of your topic.

* Avoid giving a workshop or presentation that's too theoretical.

In the book "Teacher", Sylvia Ashton-Warner discusses relevancy in her work as a teacher with Maori children. She recalls trying to teach them to read out of European textbooks with images and language that mean nothing to them. When she starts working within their own language, culture and experiences to teach them reading, they blossom. Relevancy is one of the major keys to learning for people of all ages.

4. Adults are motivated to learn by both external and internal factors

When we were kids, many of us were not motivated to learn by anything other than our parents' and teachers' rewards and punishments.

As adults, we have many reasons for pursuing learning:

* it's a requirement of a job

* we want to make new friends and connections

* for professional development and to advance our careers

* to relieve boredom

* because we're interested in a particular topic and want to learn for fun

* to create a better environment for our children and families

. . . and the list goes on.

As an instructor/speaker, it's important to understand the many reasons why your attendees are in your seminar. They may not be there by choice, for example. Ask them why they've come and what they hope to gain from the experience.

As it is important to understand what motivates your participants to learn, it's also important to understand what might be barriers to their learning:

* worry about finances

* time constraints

* childcare issues

* relationship issues (one partner feels threatened by advancement of the other)

* lack of confidence in ability to learn (some people grew to believe they were not good in school, and they carry that with them forever)

* insecurity about intelligence

* concern about practicality and relevance

. . . and the list goes on!

Understanding the motivations and barriers your participants face can help you as an instructor pinpoint how best to serve them, by increasing their motivation for learning.

5. Adult learners have sensitive egos

Many of us, over the course of a lifetime, have developed a fear of appearing stupid or incompetent. As children, we were encouraged to explore, ask questions and learn about the world, but somewhere along the way, that was taken away from us. Many adults have mixed feelings about teachers, school, and structured learning.

Some people go to great lengths to hide their inability to read, for example, or their lack of understanding of the duties of their job.

An instructor/speaker must be aware of these issues and build trust by treating learners respectfully, sensitively, and without judgment.

* Allow participants to build confidence by practicing what is learned in small groups before facing the large group

* Use positive reinforcement to encourage participants

* If sensitive issues are to be discussed, create a safe space by enforcing confidentiality and allowing participants to "pass" if there's something they're not comfortable talking about

* Provide activities that are low-risk before moving on to activities featuring higher risk or greater trust

* Acknowledge participants' previous life experience and knowledge and allow them to voice opinions and share in class leadership

A speaker who believes she/he knows more than anyone else in the room is asking for trouble, and creating an environment that will discourage learning.

6. Adults are practical and problem-oriented, and want to apply what they've learned

Probably the most important result for adult learners is to be able to apply their learning to their work or personal life - immediately. Help facilitate this by doing the following:

* Use examples to help them see the connection between classroom theories and practical application

* Use problem-solving activities as part of learning

* Create action items or task lists together with participants

* Help learners transfer learning to daily practice by offering follow-up coaching or mentoring

* Create an experiential learning environment that follows an experiential learning cycle

This has been just a brief overview of adult learning principles. I hope you've found some of the tips in these articles to be helpful.

At its most basic level, adult learning tends to be self-directed and based on the person's individual needs and life experiences. Follow these tips when working with adults, and you will be on your way to creating a truly effective learning experience.

When delivering a business presentation, it is essential that you are able to present all the aspects, including all necessary data about a business undertaking or project. Sure, you know this and you are perfectly capable of coming up with a comprehensive presentation. But the problem with business presentations is that they tend to be complicated and boring. And when you fail to catch your audience's attention, or you manage to but then they later get confused, you know that your sleepless nights have lost their cause.

So how do turn your business presentation into a success?

Research and Study

Now you can't make a report without knowing the facts. It is of utmost importance that you do you homework beforehand. If you can, start researching weeks before your presentation. This will give you time to understand and internalize what you need to know. But don't put everything in your presentation, unless you are given a whole week to present it! Just take the most pertinent data and leave out those that you can.

But make sure that you are able to give your audience what they need to hear. Don't leave out something important just because you have a hard time mastering it, or you're too lazy to study the information - it's your responsibility to understand it. Otherwise, you have no business presenting it.

Simplify and Practice

Take all the complex data and make it so that everyone understands what you are trying to impart. Use everyday examples, and make sure you are able to explain every single detail of your report. Practice a day or two before the presentation, and try to anticipate the questions that will be asked. Prepare and practice delivering your answers, so that you don't get rattled on the day of the presentation.

Be Creative

Imagine speaking nonstop in front of an audience for an hour or so with only charts and graphs as visual aid. Do you think you will be able to keep their attention? The trick here is to employ multimedia support. You may have heard of, or even used, Flash programmed presentations and PowerPoint presentations. But do you know how to maximize these so that you get a powerful presentation?

Don't settle for the colorful slides alone. Make your presentation interactive - use enhanced images, video, and audio. Yes, advanced technology now allows you to integrate everything you need into your presentation, and the possibilities are endless. You can make your presentation in the form of documentation, music videos, or even a short film.

But then again, you can't just slap in any picture, video, or audio anywhere you please. You have to get proper images and audio, and you also need to organize your presentation enhancement such that all images and audio that you are using are pertinent to our presentation. You also have to know when and where you need to place your presentation enhancement. If you do otherwise, you will have an awkward presentation, not a successful one. And you want your audience to be clamoring for business card after the presentation, right?