You did it. You got the meeting that you've been pursuing for months with a prospective client, business partner, or investor. You've got your pitch rehearsed and your presentation rocks. You've got your best outfit back from the cleaners. You are ready to go. But hang on a second. There's something else you can do - that you should do - before you go into that meeting. What do you know about the person you are about to meet? There's a saying that most sales are won or lost before the conversation ever starts, and that applies to all sorts of business meetings. Spend some time researching the person you are about to talk to. Going … [Read more...]
The Quick and Dirty Way to Plan Effective Meetings
In the modern business world, meetings are a necessary (and ubiquitous) evil. There are sales meetings, planning meetings, marketing meetings, debriefing meetings, quarterly meetings, project meetings, committee meetings, meetings to set up other meetings... you got the idea. For all of the meetings that you go to, you've probably found that many are ineffective. Or to put it bluntly, a waste of time. It's why meetings have a bad rep. They often devolve into unfocused conversations about topics that aren't important that finally end without anything being solved or a clear course of action. How to Plan a Great Meeting I can't save … [Read more...]
2 Simple Secrets Professional Public Speakers Use
Public speaking remains one of the biggest fears that people wrestle with, and it is only made worse by the fact that we seem to be speaking in front of groups more and more often! Office meetings, sales presentations, networking events; our schedules are filled with opportunities to share our ideas in front of an audience (and get nervous about it...). It's worth developing your comfort, though, because confidence in public speaking can have a direct and positive influence on your career success. Managing Stage Fright Even experienced professional speakers get a little nervous before they take the microphone. But what if you are in the … [Read more...]