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Your Body Speaks Even When You Do Not

June 17, 2010 By 8 Comments

Did you realize that more than 70% of our communication is nonverbal?  In fact I read an article which said that a recent UCLA study suggested that up to 93 percent of communication effectiveness is determined by nonverbal cues.  What does this mean to you when making a first impression?

As you approach someone they will be watch your facial expressions, eye contact, posture, hand and feet movements, body movement and placement.  All of this happens in less than 30 seconds and people will make a value judgment of who you are and what you are capable of doing long before the first hello.   With this said let’s talk about:

Eye Contact – Depending upon your culture or upbringing how comfortable you are making eye contact with a stranger will vary widely.  If you plan to be successful in business then you need to be willing to talk to new people.  Having good eye contact is crucial to developing a meaningful and trusting relationship.  People want to do business with other people who they trust.  When you do not keep eye contact with someone who you are speaking with it gives the impression that you have something to hide.  So if you are someone who does not maintain good eye contact when speaking to someone new what should you do?

I recommend that you practice.  Where? Everywhere, at the supermarket, in the cleaners, at the ice cream shop, any place that you find people you do not know and that you share something in common with.  What do you share in common?  The location where you are and what you are doing there.  That can be the opening of the conversation, “Did you see any great sales in the circular?”, “I usually come to the cleaners on Wednesday because they give you 20% off did you know that?” , “I love their Butter Pecan  Ice Cream what is your favorite?”  Practicing will make you more comfortable and give you a chance to become more aware of your eye contact.

Another suggestion is to think of the new people you meet as potential new friends not strangers.  These are potential new friends who are willing and able to work with you but you just have not met them yet. I read an interesting post by Marlene Green entitled “We have the power to change our conversation” and thought you would enjoy reading it as well.  Please feel free to share what has worked for you in developing better eye contact when speaking to new people.

Filed Under: Business, Interview, Relationship Tagged With: , , , ,

The Art of Selling Yourself

June 16, 2010 By 8 Comments

Your ability to sell yourself is vital to your ability to develop a relationship.  It does not matter if the relationship is business or personal, the most important thing is to make a good first impression.   How do you make a good first impression?

Smile – You must smile when you first meet someone.  It might seem kind of funny that I even mention it, but you would be surprised at how many people do not smile when they are approaching to meet someone.  Your smile is your greeting card.  It says, hello I am a friendly person and I would be a nice person to meet.  Now let’s think about this for a minute, who would you like to meet a friendly person or an indifferent of uninterested person?  Of course you want to meet the friendly person.

Smiling is just the first step in the process and I hope that when you meet someone today that the first thing you do is smile.  I am willing to bet that the majority of the time you will receive a smile in return.

Filed Under: Branding, Interview, Leadership, Relationship, Your Talents Tagged With: , , , , ,

Free Webinars

June 15, 2010 By Leave a Comment

When you hear the words free webinar what do you think?  Not worth my time?  How good could it be if it were free?  Well I would like you to look at free as an opportunity to try something and see if you like it.  It is the same as going to the Supermarket or Cosco and trying a sample food item or beverage that they are running a special on.

Normally you probably would not have considered trying the item that the store has to offer but since it is free you thought you would try it.  The same thinking applies to attending a free webinar.  The best part is you can listen to the information via phone or by computer.  A webinar allows you to see what is being taught.

If you are a visual learner like me you enjoy watching what is being taught and retain it better by watching.  My friend Toolie is conducting a free webinar tonight, Tuesday night, June 15th, at 6 pm Pacific, 9 pm Eastern time as part of her “I Can Fix My Web Site” series.

If you think your website could use an improvement I would recommend signing up to attend this free webinar.  This is an opportunity to learn great information and sample my friend Toolie teaching style.  Don’t miss out.  Click the link to register and please feel free to tell me what you thought of the Webinar.

Filed Under: Business, Website Tagged With: , , , ,

Daily Goals – Do You Have Them?

June 14, 2010 By 6 Comments

So many of us talk about the goals that we have and that is it.  It does not go any further, it is just talk.  I suffer from the same problem so I know what I am talking about ;-) .   If you suffer from the same problem no need to worry.  I would like to share a strategy that you can use to address this problem.

Writing down your goals makes them real and not just a dream that you have.  Putting a date to the goal makes it a focused goal that you can work toward.  We have all heard that goals need to be Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, and Timely but writing it down brings it to life.

So let’s talk about the things you accomplished today.  Those are goals that you reached.  Why don’t you write those accomplishments down on paper so you can see them?  It is good to look at them and realize the number of accomplishments you completed today.  In our fast paced world we don’t spend the time acknowledging our accomplishments.  Please take the time before you eat dinner to write down your accomplishments for the day, when you do please include those things that you did not have a chance to complete today.  These unmet goals are opportunities for tomorrow’s success.  Make sure you write a to do list or a goal sheet and pursue them for tomorrow.  Do not feel bad about not reaching those goals.  Develop a plan and go out tomorrow and make it happen.

Filed Under: Leadership, Video, Your Talents Tagged With: , , ,

Leadership in Toastmasters

June 13, 2010 By 2 Comments

Looking for an opportunity to become a leader?  Consider joining a Toastmasters Club.  Toastmasters is an International Organization that helps members become better communicators and leaders.   To be honest, I believe Toastmasters is the best kept secret for anyone who is  determined to improve themselves, willing to work and not afraid to leave their comfort zone.

I joined Toastmasters because I was deathly afraid of speaking in public and it was something I had to do more of as a Director of an Admissions Office in a level one trauma center.  I will discuss my accomplishments in Toastmasters in a future posts.  But I do want to talk to you about leadership.  In a Toastmasters club there are 7 leadership positions (Club Officers) and it is their job to help the club member reach their goals.

The individual member goals help the club become a distinguished club. There are several levels of being distinguished, from distinguished to select distinguished and president distinguished.  I am currently an Area Governor in my Toastmaster District and responsible for 5 clubs.  I work with the club officers to help them become distinguished.  If a club meets all 10 goals they will be president distinguished.

Last year I presented a workshop which focused on Toastmaster Club development at the Spring Conference in both New York and New Jersey.   Below is an excerpt from that presentation which focuses on the Distinguished Club Program (DCP).  There are a number of acronyms in Toastmasters.

So many times the idea of club development is a boring topic to present in a workshop so I decided to spice it up by being a Michael Jackson Impersonator (This was before Michael’s untimely death).   I preformed a different Michael Jackson song parity for each segment of my club development workshop.  Humor is one of my talents and I love to make people smile.  I hope you liked the video and if you are not a member of Toastmasters consider joining a club near you.

Filed Under: Leadership, Speaking, Toastmasters, Video, Your Talents Tagged With: , , , ,

Free Cool Web Site Features Webinar

June 12, 2010 By 2 Comments

Do you have a blog or website that you feel could look more up to date?  You really want to be able to make these changes to your blog or web site yourself but you just don’t know how?  Or maybe you have a little knowledge to get started but you are just not that confidant to go all the way and start to fix those things that have been bothering you about your site.  Help has arrived.   Jocelyn “Toolie” Garner has been my web coach for a number of years.  In fact I learned HTML from one of her courses.

Let me tell you I was scared out of my mind when I started blogging.  There were so many things about a web site that I just did not understand.  Toolie made the secret language of HTML come alive for me.  Now I am building web sites for Physicians, Speakers and Coaches.  It is amazing to think that I am doing this at all.  And Tollie has played a major role in providing me with the knowledge to be successful.

This is why I am so excited to share with you Toolie’s free Cool Web Site Features Webinar.  Toolie is a great teacher.  She explains things in easy to understand language and does not make you feel like a dunce when you ask a question.  She will be teaching a class on the web this Tuesday on cool web site features.  And her class is free.  All you have to do is sign up for Toolie’s free Cool Web Site Features Webinar here.  I forgot to tell you the time.  The class will be Tuesday night, June 15th, at 6 pm Pacific, 9 pm Eastern time.

If you have always wanted to make your web site unique with special features that will attract your visitors to connect with you, then you must attend this call.  I know you will benefit from the call and be happy you invested the time to learn how to do it for yourself.

Filed Under: Business, Free Offer, Website Tagged With: , , , , ,

Building Your Irresistible Brand

June 11, 2010 By 5 Comments

Do you have a dream or idea about your business?  Have you thought of developing products and services for people you know can benefit from them? But you have not been successful because you have not determined your brand identity.  This is a problem that a number of us face when we are starting a new business.  The best thing to do is to get someone to help you.  You need someone who can provide you the strategy you need to be successful.  You need someone with a proven track record and results that you can measure.

That person is my friend Lethia Owens.  Lethia is a certified personal branding and social media marketing strategist with a track record of measurable proven results. She knows there are a number of people across the country that could benefit from the information she has to share so she decided to meet the people where they are.  Lethia has embarked on a 7 City Tour that extends from one end of the country to the other.   Check out her TV news interview below.

I met Lethia about 5 years ago at the National Speakers Association Annual Conference in Orlando, Fl and she is a dynamic international speaker.   When she was in the process of putting this tour together she asked if I would be a co-manager of her affiliate program for the tour.  I accepted and would like to invite you to become an affiliate too. 

If you are not familiar with the affiliate process it is a great way to help others and make money too.  With that said I must reveal that I will make money as an affiliate if you purchase from the links in this post.  But if you become an affiliate you can make money too.  You will get all of the details from clicking the 7 City Tour Link and scrolling to the bottom of the page and click the “Earn and Learn” Affiliate program link.

If you cannot attend one of the tour dates yourself consider sending this information to a friend who can.  Better yet there may be a way for you and your friend to attend the tour at a city near you for the price of one admission.  Check out the city and tour information for details.  You and your business will benefit from the information that Lethia has to share.  If you plan to come to the New York City Tour I look forward to meeting you there.

Filed Under: Branding, Business, Soical Media, Video Tagged With: , , , , ,

Chairing A Conference

June 10, 2010 By 4 Comments

Last year I chaired an Anti-Racism Conference for the Episcopal Diocese of New Jersey.  The Episcopal Diocese of New Jersey has more than 158 parishes and covers the area south of Newark to Cape May, New Jersey.  How I came about this position is really funny.  I happened not to attend a diocesan committee meeting and was selected as the conference chair.

Tip # 1 – Be sure to attend all committee meetings

I had been a committee member on the previous anti-racism conference team and had experience as the inaugural fall conference chair for the newly formed Toastmasters District 83.  One of the challenges was coordinating group meetings because the location that we met previously was not going to be available.  The rising gas prices and logistical issue prompted me to come up with alternative solutions.

Solution # 1 – Establish a free Teleconference line for the committee

Solution # 2 – Meeting time will not exceed an hour

Solution # 3 – Record conference call so people who missed the meeting could hear it

Solution # 4 – Built and internet membership site to post the recorded meetings

These solutions introduced the committee members to technology that they had not used previously.  This allowed the meetings to be more efficient and productive.    In fact this process worked so well that they have adopted this process and currently use it for meeting.

I presented the results of being an anti-racism conference chair at my local Toastmasters club as part of a high performance leadership project (HPL).   High Performance Leadership is a module project in Toastmasters in which you establish a committee, a vision, a leadership project to work through and give speeches along the way.  In the video I am presenting the results of my HPL and hope you enjoy it.

Filed Under: Business, Leadership, Speaking, Team Work, Toastmasters Tagged With: , , , ,

The Winds of Change

June 9, 2010 By 2 Comments

As we grow and learn each of us have to deal with the winds of change.  These winds of change can come in the form of job loss, relocation, or career change to name a few.  What the actual change in is not as important as how we react to the change.  At times we may feel overwhelmed, confused and unsure what to do next.

I suggest that when we feel that way we take inventory of ourselves.  In our hectic lives we need to take an assessment of where we are and what we have done.  What are your accomplishments?  What do you want to accomplish next?  Sometimes the winds of change blow to send us in a different direction other than the one we were planning to take.  I recommend that you take a long hard look at this change of direction and try to project the new destination.

Why not look at the winds of change as an opportunity to actually make a choice to change.  Change your point of view, your attitude, your out look on life.   I believe, if you make a choice to go with the winds of change you will be happier and you just might enjoy your new point of view.

Filed Under: Leadership, Your Talents Tagged With: , , ,

Be Flexible Explore and Develop Your Creativity

June 8, 2010 By 4 Comments

For some people the thought of being flexible give them angina.  If you are normally not open to being flexible please indulge me for a few minutes.    The reason that you get chest pain or feel uneasy at the thought of doing something different is probably out of fear.  Do you know the fear of the unknown impacts the majority of us, but it is how we react to it that makes all the difference in the world.

So let me ask you, when was the last time you did something that was totally new to you?  For example explore a place you had never been before?  If you said not in a long time or you cannot even remember then I would like to extend an invitation to you to do so as soon as possible.  Why?

Being willing to explore opens up your mind to new things and provides the opportunity for you to develop your creativity.  When you experience new things it causes your brain to think in a different way, especially if you are not use to exploring.  When we were children we explored all the time.  That was the way we learned.  As we get older a number of us became more sedentary and set in our ways.  The routine becomes the norm and we stop exploring.

Exploring is fun. There are wonders to discover if you are willing to be a little adventurous.  Don’t you want to have some fun? Have you ever seen an indoor beach with lounge chairs suspended above the Atlantic Ocean?  Well if not take a look at this video.  You will discover that and more.  Join me on a little exploration journey.

Now that you have seen this video I hope that you will be willing to become more flexible, take a risk and start exploring again.  You never know what you may discover.

Filed Under: Branding, First Impression, Leadership Tagged With: , , ,
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