Author: Bengt (Page 44 of 81)

Marc Lesser at Øredev 2009

November 6, 2009 /

On November 2nd I attended a full day tutorial with Marc Lesser at Øredev 2009. The tutorial had the title Accomplishing More By Doing Less and the program was this:

Marc will present tools and practices for integrating mindfulness practice and emotional intelligence as a way to develop leadership ability, create more meaning in our lives, and allow for greater ease and satisfaction. This is an experiential workshop that will draw from spiritual practices (meditation, mindfulness, compassion), leadership practices (listening, innovation, focus) and creative expression (movement and writing).

I really enjoyed the tutorial, it was a great mix of old and new with exercises in the mix. There were two exercises that stand out to me, they are useful in different ways and in different contexts.

One exercise was journaling in three steps with these starting sentences:
+ What matters most to me is…
+ What gets in the way of doing what matters most to me is…
+ What supports me to do what matters most to me is…
It shall be journaling without too much thinking, write what comes up.

The other exercise was ‘the blame game’. It was describing a situation from different perspectives, first as if everything was all their fault and then as if it was all your fault. In reality it’s often somewhere in between, that was much easier to see once you had described both sides.

Marc Lesser also opened the conference with the keynote address “Accomplishing more by doing less” on Wednesday the 4th of November.

Update
You can watch the keynote speech on Vimeo, Marc Lesser – Accomplishing More By Doing Less.

Read more:
LESS – Accomplishing More by Doing Less, a book by Marc Lesser

Are you frightened or eager to speak?

October 30, 2009 /

Marion Chapsal sent me a link to “Are You A Hero At Public Speaking And Don’t Know It?” which is an interesting story around public speaking.

Don’t be fooled into thinking that just because your heart is racing and your tongue swells up inside clenched jaws that you are frightened. Try clenching your toes; if you can do that you are ready for blast off. Incidentally, it isn’t the toe clenching or touching thumb against forefinger that makes the difference.. it is the fact your mind is still in control enough to remember the test. If you can remember the test in the face of your most awful fear, and pass it, then you are a hero.

Touching thumb against forefinger helps check if your mind still is in control. Another idea is to use some Mudras – Hand Gestures. The Apana Mudra is grounding, Prana Mudra gives energy while Hakini Mudra helps thinking and concentration.

The article has an advice around the microphone that’s worth remembering:

When you go to the lectern I want you to reach out and touch that microphone for just a second so you will remember its purpose is to connect you with every person out there in the congregation. You have something important to say, you want it to be heard. That microphone is your best friend.

Visualize your presentation as a starfish

October 26, 2009 /

Marion Chapsal sent me a link to Be a Starfish Speaker which gives this interesting suggestion:

Visualize your presentation as a starfish. Your central message is the middle and your main points radiate our from there. If you get off track, just return back to the center.

Sarah Gershman points out that a speak needs a central message. She writes that:

Next time you prepare your content and each and every time you practice your speech, first review the central message of your presentation. You should be able to state this in no more than one sentence.

If you can create one sentence that sums up your core message it will be much easier for your audience to remember.

I like the starfish as a symbol for a speech. There is a central part, your core message, and the arms represent a handful of points you want to make.

Credit: Photo Starfish on the Beach.

Presentation Zen is a great book

October 24, 2009 /

I have read Presentation Zen: Simple Ideas on Presentation Design and Delivery by Garr Reynolds. It’s a beautiful book in itself and terrific when it comes to its topic. The book gives lots of examples, it is inspriring and very well written. Presentation Zen is the kind of book one returns to for reference as well as for new ideas.

I have made some notes while reading the book, things that stuck this time.

Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication. Leonardo da Vinci

Communication is about getting others to understand why you are excited. Communication is the transfer of emotion.

Make slides that reinforce your words, not repeat them.

What’s your point? Why does it matter?
If the audience remember only one thing, what should it be?

Simplicity is the essence of clear communication.

Bring everything back to the core message.

You have to believe in your message completely or no one else will.

Garr Reynolds has a blog with the same name, Presentation Zen, that I suggest you subscribe to.

Marion Chapsal recommended this book to me. We talked about books around presentations and she wrote If I could recommend only one this would be THE ONE! I am glad I followed her advice since I really love this book.

Get Presentation Zen at The Book Depository.

Social Media Inspiration

October 21, 2009 /

Today I attended a seminar arranged by Ledarna in cooperation with IHM Business School. Brit Stakston from JMW Kommunikation had a very interesting and informative presentation about Social media.

Social media is about relationships and storytelling. Brit also talked about digital presence which is much more than just having your own homepage. My own digital presence is fairly large, see my sites and my profiles, but I still got things to consider. I’ll probably rearrange some of my content in order to strengthen my over all profile.

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