Wednesday, November 23, 2011

Feedback is a two way street. You need to know how to give it effectively and at the same time model how to receive it constructively.

When you make a conscious choice to give and receive feedback on a regular basis you demonstrate that feedback is a powerful means of personal development. Done properly, feedback need not be agonizing, demoralizing, or daunting and the more practice you get the better you will become at it. It may never be your favorite means of communicating with employees, co-workers, or bosses but it does have the potential to make your workplace a much more productive and harmonious place to be.

Giving and Receiving Feedback

Keeping Team Member Performance High, and Well-Integrated

"Performance review." Does the mere mention of this event make your heart sink?

Employees and managers the world over dread this ritual and therein lays the main problem: We have institutionalized the giving and receiving of feedback. We save up our comments and document all the things we note about a person's performance. And then, like a big cat ready to pounce, the manager brings a hapless employee into the office and springs a year's worth of "constructive criticism" onto him or her.

No doubt the process is seen as unnerving and fear provoking. And this is exactly the wrong emotional environment in which to discuss performance, introduce suggestions for improvement, and talk about goals for the future. This is a shame, because giving and receiving feedback is some of the most important communication you can engage in with members of your team.

When done in the right way and with the right intentions, feedback communication is the avenue to performance greatness. Employees have to know what they are doing well and not so well. For them to really hear your thoughts and suggestions on ways to improve, though, that feedback has to be delivered carefully and frequently.

Giving feedback effectively is a skill. And like all skills, it takes practice to build your confidence and improve. The following is a collection of "feedback giving" tips that you can start putting into practice today.

Tip:
We talk generally about feedback between a manager/supervisor and employee. However, feedback can, and should, be given up, down, and laterally. The same principles apply.

Giving Feedback Effectively

Number One Rule: Try to Make it a Positive Process and Experience

Before giving feedback make sure you remind yourself why you are doing it. The purpose for giving feedback is to improve the situation or performance. You won't accomplish that by being harsh, critical, or offensive.

That's not to say you must always be positive. There is a role for negativity and even anger if someone isn't paying sufficient attention to what you're saying. However this should be used sparingly. You'll most often get much more from people when your approach is positive and focused on improvement. (Use tools like the Feedback Matrix and the Losada Ratio to help you get the balance right.)

Be Timely

The closer to the event you address the issue, the better. Feedback isn't about surprising someone so the sooner you do it, the more the person will be expecting it.

Think of it this way: It's much easier to feed back about a single one-hour job that hasn't been done properly than it is to feed back about a whole year of failed one-hour jobs.

Tip:
The exception to this is if the situation involved is highly emotional. Here, wait until everyone has calmed down before you engage in feedback. You can't risk letting yourself get worked up and risk saying something you will regret later.

Make it Regular

Feedback is a process that requires constant attention. When something needs to be said, say it. People then know where they stand all the time and there are few surprises. Also, problems don't get out of hand. This is not a once-a-year or a once-every-three-month event. While this may be the timing of formal feedback, informal, simple feedback should be given much more often than this – perhaps every week or even every day, depending on the situation.

With frequent informal feedback like this, nothing said during formal feedback sessions should be unexpected, surprising or particularly difficult.

Prepare Your Comments

You don't want to read a script but you do need to be clear about you are going to say. This helps you stay on track and stick to the issues.

Be Specific

Tell the person exactly what they need to improve on. This ensures that you stick to facts and there is less room for ambiguity. If you tell someone they acted unprofessionally, what does that mean exactly? Were they too loud, too friendly, too casual, too flip or too poorly dressed?

Remember to stick to what you know first hand: You'll quickly find yourself on shaky ground if you start giving feedback based on other people's views.

Tip:
Try not to exaggerate to make a point. Avoid words like "never", "all," and "always" because the person will get defensive. Always discuss the direct impact of the behavior and don't get personal or seek to blame.

Criticize in Private

While public recognition is appreciated, public scrutiny is not.

Establish a safe place to talk where you won't be interrupted or overheard.

Use "I" Statements

Give the feedback from your perspective. This way you avoid labeling the person.

Say, "I was angry and hurt when you criticized my report in front of my boss" rather than "You were insensitive yesterday."

Limit Your Focus

A feedback session should discuss no more than two issues. Any more than that and you risk the person feeling attacked and demoralized.

You should also stick to behaviors the person can actually change or influence.

Talk about Positives Too

A good rule is start off with something positive. This helps put the person at ease. It also lets them "see" what success looks like and this helps them to take the right steps next time.

As long as it's not forced, it can also help to give positive feedback at the end of a feedback session too. Otherwise, people can finish feeling despondent and worthless.

Tip:
Many people can tend to overdo this and they end up sandwiching the constructive feedback between too many positives. Then the takeaway message becomes, "Gee, I'm doing really well" instead of "I'm good at communicating with customers, but I need to bring my interpersonal skills with my co-workers up to that same level."

Provide Specific Suggestions

Make sure you both know what needs to be done to improve the situation. The main message should be that you care and want to help the person grow and develop. Set goals and make plans to monitor and evaluate progress. Use the SMARTacronym and define specific steps and milestones, or the GROW model to motivate people to deliver the change you want.

Tip:
You may not agree on everything so it is a good idea to ask the person to provide their perspective. Use phrases like, "What is your reaction to this?" or "Is this a fair representation of what happened?" Listen actively to what he or she has to say and try to get him or her to offer some suggestions for improvement. This way they have an opportunity to own the solution and are much more likely to follow through with it. To avoid sounding like you're preaching, stay away from words like "good," "bad," "must," "need to," etc.

Follow Up

The whole purpose of feedback is to improve performance. You need to measure whether or not that is happening and then make adjustments as you go. Be sure to document your conversations and discuss what is working and what needs to be modified.

Receiving Feedback Effectively

No one is above receiving suggestions for improvement. Therefore, knowing how to process feedback positively yourself, is just as valuable a skill as being able to give feedback in a positive manner. Here are some tips:

Seek Feedback

Ask for feedback regularly from a variety of sources. It's hard to see your own shortcomings but if you ask, many people are more than willing to tell you about them.

The objective is growth, so if you keep an open mind you will start welcoming ideas and suggestions for improvement. If you feel bombarded with negatives, don't be shy about asking for some positive feedback as well.

Avoid Debates

Feedback sessions are best viewed as a partnership for improvement. When you allow defensiveness to enter the conversation then you aren't open to hearing what the other person is saying. You are too busy trying to justify yourself and prove why what the person is saying is wrong or won't work.

Accept feedback for what it is – an attempt to help you improve your skills and develop personally and professionally.

Listen Actively

Paraphrase what is being said and make sure you are clear about the behavior that needs to be improved and any goals you set to bring that about. This helps prevent misunderstandings.

Probe for details and try not to interrupt. Participate actively in the suggested steps for improvement.

Ask for Examples

You need to be really clear about what you are doing that is not working. Take notes if you need to. The better you understand exactly what you are doing "wrong," the easier it is to formulate a plan to change it.

If you receive feedback that you don't know how to action (for example, if you're accused of being "arrogant" or "unprofessional") ask people to zero in on precisely the behavior they want to see changed. Otherwise there's nothing you can do about it other than worry.

Don't Obsess

Accept the feedback for what it is. Some of it you may agree with and some you may not. Take what you need from the comments and begin addressing what you can.

There is no need to feel insulted or to go over an over the scene in your head. Recognize the positive intention, even when the message is not delivered expertly, and seize the opportunity to learn more about yourself and to improve.

Process the Feedback in Your Own Time

Take time to evaluate the message and decide how you are going to apply it. If that means taking a day or two before putting an action plan in place, that's OK. Put your energy into understanding rather than fixing.

In the end, how you respond to feedback is up to you. Not everything that is suggested to you will be appropriate or actionable. Ultimately you are the only one who can improve your performance and part of that responsibility is choosing what to work on. Being open to the comments and feedback given to you will only help you get a more robust picture of your current performance; giving you more options from which to develop your improvement plan.

Persuasive Speech

References: http://www.afraid-of-speaking-a-speech.com/persuasivespeech.html

Giving a Persuasive Speech - how

to convince your audience

A persuasive speech has to persuade your listeners to take action, you want them to think, act and believe in what you want them to.

You might want them to buy a certain product, take a certain action or believe a certain thought.

You should start with a proposition and then use some examples to back it up.

Present some facts and figures but make sure that they're accurate and that they support your point of view.

If there have been similar problems you can tell your audience how they were solved. Perhaps your proposition is that a new road through your village should not be built, if you can find other villages that have dealt with the same problem without having a road built, use it in your speech.

Try to make it personal to your listeners, if it's going to effect their family, home or job they will start to take notice.

You might also want to appeal to their sense of adventure - perhaps you're trying to pesuade the audience to relocate to another area of the country - sell it as an adventure.

Everyone likes to feel that they are respected and highly thought of - imagine you're trying to persuade a room of sports coaches to do a particular training course. You'll need to convince them that they'll be the best and will be much busier if they attend the course.

If you can find a celebrity who supports your proposition, it helps. An easy example is trying to persuade a teenage audience to buy a particular brand of clothes. If Jessica Simpson wears them, your're half way there!

Once you've got a title for your speech. The next thing to do is to research and write it and then practise it out loud.

Informative Speech

References: http://www.afraid-of-speaking-a-speech.com/informativespeech.html

An informative speech does what it says - it informs.

In an informative speech you'll either be explaining something to people, helping people to understand something or showing them how to do something.

You have to remember that the whole purpose of your speech is to teach the audience something that they don't already know.

When you're explaining to an audience you need to make extra use of the pause and make sure the pace isn't too quick.

The audience need time to take in what you've said.

If you speak too quickly your audience will be trying to understand one sentence while you're speaking the next sentence!

After each new thought you need to pause so that the audience have time to take in what you've said.

Don't be frightened of silence - it shows you are confident about your topic.

Managing Presentation Nerves

References: http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/PresentationNerves.htm

When it comes to presenting, nerves are inevitable. Letting them get the better of you is not. You need to develop a strategy for taking the focus off your nervousness and putting that energy to positive use. By controlling as much of the uncertainly as you can, you increase your confidence in your ability to deliver an excellent presentation. This confidence then counteracts your nerves and you create a positive cycle for yourself.

Nerves are not your enemy and you don't have to fear public speaking. For your next presentation, be knowledgeable, be well practiced and prepared, try out some physical relaxation techniques. Amaze yourself and impress your audience with your calm and cool delivery of a great presentation.

Managing Presentation Nerves

Coping with the fear within

Your stomach is queasy, your palms are sweaty, and your mind has gone blank about your opening lines. What will you be like when you've been introduced and the room goes quiet? Are you doomed to presentation panic or paralysis, or can you overcome that debilitating nervousness and deliver a speech that wows the audience? (Or at least leaves them feeling satisfied)?

If you are like most people, then public speaking or presenting is one of your major fears. Yet these skills are often called upon. It might not be to an audience of hundreds, but giving presentations to staff or even team members is a common enough occurrence. You owe it to yourself to develop some strategies and techniques to manage your nerves so you can concentrate on delivering an effective and engaging presentation.

Notice I didn't say to get rid of your nervousness. This is because presenting is not a natural activity; even the most practiced presenters get a bit nervous. The point is this: your nervous energy can be used to your advantage. When you are in a heightened state from the adrenaline that is being pumped into your body, you can use that energy to communicate enthusiastically, convincingly, and passionately. The key is to decrease your level of nervousness so you can use your energy on these positive activities, not on trying to control your nerves.

So, to harness your nervousness and bring it under control, there are six key tips to remember. These tips are all designed to help you focus on your audience and their needs rather than on yourself and how you are feeling. They all stem from one truism:

The more uncertain you are, the more nervous you will be.

The more you can control the uncertainty, the less nervousness you will experience and the more residual energy you will have to devote to the presentation itself.

Six Steps to Conquering Your Presentation Nerves

Step 1. Know Your Audience

Consult your audience before your presentation. The more confident you are that you are presenting them with useful and interesting material for them, the less nervous you will be overall. You really don't want your presentation to be a surprise. If it is, you lose complete control over the audience's reaction and that is a large factor in nervousness. So:

Define who your target audience is.
Ask people who are representative of the audience what they expect from the presentation.
Run your agenda by a few people to see if they think something is missing or is overkill.
Consider contacting participants by email beforehand and asking them a few questions about what they expect.
Greet audience members at the door and do a quick survey of why they are there and what they expect.

Step 2. Know Your Material

Nothing is worse for nerves than trying to give a presentation on a topic you are not well prepared for. This doesn't mean you have to be an expert beforehand, but you'd better know it backwards on presentation day. And making sure you've understood your audience and their needs properly will help you ensure that your material is on target to meet their needs.

Another important point to remember is that you can't possibly cover everything you know in your presentation. That would probably be long and boring. So select the most pertinent points from your subject base and then supplement with other material if time allows.

Tip:
To make your material interesting and memorable, include occasional questions to the audience to encourage audience participation. This enhances the learning experience and gives you a break from presenting. It also allows you deliver your information in a more conversational manner which is often more believable.

Step 3. Structure Your Presentation

A common technique for trying to calm nervousness is memorizing what you intend to say. But all this does is make your delivery sound like it is coming from a robot. If you miss a word or draw a blank, your whole presentation is thrown off and then your nervousness compounds itself with every remaining second. It is far better to structure your presentation so that you give yourself clues to what is coming next.

Have a set of key phrases listed on a cue card.
Refer to these phrases to trigger your mind as to what is coming up next.
If you're using slides, use these key phrases in your transitions.

This approach helps you control your own uncertainty about whether you will remember what you want to say and the order you want to say it.

Tip:
A simple, widely used, and highly effective structure is to tell the audience what you're going to say, then say it, and then recap what you've said.

Step 4. Practice, Practice, Practice

Although you should avoid memorizing your presentation, you do want to be very comfortable with your delivery. Familiarity brings confidence, and practice helps you to deliver the words naturally. This means they will be coming more from your heart and mind, rather than from a piece of paper.

Learn the organization and order of your presentation.
If you do feel the need to memorize, limit it to your opening. This will help you get off to a smooth start.
Try videotaping yourself. You will see what you look like to others and then you can make a plan to change the things that need changing.
Use audiotape to listen to how you speak, your tone and your speed, and adjust appropriately.
Prepare for large speaking events by practicing with a smaller audience first; for example, by inviting colleagues to listen to a dry run during their lunch hour.

Step 5. Prepare, Prepare, Prepare

Once you know what you are going to say, you need to prepare yourself for the actual delivery.

Decide what you are going to wear – make it comfortable and appropriate.
Arrive early and get your equipment set up.
Anticipate problems and have backups and contingencies in place in case something doesn't work, you forget something, etc.
If possible, give everything one last run through in the real environment.
Prepare responses to anticipated questions. Try to think like that one person in the front row who always tries to trip the presenter up.

Step 6. Calm Yourself from the Inside

Nervousness causes physiological reactions which are mostly attributed to the increase of adrenaline in your system. You can counteract these effects with a few simple techniques:

Practice deep breathing – adrenalin causes you to breath shallowly. By breathing deeply your brain will get the oxygen it needs and the slower pace will trick your body into believing you are calmer. It also helps with voice quivers, which can occur when your breathing is irregular.
Drink water - adrenalin can cause a dry mouth, which in turn leads to getting tongue-tied. Have a glass of water handy. Take sips occasionally, especially when you want to emphasize a point.
Smile – this is a natural relaxant that sends positive chemicals through your body.
Use visualization techniques – imagine that you are delivering your presentation to an audience that is interested, enthused, smiling, and reacting positively. Cement this positive image in your mind and recall it right before you are ready to go on.
Press and massage your forehead to bring to energize the front of the brain and speech center.
Just before you start talking, pause, make eye contact, and smile. This last moment of peace is very relaxing and gives you time to adjust to being the centre of attention.
Speak more slowly than you would in a conversation, and leave longer pauses between sentences. This slower pace will calm you down, and it will also make you easier to hear, especially at the back of a large room.
Move around during your presentation. This will expend some of your nervous energy.
STAY or Stop Thinking About Yourself. Remember that the audience is there there to get some information and it is your job to put it across to them.

Wednesday, November 23, 2011

The path to a powerful Presentation