Have you ever attended a presentation or meeting where you have some valuable points to deliver but somehow struggle to get your points across, fail to really connect or land your messaging or simply don’t get the buy-in or actions you actually want?
The reasons for this could be many - failure to project your voice clearly, body language which may be giving out completely different signals to those intended, choice of poor or complex language, not knowing your audience, the way you dress, your breathing, the timing of your delivery, the phrasing or construction of your written communications…whatever the reasons there are many ‘trap doors’ to watch out for.
Often we have a great opportunity to make a strong and positive impression yet fail in our endeavours for reasons that can be easily resolved.
Whether you are in a management or leadership role, attending a job interview, presenting to clients or customers, interacting with work colleagues or perhaps just meeting new people - making a positive impact and favourable impression is key to achieving your goals.
Becoming more aware of the impact you make and developing the tools you need to improve it can transform your ability to realise your business and personal objectives.
Many of the skills required to maximise personal impact are about developing self-awareness, overcoming self-limiting belief, being prepared and practice.
Of course - some people are naturally better able to express themselves to communicate confidently and effectively. For those of you who may struggle with public speaking, presenting, networking, selling, influencing etc - a degree of coaching, training or mentoring to change what can be ingrained and unhelpful habits is often a simple fix and within most people's grasp. So go on - ask yourself the question - what do I struggle with? and then ask for help.
Sometimes – simple things like breathing exercises and mindfulness training can be the difference between effective communication and ideas lost in translation. Knowing how and when to emphasise a point, understanding how to use humour, props, presentation decks, knowing how and when to use hand gestures to convey conviction or to underscore an issue can all make a real and significant difference.
And there are many tricks of the trade that can help you further. To some degree, making your communication more of a conversation, telling a ’story’ rather than just imparting information will also help to engage your audience and increase the chances of material or points raised being remembered and used in the right way.
Making a great personal impact can also depend on thorough research and planning; there is no substitute to knowing your subject and material thoroughly.
“If you can’t explain it simply – you don’t understand it well enough” Albert Einstein
For more information on how to optimise your personal Impact see https://bit.ly/3dF3GXD
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