CHAPTER 7

Public Speaking
• an oral presentation or speech delivered to a live audience
• generally a formal or staged event, although impromptu speeches are a common occurrence—
and they can be a defining career moment

Nine Characteristics of Effective Public Speakers:

1. Confidence
2. Passion
3. Practice
4. Speak Naturally
5. Authenticity
6. Keep it Short and Sweet
7. Connect With Your Audience
8. Paint a Picture Through Storytelling
9. Repetition

Public speaking increases your potential:

- to connect
- to create
- to reach and impact your audience

Toastmasters International Guide to Successful Speaking notes,

“There is perhaps no greater skill [to] help you build your career or business than effective public
speaking.”

Your first and most important test as a speaker:

➢ CLEARLY communicate the purpose AND benefits of attending your speech.

The 5 Steps of Developing an Effective Speech:

1. Choose your topic
2. Develop your benefit statement
3. Develop your positioning statement
4. Derive your title
5. Create your content

STARTING YOUR SPEECH

Best ways to start a speech:
1. Use a quote
2. Start with “What if...?” or “Imagine…”
3. Ask a Question
4. Use a dramatic pause or silence
5. Cite a statistic
6. Share a meaning statement
What NOT to do:
Thank the audience for the opportunity to speak; or, “Today I’m going to be talking about…”

BODY LANGUAGE AND GESTURES

7 Benefits of Incorporating Gestures Into Your Speech:
1. Clarifies and supports your words
2. Dramatizes your ideas
3. Lends emphasis and vitality to the spoken word
4. Helps dissipate nervous tension
5. Functions as visual aids
6. Stimulates audience participation
7. Helps You Become Highly Visible

VOCAL VARIETY
6 Key Elements, Errors, and Practices to Develop Greater Vocal Impact:
• Volume - try to vary your voice
• Pitch and Resonance (a low pitch is preferred)
• Pace and Pause (slower pace is seen as more credible)
• Intonation (use all patterns appropriately):
- Ending a sentence with a rising tone - a question or suggestion
- Ending a sentence with a descending tone - an order
- A flat intonation - a statement

➢ One of the most common barriers to communication is jargon, the terminology associated with a
given profession.
➢ An in-depth understanding can lead to oversimplification or over-complication
when explaining a foreign concept.

How to avoid confusion:

- Eliminate bullet points
- Use stories and analogies
- Display images and diagrams to illustrate your point

5 Techniques to Capture and Maintain an Audience’s Attention:

1. Surprise
reengages the audience’s brain
2. Suspense
slowly build your idea like a verbal puzzle
3. Storytelling
Share a compelling story to illustrate your point
4. Senses
The greater the sensory engagement, the stronger the interest
5. Involve
invite participation
 Ideas to to integrate your audience:
- Volunteer exercise - Partner exercise
- Audience survey - Small group exercise
- Question - Written exercises or note-taking
- Q&A

➢ Set clear ground rules during audience engagement to maintain control throughout audience
participation and prevent groups from becoming bored or distracted.

Use Four Step Approach to Managing Q&A’s

1. Listen: don’t jump to conclusions
2. Understand: paraphrase to confirm understanding
3. Communicate & Involve
4. Respond: Direct response to both the questioner and the rest of the audience

OVERCOMING FEARS AND ANXIETY

10 Tips for Managing Performance Anxiety:
1. Know your topic
2. Get organized
3. Practice, rinse, and repeat
4. Challenge worries
5. Visualize your success
6. Do some deep breathing
7. Focus on your material
8. Don’t fear a moment of silence
9. Recognize your success
10. Get support

PRO TIPS
➢ Understand the power of pathos: Emotion often drives decision making and opinion formation.
➢ Believe in your message: You do not want to come across as insincere.
➢ Keep your speech brief: Too much information creates a cognitive backlog and state of anxiety
in your audience.
➢ Make it memorable: Take time to condense your big idea into a short, memorable phrase.

CHAPTER 8

Presentation Tools and Visual Aids

Visual
Aural
Read/Write
Kinesthetic – movement of the presentation
 Common Presentation Tools:
• Presentation software
• Polling software
• Handouts
• Giveaways
• Pens/pencils/markers
• Flip Charts
• Dry Erase Boards

Microsoft Powerpoint
To save documents, choose format you would like and Ctrl+S
To delete slides: click on border and press delete or backspace keys
To create new PowerPoint: double click on “new blank presentation”

ADD SLIDES
• New Slide > Select layout > Enter

DELETE SLIDES
• Highlight slide > delete

Organizing Slides: drag and drop

Inserting Text Boxes
Changing Theme

ADDING IMAGES
• Insert > Picture > Open

Adding Videos
• Insert > Online Video > Open

Google Slides
- Creating New Presentations
- Click plus (+) sign in Blank Presentation box
- Title: [Untitled Presentation] box and type title

ORGANIZING NEW PRESENTATIONS

• Select new slide
- Ctrl+M
- Insert > New Slide
- Slide > Duplicate slide
- Right click > New Slide

Art and images add impact: Insert > Image

Videos add visual interest and engagement: Insert > Video
Arranging Objects: layering text, imagery, lines, shapes
 PARTS OF A GOOD PRESENTATION

Macro level: key elements are content, organization, and delivery

Content: substance and style
Organization: strong opening, logical and well-supported information, sense of flow, put thought into
information design
Delivery: body language, word choice, personality & professionalism, passion on subject

Substance elements: originality and significance of idea, quality of research, clarity & impact of
recommendations
Style elements: confidence and credibility

What is my presentation about?

Purpose: objective, intended outcome
Audience: who, why, factors such as age range, education level
Message: build idea inside minds of audience, research topic

Hone in on your purpose, audience, and message

The Beginning:
describes baseline knowledge, adds tension and drama, establishes what is and what could be

The Middle:
describes contrasts between what is and what could be, establishes validity of logical conclusion

The End: includes a call to action and provides a new bliss

Call to action: work to build a culture and networks

New bliss: articulates proposed and desired state, what motivates audience

FOUR MOST IMPORTANT IDEAS TO SUCCESFULLY SHARING YOUR IDEAS IN A

PRESENTAION by Chris Anderson
1. Limit your talk to one major idea
2. Give your listeners a reason to care
3. Build your idea, piece by piece
4. Make your idea wi.th sharing

HOW TO AVOID "DEATH BY POWERPOINT"

1. One message per slide
2. Working Memory
3. Size
4. Contrast
5. Objects
 CHAPTER 9
AUDIO COMMUNICATION TOOLS
- Cell Phones
- Voice Over Internet Protocol (VOIP)
- Conference Phones
- Conferencing Services
- Google Voice

VIDEO COMMUNICATION
• Must have necessary equipment: camera, audio input/output

Video conferencing: Skype, Zoom, WebEx, Slack

Consider platform:
- who is your audience
- who is running presentation
- how will video be used

ONLINE COMMUNICATION
• Screen Sharing/Web Sharing: WebEx, Join.Me, Slack, Google Hangouts

Multi-Feature Online Platforms

- Voice, video, screen sharing
- Scheduling, instant messaging, file sharing, collaboration
- Easy to record
 COMMON PLANNING TOOLS TO SCHEDULE BUSINESS MEETINGS

Polling Tools
• Collects all information in one place

Some guidance on creating polls:

- ask as few questions as possible
- ask questions that relate to the issue
- phrase questions with full range of options
- think about best question type for what you need to learn

Scheduling Tools
• Gathers all information in one place and lets people enter their availability for time slots

- Set up poll
- Receive email with link
- Choose times that work
- Schedule poll updates
- Email with summary of responses
- Choose best time for meeting

SCHEDULING PLATFORMS
Doodle
• free scheduling service you can use
• Can create scheduling questions for meetings

- Login, “Schedule an Event”, create name for event, add location if certain, add notes
- Calendar page will be seen: select dates, “Add Times”, settings
- Click Continue, enter email address
- Invitations Page > email or link

SCHEDULING REMOTE MEETINGS

- Allow enough time for meeting to happen

- Thinking about rhythm and level of focus your team needs
- Keep in mind that you may face the challenge that technology doesn’t always work
- Add fifteen minutes to amount of time, add time for Q&A
- Recommend YouTube how-to videos and logging on in advance
- Think about the time zones of all participants.
- Confirm time you are considering with email
- Get event on calendars after choosing time
 AUDIO CONFERENCES
AUDIO IN BUSINESS
Audio conversations are synchronous which means everyone is participating at same time

When are synchronous conversations helpful?

• decisions needs to be made quickly
• to hear people’s voices
• to make sure everyone understands

FIVE STAGES OF A TELEPHONE CALL

- Openings and Greetings
- Establishes expectations
- Content, Conversation, Business Wrap-up, Next Steps,
- Feedback: recap information
- Closing

One-on-One Audio Calls

Group Audio Calls

Leading a Call:
• Invite correct people, those who are crucial
• Schedule in advance, have basic agenda
• Go through five stages of a call

Participating in a Call:
• Call in early
• Stay in one place
• Mute line if necessary
• Be present

Audio Meetings
Send agenda
Add time for technical difficulties
Assign one person in charge
Take notes or agenda
Go through five stages of a phone call

VIDEO CONFERENCES
Video in Business
Beneficial when team is meeting for the first time. When is a video helpful for business calls? • When
the issue at hand is emotional/sensitive. • When some members tend to dominate conversation. •
When the team tends to talk over one another on phone calls. What technology works the best?
Smartphones and tablets, or laptops and desktop computers

One-on-One Video Calls Conducting the Call: • Have a strong WiFi signal • Look at camera • Avoid
moving camera • Talk distraction-free • Make sure video is clear

Group Video Calls What are some ways to manage video calls? Wait until each person is finished
speaking Watch to see who else wants to speak Pay attention to chat leader Raise hands if
necessary to speak

Video Meetings Some employees together in room with others on video chat Cameras that can focus
on person speaking This situation gives the remote people a sense of what is happening in the room.

Web Sharing in Business Used when it is more important for people to see documents, videos, and
files Used effectively in conjunction with audio call What are ways to troubleshoot? • make sure app is
downloadable for all • have files ready if web sharing doesn’t work for everyone

One-on-One Web Sharing Calls Have correct file or site open before call starts Close unnecessary
tabs on computer What are best practices for sharing spreadsheets or word documents? keep in
mind people can get distracted and lost

Group Web Sharing Calls Chances for distraction more likely Use navigation language, regulate
pace, include pauses, animations to keep people engaged Make sure to get through all content
Having participants post their comments in the chat rather than asking out loud, can help a presenter
accomplish the following: • Delay answering questions you know will be addressed later in the
conversation. • Weed out duplicate questions. • Table off-topic questions so you can discuss them
with the individual at a later time

Web Sharing Meetings Some people are together viewing documents, while others are on apps
Appoint advocate and build reminders to address those in video If main speaker is remote, prevent
side conversations. It’s really easy to ignore the disembodied voice on the speaker in favor of the live
person next to you.

CHAPTER 10

• Facebook primarily serves to connect people, which makes social media ideal places for
companies to connect with their customers in a way that feels personal

Instagram
• The top users tend to be individuals interested in creating a personal brand.
• This interest in a personal brand has grown as celebrities have become increasingly popular in
advertising
• Endorsements from a celebrity’s Instagram account seem more genuine than a TV ad or in the
newspaper

Twitter
• quickly and concisely reach an audience
• includes images and videos in your tweets
• Hashtags help you to reach a larger audience
• Twitter was originally created as a business tool!

YouTube
Pros:
• Ease of use
• Integration with other social media and websites
• Massive audience

Cons:
• Data capturing and privacy concerns
• Sheer size and volume of content requires careful placement
• Creating videos requires unique skills and tools when compared to business writing

LinkedIn
• focuses on recruiting and finding talent
• Individual users build profiles similarly to a personal resume, and are able to search for new jobs
and work
 Quick and easy strategies for recruiting on LinkedIn:
• If you find a candidate that looks perfect, you can send them a request to connect alongside a
message, explaining the position that you think they would be interested in
• If you have a 2nd or 3rd level connection, you can ask the person you’re connected to if they can
make an introduction, and move from there
• If you’re doing a lot of recruiting , it might be worth it to get a premium account

Pinterest
• an excellent platform for viewing and disseminating content organized visually by theme
• Users can search for things, as well as “pin” things to their own boards (the boards are essentially
folders of content)
• Limited gendered audience
• Perceived usage is based around DIY projects, not products
• The interface is comparatively confusing and difficult to navigate

Snapchat
• is largely oriented to Millennials and Generation Z
• it is most useful for businesses targeting this demographic

Snapchat ads are short and to the point

Filters placed on Snapchat pictures can overlay a brand message or promotion
Interestingly, Snapchat marketing appears to be more effective than other common platforms.

Pros of Google Plus:

● Potential for a large audience
● Local SEO

Cons of Google Plus:

● Relatively low usage
● More manual work to integrate with other social media platforms

SELLING YOUR PRODUCTS

Product Launch
Number one reason to use social media is to bring attention to a new product or service
Various tactics when announcing a product or service launch
• Design a hashtag, organize a countdown, develop consistency across platforms, have clear call to
action
When choosing which social media platform to use, consider target audience and type of message

Spotlight Products
We work to use real, compelling, and authentic narratives to promote interest in our organization,
given product, or to increase interaction between customers
Key questions:
• Is the message or post authentic?
• How easy have they made it to interact?
Netflix and Kohls do a good job of
• Using humor
• Highlighting possible outfits

Sales and Events

Advertising a Sale:
• Creates interest and excitement by spotlighting size of sale or highlighting reason for sale
Features to Increase Sales:
• Unique features to promote sales, such as embedding a “buy” button or link in social media
message
• Pinterest has different tutorials, reaches to Millennial or Generation Z, Snapchat uses similar
features

BUILDING YOUR BRAND

Cultivate Community
Loyal customers blur line between internal and external
Issue of authenticity with social media is challenging, as some exchanges may be hollow or
misunderstood
It’s important to be transparent with messaging
Have a goal of having more meaningful exchanges on social media

Create a Sense of Affinity

Affinity is “a liking to something, often naturally or spontaneously”
Creation of narrative or story is related to affinity and authenticity
Difference between the three words
• Affinity: spontaneous liking to something
• Authenticity: natural realness
• Story or narrative: compelling description about person
Storytelling organizations describe a great story, and attempt to use that story to energize customers

Company News
Change in senior leadership, ownership, or other large non-product or service oriented
announcement
Organizations cross a divide between external and internal customers and integrate everyone into an
audience
Customers themselves drive company interaction, and in doing so they integrate into company
business
Loyal customers may talk about company items on their own social media
 Chapter 11

Informative Message
• Definition: the sharing of meaningful information between people in an unbiased and
professional matter
• Messages may be short or long, formal or casual, internal or external, direct or indirect
• Promotes understanding, encourages action, stimulates thinking, or promotes ideas
What are the forms of messages?
• IMs, chats, emails, presentations, memos, blogs, podcasts, press releases, reports
• Guidelines: get to main point quickly, use greeting to identify audience, be clear and concise,
check message for grammatical errors, include call to action

Short Information Messages

quick communication to a teammate can utilize IM technology and provide vehicle for quick response
Messages are conversational in structure and resemble chat (or Twitter) more than email

Long Informative Messages

Context of message is key to success

Delivery Methods
• Emails are still the “default” delivery method in business
• Blogs can be used to inform about, promote, and build a brand
• Presentations communicate large amounts of detailed information or graphics to convey
complex ideas
• Podcasts give businesses opportunity to engage in more casual conversation

Team-Focused Message
Benefits:
• Increases creativity due to sharing of ideas & experiences
• Increases productivity from collaborative and empowered teams
• Teams promote wider sense of ownership
• Teams encourage healthy risk-taking
• Teams contribute to employee satisfaction

The key is how organizations can create the proper environment to foster team creation,
collaboration, and growth

Short Team-Focused Message

Used for anything from status updates and meeting requests to appreciation or meet-up after work
In the form of an email, they can be used for quick file attachment sharing
Great vehicle to keep members informed, projects moving, and achieve strong results.
Long Team-Focused Message
Report, blog, podcast, or document could handle amount of information, but each have drawbacks

Best way to send and manage could be to take advantage of collaboration software programs (Stride,
Slack, Workplace)

Criticism
the act of expressing disapproval and of noting the problems or faults of a person or thing
The goal is to improve the behavior of a person while avoiding personal attacks and blaming.

What is direct vs. indirect criticism?

What is a constructive style of criticism?
What is the passive vs. the active voice?

Criticism of Other Businesses

Guidelines For Writers:
• Be professional
• Use direct writing structure
• Be clear and concise
• Be fair and even

Criticism of Customers
When the need to send a critical message to a customer arises, we should take a step back and think
through several factors. What is the exact outcome we desire? How can we communicate firmly yet
tactfully so as to maintain our good business relationship? What facts need to be included in the
message?
An indirect strategy would be best
• Start with complementary language about how valued relationship is
• Next, provide a full explanation of facts and any context should be given
• Finally, criticism should be followed by warm closing

Criticism of Employees
What effective criticism should be positively intended and appropriately motivated:
• Specific: exactly what behavior is being considered
• Objective: recipient not only gets the message but is willing to do something about it. If your
criticism is objective, it is much harder to resist.
• Constructive: conscious avoiding personal attacks
Criticism must have an aim of constructing, scaffolding, or improving situation.

Can fight ideas that keep people down with ideas that unlock new opportunities

Criticism of Colleagues
Guidelines:
• Direct comments at behavior, not person
• Keep tone neutral and objective
 • Try to include positive behaviors as well as behavior to be improved
• Suggest positive steps in resolving issue

How Do You Respond to Criticism?

Positive responses:
Gratitude: Express a simple thank you.
Questions: Ask clarifying questions.
Restatements: Use the phrase “I hear you saying”
Request for solutions: Aim for one or two solutions
Happiness: do corrective behaviors make sense?
Time: Listen and ask for time to think it over
Transparency: Open up, don’t push away, drop it and move on, ask for affirmation
Negative Responses:
Delays growth
Destroys progress
Causes a loss of respect

What does it mean to be “Professional”

Possessing knowledge and expertise, being in a positive mood, meeting obligations on time,
respecting those you interact with, having proper language, etc.

Techniques to help deal with emotional reactions to negative situations at work

• Acceptance: step back and acknowledge emotions
• Displacement: change of scenery
• Articulation: talk out emotions with source of issue
• Improvement: understand source so it can be solved going forward

Short Responses to Criticism

7 tips for dealing with criticism on social media from Caron Beesley
1. Get listening
2. Should you respond?
3. Don’t let negative comments linger
4. Always acknowledge, never deny
5. How to apologize
6. Take conversation offline
7. The bottom line

Long Responses to Criticism

Keep emotions under control and be professional and grateful no matter how you feel about criticism.
Guidelines for those on receiving end of criticism:
• Solicit all of the facts, don’t be afraid to ask for details
• Acknowledge what is stated and paraphrase
• Agree if criticism is true, apologize if necessary
• Disagree if criticism is not accurate; be respectful
• Think about finding compromise position to alleviate concerns