Art of Speaking Business

I’m looking for creative, low-cost, or no-cost ideas to get more people listening to my show.

If you’ve got a crazy idea or even just a regular idea submit it publicspeaker@quickanddirtytips.com with “crazy idea” in the subject.

All ideas will be considered until May 15, 2009.

I need your help !

As you may know I am the host of The Public Speaker: Quick and Dirty Tips for Improving Communication Skills.  I end every show by saying “I’m passionate about communication your success is my business.”

That’s not just a “marketing” tag line.  I sincerely believe that  improving  communication skills is the single most important investment a person can make in themselves.  Better communication and leadership skills lead to personal and professional success.  It’s my dream to help as many people as I can.  That’s why I chose to be host of the podcast and that’s why I chose my profession.

My dream is to reach business professionals, teachers, collage students, high school and middle school students, ministers, really everyone who is interested in improving his or her communication skills. I’m confident I can help, but I need your help to reach out to a broader audience.

If you’ve got a idea that might help me reach this goal, I’d love to hear it.  I’m looking for creative, low-cost or no-cost ideas to get more people listening to the show.

If you’ve got a crazy idea or even just a regular idea submit it publicspeaker@quickanddirtytips.com with “crazy idea” in the subject.

All ideas will be considered until May 15, 2009.  If I end up choosing and using YOUR idea this year (2009), in return, I’ll offer you a gift certificate for six hours of one-on-one private coaching (which is currently worth approximately $1,000).  You can use it or you can give it to someone.

How will the winning idea(s) be selected?  Good question!   I can only say that my decision will be biased and based on my personal preferences.  I’d like something that is fun, simple, and not pushy.  I’d like it to be no cost or very low cost.  The best idea would have the potential to double or triple the current number monthly listeners.  I’m hoping the best idea will be obvious when I see it.  I am really very anxious to reach out and hope that you can help me to achieve my dream.

Thanks in advance for reading this and I look forward to reading your idea.

Lisa

P.S. If you regularly listen to show, you know that I am already using Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

This week on the Public Speaker I talk about how to plan and deliver effective and productive business meetings.  Here’s a quick summary of the episode, but you can listen to the episode here. (It’s less than 10 minutes time.)

• Know and state the purpose of your meeting.  Meetings are good for coming to resolution.  If you are sharing information perhaps another approach is better.
• Know and state the idea outcome.  This motivates participants to achieve it.
• Include the purpose and outcome on the agenda.
• List required and optional attendees.
• For each topic list who, what, and how long.  Ex.  Review conference location – Paul G. 3 min
• Include breaks and social time on the agenda.
• Send out agenda at least a day in advance.
• Start and end on time, even if everyone is not there. Return from breaks on time too.
• Mange time by assigning limits to each segment and using a timer.
• Use a two-minute warning system to alert participants they are about to go over.
• After each segment get explicit, public ownership of tasks.
• Maintain a positive engaged environment by assigning a facilitator who asks questions and encourages feedback from all participants.
• Have a rule that only one person speaks at a time.
• Latecomers shouldn’t be embarrassed, but they shouldn’t be “caught-up” either.
• Be sure to greet and say good-bye to all meeting participants.  It’s good manners and it’s good for networking.
• Verbally express support of good ideas.
• Insist on no blackberries, no phone conversations in room, and maybe even no laptops!
• Follow-up the meeting by distributing the notes quickly and updating project plans.

While researching for this episode I found a few, fresh new interesting ideas.  I wanted to include them in the podcast but it was already running long with the tried and true tips.  So here they are.

• From Marissa Mayer at Google: Block out a large chunk of time each week that can be divided into 10 minute increments.  Allow people to schedule “micro-meetings” within the larger block of time.  This idea comes from
• From Google: Consider projecting a large timer on the wall to help people keep to published time frames.
• From Google: Encourage people to supply evidence for their statements.
• From Seth Godin: Create a public space (either a big piece of poster board or a simple online page) that allows attendees to rate meetings and their organizers on a scale of 1 to 5 in terms of usefulness. Just a simple box where everyone can write a number. Watch what happens. ‘
• From Bert Decker: Cut the meetings you have in half. Cut the time of the meetings that remain in half.

My Thoughts:

Finally, I just want to add a comment.  I do understand that many of the ideas discussed are for INTERNAL organizations.  For me, I spend most of my time in meetings with clients, vendors, partners, and prospects.  I think different rules apply in those situations.  In addition, I also spend time in meetings with volunteer groups and these are by far the most painful meetings for me.  I hope to write something with these types of meetings in mind as well.

Your Thoughts:

If you’ve got some tips and suggestions for these situations, please pass them along or post them in the comments!  I am very interested to hear what you think.

Here’s how we all should be when we perform on stage!

My favorite part is when she is being interviewed before the performance and she says with strong confidence “I’m going to MAKE that audience ROCK!!”

She sure did!  Wow.

Click here for the Susan Boyle Video

This is the type of unshakable confidence that we want!  Go Susan!