Tips to Improve Your Public Speaking Skills

Have you ever thought about the benefits that improving your public speaking skills could bring to your life?

Maybe public speaking is something you don’t want to or have to think about right at this moment, but there will likely be a time in the future where you will have to speak “in public” – either to a small audience (say a presentation at work) to the mother of all public speaking gigs – the wedding speech!

In this article I will look at ways to improve your public speaking skills by suggesting some top tips so that whatever public speaking activities are in front of you, you can at least approach them with some degree of confidence.

First of all I should stress that I am by no means a public speaking expert. But I have done quite a lot of public speaking and I have developed some public speaking techniques of my own to overcome the public speaking anxiety I used to experience.

This has helped me develop my public speaking skills in both my business and my personal life

• In my business life and career this has involved presentations to customers, to suppliers, to my immediate team and to higher management. I have found that as my presentation skills have developed, so has my confidence

• In my personal life I have made speeches at University (I was President of my Halls of Residence and am still quoted for one particularly hilarious speech involving various members of the hall and fairy tale characters), at weddings, at funerals, and as part of my social role at the local football team….

All I can tell you is what has worked for me, and in dealing with my public speaking fear, it has really helped me in other areas such as my communication skills, my presentation skills and my listening skills…. and who knows where it may lead – some people make a very tidy living out of public speaking on the after dinner circuit.

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12 Productivity Tips From Incredibly Busy People

"Personal productivity is a key differentiator between those who succeed in their chosen field and those who do not," says bestselling author Brian Tracy. Leaders and entrepreneurs who are at the top of their game know how to achieve what they want in less time than others. We can learn a lot from the tactics of these successful, and incredibly busy, individuals on how to better organize our own days. Here are 12 top tips worth trying out:

1. Have a single purpose focus. 

One thing many successful entrepreneurs have in common is the ability to focus on what matters most. Eric Schmidt, Google's executive chairman, says, "I keep things focused. The speech I give every day is: 'This is what we do. Is what we are doing consistent with that, and can it change the world?'" Jason Goldberg, CEO of Fab.com, has this piece of advice: "Pick one thing and do that one thing—and only that one thing—better than anyone else ever could." We can derive a great deal of power from developing a laser focus on our top business priorities. It's one of the attributes that sets apart the average businessperson from the more successful one.

2. Ruthlessly block out distractions.

Tennis legend Martina Navratilova says, "I concentrate on concentrating." For those of us who don't have the willpower to be self-accountable, there are several technology solutions for blocking out distractions. For example, Rescue Time is an application that runs in the background of your computer and measures how you spend your time so you can make better decisions. Get Concentrating is another useful tool that will help you focus on important tasks by temporarily blocking social media sites. (Are you easily distracted? If so, here are six more popular programs to block distractions.)

3. Set a strict time limit on meetings.

You Can Make Their Day: 10 Tips for the Leader About Employee Motivation

You can make their day or break their day. Your choice. No kidding. Other than the decisions individuals make on their own about liking their work, you are the most powerful factor in building employee motivation and positive morale.

As a manager or supervisor, your impact on employee motivation is immeasurable. By your words, your body language, and the expression on your face, you telegraph your opinion of their value to the people you employ.

Feeling valued by their supervisor in the workplace is key to high employee motivation and positive morale. Feeling valued ranks right up there for most people with liking the work, competitive pay, opportunities for training and advancement, and feeling in on the latest news.

Building high employee motivation and morale is both challenging and yet supremely simple. It requires that you pay attention every day to profoundly meaningful aspects of your impact on life at work.

Your Arrival at Work Sets the Tone for the Day

Picture Mr. Stressed-Out and Grumpy. He arrives at work with a frown on his face. His body language telegraphs over-worked and unhappy. He moves slowly and treats the first person who approaches him abruptly. It takes only a few minutes for the entire workplace to get the word. Stay away from Mr. Stressed-Out and Grumpy if you know what's good for you this morning.

Your arrival and the first moments you spend with staff each day have an immeasurable impact on positive employee motivation and morale. Start the day right. Smile. Walk tall and confidently. Walk around your workplace and greet people. Share the goals and expectations for the day. Let the staff know that today is going to be a great day. It starts with you. You can make their day.

Use Simple, Powerful Words to Motivate Employees

Top teamwork tips for SME

A recent survey has found that poor teamwork causes owners of small firms in Britain to stay late in the office, wastes valuable time and adds to employee dissatisfaction. But all this could be avoided by encouraging employees to work more effectively as a team.

The research, conducted by Microsoft UK, found that 37 per cent of the 2,200 British people taking part in the study believed that one of the main causes of time-wasting within the workplace was due to a lack of communication between team members.

Clare Barclay, director of small business, Microsoft UK, commented, ‘individual team members are hired for the value they can add to the business – but don’t neglect the team as a whole. An efficient, capable business is a team effort and employers should put procedures in place that help and encourage employees to work together for the benefit of the whole company.’

Here are some top tips on how businesses can help their employees work better together:

Match tasks to skills

It’s good sense to match your employees’ key skills to their role. You might recruit someone for their skills in one area, but if they show potential in another, offer them the opportunity to get involved in that part of the business. They will appreciate the opportunity to succeed and this will motivate them and the rest of the team.

Identify role and responsibilities

Once you’ve matched your employees to their roles it’s important they see the bigger picture. To get the best out of everyone, they should understand how their job impacts the success of the team.

Integration across job roles

There needs to be a level of ‘role integration’ within the business. For example, if your accountant needs to query an invoice, they must understand how the business works just as much as the employee needs to understand the accountant's role.

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Teamwork Tips for Managers: Creating a Power Team Made Easy

Attain your business goals by fostering better team dynamics 

 

Do you have what it takes to be a good manager? Do you have the ability to bring out the best from your team? You need to realize that as a manager, you have the power to make or break the organization. With such a critical role in your hands, you need to have the competency to create and nurture a high performing team. You need to bring your team together and encourage them to work toward a common goal. How do you do this? Here are some essential teamwork tips that can help you become a better manager.

Creating a Powerhouse Team: Some Tips to Consider

    1. Identify your goals. Communicate your goals and expectations clearly right from the start to avoid any disagreements within the team. 

    2. Define responsibilities. Having clear-cut responsibilities and accountabilities can help reduce friction among group members so make sure they understand their individual roles perfectly. Play to their individual strengths by assigning tasks that allow them to use their skills and competencies. 

    3. Training is the key to success. Remember, your team is only as strong as its weakest link so do everything you can to further enhance your team members' skills and capabilities.

    4. Empower your team. Give your people the power to make their own decisions pertaining to the task at hand but carefully monitor them to make sure they are doing the right thing. 

    5. Provide valuable feedback. Let your group members know what you think about their work. Never let them second guess your opinion for it may affect the quality of their work. Keep in mind that it is your responsibility to steer them in the right direction.

    6. Reinforce positive results. Rewarding your people as a team for a job well done can foster a more positive office environment. In addition, you should reward high performing team members as well.

    7. Encouragerelationships.