Friday 14 December 2012

Newsletters a pain!


14/12/12

Don’t know about you but I wish every member produced an email newsletter about their business.  Now I hope none of you are thinking “Well I don’t!”  Because you don’t want all that rubbish filling up your email inbox – and if I didn’t ask for it, it’s spam!  Now I am the first to admit that most newsletters leave a great deal to be desired in their content.  However, that’s only because the person concerned doesn’t know how to write a great newsletter (I could give a few pointers there), but their intention for having a newsletter is in fact sound.  Done in the right way newsletters are one of the best ways that there are to market your business.

Now as an Area Director, if all of the members I know produced a newsletter, I guess that I would receive about 200 of the things.  But what does that really mean?  Some might be weekly, some monthly, others twice a year, yet others once a year, and even a few might be just one-offs.  So, what’s that, maybe five a day?

But how about being real for a moment?  You are in a chapter with 35 members of which 25% produce a monthly newsletter.  That’s nine people.  It’s highly unlikely that they would all produce their newsletters on the same day, so let’s say the split is even across the month.  We are now looking at just three newsletters a week dropping into our email boxes.  Now that can’t be too much trouble for anyone!

So, what’s my point?  Why do I wish more members produced a newsletter?

Well, more business of course.  More referrals.  Newsletters are a great way of finding out more stuff about your fellow members.  More about what they do.  How they help people.  The type of business they are looking for.  The history of their company.  What their staff are like.  Their interests.  Why they are so good at what they do.  The more information you learn about your fellow members the easier it is to refer them.

So, if any of your fellow members has a newsletter please subscribe to it; they can almost be as good as a One2One.

A word of warning.  Never unsubscribe to a fellow member's newsletter.  Why?  Well, what are you saying?  I’m not interested in you.  Don’t bother me.  I’ve no intention of buying from you.  I’m too busy to read your news.

It happened to me once.  What did I think?  “So you’re not interested in helping me..”  And guess what, I was no longer interested in helping them.  Might be sad, but it’s true!

Sunday 11 November 2012

Too busy to invite!

11/11/12

I asked a member recently why they didn’t invite anyone. I expected all sorts of excuses but all I got in reply were two words: too busy. Now I expect the person was indeed busy. But really, any more busy than the next person? Any more busy than me? I don’t know. But what I do know is the damage that they are doing their business. Or, should I say, their future business.

You see if they are too busy to spend a few minutes inviting a visitor, and let’s go mad here, a couple of hours, I can’t possibly refer them, can I? They have just told me that they are too busy to spend some time inviting, so, by definition, that also means that they are too busy to take on any more work.

I mentioned this fact to the person concerned and they said that of course they would take on more work. But, that now means I could never refer them. Why? Because it’s not that they are too busy to invite, they just can’t be bothered. Inviting isn’t important! So, how can I refer someone who isn’t bothered about helping their chapter? Their fellow members. Me.

Everything we do in our chapters has an effect on our credibility and, ultimately, the number of referrals we receive. Put simply, if you have no time to help other people, others will have no time to help you.

BNI put it pretty well. Givers Gain!

Thursday 18 October 2012

Sitting on the bus!

18/10/12
I was talking to Lisa Ruff (Balanced Rewards), Membership Co-ordinator of Tudor, this week about visitors. More specifically, about members who don’t bring visitors. Please don’t get me started on the subject as the blog would run to many pages. Let’s just leave it at I really can’t understand why any member wouldn’t want to grow their business.


Anyway, Lisa agreed with this, and we were discussing what could be done to help these members and then, if all else failed, what should be done about it.

The thing that really gets me is that inviting is so simple and Lisa had a great example of this. What’s more, the thing that Lisa was talking about is covered in the Chapter Development workshop. It’s so easy!

So, what is it? What’s so simple? Answer: inviting by text. It’s so simple that people without any contacts can do it! Members that really don’t like talking to people can do it! And, it takes just seconds, not even minutes.

The best part? You can do it sitting on the bus.

What did Lisa do? She was on a bus travelling to Richmond. She could have gazed out of the window, deep in her own thoughts. Maybe have read a book. Or even just have watched people getting on and off the bus.

But instead, as she went past businesses with mobile numbers displayed, or stopped near a sign-written van, she tapped the number into her mobile and sent them a text. She sent five texts on her trip and received three replies from people interested in visiting her chapter.

How great is that!

So please, never make an excuse for not inviting; just grow your business instead.

Thursday 11 October 2012

Your Top Three?

11/9/2012

I visited BNI Commonwealth this week who meet at The Caledonian Club, Hyde Park, London. In fact I was substituting for Paulina Sygulska of Grant Tree and I must thank her for asking me.

You see, believe it or not, I had never been to a lunchtime meeting before, and I have to say that I really enjoyed myself. The meeting was well run and business focused but also nicely relaxed. Of course that may have just been the chapter and nothing to do with the time, but it did feel different.

What Paulina also did was to ensure that all of her fellow members knew that I was a visiting BNI Director. It was in the 60 Seconds that she gave me to read on her behalf, advising that they should take advantage of me being there!

Two new members were inducted during the meeting, which is always great to see, and, as it turned out, one of them (Jo Rogers) was sitting next to me.

At the end of the meeting Jo turned to me and asked what my Top Three Tips were for a new member. Nothing like being put on the spot!

Below are my Top Three Tips. Do you agree?

1) Really get involved

2) Attend workshops

3) Bring lots of visitors

Sunday 9 September 2012

Why be green?

9/9/12

A member asked me recently why they should want to be a green member and, I guess because the answer seems pretty obvious to me, it took me a few seconds to answer. Having replied to the question, what I realised was that the answer I gave barely touched the surface of why all of us should want to be a green member. So I thought I would have another go at answering the question here.

I guess first of all, why wouldn’t you want to be? But, I guess that is too simple.

Because I suppose we don’t all want to be the best at everything we do. Average for many people is okay. Even below average is okay for some.

But is it that really? Would you recommend an average business (business person) to your best friend? Let alone a business below average. Somehow I don’t think so.

It’s also about credibility. How credible can a grey member be?

And there is something that you might not know about members in the grey; pretty much all of them leave BNI. Why? Lack of business. But, if you think about it, why would a member in the grey be given loads of business? They are below average as a member and give very little. The answer really is pretty clear for all to see.

Then of course there is pride in what you do. That’s not the same as being the best, as you can be proud of what you do without being the best.

Of course there is ‘Givers Gain’ : our BNI philosophy. It’s what we all believe in and, in general, green members give the most to their fellow members.

Then of course there is the money; green members and green chapters tend to pass more business.

The trouble is, and I can hear you saying it, it’s not always that way. And, of course, you are correct. There are always exceptions to the rule. That’s what makes life interesting. But, if you want the best chance of getting the best from BNI you will be a green member in a green chapter.

And how about this for a thought?

In English football we have the Premier League and the FA Cup. In the FA Cup any team can have a good day and beat a team far better than themselves; the FA Cup can even be won by a team way down in the leagues (I’m an Arsenal fan I know!). But, the Premier League is always won by the best team over the course of the season.

Yes, a grey member can have a ‘good day’, but over time a green member will always do better.

So, if you really want to get the best from your chapter then green is what you need to be. And the best part? Every single one of us can be a green member – it just takes a little effort.

Thursday 16 August 2012

Are you outside of the medals?

16/8/12

At most of our workshops we get the opportunity to introduce ourselves and recently, as it was during the Olympics, I decided to add a little twist. As well as the member's name, chapter, how they help people (note: not what they do) - I asked who was their Olympic hero and why?

There were some interesting heroes, including a couple of members who didn’t have one (not into sport), but in the main they were all gold medal winners. Eddie the Eagle and Eric the Eel were also mentioned because they were people that just never gave up.

And, as usual, it got me thinking!

If BNI were an Olympic sport, would I, would any of us, be a medal winner? Up there with Sir Steve Redgrave, Lord Coe, Steve Ovett (my hero), Bradley Wiggins, or even Eric the Eel - who just never gave up.

Most of us love winners. A great many of us would love to be photographed holding a gold medal (as I discovered a few weeks ago). So, I guess my question is – would you be a medal winner in your chapter? And, if not, could you be? Or, maybe, you could just improve your PB (Personal Best). For example: 23 referrals in the last 26 weeks, how about 25 referrals in the next 26 weeks? Or, maybe 4 visitors in the last 26 weeks, how about 6 visitors in the next 26 weeks?

Our medal haul at the Olympics was amazing and had the whole country buzzing. How about helping our BNI team to do the same and, maybe also, winning a personal gold medal along the way?

Wednesday 25 July 2012

Am I bovvered?

25/7/12

I’m sure that we all know Catherine Tate’s character, Lauren, that coined the phrase “Am I bovvered” and almost died laughing at her sketch with Tony Blair for Red Nose Day. But it’s a serious question, “Are you bothered?”

What am I talking about? Well let me explain.

I was with a chapter recently discussing their conversion rate - it was pretty low - and discovered that they didn’t like to be too ‘pushy’. Didn’t want to do what they considered a ‘hard sell’. They suggested that visitors looked around and came back for a second visit. Well I have to say that it just plain crazy! They thought that they were being nice, but were they?

I have a business, I've been running it since I was 21 years old, I'm now a business mentor, and I don’t suggest to my clients, having presented to them, that they go and check out the competition, and, if they feel like it, come back to me later. And I doubt that I’m alone in that. We all fight very hard to find clients; we don’t then give them away.

But, there’s far more to it that that, as I discovered recently. Two chapters were involved: the first didn’t ‘push’, didn’t follow up; the second was keen to get the visitor to apply and did follow up. As it turned out the same visitor went along to both chapters. Both chapters ran good meetings; both were of a similar size. When asked why he had chosen one chapter over the other, he said that the first chapter didn’t seem to be particularly bothered if he joined them or not. So, he joined the second!

So, just a thought. If you are being ‘kind’ to your visitors, could you actually be losing potential members because they think that you are saying “Are we bovvered”?

Thursday 12 July 2012

How many times have you been invited?

12/7/12
I’ve mentioned this before but one thing that I’m often given as a reason for not having visitors is that everyone has been invited; there is an over-saturation of chapters so there is no one left to invite.

First let me put on record that we are far, very far, from over-saturation, and I can prove it. And, it’s not just because three out of the four visitors at my chapter this morning had never heard of BNI.

But, before I prove it, how about a reason for why some people hold this view. It’s because they don’t really think. Google any category in your town and there will be dozens of results (obviously less if you are in the middle of the moors). I Googled a category recently and there were 287 companies in the area. Chapters? Two! That meant there were 287 people to invite and 285 of them couldn’t get in to BNI even if they wanted to.

However, we don’t even need to go that far for a reason, because every member should be using their own personal database. And no two members will have the same database – it’s impossible. In fact I would go further. I would be surprised if more than a couple of percent were the same contacts, even if you live close to another member. Assuming you take out your fellow BNI members of course!

But, here’s the killer. If you live in what you consider to be an over-saturated area, you must have been invited dozens of times to visit another chapter. Again I would be surprised if you have been. And please don’t think that’s because other members know you’re a BNI member already. They don’t! I’ve been a member for nine years now, and I’m pretty well known in BNI circles, but only last week I visited a nearby chapter for the first time and met someone I knew (only the third person that I have ever met in BNI that I already knew) and neither of us knew the other was in BNI!

So, please never use over-saturation as an excuse for not inviting anyone. Instead, think, and invite those closest to you.

Friday 6 July 2012

Will it make the boat go faster?

6/7/12

This week I met Ben Hunt-Davis; he was in the Eight (rowing) that won gold at the Sydney Olympics in 2000. I’m almost 6 foot 2 inches but he made me look small. He was talking at an Entrepreneur’s Circle event about his crazy goal of winning Olympic Gold at 10.30am on the 24th September 2000 and the fact that he had to do it in less than five and a half minutes. That’s some goal!

But two years earlier the crew had a history of being also-rans: sixth in the Barcelona Olympics and they didn’t even make the final in Atlanta. But all that changed when they decided on a common policy for everything they did – ‘Will it make the boat go faster?’ They also decided that if they could still stand after the race, but had not won gold, that they would never speak to one another again.

Now this is extreme; winning gold is. But what can we learn from this goal, and this crew, that would help us in our BNI chapters?

Well, for me, two things stood out from Ben’s talk.

First, ‘Will it make the boat go faster?’ Was what they were doing going to make the boat go faster? Fighting, letting personalities get in the way, not doing their absolute best in every training session, turning up for training sessions. The answer is blindingly obvious; but they were doing it. As do we all. So, in your chapter, is everything you do ‘going to make your chapter more successful?’

And second, ‘What can I do to make today better than yesterday?’ They had in earlier years put in pretty much the same effort every day, maybe working harder, but without even thinking, like most of us do. But they changed that, so that every day they tried to improve on the last in some way - however small. It didn’t always work, but every day they tried to get better. So again, how can we transfer this to our chapters?

Well, today maybe you only invited one person to your meeting next week, tomorrow you could invite two people. Perhaps your inviting technique could be improved. How could you change it tomorrow? Maybe this week you didn’t put too much effort into your 60 Seconds, well next week you can craft a really useful 60 Seconds, and then next week, improve on it again. Maybe in the last month you have only had two One2Ones, well next month you could have three.

Continuous improvement, like continuous inviting, brings big rewards. It might not win you a gold medal, but how much better would your chapter be?

Thursday 7 June 2012

Three visitors!

7/6/12

I’m sure that we all know that if, on average, we have three visitors a week our chapters will be growing, two visitors and we may just stay static, and with only an average of one visitor per week our chapter will be shrinking in number.


But, it’s not as simple as that! Those three visitors have to be eligible visitors, open to and able to apply to join the chapter.

I’ve often been told by a Leadership Team that they have, on average, the required number of visitors to grow but that they just don’t seem able to do so. And, on the face of it, they do have enough visitors. The problem is that when you analyse the visitors you discover that not all the visitors are eligible; the answer, most often, being that all visitors are potential customers and that is what being a member of BNI is all about: more business.

Now, I totally agree with this. However, and this is key, to grow your chapter you need three eligible visitors. Not three visitors! What this means is that any ‘potential customer’ visitors need to be extra to those three eligible visitors.

To illustrate my point I’ll be a bit extreme.

Say that your chapter has thirty members, and that on average you have three visitors a week, all potential customers but not a single one eligible. Now add to that say, on average, one member leaves each month. Nothing wrong with your chapter, they just do, we have all seen it: change of job, moving house, family problems, having a baby, a million and one reasons.

The result? In under 18 months the chapter would not exist!

Now as I say that’s an extreme example but it’s really important to understand that if we want to grow our chapters we must have the right visitors and not be fooled into thinking that any visitor will do, however good they may be for business.

Monday 4 June 2012

Open at any page!

3/6/2012

Sorry but this is a bit of self-promotion so I will keep it short.

Recently, I met Gerry Grant of Tonic Business Solutions (Angus). Gerry is an expert in social media. He wanted to let me know just how useful he had found my book ‘BNI: One Bite at a Time’. Not only for himself, but also for his chapter, as if ever stuck for an Education Slot you could open the book at just about any page and have a really good, and more importantly, practical tip on how to benefit from being a member of your BNI chapter. He added that he thought that really every chapter should have a copy.

It was brilliant feedback, as my blog, I hope, is all about helping members to get the very best they can from their chapter membership, and I wanted to thank Gerry for his kind comments.

And, of course, should you wish to buy a copy of my book, I would be more than happy to sell you one! You can order at: www.7training.co.uk/book_order.html


Tonic Business Solutions – www.tonicbs.co.uk

David Wimblett: david@7training.co.uk

Sunday 20 May 2012

What did you do with your Notable Networker Certificate?

20/5/2012

I’ve talked about Notable Networker Certificates before, mainly about how they should be presented, (in a great frame, so that they are of real value), so that the person who is the Notable Networker really feels, as they should do, that what they have done is special. And that all their fellow members appreciate what they have done for their chapter, all the hard work that they have done on their behalf.


But how much value does the Notable Networker themselves put on their award? Does it just make them feel great on the day and then the certificate goes in a drawer? Or does it go onto their Facebook page? Is it talked about on Twitter? Is it put up on their office wall?

Recently I met Liz Baranov of Rickaby & Co, she says that, “not all accountants are the same…” and if you were ever to met her, or already know her, I think that you would agree with her statement. But she is also a rather notable networker, as at the last count she had eight certificates. Which is pretty notable just on its own. She is also very proud of her certificates and every one of them is on the wall in the client meeting room at her offices. What’s more, she makes sure that her clients see them and have an opportunity to find out how she got them.

To date, this has resulted in five visitors to her chapter!

So, when are you next going to be your chapter's Notable Networker and what will you be doing with your certificate?

Friday 20 April 2012

Does your 60 Seconds say anything?

Hopefully all of our chapters use ‘Referral to Look For’ sheets.  But, just in case yours doesn’t, (and if they don’t I highly recommend they do), I will explain what such a sheet is in its most basic form.

A ‘Referral to Look For’ sheet is a list of chapter members, along with their category, contact details, and a space to write notes about the referrals they are looking for.  The best I have seen are colour coded (Power Teams), have photographs of the members, Leadership Team details, workshop dates, Top 5 Categories, Director details, birthdays, and are branded.  Anything is possible if there is a great graphic designer in the chapter.

However, the single most useful thing is the space to write down exactly what each member is looking for.  Exactly how you can help them.  Nothing is forgotten.  And, it makes finding referrals, helping people, so much easier.  Nevertheless, there is one very important point here, and it was bought home to me at a recent chapter visit I made: members must give you something to write down.

As a director I try very hard to write something for every member, but at this meeting after the 60 Seconds I had six blank spaces and others had been hard to fill.  The members concerned had told me what they did, but that was already on the sheet. What they hadn’t done was add anything - something to help me find them referrals.

This is where as a member we have to do the hard work if we are to be super successful and get more referrals.  We need to provide something useful that our fellow members can write down, something that will help them to find us referrals.


So, have a look at your next 60 Seconds and be hard on yourself.  Does it tell people anything they didn’t know before?  Does it help them?  Does it tell them the exact type of business that you are looking for?  If not, write it again, and help your fellow members help you.

Monday 2 April 2012

Sebastian Vettel

2/4/11

We all like champions: those at the top of their game. Teams or individuals, we all like winners: those at the top of the table. The news is full of them and at the moment there are only a few things I want. Arsenal to finish in the top three, Jenson Button to win races, and the British Team to win Gold at the Olympics. And I bet if I asked you to pick three sporting greats that they would all be winners. England winning at Rugby or Cricket (assuming you are English). Andy Murray winning a Grand Slam. Luke Donald to win the golf.

It’s the same in business. Sir Richard Branson, Duncan Bannatyne, Sir Alan Sugar. Apple, Vodafone, Virgin. Businessmen (and businesswomen) and companies at the top of their game. Winners. Leaders.

And, all of this makes me wonder. Why are these same people, the ones that love winners, those at the top of the tables, content with being red and grey members in their chapter’s Traffic Lights? Why don’t they want to be a green member; even top of the Traffic Lights?

My ambition has always been to be a green member and stay a green member. Why? Well there are lots of reasons. Green members in general earn more money. Personal credibility: why would anyone want to recommend someone who’s not very good? Then there is doing my best for my team (my chapter) and my friends. Personal pride. Not wanting to be bad at anything. And, I want to be a winner!

So, I have a question for you. If you aren’t a green member (and haven’t been for some time): why are you happy not to be? Why don’t you want to be a winner? No one likes being average, let alone below average, so why not check Network Central right now and find out what you need to do to be a winner? Because going green will earn both you and your chapter more money!

If you really want to you could be a green member in the next two months. Please let me know how you get on. Don’t just talk about winners. Be one!

Sunday 11 March 2012

Do you press the button?

11/3/12

I was listening to Radio 5 Live one afternoon in the car recently and the programme on was where listeners could call in and have a bit of a rant. Members of the public explained what really annoyed them and then the presenters gave them a score: top score being the Rant of the Week!

Well, one guy explained how he couldn’t understand why people had to press buttons that he had obviously already pressed. It was quite funny really. He gave a couple of examples: waiting for a lift and at road crossing traffic lights. I have to say it amazes me when people press the button at road crossings even when there is no traffic to be seen.

But, as always, it got me thinking. And, I guess that is the point here – no thinking! Most people are programmed to press a button if they want something without thinking. And, it’s not just buttons, we all do hundreds of things every day without a moment's thought.

So, what do you do in your business, within your chapter, without thinking? Or, more importantly, what don’t you do because it would mean having to think differently?

In my last blog I wrote about spending five minutes a day to grow your business. Now I bet most of you haven’t. Why? Well, it’s not because you are lazy or don’t want to. It’s because it’s not automatic as yet. The big question is how long does it take for something to become automatic? And, like most things there is no hard and fast answer. Research shows that it can be anything from one to eight months and I bet it has a great deal to do with what sort of person you are, how old you are, but, bottom line, how much you really want to do it.

My bet is that you really want to grow your business. but that marketing your business everyday is not automatic. So, how about trying this? Write in your diary, right now, ‘Marketing’ every day for the next month. Try to make it in the morning around the same time, the earlier the better.

By the end of the month it should be becoming automatic and not something that you do in response to a note in your diary: well, that’s if you really want to that is!

Please let me know how you get on.

Wednesday 8 February 2012

One a day!

8/2/12

Could you spare five minutes a day to grow your business? Now I’m guessing that however busy you are that the answer is – yes.

So, this is what I want you to do, and you can’t now say that you are too busy, because I know, that in your head you’ve already agreed that you have the time. Now don’t worry, it’s a simple thing and it will grow your business.

All I want you to do is invite one person to your next meeting. It doesn’t matter how: obviously in person is best. But it could be by phone, via email, letter, text, postcard, on social media, or any other. The important thing is that you do it. Now it may take you a lot less than five minutes, but I still only want you to invite one person. However, there is a catch! I want you to do the same every day; five times each and every week, all year. And, here’s the best part, in a year you will have invited 220 people - given you time off for holidays!

Now this is the brilliant part! There isn’t a member of your chapter that can’t spare five minutes a day to grow their business. This means that all of your fellow members can do exactly the same as you by inviting one person each and every day of the year. Don’t bother looking for your calculator; in an average chapter of 36 members it would mean that you were inviting 7920 business owners to your chapter. Makes you think, doesn’t it?!

Growing your business, and your chapter, can be very simple. It just takes every member to spend a few minutes each day to make it happen.

Saturday 28 January 2012

It’s all in the flossing!

28/1/12

Standing out from your competition is so very important to the success of your business. And to that end companies and their marketing agencies spend a great deal of time and money trying to do just that. There are some great examples around; I expect that we have all seen the Virgin James Bond parody, but sadly we don’t all have the budget of Virgin to do that sort of thing ourselves. On a more modest amount of money I think the Entrepreneur’s Circle video is good – it’s simple but different.

However, in our BNI chapter it is made easy for us as there is no competition for our services in the room, but, and it is a big but, we still need to stand out. We need to be visible; we need to be remembered. And, one of the best ways to do this is to have a great 60 Seconds.

I was at the Tudor Chapter (Teddington) recently where there were three stand-out 60 seconds. The first was from a new member, Alex Mason, a graphic designer: she stood on her chair and put on a t-shirt. On it were the words, “You’re not normal”. Obviously everyone laughed but she then explained that one of the members had told her that her designs weren’t normal and that was her point – what was the point of being the same as everyone else? You have to be different!

Then there was Nikki Keeler of Essential Admin. She asked who had a ‘To Do List’. Most people put up a hand. She then asked if it looked like this, and held up a toilet roll and let it fall to the floor holding the first sheet. It said, ‘Things To Do’ and all of the other sheets were numbered. She then told us how to prioritise our lists. Number three was jobs that anyone could do: yes, you’ve guessed it – out-sourced to her.

But best was Mike Deasy, the Chapter’s dentist. He explained how we would all have better dental hygiene if we flossed every day. But people have no time is the excuse he hears constantly: it’s too hard. With that he took a box of dental floss from his pocket, cut a length, and flossed all of his teeth in front of us. Yes, in under a minute! He even stopped for time checks every few teeth. That was pretty impressive and no one could leave that room with an excuse not to floss.

So, what’s my point? Well, they were all different, they all stood out, and none cost much money. Marketing doesn’t have to be expensive, and anyone can do it, you just have to be creative. Then more people will remember you, talk about you, resulting in more business.

What’s more you are now reading about them.How good is that? All because they were different.

Thursday 5 January 2012

Who do you watch?

5/1/12

Lee Evans? Michael McIntyre? Gabby Logan? Sir Richard Branson? Jack Dee? Russell Brand? Tina Fey? Kelly Holmes? Jimmy Carr?


Whoever it is you can learn a great deal about presenting by watching them closely. Think about who you like to watch. What is it that they do? How do they use their voice? What expressions do they make? How do they use their body? Do they have props? It may be just a glass of water.

You can learn a lot by turning the sound right down so that you can’t hear them and just watching. Can you still understand the story that they are telling? How do they stand? What do they do with their hands?

What makes each different? Why is it that you like them so much? It certainly won’t be just what they are saying!

Watch closely and study what they do and then incorporate it into the way you present. Little things can make a big difference. But you aren’t looking to do an impression: you are looking to learn the skills of presenting and improve what you do.

Have fun. And, maybe even do an impression. A 60 Seconds in the style of Lee Evans!

NOTE:  I must give credit to Phil Berg my Managing Area Director for this idea.

Wednesday 4 January 2012