BLOG

The Organisation as an ‘Emotional Arena’ – January 18th 2017

Human Emotions shape us. They shape us professionally and personally. They also have a stronger influence on our overall performance and satisfaction with life than we care to realize.

‘THE ORGANISATION AS AN EMOTIONAL ARENA’

Our 2017 Breakfast Series begins on the 18th January with Dr. Annette Clancy, Assistant Professor of Organisational Behaviour at UCD College of Business. dr-annette-clancyShe’ll share invaluable insights and open up the conversation with HR Specialists attending.  If you can, join us for lively discussion around what we believe really matters. At a time when technology is fast replacing the need for human intervention, never has the importance of respecting the true value and potential of ‘our ‘human capital’ been more crucial along with the need for human connection..

Janie Lazar and Andrea Goldman of Much More Than Words hope you can make this early morning meeting. Space is limited, booking advisable.

Date:                   18 January 2017

Starts:-                7.45 for 8am Start. Closes 9.30 am

Contact:              Janie Lazar 086 857 2005

Email:-                janie@muchmorethanwords.com

Tickets:               bookings.muchmorethanwords.com

‘Much More than Words’ focus on boosting communication skills in the Workplace – especially in organisations with a multi-cultural workforce. Having worked overseas, we know what it’s like to be competent, fluent even in another language and yet, not confident enough to fully engage and integrate effectively. Helping all employees through our integrated training approach to get up to speed faster and maximizes their true value and potential.

http://bookings.muchmorethanwords.com

booking fee: €5

To discuss your specific Training Needs, contact Janie Lazar on 086 8572005 or click here to email.

When words don’t come fast enough

Years ago when I was a fairly competent French speaker living and working in Paris, I loved the life I had.  The only thing was that no matter how well I spoke the language, I often found that conversation progressed so fast that by the time I’d begun to speak, the moment was lost.  You may have experienced this too. Frustrated and disappointed often, I eventually lost confidence in my ability to contribute as effectively as I wanted to. I feel my employers lost out, I did and probably my clients at the time too – I hasten to add there were no complaints !!

Catch 22

I didn’t want to draw attention to the fact I needed help. My employers assumed that everything was ok because once I was ensconced I managed to get my work done efficiently. No-one asked or guessed anything was wrong at all. I never voiced my concerns. But with the benefit of hindsight, what a lost opportunity for both parties.  I never realized my potential within the organisation and my value to the company was not maximized.  Had I received more than basic induction training, which really revolved around product only I probably would have still been living in France.  Ah. C’est la vie…

Training needs are hopefully better identified these days, but I’m not entirely convinced. Technology is making so many every day tasks faster and in many instances being automated, thereby reducing the need or opportunity for human intervention. And yes, never has the need for human connection been greater. 

Is there something more about the 80/20 rule we should be looking at?

If more than 80% of our satisfaction in life comes from our relationships with others, the need to connect and communicate effectively and especially in a business environment  appropriately, boosting core communication skills and language competency where it is most needed has to be an integral part of a continual program of professional development.

I’ve been that executive working overseas, involved in client meetings, team meetings, training sessions. More recently, in Italy where people have been amazingly receptive to any efforts I make, once the conversation gets going, that sinking feeling returns as I cannot keep up enough to join in the conversation and I can feel my stress levels rising as I struggle to make sure I’ve understood the salient points of a meeting.

Emotions play havoc with our minds.  This we know. What we don’t fully appreciate is quite how this triggers unhelpful patterns of behavior, what employers can do to help and how we can help ourselves more.

It’s not rocket science and particularly as in Ireland the workplace is becoming more culturally diverse, we need to be more aware that many international employees are often doing jobs because of their native language and sometimes multilingual abilities  which is great for the clients they service. It may leave a gap where their Confidence and Competence (two words which in themselves can sound remarkably similar when mispronounced by a non native English Speaker!) in using English effectively may be slowing down the rate at which they integrate and contribute within their teams and the company overall. The greater the levels of engagement, the greater the performance.

Many people I work with whose first language is English lack confidence, fear public speaking and hate making presentations so it is easy to understand the difficulties facing non native English Speakers. I know. I’ve been there. And yes, lack of confidence, disappointment can play havoc with one’s emotions !

Much More Than Words specializes in working with International Executives boosting language competency through the provision of Professional and Personal Development.

‘the organisation as an emotional arena’  

18 January 2017 –  7.45 – 9.30 am

Be part of this conversation with Dr. Annette Clancy, Assistant Professor of Organisational Behaviour at UCD College of Business as she shares invaluable insights at our first Breakfast Meeting of 2017 for HR Specialists.

 Kindly hosted by the Bank of Ireland

at the new Enterprise Lounge at UCD, Montrose

Contact Janie: 086 857 2005 

booking advisable

Key Tips for Preparing Your Presentation

Be courageous enough to pause and give your audience time to think. That means slowing down your points of wisdom to the point that people can hear a penny drop. 

-Ron Arden

I just can’t help it. My nerves get the better of me and my mouth just runs away with me.

Well, I am sorry, you can.   

In training people are always telling me how worried they are about getting all of their information out in the time they have to present, they felt they just want to get it over with and so just rush, rush, rush and so the presentation comes out almost as a stream of unstructured information. Just think about what this means.  The message a poor presenter who rushes through their slide show or talk says quite clearly:-

a) I have not prepared my work well enough to deliver the salient points succinctly

b) I don’t care if people cannot understand what I’m talking about because I’m talking too fast

c) I do not respect my audience sufficiently to give this presentation the way it should be

And the final message he/she is indirectly giving out is  ‘I do not believe that my reputation or that of the organisation I represent is worth upholding.’  OUCH.

Pretty shocking really, isn’t it?

Now, let’s re-write this scenario and imagine a situation where a presentation has been worked on and you conclude your presentation and receive a great heartfelt round of applause – and know you deserve it.  That is such a great feeling and you can achieve such an outcome when you’ve prepared with the audience in mind. Try using this to guide you:-

First Hot Three Tips – For a Successful Presentation 

I’ve given these in ‘3’s’, as this seems to be easier to remember.

Before anything, consider what the objective of your presentation is and ask yourself why you have been asked to deliver it. Then consider your audience, be it of one or to many people.

  1. Who am I presenting to?
  2. What time has been allocated?
  3. What is the most relevant information can I give in the time available 
What you are doing here is 'starting with the end in mind'

Next Steps

Now you know your audience, time and key information for your content, you need to think about:-

  1. The key message
  2. The structure and delivery –  to make it both interesting and appropriate, making sure you have an opening to get people’s attention, enough substance to hold their interest and a strong closing which reminds the audience why you were the right person for this occasion.
  3. The audience ‘take-away’, focusing on 3 key points  –  ‘sound-bites’ or ‘nuggets’ you want your audience to remember
Try mind-mapping to give you an outline - what I call 'the presentation framework'

Now for the Hard Work

  1. The CREATION, writing, editing, souring of images
  2. Continual EDITING ensuring your pitch, pace and strategic use of pauses all add, never distract and only what is useful remains. You may use story telling, or another delivery style to weave together your content to make your presentation flow
  3. Rehearsal, PRACTICE, time and time again.  Refining more and more each time.
this is the magic of 'how' you bring it together to make your presentation flow

It sounds so easy. And it is .. incredibly easy to get it wrong.  Especially when you don’t allow for the PAUSES, you are not giving your audience time to think, time to process the valuable information you have prepared.  When you talk too much and ad-lib, you are likely to move away from your key message and run overtime, disrespecting your hosts and if other speakers are following your speaker slot, your overrun may literally ‘steal’ their time, as they are obliged to keep to the overall schedule and cut their speech or presentation short.  It will nearly always take longer to deliver than you think, so be stringent in your editing. LESS IS MORE.  More memorable, more digestible, more enjoyable. For your audience and for you.  The more experienced you become, the more competent you will be and the more effectively you will be able to move ‘off script’ but as a new presenter, it is best to follow guidelines. The most important thing to remember though, is to be yourself.

If you’d like to work with me on a one to one basis, or are interested in group training for your organisation, click to contact me directly or phone me on 086 8572005.

 

Click here for details of our January event for HR Professionals

 

 

‘THE ORGANISATION AS AN EMOTIONAL ARENA’

Advance Notice – January Event for HR Professionals

Human Emotions shape us. They shape us professionally and personally. They also have a stronger influence on our overall performance and satisfaction with life than we care to realize.

‘THE ORGANISATION AS AN EMOTIONAL ARENA’

Our 2017 Breakfast Series begins on the 18th January with Dr. Annette Clancy, Assistant Professor of Organisational Behaviour at UCD College of Business. dr-annette-clancyShe’ll share invaluable insights and open up the conversation with HR Specialists attending.  If you can, join us for lively discussion around what we believe really matters. At a time when ‘Donuts aren’t doing it any more’ never has the importance of respecting the true value and potential of ‘our ‘human capital’ been more crucial.

Janie Lazar and Andrea Goldman of Much More Than Words hope you can make this early morning meeting and our belief that as professionals, we can all make a difference in simply being human! Space is limited, booking advisable.

Date:                   18 January 2017

Starts:-                7.45 for 8am Start. Closes 9.30 am

Contact:              Janie Lazar 086 857 2005

Email:-                janie@muchmorethanwords.com

Tickets:               bookings.muchmorethanwords.com

‘Much More than Words’ focus on boosting communication skills in the Workplace – especially in organisations with a multi-cultural workforce. Having worked overseas, we know what it’s like to be competent, fluent even in another language and yet, not confident enough to fully engage and integrate effectively. Helping employees through our integrated training approach to get up to speed faster and maximizes their true value and potential.

To discuss your specific Training Needs, contact Janie Lazar on 086 8572005 or click here to email.

We believe we provide something more, something very different as we get into developing a stronger mindset giving another dimension to the Coaching and Training we provide. Boosting English Language competency where needed and honing essential communication skills for better teamwork, leadership and creative thinking.
 
The secret we believe is building up a mindset that encompasses 'thinking differently'  so much so that it becomes second nature, a practice that enriches overall performance making for real connection in communication.

Misunderstood?

Getting Your Message Across

is all about Pitching, Persuading, Performing – being the best you can be

You may well be an expert in your field, the person who people look to for knowledge, guidance and learning, but if you cannot get your message out there clearly and effectively, then you’re wasting time.  Time which your audience ‘of one’ or ‘of many’, has given you – either way, they will have expectations and you have a responsibility to deliver well!

Maybe you have a speech to prepare and deliver, a major sales presentation to give, an educational talk.  A simple, everyday conversation. What matters most especially when you are not speaking in your own language, is that you maximise the opportunity you have and give people who have given their time to attend real value.

BEING UNDERSTOOD IS IMPORTANT OF COURSE.  BUT YOU DON'T WANT TO BE ... MISUNDERSTOOD!

What you want is for people to come away with a ‘BIG YES FEELING’. What does that mean? Yes, this is someone I like. Yes, this is someone I respect. Yes, this is someone I can work with. Yes, this is someone I’d be happy to recommend. YES.YES.YES. And yes, when someone likes you, they will want to get to know you.  When we get to know someone we like, we want to do business with them. The reality is… we prefer to do business with people we like!

Make no mistake, even if you believe you are not in sales – you are.  We are all selling. All of the time. 

It's only human nature to want to like a person, to feel comfortable with them.  Then we know we can trust them and it is this element, trust, which underpins every relationship personal and professional.

Group Training with Janie and on a ‘One to One’ basis

The strength of the one to one business relationship is what sustains customer loyalty – not the time spent in front of a computer screen, behind an email or text message, all ways in which one can so easily be ‘misunderstood’.

Click to contact Janie directly

Janie Lazar – 086 8572005

Much More Than Words is running a Breakfast Time HR Event on the 18th January 2017 at the Bank of Ireland, Montrose Centre.

Free breakfast + particularly interesting speakers!

email for more

 

 

Retrospect, Introspect and Perspective

Whilst there’s a lot of good talk these days about self reflection and evaluation, I can’t help but wonder if we were to get to know ourselves better and sought to understand what makes other people tick, life could and would be so much easier. With the benefit of R.I.P., this is my ‘take’ on Retrospect, Introspect and Perspective, a vital stage I believe in letting go and moving on to make sense of what should be a simple process!

Of course it can be hard work.  Good things take time and great things even longer. Some say we think too much.  Perhaps. I see it not so much as ‘thinking’, more a case of ‘processing’. Never reflecting denies me the opportunity to do things better. I’ve learnt to love having the opportunity to look at things from a different perspective, to try to understand how things look from someone else’s standpoint – especially if there’s been an unresolved issue and let’s be honest here, we all have a few of those.  When I look at what’s happened, how I handled something, I wouldn’t say I am brooding or being over analytical, just as objective as I can be about what actually happened. IMG_0355According to Myers-Briggs, I am an ENFP and at this stage of my life I am it seems, falling true to type, that is to say enjoying more time to myself, quiet time. So is this being introspective?  If I can do this effectively, I’d say it is more about being able to competently and more confidently share experiences, my experience with the benefit of hindsight, perspective and the benefit of learning. As with all forms of personality profiling, if we were to ‘boost’ our social/interpersonal skills, be more curious about other people rather than chasing the clock,  to focus on what really matters, then perhaps, just perhaps, we’d all have a better perspective on life.

But there again,I guess  it depends on what you expect to see at the end of your rainbow!

Much More Than Words is running a Breakfast Time HR Event on the 18th January 2017 at the Bank of Ireland, Montrose Centre.

Free breakfast + interesting speakers!

For more details contact: info@muchmorethanwords.com

 

Doughnuts aren’t Doing it Anymore!

homer-donut

There was a time that providing employees with free donuts was enough to make them happy (if not healthy) and therefore harder-working and more loyal.  Paul Feldman a successful economist in Washington made a business out of bringing in bagels and cream cheese to his team as a Friday bonus. He started leaving out a money basket to encourage them to contribute and ultimately left his job set up Bagel Day: the company which delivers the bagels: http://www.itsbagelday.com/

Employers nowadays are very aware of the benefits of non-monetary rewards and upskilling support for their employees.  Developing new ways to keep staff loyal and motivated are an essential part of modern business culture. Companies have to work hard and smart to stem lightning fast and costly staff turnover. One solution is ‘the boomerang’ employee whereby companies can save retraining and ‘onboarding’ time and money by rehiring ex-employees who are tried and tested and already know the score.

And while many employees in the SME sector are jealous of their friends working in the modern multinationals, who can eat for free all day long at ice-cream nooks and salad bars, and then work off the calories at the on-site gym, even SMEs understand that employee engagement is a top priority, which includes a focus on the well-being and resilience of employees and developing the human side of the business. In 2015, British Petroleum distributed 24,500 fitbits to track employees’ health and wellness. According to the wearable technology report, around 2000 companies worldwide will offer their employees fitness trackers in 2016. (www.bloomberg.com/news/…/2015…/wearable-technology-creeps-into-the-workplace)

The kinds of offerings to keep employees engaged and effective are the bonding activities: such as team-building weekends, Paintballing, and to ‘To Hell and Back’ style challenges;  health and wellness offerings: like Yoga, Tai Kwando, Zumba. Then there is the upskilling support that companies can provide or subsidise:  everything from MBAs for top managers, to language lessons, presentation and speaking skills, to health and safety, IT training and so on; all in an attempt to keep the skills of your workforce up to date. And to keep your workforce.

Are your employees spending their working time sneaking onto social media? Checking their Facebook likes? Instagramming the antics of their co-workers?  Forward thinking companies are turning this to their advantage and offering ‘Employee social advocacy programs.’

Many of these courses and supports can be provided (and received) tax-free if they are deemed relevant to the business i.e. ‘directly related to increasing the effectiveness of the performance of the director’s or employee’s present or prospective duties in the office or employment’ (http://www.revenue.ie/en/tax/it/leaflets/benefit-in-kind/other.html)

To see how your company is doing in 2016 Check out Deloitte’s Human Capital Dashboard:

Written by Andrea Goldman

Much More Than Words is running an early morning Breakfast Event for HR Professionals. Join in the conversation with our key note speaker Dr. Annette Clancy, organisational behavioural specialist  from UCD – 18 January 2017 at the Bank of Ireland, Montrose Centre.

 

For more details contact: janie @muchmorethanwords.com