Real support When you Need it

Jan Cooke, Events Manager Bank of Ireland with MMTW Founder Janie Lazar

It has to be said that without the consistent encouragement and support of people like Jan Cooke, Events Manager for the Bank of Ireland, there are days I would just…. give up!!

Launching something new can be terribly exciting but once the novelty wears off, then the hard slog begins and having people around you like Jan and Montrose Branch Manager Gavin Leech makes all the difference. Their drive and interest in what you’re doing, where they can help keeps you going, as let’s face it, keeping momentum can be challenging.  Talking of challenging…

On the 22nd March, we’ll be having our next breakfast meeting at the Bank of Ireland Enterprise Lounge, Montrose  with a diverse panel of contributors to ‘Challenge Assumptions’.  My vision for the breakfast meetings is simple:  in bringing together HR and leadership professionals, we gain a better understanding of what’s important.

‘creating a culture of conversation’.

As we bring people together to work collaboratively within an increasingly multi-cultural workplace, we’re shaking things up with lively dialogue before the day has begun, great connections are made and amazing things unfold..

Later the same day, thanks again to the Bank of Ireland, we’re launching Much More Than Words ‘Multi-Cultural Exchange  in the evening at the Trinity Enterprise Lounge.  My vision here is building a collaborative community where non-native English Speakers working across a wide range of disciplines can boost their language competency and become more effective communicators, whilst using their skills to help other people.  Again a place where  it’s a WIN/WIN. Not everyone works for larger companies where training is available and this, we feel is a good way to help fill what our research shows is a much needed skills gap.

If you’d like to know more about what we’re doing, let’s talk!  Janie Lazar: 086 857 2005

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

When being fluent is not always enough

You may be fluent. You may even be confident, But are you doing enough to keep improving your communication skills as a non native English speaker?  Are you using your skills as effectively as you could?

Our Multi-Cultural Exchange is an opportunity to learn how to think differently, boost your confidence  together with your ‘people skills’ – and be part of a diverse multi-cultural community.

Run at the Bank of Ireland Enterprise Lounge in Trinity, this series of mini workshops has been created specifically for non-native English speakers living and working in Dublin who are looking for ways to up-skill and make real connections. 

If you have a reasonable, working knowledge of English and are an employee or business owner, job seeker or perhaps someone who is looking to develop a business or creative idea, this is an opportunity to become a more confident communicator by helping yourself and others as you learn with and from each other.
Creating a 'Culture of Conversation' for today

The MMTW Multi-Cultural Exchange is based on the belief that success comes from collaboration and the most sustainable relationships from creating a ‘culture of conversation’. Using your working knowledge of the English language, you will be improving your communication skills and gain confidence through the sharing of experience and expertise with the guidance of the Event Facilitator Janie Lazar, MMTW Founder and Business Owner.   

Booking essential. Places limited.

bookings.muchmorethanwords.com

 

On Listening

This blog post by Dr. Annette Clancy, our keynote speaker for January 18th caught my eye

.. Many words will be written on the wind and the sand, or end up in some obscure digital vault. But the storytelling will go on until the last human being stops listening. Then we can send the great chronicle of humanity out into the endless universe.

Who knows? Maybe someone is out there, willing to listen … extract from Dr. Annette Clancy’s blog

Is it really a coincidence that both SILENT and LISTEN contain the same letters? I think not !

click here for details and to book your place

the organisation as an ’emotional arena’

January 2017 Event Logo

Click to contact the Organiser – Janie Lazar

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.

You don’t like selling?

most people think they can’t sell..

and some believe they don’t. the truth is we all sell, all of the time.

Every single day of our lives, we just don’t see it as such.  

Every day of our lives we’re in communication with other people, we need to collaborate with other people, to get other people to work with us effectively, to keep clients doing business with us, to persuade – however indirectly – new clients to work with us too.  We want to show the best side of ourselves so people want to be with us, to work with us. To be at the top of their list !! 

It seems obvious really but building relationships takes serious effort and relationships are built on trust.   But to do this well, you need to keep honing your core communication skills and most people just don’t bother. Those who do are those we believe are people born with a natural ability to sell, but they are just tuned in better.

Selling is based on relationships and it’s about communication.  Communicating in a way which uses your unique interpersonal skills so you can build sustainable professional relationships. And of course personal relationships too.

Like it or note, we sell every day. To Colleagues. Parents are selling when they are with their kids.  In the workplace. At home. Selling involves communicating with people to just get things done.  All this demands communication skills of the highest order. It involves you being at your best

So a few points to remember

The sales process is NOT about YOU… think about what you can do for the person sitting opposite you

You are only as good as the service you give your customers

Without your customers, you don’t have a businesss

Great Customer Service is only part of the unspoken ‘Rule of Engagement’

When you don’t secure a sale, there’s a reason why....  look for it

See ‘Failure’ as an opportunity

People Buy from you because of YOU……

Perhaps MOST important of all..

Remember 2.2.1… you have two eyes, two ears and one mouth for a reason !!

So, in the words of Oscar Wilde, do  “Be yourself, everyone else is taken” and develop your own style that reflects you, whatever language you’re speaking in. It’s part of who you are.

click to request details of the next sales workshop – where you’ll get practical sales advice to help you build on the skills you’ve already have

click here for details of our next MUCH MORE THAN WORDS MINI WORKSHOP – HOW TO PRESENT