Tag Archives: Communication

I’m midway through prep for my big speech

Getting ready for the Big Speech is going more slowly than I’d hoped. Just staying disciplined has been a painful exercise. But I know if I don’t do this work, there is no way I’ll have anything good ready to go on September 27.

But… I am finally feeling more confident in the flow and rhythm of the talk. And every day as I say it out loud I find more things to fine tune.

I admit up until about mid-June, I was becoming increasingly worried. Would I be giving them what they paid for? Would the information be too basic, not entertaining enough? Would I be funny? Would they leave better than they came in? And, most importantly, would it all fit? That’s a huge obstacle for me.

I always start with far too much information that would take about twice as long to deliver than I have time for. My initial outlines are always super detailed. It feels dense at this stage. Also, in today’s presentation landscape, certain audiences appreciate it when you come in under the time limit. I’ve identified this audience as one of those. One thing I’m certain of is a speaker certainly shouldn’t go over.

But editing, ugh. I hate cutting sections. They’re like my babies. I love them. And I have to cut almost half! I always remind myself, “Only you will miss it.” It’s something I always tell my clients, but it’s still torture. The segments that can go will become more apparent as I plod forward.

Yesterday, I worked with my coach, who suggested a really great addition… something that requires a lot more work, but would be so cool if I can pull it off. Now that’s in the mix. And I need a Plan B for that section just in case something goes awry.

I’m saying the speech out loud now about once a day. On average I spend about 90 minutes a day on it. I’m trying not to get bored. I’m testing certain sections before small audiences.

I’ve settled on a somewhat provocative opening. The title is ATTENTION! Re-Igniting Focus in a World Drowning in Distraction, so I feel the need to blow it up from the get-go… not my comfort zone. But I think I have something that will do the trick. The test audiences have enjoyed it, a good sign.

My biggest concern is that I’m spending too big a portion on information I’m super comfortable with and that I love vs. information my audience would prefer to hear. This nagging self-doubt always works itself out, but it’s very uncomfortable while it’s happening.

So, that’s where I am… getting there, but slowly. Adding and subtracting. It’s why I gave myself so much time. I came up with the title and description in February. It was accepted in late April and I started seriously developing and working on it in May.

It’s hard. I take turns wondering why I set myself up for such punishment and remembering the great time I know I will have being on stage, sharing my expertise, inspiring and engaging with my audience, meeting many of them afterward at the book-signing, and taking advantage of all the new opportunities that will naturally follow.

Ok, back to work…

5 Steps to A Winning Performance Mindset in 2016

Ruth’s Truth: It’s no longer enough to be good at your job. Lots of people are good. The competition is fierce and the market increasingly crowded with good workers. Today, if you want to advance, you have to be great. Albert Einstein great. Oscar and Pulitzer winning great. Super Bowl and Stanley Cup great. Aretha Franklin great. You get the picture.

What you may not get is what’s necessary to achieve greatness. So here’s a secret: You do not have to be a genius or even have a high IQ. You just have to have a passion for your area of expertise and practice until you’re blue in the face. This is what every masterful professional knows. The other thing they know is most of their competitors won’t do what it takes, creating a tremendous opportunity for those who do.

Actors and athletes become skilled through repetition. 5 hours of practicing a single scene, 5 hours of a single passage, 5 hours of foul shots. Daily for weeks and months and years on end. Scientists must constantly experiment through failure after failure. Yet they persist.

But how does this type of practice translate to a more traditional workplace?

During the typical office workday, there are so many tasks it’s hard to know what to focus on. Furthermore, the distractions are legion and growing. This is where most people get tripped up (including me and no, I’m not going to give you any advice on turning off your devices. I never advise people to do things I don’t or won’t do). What I will suggest is that you focus your practice on the 2 or 3 tasks that will advance you. These fit into two categories: Technical and communication. You need the technical skills to do the job. You need the communication skills to persuade people to give you what you need to continue your pursuit of technical mastery and to teach others. In both categories, you must be willing to stretch and take risks, which is frightening. I’ve come to believe this is why most people won’t excel. They don’t want the discomfort the fear causes.

People are often surprised when I share my own experiences of getting to mastery. They often don’t want to hear that I practice constantly, read for hours, stretch myself, and scare myself half to death in the process!

There is another discomfort, too, which is the tedium and boredom that sets in when practicing a task over and over again. Progress can be glacial and it’s difficult to stick with it when improvement is so slow that you don’t think you’ll ever get there. Which brings me to the other thing: greatness takes patience. In our age of instant gratification, people have lost this ability.

Ready to be world class? Here are 5 performance mindset steps:

  1.  Identify your passions.
  2.  Select 2 technical skills and 1 communication skill you want to improve.
  3.  Practice them every day – until you’re “blue in the face” – knowing it will be tedious and boring.
  4.  Take risks, push through your fears, and deal with the discomfort.
  5.  Be patient. You will improve.

Greatness is not reserved for the pre-ordained few. It’s there for you but only if you do the work. If you want help with the communication piece of your journey, I’m here for you.

Pope Francis, Symbols & Communication Failure

Pope Francis was in town last week. There was great anticipation for his visit, as there is with every Pope, but Francis seemed to have something special.

From the minute he began his papacy, he seemed far more inclusive than his predecessors. His manner bespoke humility. He chose to live in a smaller, less ostentatious residence in Vatican City. His words were crafted to convey non-judgment. These careful and deliberate messages were intended to confirm that this pope was different, new, with fresh ideas about how to treat the marginalized.

And then, poof, all gone, with one, depressing misstep.

The Pope’s error was as surprising as it was obtuse. After the US visit and all the fanfare, after the tremendous good will it engendered, it was discovered he’d met secretly with Kim Davis, the Kentucky county clerk who’s been in the news because she refused to grant marriage licenses to same sex couples in violation of federal law. There is no questions she has been a very polarizing figure.

Now, the Church’s views on homosexuality are clear and no one expects that to change any time soon and it wasn’t his choice of Davis to meet with that presented the biggest problem, but that he did so in secret, and then waited until he was gone for it to become public knowledge to evade the backlash. Make no mistake, the release of this information in this way was planned; he had to have exacted promises and agreements from Kim Davis and her representatives to hold off until a specific date and time. This pope, with every public movement scheduled and documented, cannot credibly say otherwise.

And with that revelation, his entire, brilliant message and style, welcomed by Catholics and non-Catholics alike, was significantly weakened. No longer could people look at this leader of one of the world’s great religions in the same way. No longer could he be viewed as a unique and refreshing moral arbiter. No longer was he speaking truth to power. He ran from the truth and threw his power away.

The lesson for us all is to choose our symbols carefully. And if you do choose one that is controversial, don’t run away from the controversy.