Management Capsule - 100 Day Wonder (Day 51 to Day 60)

DAY 51

MANAGEMENT SUBJECT: SEVEN STEPS TO SUCCESSFUL SALES MEETINGS

From great rapport to a sale

Successful sales meetings are critical. This is true for both sides: your company's future depends on sales, and clients want to find the right supplier. Selling is a highly skilled art, one that is rooted in one fundamental principle: trust.

Overview

These seven steps will help you to make the difference and turn sales meetings into a win-win for all concerned. Each step provides an invaluable framework to building the right relationship with your potential clients - skills that can be used in a wide range of business situations.

Step 1	Build rapport	Connect with you the client - establish common ground and empathize. Create a positive working relationship and remain professional. Be warm and assertive and ask open questions. Dress to establish credibility.
Step 2	Send confirmation of your purpose	Be clear, concise and appealing. This shows why the meeting is important, establishes your capability and enables you take to control.
Step 3	Introduce yourself and your company	Your client needs to have confidence in you and your company. Your ability to direct the rest of the meetings relies on this first impression. Be succinct and aim to impress - include how you have helped other companies. Use positive, non-committal words such as 'hopefully' and 'possibilities'.
Step 4	Fact-finding	This helps you to know your potential client and tailor your offer This includes knowing both the company's situation and the people you are meeting with - ensure that your presentation appeals to and resonates with those listening.
Step 5	Explore needs and wants	This is where sales are made or lost. Focus on their needs and what they are looking for If you want to include things they haven't previously considered, give a compelling reason. Explain how what you are offering will make a difference to their business. Use GRIP: Goals, Reality, Implications, Plans. Focus on what they are looking for and value. Ask open, probing questions - and listen. Don't be afraid of silence - people need time to think about points.
Step 6	The presentation	Tailor your presentation to what the client needs. It is no good having bells and whistles if they are of no use to your client. Be enthusiastic and warm and tie your solution to the client's needs.
Step 7	Advancing and closing	All previous steps rely on this last stage. End meetings by focusing on building the relationship. Agree next steps and reaffirm commitment. Be confident and warm, follow up quickly and deliver on promises.

SKILL CAPSULE: DELIVER MOTIVATIONAL LECTURE

Is it possible to motivate someone in under 5 minutes? Yes! In fact, a motivational speech is actually a collection of small snippets of inspirational speeches that could be taken apart and delivered on their own. It has been said that the best motivational speeches are short so the thoughts can be easily remembered and recalled.  The most successful speeches are those that don't conjure up the traditional image of 'speech' but, instead, take the audience on an enjoyable journey from one thought to the next.

Leaders regularly need to boost morale and the most impactful way to do it is through a speech. Here are some tips to construct a quick and timely motivational speech:

OPEN. Get their attention. You have 10 seconds or less to get people's attention. This is not the place to smother the group with facts and information. Open with some drama and create some excitement: Say something startling or provocative. Use relevant, timely information. Share a short, funny, motivational story that links to the goal of your motivational speech.

Decide what needs to be said and what doesn't. This is something many people overlook. Don't overwhelm people with too much information, especially technical information that requires study and deliberation to really understand. Decide what your main goal is (what you want to motivate people to do), then focus and simplify your message around this.

Close with impact. To end an inspirational speech, quickly sum up your points and leave the audience with an inspirational and uplifting message. Every motivational speech should give people hope, a feeling that things are progressing, and that their efforts are making a difference.

Delivery. An inspirational speech is part content and part delivery. I believe delivery is even more important than information. Content is an abundant commodity easily accessible through Google or other search engine of choice. It is your ability to deliver the information with charisma that makes your inspirational speech impactful.

When giving an inspirational speech, focus on increasing your energy level, pausing after important points and speaking to the audience not at them.

COMMUNICATION EXERCISE: HOW TO AVOID BEING MISQUOTED

Give Them the Facts: The more you say, the more you stray. A lot of spokespeople get misquoted because they say too much. Instead of spending most of your interviews providing reporters with endless background, write a one- or two-page fact sheet which lays out the basic facts.
Providing reporters with a written fact sheet in advance of your interview allows you to tell reporters what the story means rather than what it is. By doing so, your quote will contain your interpretation of the facts instead of raw facts devoid of context.

Because you’ve said less and repeatedly emphasized the meaning of the story, you’ve given reporters more opportunities not only to get your quote right, but to make it meaningful.

DAY 52

MANAGEMENT SUBJECT: THE BUYER’S CYCLE

Understanding how customers buy

Successful selling requires understanding of how and why people buy. By understanding each stage of the Buyer's Cycle, you will be able to influence current and potential customers.

Empathy and seeing situations from a client's point of view is fundamental. Customers think about three things:

1.       their current situation

2.       how your product will affect that situation

3.       whether it will close a gap and take them closer to their goals.

When selling to an organization, the different people involved can have different views and priorities.

How the Buyer's Cycle works

Awareness

 

Information

 

Prioritization

 

Purchase

 

Use

 

Reuse

Advocacy

1.       Awareness. Catch the customer's attention - make them curious about and familiar with your product. Create awareness of your product so as to lead the customer to the next stage: wanting to know more.

2.       Information. Make information clear, useful, relevant and compelling, with the right amount of detail for the customer. Too much will be irrelevant, tedious and boring for some; too little will lack the necessary detail for others. The information and how you present it will lead the customer towards prioritizing their needs in relation to your product.

3.       Prioritization. This is when decisions are made. Understand your customer's needs, 'would like to haves', their situation and financial concerns. Essentially, help them find the product that is right for them. Without this, the advocacy stage will not occur - they will not recommend you to others.

4.       Purchase. Make the process of buying as simple, streamlined and efficient as possible. If the process is tedious or complicated, the sale may fall through. This applies to both business-to-business and business-to-consumer selling. Ensure that customers are pleased with their purchases.

5.       Use. The sale is not the end of the selling process. How customers use products affects repeat business and recommendations. Provide good products, generous guarantees and great after-sales support to move customers to the next two stages: reuse and advocacy.

6.       Reuse. Repeat customers are lucrative. They are high-margin customers, requiring little marketing spend to increase revenue. Also, they recommend your product to others through personal and career contacts and social media.

7.       Advocacy. It is called the Buyer's Cycle for a reason: advocacy leads directly back to the awareness stage. Recommendations reduce the cost and difficulty of gaining other customers. To potential customers, a recommendation brings a product to their attention, removes uncertainty and builds a desire to own it.

SKILL CAPSULE: NOTE-TAKING

Effective note-taking is an important transferable skill, a skill that can be applied in all aspects of life, socially, at work and during study.

Note-taking is a powerful aid to communication, a way of summarising and retaining the key points from what you’ve heard and understood.

There are different approaches to note taking, depending on the type of communication you’re engaged in.  This page covers effective note-taking for verbal exchanges – that is, summarising what has been said, in face-to-face conversations, over the phone and in group situations – like in meetings or when attending a lecture.

There are times in life when effective note-taking of the written word is also important – especially when studying. 

What is Note-Taking?

Note-taking is, simply, a way of concisely recording important information so that you can recall it later.

Regardless of how good you think your memory is - you will need to take notes in certain situations to remind yourself what was said.  It is a mistake to think, when going to a meeting or attending a lecture or some other important talk, that you will remember the details of what has been said - you won’t.  You may well remember the overall topic of the discussion, even some very specific details, but you won’t remember everything.

It is important to recognise that taking notes should not distract you from listening intently to what the speaker is saying.  Effective note-taking involves listening whilst jotting down key points that will be important later: in a business meeting this may include action points that you have agreed to attend to; in a lecture this may include new vocabulary or theories that you can investigate further later.

Before you can take effective notes you need to be somewhat organised.  It may seem obvious but you need to remember to take some appropriate note-taking equipment with you to meetings, lectures etc. The nature of the ‘appropriate’ note-taking equipment will depend partly on you and partly on the circumstances.  The simplest low-tech way of taking notes is to use a pen (or series of different coloured pens) and a pad of paper. Bring plenty of paper and at least one spare pen or pencil.

Some people prefer to take notes on a laptop, tablet, smartphone or some other device – this is fine as long as you are very comfortable with the technology - so that they can concentrate fully on their notes – not on the actual process of writing them.  If you are using some form of computer to take notes it is usually a good idea to turn off any messaging services first – otherwise you are likely to be distracted by new emails, text messages or the like.

When you arrive at the meeting or lecture try to sit so that you can clearly see and hear the main speaker.

General Note-Taking Guidelines:

·         Before you start taking any notes be clear about why you are attending the talk or meeting.  What are you hoping to learn or gain from it?  Think of your notes as a guide to your learning and development after the event.  You notes form part of a working document that you’ll return to and add to later.

·         Think about whether or not a point is noteworthy before you write it down – do not take notes for the sake of taking notes.  Otherwise you’ll end up with lots of irrelevant points, which will distract you from the important things.  You probably only really need to make notes on things that are new to you.

·         Do not write down everything that is said, word-for-word, that would be transcribing, which is an altogether different skill.  Concentrate on the key points, remain alert and attentive and listen to what is being said.

·         Write in your own style and use your own words, you don’t need to worry too much about spelling, grammar, punctuation or neatness as long as you can read your notes later and they make sense to you.  Your personal note-writing system will evolve and improve with practice.

·         Try to use short concise points, single words or phrases or short sentences, use bullet or numbered lists if necessary.  If you are using a pen and paper then it is easy to add linking lines to join ideas and concepts.

·         Write down in full, key information that can’t be shortened: names, contact details, dates, URL’s, references, book titles, formulas etc.

·         Use abbreviations to help you – just note what they mean!

·         Use underlining, indentation, circle words or phrases, use highlighter pens – whatever system works for you to emphasis the most important points and add some structure to your notes.

·         Use some sort of shorthand system that you will understand later – develop this system as you become more skilled at note-taking.

·         Don’t panic if you miss something.  You can usually ask the speaker to repeat a point or ask a college or peer after the event.  Note down that you have missed something to remind you to do this.

Once the event has finished:

 As soon as possible, after the event, you should review and, where necessary, rework your notes.   Fill in any gaps, adding content and further research to your notes.  If your notes are handwritten you may want to type them into a computer.  The more you interact with your notes the more you will remember and ultimately learn.

If possible share and/or compare your notes with a colleague or peer.  Discuss your understandings and fill in any gaps together.

The Cornell Method

The Cornell Method of note-taking is highly effective, see if it works for you.

·         Divide your sheet of paper, as the diagram, so you have a wide left margin (the recall area) and a deep (summary area) at the bottom.  Leaving the rest of the sheet for the notes you take while attending the class or meeting.

·         Write notes in the ‘note taking area’.  After the event fill in any gaps in your notes, try to leave some white space between points.  For each major point or idea covered in your notes write a ‘cue word’ or ‘keyword’ in the recall area of your sheet.

· For example: If your notes were about ‘note taking methods’ and you had a section describing the Cornell Method then you would probably write ‘Cornell’ or ‘Cornell Method’ in your recall area aligned with the specific notes.

·         Use the summary area to write a brief summary of what your sheet contains – it may be useful to colour code this area.  The summary will help you to find relevant notes later when you need to review them – this is especially useful for students when revising for exams or writing an assignment.

The Cornell Method of note-taking can be used as a powerful aid to recalling information.  Test your memory and knowledge by putting another sheet of paper over the ‘note taking area’ so just the ‘recall area’ is visible.  Use the phases in your recall area as your cue and recite as much information about each point as you can remember – check what you have remembered with your main notes.  You will quickly find where the gaps in your knowledge are.

COMMUNICATION EXERCISE: PRESENCE OF MIND DURING A SPEECH

What is meant by presence of mind? Let us see whether the intelligence alone helps us to succeed in life. Even if we are most efficient in performing our works, the presence of mind is often required. What is meant by -presence of mind-? It is the capacity to think quickly, to act wisely and solve the problem, in case of emergency. If a crisis comes, we should not overflow with emotions, creating a tension mood in the atmosphere. We should stay calm and act sensibly. The self-control is very much necessary, to act with presence of mind. We should not say whatever we think and do whatever we like, in case of emergency. Thinking in the right path and doing the right thing are most important. For using intelligence correctly, presence of mind is required.

Where to apply presence of mind? Saying that we should act calmly in emergent situation, we should not delay. We should learn to act fast and in the correct method, to solve the problem. It is not that presence of mind is required only in emergency situations. In an interview or competition, we should prove our ability by applying our presence of mind. In the competitive world, there are many qualified persons in all fields. While going for job hunting, the final decision will be taken by testing our presence of mind. We should learn to master others, by our acts. We should show how we are more fit than others, by proving our intelligence and acting with presence of mind.

What are the situations compelling to act with presence of mind? For a sales person, to convince a customer and make him to buy his product is very much required. If his intelligence could not help, he has to apply his presence of mind. He may tell some practical examples which the customer may show interest or he may act in a practical way. I have heard a story of a salesman who could not make the customer to buy his scent. The salesman pretended as if he spilled scent on the floor of the house of customer accidently. When he was about to leave, the customer called him and made a great purchase of scent, as he liked the appealing smell of the scent.

In a meeting many people were talking for hours and the audience were not at all interested in the speech. When the last person came, nobody had the mind to listen. He just stood in front of the mike and told,- I have prepared a lot to share with you and I would like to share with you on some other day. Thank You-. That small speech impressed everybody, as he acted with presence of mind. The positive use of intelligence and timely action along with presence of mind, could help to earn good name.

The time conscious is more important. In one incident, the police people removed the timer, before the bomb squad arrived. If the bomb explode before the arrival of bomb squad, that may end in heavy loss to human lives and other things. The courage and the presence of mind of these police people were appreciated by all.

By training our brain and sharpening the memory, the power of presence of mind could increase. We should practice to act promptly and sensibly. We should keep our mind alert. We should try to find out the best solution for a problem, quickly. The children should be trained well to use the presence of mind. In the school, the teachers may test the presence of mind, by asking several questions. At home, the parents and other family members, may equip the child to act with presence of mind. For everybody, the presence of mind is required, to act correctly, in emergent situations.

DAY 53

MANAGEMENT SUBJECT: PRICING

Choosing the best strategy

Getting the price right from the outset is imperative: the wrong price can undermine your whole business strategy. Once set, prices can be difficult to change.

Price supports a range of business aims: increasing loyalty, prolonging a product's lifespan, entering new markets, manipulating special offers and driving out competition. To choose a pricing strategy you need in-depth understanding of markets, customers, strategic aims and your company.

Know how sensitive price is

Is demand elastic - where small changes in price lead to significant changes in demand? Or is it inelastic - where changes in price have little effect on demand? Does the product have 'snob' value, where demand increases with high prices?

Know the market

What are customer perceptions and behaviour? Will you accept the pricing culture - or challenge it?

Competitive issues and price innovation

Are there few direct competitors? Are some competitors vulnerable to lower prices?

Costs and break-even analysis

Selling at cost establishes market share or drives out competitors - break-even analysis determines the price that covers costs. Review all costs, including the possibility of suppliers increasing prices.

Pricing strategies

Strategy	Idea/aim	Issues
Loss leading	Price is less than cost Remove competitors or establish market share	If demand is too high, losses escalate. Difficult to increase prices later Could you survive a price war?
Penetration pricing	Break-even price and aggressive marketing Market penetration and gaining market share	Used in very competitive markets and to undermine established leader Relies on unit costs falling as demand rises Risk of competitors reducing prices
Milking or skimming	Premium price for high quality version To generate further profit from established product	Return limited by higher costs of supplying product Relies on ability to convince customers Small size of market
Target pricing	Set minimum level of profit, estimate sales then set price	Relies on accurate sales estimates Failing to account for competitors' actions
Price differentiation	Variable prices for different markets	Generates the most revenue from a product Relies on barriers to entry --- e.g.-tariffs or high costs - to prevent others buying in cheaper markets and reselling Relies on consumer ignorance (or acceptance) of cheaper prices elsewhere.
Marginal cost pricing	Price reflects additional cost of supplying extra unit	Used when cost of extra unit is significantly higher Need to explain price differences to customers
Variable pricing	Prices reduced, to increase sales Raised, to deter sales - if production at capacity	Often used in extreme situations Price fluctuations risk alienating or confusing customers
Average cost pricing	Set base price by adding total costs and desired profit margin and dividing by likely sales	Accepted by customers Relies on accurate estimates Is competitive: companies with lowest costs charge lowest prices
Customary pricing	Same price for smaller product	Can increase profits Useful when costs are rising and demand is slow Risks alienating customers
Barrier pricing	Reduce prices to deter or remove new entrants	Aggressive strategy to defend established position Used in highly competitive or price-sensitive markets Despite legal restrictions, companies act together to maintain barrier pricing

SKILL CAPSULE: SELF MANAGEMENT

A key skill in self-management is self regulation. Self-regulation refers to individuals monitoring, controlling and directing aspects of their learning for themselves.

Self-Management Strategies

• Monitor – don’t just let things happen, assess and see why then pick a strategy
• Evaluate – take the time to ask if things are working out for you
• Reinforce

Time Management/Anti-Procrastination Strategies

• Prioritise
• Plan
• Break things into small, manageable pieces
• Goal Setting
• Be Specific
• Use all time - e.g. even travel time can be used to review or quiz oneself
• Action builds momentum – do something, anything
• Make a commitment – create a deadline if one doesn’t exist or you need an earlier one

Attitude/Confidence Strategies

• Stop making excuses – instead think in terms of challenges
• Focus on effort not results
• Thought stopping
• Reframe  - e.g. “want” instead of “should”
• Self-Talk – use positive thoughts and challenge negative thoughts
• Affirm Yourself – use positive phrases including “I”, like “I can do this” and say them often
• Exert Control over what you can, accept what you cannot change

Handling Distractions

• Get more active in the study process – ask yourself questions, join a study group, try to teach someone else
• Distribute study instead of cramming – easier to concentrate for shorter periods
• Keep memo or notebook - for thoughts or things to do that keep popping into your head
• Assign Worry Time - if you have a problem or difficulty to deal with
• Re-focus attention – by using trigger words like “just listen”
• Build time – do something for five minutes, then next time 7 minutes, etc.
• Routine – organise environment etc., much like an athlete before an event

Mind and Body

• Eat, sleep and exercise properly
• Don’t ignore emotions or thoughts
• Manage your stress

COMMUNICATION EXERCISE: INTERCULTURAL COMMUNICATION

Communication is the sharing of understanding and meaning, but what is intercultural communication? If you answered, “The sharing of understanding and meaning across cultures,” you’d be close, but the definition requires more attention. What is a culture? Where does one culture stop and another start? How are cultures created, maintained, and dissolved? Donald Klopf described culture as “that part of the environment made by humans.” From the building we erect that represents design values to the fences we install that delineate borders, our environment is a representation of culture, but it is not all that is culture.

In defining intercultural communication, we only have eight components of communication to work with and yet we must bridge divergent cultures with distinct values across languages and time zones to exchange value, a representation of meaning. It may be tempting to consider only the source and receiver within a transaction as a representation of intercultural communication, but if we do that, we miss the other six components—the message, channel, feedback, context, environment, and interference—in every communicative act. Each component influences and is influenced by culture. Is culture context? Environment? Message? Culture is represented in all eight components every time we communicate. All communication is intercultural.

Let’s take this intranational comparison a step further. Within the same family, can there be intercultural communication? If all communication is intercultural, then the answer would be yes, but we still have to prove our case. Imagine a three-generation family living in one house. The grandparents may represent another time and different values from the grandchildren. The parents may have a different level of education and pursue different careers from the grandparents; the schooling the children are receiving may prepare them for yet another career. From music, to food preferences, to how work is done may vary across time; Elvis Presley may seem like ancient history to the children. The communication across generations represents intercultural communication, even if only to a limited degree. But suppose we have a group of students who are all similar in age and educational level. Do gender and the societal expectations of roles influence interaction? Of course. And so we see that among these students not only do the boys and girls communicate in distinct ways but also not all boys and girls are the same. With a group of sisters, there may be common characteristics, but they will still have differences, and these differences contribute to intercultural communication. We are each shaped by our upbringing and it influences our worldview, what we value, and how we interact with each other. We create culture, and it creates us.

Communication with yourself is called intrapersonal communication, which may also be intracultural, as you may only represent one culture. But most people belong to many groups, each with their own culture. Within our imaginary intergenerational home, how many cultures do you think we might find? If we only consider the parents and consider work one culture, and family another, we now have two. If we were to examine the options more closely, we would find many more groups, and the complexity would grow exponentially. Does a conversation with yourself ever involve competing goals, objectives, needs, wants, or values? How did you learn of those goals, or values? Through communication within and between individuals, they themselves representatives of many cultures. We struggle with the demands of each group and their expectations and could consider this internal struggle intercultural conflict or simply intercultural communication.

 Intercultural communication is a fascinating area of study within business communication, and it is essential to your success. One idea to keep in mind as we examine this topic is the importance of considering multiple points of view. If you tend to dismiss ideas or views that are “unalike culturally,” you will find it challenging to learn about diverse cultures. If you cannot learn, how can you grow and be successful? Ethnocentrism is the tendency to view other cultures as inferior to one’s own. Having pride in your culture can be healthy, but history has taught us that having a predisposition to discount other cultures simply because they are different can be hurtful, damaging, and dangerous. Ethnocentrism makes us far less likely to be able to bridge the gap with others and often increases intolerance of difference. Business and industry are no longer regional, and in your career, you will necessarily cross borders, languages, and cultures. You will need tolerance, understanding, patience, and openness to difference.

A skilled business communicator knows that the process of learning is never complete, and being open to new ideas is a key strategy for success.

DAY 54

MANAGEMENT SUBJECT: THE FOUR PS OF MARKETING

Using the marketing mix

The marketing mix includes Product, Place, Price and Promotion and this can be used to successfully position a product in the market.

Edmund Jerome McCarthy framed the marketing mix as the Four Ps. While it may look simple, the point is that marketing is more than a reactive enterprise, responding to a product after it has been developed. It should also be a proactive activity that informs every aspect of a product's design and development.

Applying the Four Ps is a rigorous and ongoing process that questions and challenges every aspect of a product to improve the product offering - to get the marketing mix right. Each part affects the others (both supporting and potentially undermining), necessitating a coordinated approach to marketing strategy and the need to embed marketing into all other aspects of the business - from product design to strategic direction. By considering marketing issues from the start, you are more likely to develop the right products and then to get those products right.

Product: designing the products that customers want

·         Understand customers - what do they want, how will they use the product, how the product will be perceived, what level of after-sales support will they expect?

·         Consider the effect of costs on price and, as a consequence, on customers.

·         Use market and customer insight to inform the product's features - including its name, attributes, colour, size and any relevant attributes.

·         Get branding right, along with differentiating it from competitors' products.

Place: reaching customers

·         Be clear about where and how products will reach customers - for example, the channels, regions and segments where they will be marketed and sold.

·         Understand your customers - where they look for products and where they make purchases.

·         You need to determine the channels you will use and consider distribution issues - including any barriers to entry.

Price: setting the right price

·         Know what the customer will be prepared to pay and consider how customers' perceptions are guided by price.

·         Decide a price that allows for discounts to be used effectively - such as encouraging bulk sales at a price that does not fall below costs.

·         Be aware of competitors' prices and consider the potential for a price war.

·         You will need to consider how demand will be affected at different prices.

·         Ensure that the price does not needlessly sacrifice your profit margin.

·         Consider price from other perspectives such as branding.

Promotion: making people aware of the product and enticing them to buy

·         Decide how and when to appeal to customers.

·         Know which type of promotion and incentive (for example, buy one get one free) would work best for particular customers.

·         To plan a successful advertising campaign, you will need to know your customers. For example: Where do they go (and when)? What do they do? What do they read? What (and who) influences them?

·         Be aware of competitors' campaigns and improve upon them.

SKILL CAPSULE: PRESENTING TO LARGE GROUPS AND CONFERENCES

Much of our section on Presentation Skills applies to both large and small groups, but there are a number of issues that are particularly important when presenting to large groups.

Developing an understanding of these issues will help you to get your message across more effectively.

This page explains more about these issues, and how you can overcome any problems to present effectively even to very large groups or at major events.

The Structure of a Large Event

In this context, ‘large’ is taken to mean an event involving more than 100 people. It will usually be a conference or similar event. There will be a number of invited speakers, a formal programme of presentations, and the conference will probably last at least a day.

There may be both large and small presentations going on at the same time. The larger presentations are usually called ‘plenaries’ and involve all participants. The smaller ones are called ‘breakouts’ or ‘workshops’, and will be of interest to a limited number of people only.

Usually, the first or most important plenary presentation is called the keynote speech.

The seats will almost invariably be laid out ‘theatre’ style, which means rows of seats.

Occasionally, they may be in ‘café’ style, with large round tables holding 10 or 12 people. Here the seats will be placed so that people can see the screen and speaker without having to turn around. The 'cafe' style layout is used more commonly for ‘awaydays’ and interactive events, rather than formal conferences.

Implications for Presenters: There are various key areas that presenters at large events, such as conferences should consider.

These include:

Ø  Positioning

Ø  Equipment

Ø  Lighting

Ø  Managing your Nerves

1. Positioning

A large, formal event will almost always have a podium or stage where you will be expected to stand and give your presentation.

There may be a lectern, although that will often depend on the type of event as many events have moved away from this kind of system now. It sounds obvious, but you will also be in a very large room, holding a lot of people.

You will therefore be physically separated from your audience, both by distance and height.

2. Equipment

You will almost always have professional sound and audio-visual equipment at a large event.

You will be expected to send your presentation in advance, and it will be loaded up for you, ready to present. You will probably, in a modern conference centre, have a wireless control for your slides, as well as a wireless microphone.

A more old-fashioned venue might have wired systems that will tether you to one spot.

Really large venues may even have cameras projecting you onto screens above the stage so that those at the back can see you more clearly.

These systems allow you to reach out to your audience and engage with them better, because everyone will be able to see and hear you clearly.

3. Lighting

The main hall in most conference venues has no natural light.

It may have stage-type lighting, and the lights in the room will be dimmed during the presentations, with a spotlight on the presenter.

    This makes it nearly impossible to see your audience, or make personal eye contact with any of them.

4. Managing your Nerves

Some people find presenting to large numbers of people much more nerve-wracking.

This is partly an issue about not knowing the members of the audience, and partly the potential for embarrassment if you do something wrong. And of course, when you’re nervous and tense, you are by definition less relaxed.

What all of this means is that it is much, much harder to build rapport with your audience.

COMMUNICATION EXERCISE: SPEAKING ETHICALLY AND AVOIDING FALLACIES

What comes to mind when you think of speaking to persuade? Perhaps the idea of persuasion may bring to mind propaganda and issues of manipulation, deception, intentional bias, bribery, and even coercion. Each element relates to persuasion, but in distinct ways. In a democratic society, we would hope that our Bill of Rights is intact and validated, and that we would support the exercise of freedom to discuss, consider and debate issues when considering change. We can recognize that each of these elements in some ways has a negative connotation associated with it. Why do you think that deceiving your audience, bribing a judge, or coercing people to do something against their wishes is wrong? These tactics violate our sense of fairness, freedom, and ethics.

Eleven Points for Speaking Ethically

Do not:

·         use false, fabricated, misrepresented, distorted or irrelevant evidence to support arguments or claims.

·          intentionally use unsupported, misleading, or illogical reasoning.

·         represent yourself as informed or an “expert” on a subject when you are not.

·         use irrelevant appeals to divert attention from the issue at hand.

·         ask your audience to link your idea or proposal to emotion-laden values, motives, or goals to which it is actually not related.

·         deceive your audience by concealing your real purpose, by concealing self-interest, by concealing the group you represent, or by concealing your position as an advocate of a viewpoint.

·         distort, hide, or misrepresent the number, scope, intensity, or undesirable features of consequences or effects.

·         use “emotional appeals” that lack a supporting basis of evidence or reasoning.

·         oversimplify complex, gradation-laden situations into simplistic, two-valued, either-or, polar views or choices.

·         pretend certainty where tentativeness and degrees of probability would be more accurate.

·         advocate something which you yourself do not believe in.

Aristotle said the mark of a good person, well spoken was a clear command of the faculty of observing in any given case the available means of persuasion. He discussed the idea of perceiving the many points of view related to a topic, and their thoughtful consideration. While it’s important to be able to perceive the complexity of a case, you are not asked to be a lawyer defending a client.

Avoiding Fallacies

Fallacies are another way of saying false logic. These rhetorical tricks deceive your audience with their style, drama, or pattern, but add little to your speech in terms of substance and can actually detract from your effectiveness. There are several techniques or “tricks” that allow the speaker to rely on style without offering substantive argument, to obscure the central message, or twist the facts to their own gain. Here we will examine the eight classical fallacies. You may note that some of them relate to the ethical cautions listed earlier in this section. Eight common fallacies are presented in table "Fallacies". Learn to recognize these fallacies so they can’t be used against you, and so that you can avoid using them with your audience.

Fallacy	Definition	Example
1. Red Herring	Any diversion intended to distract attention from the main issue, particularly by relating the issue to a common fear.	It’s not just about the death penalty; it’s about the victims and their rights. You wouldn’t want to be a victim, but if you were, you’d want justice.
2. Straw Man	A weak argument set up to be easily refuted, distracting attention from stronger arguments	What if we released criminals who commit murder after just a few years of rehabilitation? Think of how unsafe our streets would be then!
3. Begging the Question	Claiming the truth of the very matter in question, as if it were already an obvious conclusion.	We know that they will be released and unleashed on society to repeat their crimes again and again.
4. Circular Argument	The proposition is used to prove itself. Assumes the very thing it aims to prove. Related to begging the question.	Once a killer, always a killer.
5. Ad Populum	Appeals to a common belief of some people, often prejudicial, and states everyone holds this belief. Also called the Bandwagon Fallacy, as people “jump on the bandwagon” of a perceived popular view.	Most people would prefer to get rid of a few “bad apples” and keep our streets safe.
6. Ad Hominem	“Argument against the man” instead of against his message. Stating that someone’s argument is wrong solely because of something about the person rather than about the argument itself.	Our representative is a drunk and philanderer. How can we trust him on the issues of safety and family?
7. Non Sequitur	“It does not follow.” The conclusion does not follow from the premises. They are not related.	Since the liberal antiwar demonstrations of the 1960s, we’ve seen an increase in convicts who got let off death row.
8. Post Hoc Ergo Propter Hoc	“After this, therefore because of this,” also called a coincidental correlation. It tries to establish a cause-and-effect relationship where only a correlation exists.	Violent death rates went down once they started publicizing executions.

Avoid false logic and make a strong case or argument for your proposition. Finally, here is a five-step motivational checklist to keep in mind as you bring it all together:

1. Get their attention

2. Identify the need

3. Satisfy the need

4. Present a vision or solution

5. Take action

This simple organizational pattern can help you focus on the basic elements of a persuasive message when time is short and your performance is critical.

DAY 55

MANAGEMENT SUBJECT: THE TEN RULES OF CROSS-SELLING

Improving profitability

Cross-selling is offering one or more different products or services to a customer who has already made a purchase. The potential for increased profit is considerable, but mishandling the process can be self-defeating in the long term or even risk the original sale.

Overview

Successful cross-selling depends on understanding customer behaviour and how customers make decisions. The key is to focus completely on the customer. Fundamentally, honesty, integrity and trustworthiness are the hall-marks of successful cross-selling. To have real benefit, always keep in mind that you are aiming to increase profitability by building long-term relationships, encouraging customer recommendations and developing a valued brand - none of this will happen if customers are sold the wrong products or feel misguided in any way.

Applying the ten rules

To guide companies in using the process successfully and avoiding the pitfalls, John Domanski devised ten rules of cross-selling:

1.       Don't cross-sell too soon. Do not risk losing the customer completely by cross-selling too soon - make sure the first purchase is finalized.

2.       Stick to the rule of 25, where the value of the cross-sale does not increase the original order by more than 25 per cent.

3.       Focus on long-term profit. Cross-selling needs to offer a customer the most suitable product or service and so build a long-term relationship and encourage personal recommendations. Simply pushing high-mar-gin items is ultimately unprofitable because disappointed customers will not return.

4.       Add value for customers, always. Cross-selling is not a means of disposing of unwanted stock - it is about adding value for customers.

5.       Keep all items in the sale connected. From the customer's perspective, additional products or services must be related to the first item.

6.       Sell the customer something they already know: offer additional products or services that the customer is already familiar with. This is not the time to introduce new products or services.

7.       Use technology to understand the customer. Develop a system that links items together so that, when a customer makes a purchase, the list of cross-selling opportunities is immediately apparent. It then becomes a question of offering items that are appropriate to each particular customer.

8.       Keep sales teams as well as customers informed about products. Sales teams need to know all your products and services thoroughly. Detailed understanding is needed to know which products to offer and to handle customers' questions.

9.       Use your best people and ensure continuous improvement. When introducing new cross-selling opportunities, use your best people to test the process and improve how it works.

10.   Incentivize your sales teams to cross-sell (it is still cost-effective). Always remember that motivation and compensation affect the performance of sales teams. Co-opting Einstein's equation, E- M C2 sums this up, where E is the person's effort, M is the level of motivation and C is the amount of compensation - effort directly following better compensation and motivation speaks for itself.

SKILL CAPSULE: AUDITING SKILLS

Why do we have to Audit?

·         Auditing is not a choice or option, it must be done & every organization must do it that has a management system.

·         ISO9001 has the requirement that is …… that internal audits are to be planned & conducted to determine whether or not the management systems:-

o   Conform to the planned arrangements

o   Have been properly implemented & maintained

o   Are effective in meeting the organization’s policy & objectives

What Do We Audit For ? Evidence !

·         As auditors we are to look for the evidence necessary to verify whether or not the management systems put into place by an organization meets or conforms to established requirements & is performing as specified.

·         Additionally we look for evidence that verifies that planning arrangement, procedures & objectives are also being met.

The Internal Auditor

Internal Auditor Role:-

·         Plays extremely important part with in the management system

·         The organization &  top management will depend on the Internal Auditors to provide the vital information necessary for the effective continuity of the system & operation of the organization.

·         The Internal Auditor:-

o   Should understand the gravity of the task they are performing

o   Never back away from impartiality & objectivity

o   Should be proactive

o   Should be positive

o   Should have values

o   Should have positive people skills

Auditor Responsibilities

·         Assist in the audit activities under the direction of the team leader (lead auditor)

·         Comply with applicable audit requirements

·         Communicate & clarify audit requirements

·         Plan & carry out assigned responsibilities effectively & efficiently

·         Document all observations

·         Report the audit results

·         Verify effectiveness of corrective actions

·         Retain & safeguard audit documents

Ultimately, responsibilities must be established by each organization in its own audit program procedures.

Personal Attributes of Auditors   (ISO 19011:2011, 7.2.2)

Ethical – Fair, truthful, sincere, honest, discreet

Open-minded – Willing to consider alternative ideas

Diplomatic – Tactful in dealing with people

Observant – Aware of surroundings & activities

Perceptive – Instinctively aware of & understand situations

Versatile – Able to adjust to different situations

Tenacious – Persistent, focused on achieving objectives

Decisive – Reaching timely conclusions

Self-reliant – Functions independently

       Generic Knowledge of Auditors   (ISO 19011:2011, 7.2.3.2)

·         Audit principles, procedures 7 techniques

·         Management system & reference documents

·         Organizational contest

·         Applicable laws, regulations& other relevant requirements              

Education, Work, auditor Training & Audit Experience    (7.2.4)

Education requirements should include:-

·         Sufficient education to acquire generic & specific knowledge & skills described in ISO 19011:2011 clause 7.2.4

·         Completion of generic & specific auditor training, internally or externally

·         Work experience should include:-

o   Experience with technical, managerial or professional position involving judgment, problem-solving & communication with various parties   

Benefits of Auditing

Audits can help:-

·         Verify conformity to requirements

·         Increase awareness & understanding

·         Provide a measurement of effectiveness of the system to management

·         Reduce the risk of system failure

·         Identify improvement opportunities

·         Initiate the corrective action cycle

·         Initiate the preventive action cycle

·         Types of Audit Relationship

·         1^St Party Audit  -  Organization auditing its own system

·         2^ndParty Audit  -  Organization auditing its supplier

·         3rdParty Audit  -  Organization audited by an independent organization such as a certification body.

·         Principles of Auditing 

·         Ethical Conduct   -  The foundation of professionalism

·         Fair presentation - The obligation to report truthfully  & accurately

·         Due professional care – The application of diligence & judgement in auditing

·         Independence – The basis for the morality of the audit & objectivity of audit conclusion

·         Evidence based approach – The rational method for reaching conclusions in a systematic audit process       

Audit Activities

·         Initiating the audit :-Definition of objectives, Scope & criteria, Determination of the feasibility of the audit, establishing the audit team

·         Initial document review:-Review relevant documents (procedures, work instructions, flowcharts etc.)

·         Preparing on-site audit activity:-Planning on-site activities (check list), audit team work assignment, work documents

·         On-site audit activities:-Opening meeting, collection & verifying information, audit findings, communication with auditee, closing meeting

·         Reporting on the audit:-Audit report preparation, report approval & distribution

·         Audit completion:-Audit is completed when the plan is completed & report distributed

·         Audit follow up:-Verification of completion & effective action

Do’s & Don’t

                         Do                                                             Do Not

Put the speaker at ease                           Be judgmental

Show you want to listen                         Cause interference

Remove distraction                                   Be close minded (attitude)

Keep calm                                                       Have wishful hearing

Ask questions                                                Talk excessively

Stop talking!!

 

Audit Findings

·         Audit findings – results of the evaluation of the collected audit evidence against audit criteria

o   Conformity or non –conformity with audit criteria

o   Opportunity for improvement

·         Certification bodies use the following

o   Nonconformities (Major/Minor)

o   Opportunity for improvement /Observation

Preparing Audit Report

q  The audit report should contain at least :-

o   The audit objectives

o   The audit scope, particularly identification of the organizational & functional units or processes audited & the time period covered

o   Identification of the audit client (the auditee)

o   Identification of the audit team leader & members

o   The date & places where the on-site audit activities were conducted

o   The audit criteria

o   The audit findings

o   The audit conclusions

Conclusion as an Auditor….

An Auditor should always:

·         Prepare     -     Know the subject material

·         Learn          -     Thoroughly about the organization

·         Control       -     The audit

·         Assist          -      Where there is misunderstanding

·         Listen          -      To what Auditee / interviewee is saying

COMMUNICATION EXERCISE: VIRAL MESSAGES

What was once called “word of mouth” advertising has gone viral with the introduction of social marketing via the Internet. What was once called a “telephone chain,” where one person called another in order to pass along news or a request in a linear model, has now gone global. One tweet from Twitter gets passed along and the message is transmitted exponentially. The post to the Facebook page is seen before the nightly news on television. Text messages are often real time. Radio once beat print media to the news, and then television trumped both. Now person-to-person, computer-mediated communication trumps them all at the speed of light—if the message is attractive, relevant, dramatic, sudden, or novel. If no one bothers to pass along the message, or the tweet isn’t very interesting, it will get lost in the noise.

What, then, makes a communication message viral?

Let’s look at the June 2009 death of Michael Jackson for an example of a viral message and see what we can learn. According to Jocelyn Noveck, news of his death spread via Twitter, text messages, and Facebook before the traditional media could get the message out. People knew about the 911 call from Jackson’s home before it hit the mainstream media. By the time the story broke, it was already old. People may not have had all the facts, but the news was out. Communities, represented by families, groups of friends, employees at organizations, had been mobilized to spread the news. They were motivated to share the news, but why?

Effective Viral Messages

Viral messages are words, sounds, or images that compel the audience to pass them along. They prompt people to act, and mobilize communities. Community mobilization has been studied in many ways and forms. We mobilize communities to leave areas of disaster, or to get out and walk more as part of an exercise program. If we want people to consider and act on a communication message, we first have to gain the audience’s attention. In our example, communities were mobilized to share word of Jacksons’ passing. Attention statements require sparks and triggers. A spark topic “has an appeal to emotion, a broad base of impact and subsequent concern, and results in motivating a consensus about issues, planning, and action.”

In the example of Michael Jackson, the consensus may be that he died under suspicious circumstances, but in other examples, it could be that the product or service being discussed is the next cool thing. The message in social marketing and viral messages does not exist apart from individuals or communities. They give it life and attention, or ignore it.

If you want to design a message to go viral, you have to consider three factors:

1.       Does it have an emotional appeal that people will feel compelled to share?

2.       2. Does it have a trigger (does it challenge, provide novelty, or incorporate humor to motivate interest)?

3.       3. Is it relevant to the audience?

An appeal to emotion is a word, sound, or image that arouses an emotional response in the audience. Radio stations fill the airwaves with the sounds of the 1980s to provoke an emotional response and gain a specific demographic within the listening audience. The day after the announcement of Michael Jackson’s death broke, you could hear his music everywhere. Many people felt compelled to share the news because of an emotional association to his music, the music’s association to a time in their lives, and the fact that it was a sudden, unanticipated, and perhaps suspicious death.

A trigger is a word, sound, or image that causes an activity, precipitates an event or interaction, or provokes a reaction between two or more people. In the case of Michael Jackson, the triggers included all three factors and provoked an observable response that other forms of media will not soon forget. His death at a young age challenged the status quo. In the same way, videos on YouTube have earned instant fame (wanted or unwanted) for a few with hilarious antics, displays of emotion, or surprising news. The final ingredient to a viral message is relevance. It must be immediately accessible to the audience, salient, and important. If you want someone to stop smoking, graphs and charts may not motivate them to action. Show them someone like them with postsurgery scars across their throat and it will get attention. Attention is the first step toward pre contemplation in a change model that may lead to action.

DAY 56

MANAGEMENT SUBJECT: DIFFERENTIATION

Giving customers a reason to choose your products

Differentiating one product from another creates new market opportunities: allowing variable pricing, increasing profit margins and distinguishing your products from competitors'. Differentiation takes many forms - from a product's features, price and reliability to emotional, aspirational attributes and branding.

Overview

In markets awash with products and services, getting customers to recognize and choose your products is difficult. Differentiating from competitors gives customers a reason to choose your product rather than a competitor's, and making this choice easy for customers is important.

Like it or not, our brains are remarkably lazy and prefer to make decisions with the least effort. This is not to say we are not fussy - clearly, we need to be convinced about the value the differentiation offers. However, the point is that differentiation itself prompts the customer into seeing a difference and helps to narrow down the decision-making process - in other words, it makes things easier. So, it is important to make your customers aware of how your product is different.

How to differentiate your products

·         Know your strengths and weaknesses - and your competitors'. By understanding your own strengths and weaknesses, and those of your competitors, you will know what attributes you can leverage and what you need to do differently in order to outcompete rivals and to appeal to customers.

·         Focus on customers. Differentiation strategy needs a keen focus on customers. Knowing what will appeal to them and how they will respond to any developments or changes in tastes and attitudes should always inform your strategy - including recognizing new customer groups and opportunities.

·         Compete with yourself. Many companies offer products that compete with their own products. By offering differentiated products, you will ap-peal to a broader range of customers and occupy a larger portion of the entire market, restricting the space available for competitors.

·         Be aware of shifts in the marketplace. Differentiation is never a static situation. Competitors will copy your products or services and erode any advantage you once had. They will also use differentiation to capture your customers. You will need to continually scan the marketplace to assess competitors and to identify new opportunities.

SKILL CAPSULE: SIX WAYS TO MAKE PEOPLE LIKE YOU

Ø  "Become genuinely interested in other people." -People are usually interested in themselves. However, according to Alfred Adler, people who are not interested in others usually have the greatest difficulties in life. “In order to make friends, we should put ourselves out to do things for other people - things that require time, energy, unselfishness and thoughtfulness”

For example, try to remember all your friends’ birthdays

Ø  “Showing a genuine interest in others not only wins friends for you, but may develop in its customers a loyalty to your company.” However, as with every other principle, the interest you show in others must be sincere.

Ø  "Smile." A smile says a lot, and it can brighten another person’s day. It tells people, “I like you,” “You make me happy,” “I am glad to see you.” According to Professor James McConnell, a psychologist at the University of Michigan, “People who smile tend to manage, teach, and sell more effectively, and to raise happier children. There’s far more information in a smile than a frown. That’s why encouragement is a much more effective teaching method than punishment.” You should smile when you’re on the phone as well, because your smile comes through in your voice.

Ø  "Remember that a man's name is to him the sweetest and most important sound in any

language."-“The average person is interested in his or her own name than in all the other names on earth put together”-Most people do not remember names, because they do not want to take the time or energy to concentrate on repeating someone’s names in their minds. Remembering the other person’s name will work magic

Ø  "Be a good listener. Encourage others to talk about themselves."

You should listen intently when you are in a conversation with another person, and become genuinely interested in what that other person is saying, because “that kind of listening is one of the highest compliments we can pay anyone.”-

You will seem like you are a good conversationalist if you are just a good listener and encourage others to talk. Many people fail to make a good impression because they do not listen attentively -If you want people to dislike you, “Never listen to anyone for long. Talk incessantly about yourself. If you have an idea while the other person is talking, don’t wait for him or her to finish: bust right in and interrupt in the middle of the sentence” Ask questions that the other persons will enjoy answering. Encourage them to talk about themselves and their accomplishments "Talk in the terms of the other man's interest."

Ø  Talking in terms of the other person’s interests pays off for both parties. The road to a person’s heart is to talk about things he or she treasures most" Make the other person feel important and do it sincerely.” Always make the other person feel important John Dewey says “the desire to be important is the deepest urge in human nature Phrases like, “I’m sorry to trouble you” “Would you be so kind as to “Would you mind?” “Thank you” Will help “Talk to people about themselves and they will listen for hours”

COMMUNICATION EXERCISE: PERSUASIVE COMMUNICATOR

Make no mistake: The starting point in being persuasive is to build trust and credibility so that when you seek to persuade, people will give you a fair hearing. You can then draw from the following suggestions to successfully prepare and present your case.

Choose Your Cases Wisely
If you repeatedly try to gain buy-in for things that are exceedingly unlikely, blatantly unrealistic, or technically impossible, you risk creating a cry-wolf reaction in those you're trying to persuade. Once that happens, they won't take you seriously when you have a legitimate matter to put forward.

Still, sometimes it's worth a shot. One project manager, Cliff, summoned the courage to ask his boss for a three-month leave to pursue some personal goals. Cliff was so sure the answer would be "Are you out of your mind?" that he almost didn't hear his boss say, "OK, let's find a way to make this happen."

Be Specific About Your Desired Outcome
If, for example, you'd like more (of whatever), be precise. Two additional testers or twelve? Five new laptops or fifteen? An extra week or two months? And explain why. Most people want to know the "why" behind the "what."

To support your proposal, gather as much relevant data as you can. This will show you've given the matter serious thought and are not just acting on a whim. The fact that you've done your homework gives you a distinct advantage over those who demand, plead, or whine in hopes of being persuasive.

Do for Others Before Asking Them to Do for You
According to the reciprocity principle, people feel obligated to give back when a favor—even an unrequested favor—has been done for them. In my favorite book on persuasion, Influence, author Robert Cialdini points out that even people we don't like have an improved chance of getting us to do what they want merely by doing us a small favor beforehand. According to Cialdini, the result is often a positive response to a request "that, except for an existing feeling of indebtedness would have surely been refused."

This principle has chilling implications when applied for nefarious purposes. But what could be better than providing genuine value to others as a consistent practice? Then, when you seek their support for something that's important to you, they may be more inclined to give it.

Focus on Issues Pertinent to Those You Want to Persuade
How will they benefit from your desired outcome? What issues could make it difficult for them to honor your request? What objections might they have and how can you counter these objections?

Consider, also, what these people emphasize when they seek to persuade. If, for example, they stress facts and figures, strive to do the same. If they focus on how people—or productivity, deadlines, etc.—will be affected, orient your key points accordingly. The more your own case meshes with what matters to these people, the better your chances of winning them over.

Persuade Professionally
Compelling though your case may be, sputtering and stammering will weaken its impact. Too many "ums" and "uhs" won't help either, nor will staring at the ceiling in hopes of sudden inspiration once you're on the spot.

If you'll be making your case in spoken form, practice it as if you're giving a presentation. If it'll be in written form, make it articulate. A typo-laden email message may be fine for trivial communications, but if you want to be persuasive about important matters, a polished, professional-looking write-up will carry more weight.

Pay Attention to Timing
Teammates who slave over buggy code all weekend may be too bleary-eyed on Monday to care what you want. Your manager may not be sympathetic to your ideas after going a few rounds with a demanding, scope-expanding customer. Some people can't focus before their first (or fifth) cup of coffee. So don’t just pop into the other party's office or cubicle when the mood strikes you and assume you'll get undivided (or even fractional) attention.

I recall a fellow named Hank who was so eager to present his Great Idea to his boss, Chuck, that he confronted Chuck at 8 a.m. on Chuck's first day back from vacation. Not only did Chuck have emails overflowing his inboxes, but his own manager had graciously welcomed him back with a crisis. Did Chuck pay attention to Hank's idea? Not a chance.

Don't Expect an Instantaneous Yes
It might not be a stretch to persuade a coworker to change today's lunch date to tomorrow. But making a pitch for something big, such as the adoption of agile methods, is unlikely to get an immediate "Sure, why not?" (Wouldn't that be wonderful?)
Getting buy-in for something that entails a major change usually takes patience and quiet persistence. Let the idea seep in. Show how other organizations or teams have benefited. Find credible allies who can add clout to your case. Suggest ways to start small and with minimal risk. Give it time. Building your case slowly and steadily will improve your odds of success.

If the Answer Is No, Learn from the Rejection
If you get turned down, accept the decision gracefully. Arguing and "yes, but"-ing will simply peg you as a nuisance, making it even harder to succeed next time around.
Instead, request an explanation and then do your own personal retrospective. Ask yourself: Do I still think my proposal was realistic and reasonable? Did I package my idea appropriately? What should I do differently next time around?

DAY 57

MANAGEMENT SUBJECT: CURRY’S PYRAMID FOR MARKETING AND CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP MANAGEMENT

Segmenting, understanding and managing customers

How much do you invest in courting customers? The answer should depend on the profit they create. Curry's Pyramid provides a clear summary of your most valuable customers (and unprofitable ones) so that you can target your money, efforts and strategy accordingly.

Without customer segmentation, companies risk: wasting resources on loss-making customers; missing opportunities to increase profit through other customers; and alienating their most profitable ones. Curry's Pyramid helps to identify each group, clarify your thinking and determine your marketing and customer-relationship strategies - identifying groups to cross-sell and up-sell to.

The basis of Curry's Pyramid is the revenue each customer group generates. It works from the 80/20 rule, where 20 per cent of the customers generate 80 per cent of the revenue, and 80 per cent of the customers provide 20 per cent of the revenue. This means:

·         taking good care of the top 20 per cent of customers

·         moving customers in lower-revenue-generating segments up the value chain

·         understanding your reasons for marketing to low-profit segments

·         questioning why you keep loss-making customers.

The pyramid can reflect different things - not simply revenue. It could depict profit margin per segment. Viewing groups solely in terms of revenue or profit margins is only part of the story - other factors need to be considered, such as brand and market presence. Nonetheless, given that a small customer group generates the bulk of your revenue and is probably highly profitable, Curry's Pyramid is useful for analyzing customers and developing marketing strategy.

In practice

Decide how you are going to segment customers - for example, by revenue generation or profit margin per customer.

1.       Collate and analyze the data.

2.       Use this information to review and inform your marketing strategy.

3.       Incorporate broader strategic aims into marketing strategy. Don't just focus on the now: consider potential customers (move customers up the value chain and turn prospective customers into actual ones).

4.       Determine the levels of marketing costs that each segment justifies and develop tactics that are cost-sensitive and tied to revenue.

5.       Take very good care of your most profitable customers.

Finally, Curry's Pyramid is designed to achieve one aim: to ensure that your company is customer-driven. If you are not focused 100 per cent on customers, then you are looking in the wrong direction.

SKILL CAPSULE: TWELVE WAYS TO WIN PEOPLE TO YOUR WAY OF THINKING

1.       "Avoid arguments." Avoid an argument at all costs, even if you know that you’re right. You cannot win an argument. If you lose an argument, you lose; if you win an argument, you still lose, because you make the other person feel inferior. “A man convinced against his will is of the same opinion still”

Guide to avoiding arguments:

§  Welcome the disagreement.

§  Distrust your first instinctive impression.

§  Control your temper.

§  Listen first.

§  Look for areas of agreement.

§  Be honest.

§  Promise to think over your opponents’ ideas and study them carefully.

§  Thank your opponents sincerely for their interest

§  Postpone action to give both sides time to think through the problem.

2.       "Show respect for the other person's opinions. Never tell someone they are wrong." Do not tell people they are wrong, especially if they are adamant about their beliefs, or else they will resent you. It will make the other person want to fight. Do not be afraid to admit you’re wrong. Let people admit they’re wrong first (i.e. if you’re the boss of a company,  ask the employees where they thing something is wrong, then you make suggestions to improve it. "If you're wrong, admit it quickly and emphatically." Admit that you’re wrong do it quickly, openly, and with enthusiasm

3.       “Say about yourself all the derogatory things you know the other person is thinking or wants to say or intends to say and say them before that person has a chance to say them. The chances are a hundred to one that a generous, forgiving attitude will be taken and your mistakes will be minimized.

4.       "Begin in a friendly way." Begin in a friendly way before you state your problem or else you would find difficulty in find a solution Convince the other person you are his friend Compliment the other person

5.        "Start with questions the other person will answer yes to." Keep emphasizing on things which you agree, “that you are both striving for the same end and that your only difference is of method and not of purpose” Keeps the other person saying “yes” and never “no”, because the listener will move in the more affirmative direction. More “yeses” mean you will be more likely to get a yes for your ultimate proposal

6.       "Let the other person do the talking." Let the person talk themselves out, since they know more about their own business and problems. However, if you disagree with something the other person says, DO NOT INTERUPPT you should listen patiently and with an open mind.  Letting the other person do the talking has benefits. During a job interview, you should get to know about the other person and his/her company Successful people like to reminisce about the company’s beginnings and his Struggles

7.       "Let the other person feel the idea is his/hers." Consult others in their wishes and desires For example, if you are a sales manager, you should ask your employees what they expect from you, and what they think you have a right to expect from them. No one likes to be told what to do; we like to think we are buying something because we want or, or we do something because we want to

8.       "Try honestly to see things from the other person's point of view." Put yourself in the other person’s shoes; look at the other’s POV Cooperativeness in conversation is achieved when you consider the other person’s ideas and feelings as important as your own Ask yourself, “Why would he or she want to do it?”

9.       "Sympathize with the other person." A phrase to stop arguments or make the other person listen attentively: “I don’t blame you one iota for feeling as you do. If I were you, I would undoubtedly feel just as you do” Sympathize with the other person’s point of view

10.   "Appeal to noble motives." A person usually has two reasons for doing something: one that sounds good and a real reason. People will act favorably if you make them feel that you consider them honest, upright and fair.

11.   "Dramatize your ideas." The truth has to be made vivid, dramatized. This is similar to commercials comparing their brand to another

12.   "Throw down a challenge." When nothing else works, stimulate competition

“People love the chance to prove his or her worth, to excel, to win”

COMMUNICATION EXERCISE: MAKING AN ARGUMENT

Let’s start with a classical rhetorical strategy. It asks the rhetorician, speaker, or author to frame arguments in the following steps:

Classical Rhetorical Strategy

1. Exordium	Prepares the audience to consider your argument
2. Narration	Provides the audience with the necessary background or context for your argument
3. Proposition	Introduces your claim being argued in the document
4. Confirmation	Offers the audience evidence to support your argument
5. Refutation	Introduces to the audience and then discounts or refutes the counterarguments or objections
6. Peroration	Your conclusion of your argument

This is a standard pattern in rhetoric and you will probably see it in both speech and English courses. The pattern is useful to guide you in preparing your document and can serve as a valuable checklist to insure you are prepared. While this formal pattern has distinct advantages, you may not see it used exactly as indicated here on a daily basis.

Effective Argumentation Strategies:

Here is a useful way of organizing and remembering seven key argumentative strategies:

1.       Argument by Generalization

2.       Argument by Analogy

3.       Argument by Sign

4.       Argument by Consequence

5.       Argument by Authority

6.       Argument by Principle

7.       Argument by Testimony

Evidence

Here are three guidelines to consider in order to insure your evidence passes the “so what?” test of relevance in relation to your claim. Make sure your evidence has the following traits:

1.       Supportive. Examples are clearly representative, statistics are accurate, testimony is authoritative, and information is reliable.

2.       Relevant. Examples clearly relate to the claim or topic, and you are not comparing “apples to oranges.”

3.       Effective. Examples are clearly the best available to support the claim, quality is preferred to quantity, there are only a few well-chosen statistics, facts, or data.

Appealing to Emotions

Emotions are a psychological and physical reaction, such as fear or anger, to stimuli that we experience as a feeling. Our feelings or emotions directly impact our own point of view and readiness to communicate, but also influence how, why, and when we say things. Emotions influence not only how you say or what you say, but also how you hear or what you hear. At times, emotions can be challenging to control. Emotions will move your audience, and possibly even move you, to change or act in certain ways.

Marketing experts are famous for creating a need or associating an emotion with a brand or label in order to sell it. You will speak the language of your audience in your document, and may choose to appeal to emotion, but you need to consider how the strategy works, as it may be considered a tool that has two edges.

Emotional resistance involves getting tired, often to the point of rejection, of hearing messages that attempt to elicit an emotional response. Emotional appeals can wear out the audience’s capacity to receive the message. As Aristotle outlined, ethos (credibility), logos (logic), and pathos (passion, enthusiasm, and emotional response) constitute the building blocks of any document. It’s up to you to create a balanced document, where you may appeal to emotion, but choose to use it judiciously.

Do not

•          use false, fabricated, misrepresented, distorted, or irrelevant evidence to support arguments or claims

•          intentionally use unsupported, misleading, or illogical reasoning

•          represent yourself as informed or an “expert” on a subject when you are not

•          use irrelevant appeals to divert attention from the issue at hand

•          ask your audience to link your idea or proposal to emotion-laden values, motives, or goals to which it is actually not related

•          deceive your audience by concealing your real purpose, your self-interest, the group you represent, or your position as an advocate of a viewpoint

•          distort, hide, or misrepresent the number, scope, intensity, or undesirable features of consequences or effects

•          use emotional appeals that lack a supporting basis of evidence or reasoning

•          oversimplify complex, gradation-laden situations into simplistic, two-valued, either-or, polar views or choices

•          pretend certainty where tentativeness and degrees of probability would be more accurate

•          advocate something that you yourself do not believe in.

The art of argument in writing involves presenting supportive, relevant, effective evidence for each point and doing it in a respectful and ethical manner.

DAY 58

MANAGEMENT SUBJECT: THE TIPPING POINT

Malcolm Gladwell's insights into the way ideas spread

The emergence, spread and decline of products or ideas is a phenomenon that is rarely understood. Gladwell's insight into social dynamics, however, reveals the trends of human behaviour.

Malcolm Gladwell likens the rapid growth, decline and coincidence of ideas to epidemics. Ideas are 'infectious', fashions represent 'outbreaks' and new ideas and products are 'viruses' - and advertising is a way of infecting others. He shows how a factor tips when a critical mass is reached. This is when a shoe becomes a fashion craze, social smoking becomes addiction and crime becomes a wave. The idea of the 'tipping point' provides insight into how to launch products successfully.

1.      The law of the few

Epidemics need a small number of people to transmit their infection to many others - those who travel and socialize can turn a local outbreak into a global pandemic. For business, word of mouth is critical. Those who speak the most (and are influential) create epidemics of ideas. These people are connectors, mavens and salespeople.

·         Connectors bring people together. They influence the spread of epidemics through their networks. Masters of the 'weak tie' (friendly, superficial connections), they spread ideas far.

·         Mavens - information specialists - are subtly different. They focus on the needs of others rather than their own, and have the most to say. Teachers are a good example.

·         Salespeople concentrate on the relationship, not the message, and are persuasive because they have better 'sales' skills, non-verbal communication and 'motor mimicry' (imitating others' emotions and behavior to gain trust).

Tipping points need connectors, mavens and salespeople.

2.      The stickiness factor

With products or ideas, how attractive it is matters as much as how it is communicated in determining whether it spreads. Its 'stickiness' determines whether it passes by or catches on. To reach a tipping point, ideas have to be compelling and attractive. The Information Age has created a stickiness problem - the clutter of messages we face leads to products being ignored. To create epidemics, it is increasingly important to present the message effectively. If contagiousness is a function of the messenger, stickiness is a property of the message.

3.      The power of context

We rarely appreciate how our personal lives are affected by circumstances. Changes in the context of a message can create an epidemic. An example is the 'broken windows theory' - if someone sees a single broken window, that person may believe there is an absence of control and authority. Consequently, they are more likely to commit other crimes. A broken window or graffiti invites more serious crimes, spawning a crime wave. Glad well argues that our circumstances, or context, matter as much as character and that we can control the tipping point by altering the environment.

SKILL CAPSULE: BRAINSTORMING TO EVOLVE CULTURAL PILLARS FOR YOUR COMPANY

What is brainstorming

“The best way how to have a good idea is to have many ideas“

·         method of thinking up solutions, concepts, ideas in problem solving

·         using the brain to storm new ideas in groups

·         “It is easier to tone down a wild idea than to think up a new one.“

Why and When Use It

·         the creative process is not always easy (problems of fear, criticism, no existing solutions yet)

·         one person has a limited capacity

·         people tend to judge new ideas immediately (a change is difficult for a human being)

How does it work

·         in a group of people

·         free associations to the topic given

·         relaxed and friendly atmosphere

·         deferred judgements – release the human mind, lateral thinking

The key rules

·         relaxed atmosphere - completely free

·         no criticism or judgements

·         quantity matters

·         all ideas legitimate

·         all ideas put on the sheet of paper

·         evaluation only after the session

Benefits Of Brainstorming

Wider picture

Fun

Cheap

Quick

Team building

Greater acceptance

Why and when use it

Specific questions:

·      How can we promote our products?

·      What can our company do in 5 years hence?

·      What can we do to solve the problem xy?

·      How can we improve co-operation of a and b?

-          What do our customers really want?

-          What opportunities do we have this year?

-          How can we have more fun at work?

BRAINSTORMING CONSTRAINTS

·         does not rank the ideas

·         cannot help you select the important ones

·         does not suggest the best solutions

·         must be amended by other
methods

CONDUCTING THE SESSION

·         Specify the objectives – make sure that everybody is happy with the central question.

·         Decide the roles: - leader, recorder, panel.

·         Explain the rules (or make sure that everybody knows them. Eventually – a warm-up exercise for fun). You can let people to jot down a few ideas before starting.

·         Begin by going around, after some rounds, open the floor.

·         Record the ideas exactly, clarify only in the end.

·         Suspend judgements !

·         Encourage the ideas, even the most radical and far-fetched. Allow the late coming ideas, do not hurry.

·         At the end – eliminate duplicates, clarify, thank the participants.

EVALUATION PHASE

·         Put the evaluation off / next day

·         Add newly born ideas to the list

·         Group similar ideas together

·         Select the best or most interesting suggestions

·         Create teams which will work on them further

·         Inform people about the results

Mistakes to be avoided

·         people are negative in advance (it will not work anyway)

·         too many brainstormings in the company

·         bad atmosphere in the beginning

·         bad experience with the method

·         judgements occur during the session

·         any criticism and personal attacks

COMMUNICATION EXERCISE: STANCE AND WHAT TO DO WITH ONES ARMS WHILE SPEAKING

When you are speaking in public, remember to use your body as an integral part of your communication. Speaking is like song and dance: The words and movement should fit perfectly together.

 

Stance

When you stand, do so with intent. As default, stand straight, facing the audience, with a vertical spine and head balanced.

To present a strong opinion, plant your feet slightly apart and perhaps put your hands on your hips.

To give something, point one foot forward, pointing towards the audience and angle your body at 45 degrees.

Beware of 'happy feet' where nervousness makes you shuffle or pace around. Also avoid defensive, deceptive, aggressive or other negative body language. A typical defensive stance is to cover your genitals in the 'fig-leaf' posture. It is better to be open and (reasonably) relaxed.

 

Arms

At the start of the presentation open your arms with palms up and diagonally out in an embrace to welcome and greet everyone. Push palms up and together towards them when presenting an idea to them. Point to parts of the audience with open palm up (not the 'scolding' finger).

Beware of excessive gestures and too much 'windmill' arm movement. It is better to make fewer big gestures that accompany your key points only.

 

Hands

Shape things with your hands, making circles as containers and holding precious ideas between your fingers. Think about how people can see you and do things in profile when your hands in front of you may not be seen.

Generally avoid putting hands below the waist as it draws attention to the nether regions. Also do not touch your face or head.

DAY 59

MANAGEMENT SUBJECT: GRIP

Building customer motivation

Successful selling involves showing customers how your product will make a difference to them. Use GRIP to understand a client's goals, assess their situation, and identify the gap between what they have and what they would value and their motivation to buy.

The four stages are:

• Goals                                  • Implications

• Reality                              • Plan.

Stage	Your aims	How	Result
Goals: building a vision Thinking about the future creates a positive mindset that sees opportunities, is motivated to change and ready to see how your offer will make a difference	Help the client see how their current situation could be improved Encourage them to question and challenge the present, think enthusiastically and creatively and build a vision of the future	Ask open questions about the future - encouraging customers to create a vision of the future and realize what’s lacking  While knowing their current situation, focus on the future	Everyone is clear about the gap between where they are and where they would like to be The client is thinking about possibilities and wanting to achieve their vision
Reality: what stands between you and your goals Explore the current situation in detail	Clarify what needs to be done to make the client's ideal solution happen	Ask questions about their current situation: what they like and what frustrates them	Client sees the extent of the gap and the need for action If no gap exists, time is saved not pursuing the sale further
Implications: seeing a different future Explore the implications and importance of change. Move the client towards a decision Don't rush to your offer because this stage provides valuable insight to better tailor your offer	Not to rush to making an offer Establish a good relationship with client Understand their needs and hopes	Be empathetic, listen and ask questions that explore the situation and goals Help client to see the extent of the gap and understand the difference change would make	Knowing client's commitment Developing trust and a strong relationship An enthusiastic client
Plan: achieving your goals Use the information to tailor your offer, build relationships and gain commitment	Enable your client to achieve goals, offering the solution for their needs Ensure customer feels unrushed, comfortable and confident Make the right sale - for repeat business	Use information so solution meets their needs and expectations Work with client to make adjustments	The sale A long-term business relationship

SKILL CAPSULE: WRITING GOOD REPORTS

Writing good business reports doesn’t come easily to everyone. Many people consider the task boring and difficult. Inexperienced writers often feel they have to produce great tomes that include everything they know, resulting in long documents that are a nightmare both to write and read. Writing reports can be a satisfying experience, though, especially when the result is an elegant document that meets your objectives. Remember: your purpose is to present relevant information that allows good decisions to be made, or outlines the effects of decisions that have already been made. Good reports are succinct, helpful, and written with the reader and his or her perspective firmly in mind. They should be structured so that the logic of their arguments can be followed easily, with enough information to make the case but not so much that the writing becomes tedious.

 

What You Need to Know

I have a report to write that covers issues that could become large and unwieldy. How do I control the scope of the material?

Try these techniques for controlling scope and content:

• Take the time for a detailed conversation with the person requesting the report. Ask about the specific objectives of the report.
• Think carefully about your audience, their perspective, their background knowledge of the topic, and their likely investment in it.
• Work out your desired outcome, which will help you to organize your information and arguments.
• It may seem obvious that the report should have a beginning, a middle, and an end, but many report writers lose track of this basic structure. Plan the sections and sub-sections carefully and logically.
• Find, organize, and analyze the information that you want to include. Then exclude anything you don’t really need.
• After you’ve written a draft, check and double-check your work. If at all possible, ask someone else to read the report and give you feedback on whether it flows logically and convincingly.

I work in a technical area and much of my information is numerical. How can I make this compelling reading?

Unless your readers are highly technical, reams of numbers or formulas will turn them off. Make the data come alive by describing in lively terms what the numbers mean. Whenever possible, present data in easy-to-grasp graphs, charts, or other illustrations.

 

How can I show myself in the best light when I write a report?

Producing a highly professional document may help you advance your career as well as meet the objectives of the report, but don’t fall into the trap of thinking of the report as your résumé. It’s a vehicle to show your professional expertise, not an excuse to show off. Follow the basic rules: logical organization, simple and straightforward language. Don’t pepper the document with the latest acronyms and jargon. If you do need to use an acronym, write out the term the first time you use it. If you need to use a technical term that many in your audience may not understand, include a brief definition. If the report must use acronyms and terms specific to the field, consider including a glossary at the back.

You may include a line that will help the reader recognize your expertise, for example: “The current debate about [subject] goes beyond the scope of this report, but my conclusions take in account the relevant issues.”

 

What to Do                 

Know What Impact You Want to Have on Your Audience

To write a good report, you need to be clear about your audience, what they know already, and what they’ll learn from your final document.

You may be writing for a number of different reasons, but each will inform the approach you take:

• justifying a decision that has already been made and reviewing its effectiveness.
• developing a persuasive argument in support of a particular decision
• providing background knowledge for a debate or a decision in which you have no investment.

Each possibility suggests an organizing framework.

Visualize your finished document at the outset and get a sense of how you’d like the readers to feel as they read through it. This will help you decide what to include, what to leave out, and what tone will work best.

 

Set the Context

Your first task is to draw readers into the material and to remove anything that would detract from them understanding it fully. Think of creating a “frame” through which readers view the topic. This frame may be a summary at the beginning of the report of its purpose, scope, structure, and any assumptions on which it’s based. You may include an outcomes statement to set expectations and guide the reader on how the contents of the report should be considered or applied. For example: “This report will contribute to the debate on [subject]” or “This report will set out the rationale for making a decision on [subject]… and conclude with a recommendation on what this decision should be.”

Present the Key Issues, Themes, and Arguments

Identify the key issues and themes that will be developed in the main body of the report, and help the reader by providing signposts—subheads, etc.,—for where those themes will be found. Rather than crisscross themes, introduce and address each theme separately and develop your argument logically. Do not conflate personal opinions with the facts; be accurate and objective in the way you present your data, findings, or discussion points.

Explore the Implications

Now that you’ve identified and explained the key issues and themes, you need to expand on their underlying causes and consequences. Explore possible solutions, being careful to cover any implications, including costs (often overlooked). Your logic will pull the readers along and help them to come to the same conclusions as you do. If your report is designed to favor one option out of many, this is clearly the way you want to go!

Look to the Future

Some of your readers won’t be natural decision makers and may feel uncomfortable when weighing a number of options. Help them along by including a forward-looking section where you explain why one decision is better than another. Sometimes, you can do this most effectively by painting a picture of the future if the “ideal” decision isn’t made. If you do take this approach, however, you must be absolutely sure that your logic is watertight, as any gaps will give others an excellent opportunity to launch counterarguments.

Conclude and Make Recommendations

Powerful conclusions reiterate the points made, draw all the threads together, and assert what needs to be done next.

Prepare the Executive Summary

Although the executive summary usually comes at the beginning of any report, it’s actually much easier and more effective to write it after you write the report. You’ll have thought through your arguments to their logical conclusions, all of which should still be clear in your mind, so it should be a relatively simple task to summarize. Remember that the summary need only be a few paragraphs long. Its purpose is to give the reader a brief overview of the report’s content and outcome.

Here’s a quick checklist covering the main structural points along with some items to consider when reviewing your document.

Context	Do you have a clear understanding of the purpose of the report and its scope and expected outcome? Have you considered the readers and understood their needs, perspective, and motivations for reading the report?
Organization	Have you made sure that your document is ordered logically and that your arguments are robust? Is there an obvious beginning, middle, and end to your report? Is there a logical thread?
Presentation	Is the document attractive to the eye? This includes layout, formatting, and use of tables, figures, and illustrations. It’s true that pictures can say a thousand words, but make sure they’re relevant and add something to the report. Make sure there is enough white space for easy reading but not so much that the report looks weak.
Content	Have you covered all the key issues? Have you differentiated between fact and opinion? Have you outlined your assumptions? Are your facts accurate? Are your arguments clear and free from personal or unreasoned bias?
Style	Is your writing concise and your meaning clear and consistent? Have you checked your spelling and grammar?
Conclusions and Recommendations	Are your conclusions a natural outcome of the arguments in your report? Are your recommendations based upon your conclusions and free from prejudice or bias?
And finally…	Have you included a succinct executive summary? Does the report look professional as you page through it one last time?

 

What to Avoid

 

Your Report Is Too Long

Many people assume that they must include everything they know about a topic or issue in a report. Remember that “less is more”and include only information that is essential to the logic and purpose of the report or that provides important background.

 

Your Report is Too Subjective

It’s easy to weave too much of yourself into a report, especially if you feel strongly about the subject or have a vested interest in it. But the result can be a report that doesn’t help your audience and may even damage your credibility. Avoid unsubstantiated statements or emotional assertions Instead, use solid information and examples to support your points. If there are web sites or publications that bolster your argument, list them as references to further build your credibility and allow readers to conduct their own research.

 

You Assume That Others Think Like You

Report writers often assume that their audience thinks as they do and will see an argument along the same lines. Don’t fall into this trap; remember that others approach topics with their own perspective and logic. Part of knowing your audience is anticipating their arguments to your case. When you address these arguments in your report, you can show respect for the audience while you politely counter the arguments themselves. Ask a colleague to read your report and alert you to any unwarranted assumptions about your readers.

COMMUNICATION EXERCISE: HOW LOUD ONE SHOULD SPEAK

Do you often talk in a soft and muffled voice? Have you ever been told by people to speak up or repeat yourself often? Such situations can be quite embarrassing though there are chances that you already know how to talk without faltering. You might have had a phone conversation in which the connection was poor or the recipient had a hearing problem when you spoke loudly and clearly without even being conscious of it. Thus, we conclude that human speech is a complicated process. The lungs, vocal cords and sinuses all contribute to the tone, quality and volume of human voice while the lips, tongue and other structures in the mouth control the way we form words. Most people are not trained to speak as it just comes quite naturally to them. We humans learn it by observing others. However, there are specific techniques that develop the quality and tone of the voice and allow us to speak loudly and clearly without vocal strain. If you can consciously make it a habit, then it would be a great way to get yourself heard all the time. Here are some tips to help you attain that.

Talking Aloud

Know Your Message Before You Speak
Understanding the message before you speak helps you to get rid of initial jitters. It also helps you plan your words and anticipate others’ reactions. If you are not sure about your message, you will not be able to state it with confidence. Avoid rushing into it without solidifying your stance.

Breathing Is The Key
Start breathing from your diaphragm. The vocal cords are just like reeds in a clarinet as they produce vibration as the air passes over them. The stronger the flow of air, the louder will be the sound. You can inhale and exhale deeply to increase the volume of air in the lungs. With this kind of breathing, your stomach will expand and contract with each breath.

Relax Your Shoulders
Tension in the neck and shoulders restrict the flow of air and constrict the vocal space. The vocal cords must vibrate together, but if the space is much constricted, it is like the dampening effect on the piano. In order to loosen the shoulders and neck, shrug the shoulders up and down and rotate the head in both directions.

Proper Posture
Maintain the correct posture. Keep your shoulders neutral and your head centered. The ears must be in line with the shoulders and the chin must be in a relaxed position. Do remember not to jut your chin forward. Avoid drooping and keep the spine nonaligned and rib cage comfortable.

Speak In Natural Voice
You can speak in your natural voice. Speaking in a tone outside the natural voice can put more tension on the vocal cords. To find your natural voice, inhale deeply by opening the mouth wide. Exhale the air by making a ‘ha’ sound. Make your mouth wide open as you talk. Much sound will not come, as it has to sneak past the closed teeth and the lips.

Speak In An Even Voice
You must try to talk in an even voice, not letting all the air go into one phase and resulting in yell. Having taken a deep breath, you will have plenty of air to sustain you to talk the rest of the sentence.

Avoid Yelling
You must avoid yelling as it tightens the vocal cords and causes damage. You can often practice this exercise to know the difference between yelling and volume control. Open the diaphragm to the rate of airflow and observe the way the sound gets softer and louder. You can do the same exercise and also try to affect the volume by tightening the vocal cords. While yelling, note the tension in the neck and strangled quality of the sound.

Do Not Get Scared Of Telling The Wrong Thing
Ensure you do not get scared of speaking the wrong thing. Once you commit a mistake, just as everyone else, you can correct yourself and carry on with the conversation. Some people are strong at this. If you need practice, understand that it is a skill in which you are not strong at, but something which you can master.

Slow Down Your Conversation
If you are talking too fast, it is considered as a symptom of nervousness. However, doing so will only make your speech seem inarticulate. So, while engaging in conversation, even while talking loudly, speak slowly to make the words understandable.

Practice Makes You Perfect
Though it takes a little time to perfect the technique, it is only through practice you can become a master in it. Practice makes you the president of a speech club in no time.

Tips To Remember

• Familiarize with the way of breathing, as it will help you raise your voice. Your lungs contain 1500 miles of airways and over 300 million alveoli. Every minute, you breathe 13 pints of air.
• Understand the reason why speak in a soft voice – is it because you are self-conscious and you dislike being forceful or confrontational. Addressing these issues will help you to be more comfortable in speaking up.
• The best posture to talk loud is while you stand up. Once you are in an erect position, your lungs will enlarge to the fullest ability. Your diaphragm will also be clear enough in order to raise your voice easily.
• Practicing yoga helps to get a kick in the voice as yoga exercises makes the lungs less stressed out. This enables you to speak loudly, maintaining the clarity.
• Ensure not to shy away from talking loudly. The sooner you get comfortable with the new loud voice, the better you feel after each conversation.

Warnings

• Ensure not to strain voice. You can just speak strongly by letting the air out at an even speed.
• Make sure you do not shout while engaged in conversation as it can lead to damage to the voice.
• Never talk loudly in unnecessary situations as it is annoying and you will be greeted with weird looks.
• Always understand the fine line between talking loudly, and shouting at some one.

Speaking loud and clear makes your requests and complaints distinctive and reduces the chances of your point going ignored. It also reduces the need for long lectures and supplementary advisory statements. Avoid feeling as if no one is listening to you by making it unworkable not to understand your intentions. Clarity in expression shows your self-assurance and forces others to consider your requirements.

DAY 60

MANAGEMENT SUBJECT: THE INFORMATION LIFE CYCLE

Using information to its full effect

A modern competitive company is only as good as its ability to use information.

Overview

Improving how your organization gathers and uses information will enhance analysis, decision-making, operations and strategic development. This starts with knowing how information flows, what it is used for and how it is applied. This is known as the information life cycle. How you use information at every stage of this cycle is critical to achieving targets, optimizing performance and revealing new opportunities.

Understand information requirements

 

Generate the right information

Review and analyze information

Store and retrieve information

Use and act upon information

Start by understanding what information your company needs - and why it is needed

This will enable you to gather the right data for all aspects of your company and to put systems in place to ensure that it is routinely gathered, consistent, reliable and made available to yourself and others now and in the future. To do this, you will need to ask others what information they need (including the best sources of that data) and when they need it.

Then, generate the right data

Make sure that the information is fit for purpose. For the right decisions to be made, the right data has to be collected. There are two aspects to this: generating the data you know you will need and gathering data that has yet to reveal valuable insight. Too often, information remains hidden - to be of use, it must be gathered, collated and organized effectively.

Next, review and analyze the information

How you review and analyze the information will determine the quality of problem-solving, decision-making, operational management and strategic development. To review the current situation, make sense of data and to highlight trends, gaps, strengths, weaknesses and opportunities, subject the information to quantitative methods, rigorous assessment and discussions.

Make sure that you store the information and are able to retrieve it

To be effective and of use, information needs to be stored properly and it needs to be cost-effective. It needs to be widely available and easily accessible. Make sure that it is clearly labeled and organized - and that people know how to access it. Also, information should be kept relevant and up to date.

Finally, use and act upon the information

Surprisingly, given that gathering information is an expensive, time-consuming process, some people neglect to follow through fully on what the data is telling them. To be of use, you have to be prepared to listen to what the data is saying and be prepared to take action - choosing to ignore the data is likely to lead strategy in the wrong direction, fail to resolve a problem or leave opportunities untapped. By improving the quality of how you identify the information you need and how information is gathered, analyzed and stored, you will be better able to see what needs to happen, to make the right decisions, and to guide strategy and implementation.

SKILL CAPSULE: 31 CORE COMPETENCIES EXPLAINED

 I. Competencies Dealing with People

The Leading Others Cluster

1. Establishing Focus: The ability to develop and communicate goals in support of the business' mission.

·         Acts to align own unit's goals with the strategic direction of the business.

·         Ensures that people in the unit understand how their work relates to the business' mission.

·         Ensures that everyone understands and identifies with the unit's mission.

·         Ensures that the unit develops goals and a plan to help fulfill the business' mission.

2. Providing Motivational Support: The ability to enhance others' commitment to their work.

·         Recognizes and rewards people for their achievements.

·         Acknowledges and thanks people for their contributions.

·         Expresses pride in the group and encourages people to feel good about their accomplishments.

·         Finds creative ways to make people's work rewarding.

·         Signals own commitment to a process by being personally present and involved at key events.

·         Identifies and promptly tackles morale problems.

·         Gives talks or presentations that energize groups.

3. Fostering Teamwork: As a team member, the ability and desire to work cooperatively with others on a team; as a team leader, the ability to demonstrate interest, skill, and success in getting groups to learn to work together.

Behaviors for Team Members

·         Listens and responds constructively to other team members' ideas.

·         Offers support for others' ideas and proposals.

·         Is open with other team members about his/her concerns.

·         Expresses disagreement constructively (e.g., by emphasizing points of agreement, suggesting alternatives that may be acceptable to the group).

·         Reinforces team members for their contributions.

·         Gives honest and constructive feedback to other team members.

·         Provides assistance to others when they need it.

·         Works for solutions that all team members can support.

·         Shares his/her expertise with others.

·         Seeks opportunities to work on teams as a means to develop experience, and knowledge.

·         Provides assistance, information, or other support to others, to build or maintain relationships with them.

Behaviors for Team Leaders

·         Provides opportunities for people to learn to work together as a team.

·         Enlists the active participation of everyone.

·         Promotes cooperation with other work units.

·         Ensures that all team members are treated fairly.

·         Recognizes and encourages the behaviors that contribute to teamwork.

4. Empowering Others: The ability to convey confidence in employees' ability to be successful, especially at challenging new tasks; delegating significant responsibility and authority; allowing employees freedom to decide how they will accomplish their goals and resolve issues.

·         Gives people latitude to make decisions in their own sphere of work.

·         Is able to let others make decisions and take charge.

·         Encourages individuals and groups to set their own goals, consistent with business goals.

·         Expresses confidence in the ability of others to be successful.

·         Encourages groups to resolve problems on their own; avoids prescribing a solution.

5. Managing Change: The ability to demonstrate support for innovation and for organizational changes needed to improve the organization's effectiveness; initiating, sponsoring, and implementing organizational change; helping others to successfully manage organizational change.

Employee Behaviors

·         Personally develops a new method or approach.

·         Proposes new approaches, methods, or technologies.

·         Develops better, faster, or less expensive ways to do things.

Manager/Leader Behaviors

·         Works cooperatively with others to produce innovative solutions.

·         Takes the lead in setting new business directions, partnerships, policies or procedures.

·         Seizes opportunities to influence the future direction of an organizational unit or the overall business.

·         Helps employees to develop a clear understanding of what they will need to do differently, as a result of changes in the organization.

·         Implements or supports various change management activities (e.g., communications, education, team development, coaching).

·         Establishes structures and processes to plan and manage the orderly implementation of change.

·         Helps individuals and groups manage the anxiety associated with significant change.

·         Facilitates groups or teams through the problem-solving and creative-thinking processes leading to the development and implementation of new approaches, systems, structures, and methods.

6. Developing Others: The ability to delegate responsibility and to work with others and coach them to develop their capabilities.

·         Provides helpful, behaviorally specific feedback to others.

·         Shares information, advice, and suggestions to help others to be more successful; provides effective coaching.

·         Gives people assignments that will help develop their abilities.

·         Regularly meets with employees to review their development progress.

·         Recognizes and reinforces people's developmental efforts and improvements.

·         Expresses confidence in others' ability to be successful.

7. Managing Performance: The ability to take responsibility for one's own or one's employees' performance, by setting clear goals and expectations, tracking progress against the goals, ensuring feedback, and addressing performance problems and issues promptly.

Behaviors for employees

·         With his/her manager, sets specific, measurable goals that are realistic but challenging, with dates for accomplishment.

·         With his/her manager, clarifies expectations about what will be done and how.

·         Enlists his/her manager's support in obtaining the information, resources, and training needed to accomplish his/her work effectively.

·         Promptly notifies his/her manager about any problems that affect his/her ability to accomplish planned goals.

·         Seeks performance feedback from his/her manager and from others with whom he/she interacts on the job.

·         Prepares a personal development plan with specific goals and a timeline for their accomplishment.

·         Takes significant action to develop skills needed for effectiveness in current or future job.

Behaviors for managers

·         Ensures that employees have clear goals and responsibilities.

·         Works with employees to set and communicate performance standards that are specific and measurable.

·         Supports employees in their efforts to achieve job goals (e.g., by providing resources, removing obstacles, acting as a buffer).

·         Stays informed about employees' progress and performance through both formal methods (e.g., status reports) and informal methods (e.g., management by walking around).

·         Provides specific performance feedback, both positive and corrective, as soon as possible after an event.

·         Deals firmly and promptly with performance problems; lets people know what is expected of them and when.

Communication and Influencing Cluster

8. Attention to Communication: The ability to ensure that information is passed on to others who should be kept informed.

·         Ensures that others involved in a project or effort are kept informed about developments and plans.

·         Ensures that important information from his/her management is shared with his/her employees and others as appropriate.

·         Shares ideas and information with others who might find them useful.

·         Uses multiple channels or means to communicate important messages (e.g., memos, newsletters, meetings, electronic mail).

·         Keeps his/her manager informed about progress and problems; avoids surprises.

·         Ensures that regular, consistent communication takes place.

9. Oral Communication: The ability to express oneself clearly in conversations and interactions with others.

·         Speaks clearly and can be easily understood.

·         Tailors the content of speech to the level and experience of the audience.

·         Uses appropriate grammar and choice of words in oral speech.

·         Organizes ideas clearly in oral speech.

·         Expresses ideas concisely in oral speech.

·         Maintains eye contact when speaking with others.

·         Summarizes or paraphrases his/her understanding of what others have said to verify understanding and prevent miscommunication.

10. Written Communication: The ability to express oneself clearly in business writing.

·         Expresses ideas clearly and concisely in writing.

·         Organizes written ideas clearly and signals the organization to the reader (e.g., through an introductory paragraph or through use of headings).

·         Tailors written communications to effectively reach an audience.

·         Uses graphics and other aids to clarify complex or technical information.

·         Spells correctly.

·         Writes using concrete, specific language.

·         Uses punctuation correctly.

·         Writes grammatically.

·         Uses an appropriate business writing style.

11. Persuasive Communication: The ability to plan and deliver oral and written communications that make an impact and persuade their intended audiences.

·         Identifies and presents information or data that will have a strong effect on others.

·         Selects language and examples tailored to the level and experience of the audience.

·         Selects stories, analogies, or examples to illustrate a point.

·         Creates graphics, overheads, or slides that display information clearly and with high impact.

·         Presents several different arguments in support of a position.

12. Interpersonal Awareness: The ability to notice, interpret, and anticipate others' concerns and feelings, and to communicate this awareness empathetically to others.

·         Understands the interests and important concerns of others.

·         Notices and accurately interprets what others are feeling, based on their choice of words, tone of voice, expressions, and other nonverbal behavior.

·         Anticipates how others will react to a situation.

·         Listens attentively to people's ideas and concerns.

·         Understands both the strengths and weaknesses of others.

·         Understands the unspoken meaning in a situation.

·         Says or does things to address others' concerns.

·         Finds non-threatening ways to approach others about sensitive issues.

·         Makes others feel comfortable by responding in ways that convey interest in what they have to say.

13. Influencing Others: The ability to gain others' support for ideas, proposals, projects, and solutions.

·         Presents arguments that address others' most important concerns and issues and looks for win-win solutions.

·         Involves others in a process or decision to ensure their support.

·         Offers trade-offs or exchanges to gain commitment.

·         Identifies and proposes solutions that benefit all parties involved in a situation.

·         Enlists experts or third parties to influence others.

·         Develops other indirect strategies to influence others.

·         Knows when to escalate critical issues to own or others' management, if own efforts to enlist support have not succeeded.

·         Structures situations (e.g., the setting, persons present, sequence of events) to create a desired impact and to maximize the chances of a favorable outcome.

·         Works to make a particular impression on others.

·         Identifies and targets influence efforts at the real decision makers and those who can influence them.

·         Seeks out and builds relationships with others who can provide information, intelligence, career support, potential business, and other forms of help.

·         Takes a personal interest in others (e.g., by asking about their concerns, interests, family, friends, hobbies) to develop relationships.

·         Accurately anticipates the implications of events or decisions for various stakeholders in the organization and plans strategy accordingly.

14. Building Collaborative Relationships: The ability to develop, maintain, and strengthen partnerships with others inside or outside the organization who can provide information, assistance, and support.

·         Asks about the other person's personal experiences, interests, and family.

·         Asks questions to identify shared interest, experiences, or other common ground.

·         Shows an interest in what others have to say; acknowledges their perspectives and ideas.

·         Recognizes the business concerns and perspectives of others.

·         Expresses gratitude and appreciation to others who have provided information, assistance, or support.

·         Takes time to get to know coworkers, to build rapport and establish a common bond.

·         Tries to build relationships with people whose assistance, cooperation, and support may be needed.

·         Provides assistance, information, and support to others to build a basis for future reciprocity.

15. Customer Orientation: The ability to demonstrate concern for satisfying one's external and/or internal customers.

·         Quickly and effectively solves customer problems.

·         Talks to customers (internal or external) to find out what they want and how satisfied they are with what they are getting.

·         Lets customers know he/she is willing to work with them to meet their needs.

·         Finds ways to measure and track customer satisfaction.

·         Presents a cheerful, positive manner with customers.

II. Compentencies Dealing with Business

The Preventing and Solving Problems Cluster

16. Diagnostic Information Gathering: The ability to identify the information needed to clarify a situation, seek that information from appropriate sources, and use skillful questioning to draw out the information, when others are reluctant to disclose it

·         Identifies the specific information needed to clarify a situation or to make a decision.

·         Gets more complete and accurate information by checking multiple sources.

·         Probes skillfully to get at the facts, when others are reluctant to provide full, detailed information.

·         Routinely walks around to see how people are doing and to hear about any problems they are encountering.

·         Questions others to assess whether they have thought through a plan of action.

·         Questions others to assess their confidence in solving a problem or tackling a situation.

·         Asks questions to clarify a situation.

·         Seeks the perspective of everyone involved in a situation.

·         Seeks out knowledgeable people to obtain information or clarify a problem.

17. Analytical Thinking: The ability to tackle a problem by using a logical, systematic, sequential approach.

·         Makes a systematic comparison of two or more alternatives.

·         Notices discrepancies and inconsistencies in available information.

·         Identifies a set of features, parameters, or considerations to take into account, in analyzing a situation or making a decision.

·         Approaches a complex task or problem by breaking it down into its component parts and considering each part in detail.

·         Weighs the costs, benefits, risks, and chances for success, in making a decision.

·         Identifies many possible causes for a problem.

·         Carefully weighs the priority of things to be done.

18. Forward Thinking: The ability to anticipate the implications and consequences of situations and take appropriate action to be prepared for possible contingencies.

·         Anticipates possible problems and develops contingency plans in advance.

·         Notices trends in the industry or marketplace and develops plans to prepare for opportunities or problems.

·         Anticipates the consequences of situations and plans accordingly.

·         Anticipates how individuals and groups will react to situations and information and plans accordingly.

19. Conceptual Thinking: The ability to find effective solutions by taking a holistic, abstract, or theoretical perspective.

·         Notices similarities between different and apparently unrelated situations.

·         Quickly identifies the central or underlying issues in a complex situation.

·         Creates a graphic diagram showing a systems view of a situation.

·         Develops analogies or metaphors to explain a situation.

·         Applies a theoretical framework to understand a specific situation.

20. Strategic Thinking: The ability to analyze the organization's competitive position by considering market and industry trends, existing and potential customers (internal and external), and strengths and weaknesses as compared to competitors.

·         Understands the organization's strengths and weaknesses as compared to competitors.

·         Understands industry and market trends affecting the organization's competitiveness.

·         Has an in-depth understanding of competitive products and services within the marketplace.

·         Develops and proposes a long-term (3-5 year) strategy for the organization based on an analysis of the industry and marketplace and the organization's current and potential capabilities as compared to competitors.

21. Technical Expertise: The ability to demonstrate depth of knowledge and skill in a technical
area.

·         Effectively applies technical knowledge to solve a range of problems.

·         Possesses an in-depth knowledge and skill in a technical area.

·         Develops technical solutions to new or highly complex problems that cannot be solved using existing methods or approaches.

·         Is sought out as an expert to provide advice or solutions in his/her technical area.

·         Keeps informed about cutting-edge technology in his/her technical area.

The Achieving Results Cluster

22. Initiative: Identifying what needs to be done and doing it before being asked or before the situation requires it.

·         Identifying what needs to be done and takes action before being asked or the situation requires it.

·         Does more than what is normally required in a situation.

·         Seeks out others involved in a situation to learn their perspectives.

·         Takes independent action to change the direction of events.

23. Entrepreneurial Orientation: The ability to look for and seize profitable business opportunities; willingness to take calculated risks to achieve business goals.

·         Notices and seizes profitable business opportunities.

·         Stays abreast of business, industry, and market information that may reveal business opportunities.

·         Demonstrates willingness to take calculated risks to achieve business goals.

·         Proposes innovative business deals to potential customers, suppliers, and business partners.

·         Encourages and supports entrepreneurial behavior in others.

24. Fostering Innovation: The ability to develop, sponsor, or support the introduction of new and improved method, products, procedures, or technologies.

·         Personally develops a new product or service.

·         Personally develops a new method or approach.

·         Sponsors the development of new products, services, methods, or procedures.

·         Proposes new approaches, methods, or technologies.

·         Develops better, faster, or less expensive ways to do things.

·         Works cooperatively with others to produce innovative solutions.

25. Results Orientation: The ability to focus on the desired result of one's own or one's unit's work, setting challenging goals, focusing effort on the goals, and meeting or exceeding them.

·         Develops challenging but achievable goals.

·         Develops clear goals for meetings and projects.

·         Maintains commitment to goals in the face of obstacles and frustrations.

·         Finds or creates ways to measure performance against goals.

·         Exerts unusual effort over time to achieve a goal.

·         Has a strong sense of urgency about solving problems and getting work done.

26. Thoroughness: Ensuring that one's own and others' work and information are complete and accurate; carefully preparing for meetings and presentations; following up with others to ensure that agreements and commitments have been fulfilled.

·         Sets up procedures to ensure high quality of work (e.g., review meetings).

·         Monitors the quality of work.

·         Verifies information.

·         Checks the accuracy of own and others' work.

·         Develops and uses systems to organize and keep track of information or work progress.

·         Carefully prepares for meetings and presentations.

·         Organizes information or materials for others.

·         Carefully reviews and checks the accuracy of information in work reports (e.g., production, sales, financial performance) provided by management, management information systems, or other individuals and groups.

27. Decisiveness: The ability to make difficult decisions in a timely manner.

·         Is willing to make decisions in difficult or ambiguous situations, when time is critical.

·         Takes charge of a group when it is necessary to facilitate change, overcome an impasse, face issues, or ensure that decisions are made.

·         Makes tough decisions (e.g., closing a facility, reducing staff, accepting or rejecting a high-stakes deal).

III. Self-Management Competencies

28. Self Confidence: Faith in one's own ideas and capability to be successful; willingness to take an independent position in the face of opposition.

·         Is confident of own ability to accomplish goals.

·         Presents self crisply and impressively.

·         Is willing to speak up to the right person or group at the right time, when he/she disagrees with a decision or strategy.

·         Approaches challenging tasks with a "can-do" attitude.

29. Stress Management: The ability to keep functioning effectively when under pressure and maintain self control in the face of hostility or provocation.

·         Remains calm under stress.

·         Can effectively handle several problems or tasks at once.

·         Controls his/her response when criticized, attacked or provoked.

·         Maintains a sense of humor under difficult circumstances.

·         Manages own behavior to prevent or reduce feelings of stress.

30. Personal Credibility: Demonstrated concern that one be perceived as responsible, reliable, and trustworthy.

·         Does what he/she commits to doing.

·         Respects the confidentiality of information or concerns shared by others.

·         Is honest and forthright with people.

·         Carries his/her fair share of the workload.

·         Takes responsibility for own mistakes; does not blame others.

·         Conveys a command of the relevant facts and information.

31. Flexibility: Openness to different and new ways of doing things; willingness to modify one's preferred way of doing things.

·         Is able to see the merits of perspectives other than his/her own.

·         Demonstrates openness to new organizational structures, procedures, and technology.

·         Switches to a different strategy when an initially selected one is unsuccessful.

·         Demonstrates willingness to modify a strongly held position in the face of contrary evidence.

COMMUNICATION EXERCISE: COMMUNICATING WITH INTROVERTS AND EXTROVERTS

The Sunny side

o    Introvert energy is from within; they avoid the crowd and like independent activity.

o    Do not conclude that there is something wrong if they want to be alone.

o    Nonverbal communications can tell more.

o    Schedule appointment with introvert rather that dropping in.

o    They are more difficult to get to know -reserved and share with a few.

o    They have a small group of friends.

o    Some of most social communicators can be closet introverts.

The Shadow Side

o    Introversion can be viewed as weakness by dominant group.

o    Introvert can be viewed as antisocial-a lone wolf who needs to be fixed.

o    Introvert can be viewed as arrogant, condescending, and unfriendly.

o    Others can project their fears onto quiet one.

Tips for introverts (communicating with extroverts)

o   PRACTICE NON PRODUCTIVE CONVERSATION –chit chat.

o   LOOK ALIVE –quick response, lively attitude.

o   BE EXPRESSIVE –show interest, emotion, involvement.

o   INITIATE CONTACT –start a conversation.

o   PROVIDE FEEDBACK –state how you feel.

o   CHANGE NONVERBAL COMMUNICATION-relax, smile, establish eye contact 

Tips for extroverts (communicating with introverts)

o   RESPECT PRIVACY –don't pry, do not impose, allow room.

o   TAKE TIME TO LISTEN –be patient, check your tendency to fill the silence.

o   FOSTER TRUST –guard secrets and check your tendency to share too honestly as it may appear burlesque and harsh comment on others in their absence. 

o   DO NOT OVERPOWER –tone down.

o   DO NOT JUDGE –accept that people are different.