By Liz Radzick of Manifest Consulting

As we approach the middle of the summer many people are looking to the fall to resume a focused job-search and go for interviews. And successful interviews rely on your ability to talk positively about yourself.

Many people get hives when thinking about self-marketing. “I don’t want to look like an egomaniac” or “I don’t want to come across as bragging” are common concerns.

First of all, it is my general impression that the average Canadian female has a self-esteem deficit the size of Denmark when it comes to accurately appraising her value. Second, the intention behind your self-marketing (see Intention Paves the Way to Success for more on intention) is not to prove your superiority but to engage people and to let them get a positive, accurate view of your activities. People are going to make their own judgments anyway – why not give them good material to work with?

So here are 2 simple things you can do to make sure you communicate your greatness:

1. Minimizing is for Pores

“Just” is one of the words that falls into the category of “minimizer” along with “sort of” “I guess” and “kind of.”

E.g.

I guess that my greatest strength is…

Well, I just oversaw this 3 million dollar product launch…

I sort of pioneered the use of this system nationally…

Don’t think that only Valley Girls talk this way – I have heard literally hundreds of people including managers and executives pitch themselves in a minimizing or ambivalent-sounding way.

2. There is no “I” in “we”

One of the by-products of the corporate focus on teamwork is that people avoid using the word “I” when describing their accomplishments. Why? Fear of being branded “not a team player.” Even when *you* are the one who initiated the sales process, came up with the idea, or organized the database it is more than likely you are hiding your accomplishments behind the “we.” Try detoxing slowly, combining the 2 words in a 50/50 ratio so that you accurately communicate your true contribution along with your peers.

The bottom line for your interviews:  Avoid minimizers and you will maximize your impact!

Want to get some hands on experience and coaching from Liz?

Check out our Boot Camp this Fall

By Kena Paranjape of In Life & In Fashion

Getting dressed for work should be easy.  No one has time to rifle through their wardrobe and accessories before racing out the door in the morning.  At the same time, you don’t want to arrive at work and realize too late you are wearing different colour socks!  My suggestion (and personal strategy) is to rely on the essentials and fill in with the rest of the contents of your closets.  With that in mind, I’ve compiled a list of ten must have’s for your work wardrobe.  With these pieces you should be able to get dressed with ease and arrive at work looking stylish and polished.  

1. Pencil Skirt – a pencil skirt is an instant grown-up look.  Tuck in a silk blouse or pair with a fitted v-neck sweater for an easy chic outfit.

2. Wide Leg Trousers – go for charcoal rather than black as it looks more sophisticated when paired with colour

3. A Fantastic Blazer – don’t feel that you have to stick with a basic black boring blazer!  Choose something that fits you perfectly and you love – you will find ways to work it into your wardrobe.  (Tip: this is an item worth splurging on)

4. Mid-Heel Closed Toe Pump – an absolute must-have.  Choose a heel you can wear all day with or without tights.  Closed toe means you don’t have to worry about a pedicure to slip them on.

5. Tie-Neck Blouse – this item may not appear on other must have lists, but consider it a new must have!  A tie neck blouse is a fun way to replace the classic white shirt.  It also looks great under a v neck sweater (see #6).

6. V-Neck Sweater – layer over a tank or blouse.  Choose cashmere for winter and a fine-gauge cotton for spring and summer.

7. Cardigan Sweater – if you find a cardigan you love, buy as many as you can afford.  You will wear them more than any other item in your wardrobe!  Depending on your work environment choose classic or embellished or longer styles. 

8. Silk Tank – another item not found on most must have lists, however, a silk tank is the perfect day-to-night top.  Tuck it into a pencil skirt or trouser with a jacket for day, and off comes the jacket at night!  A silk tank is a good place to add a print to your work wardrobe as well.

9. Flats – be creative with your flats – try a print or patent, a bow or a buckle.  Wear flats on trousers or a-line skirts and dresses but avoid pairing with pencil skirts. 

10. Dress – I am purposefully avoiding being too specific here.  Depending on your work environment you can go for a bold print or may prefer a simple, solid sheath. Either way you can easily personalize with accessories so make it your own!

By Liz Radzick of Manifest Consulting

In my last article I talked about how women can undermine their credibility when presenting by being so serious that they look like an “Angry Teacher.” This is a problematic situation to resolve because what works for men doesn’t always translate well for women at the front of the room. For example, in one study on the subject of smiley-ness,  pictures of unsmiling women were decoded as a sign of unhappiness while pictures of unsmiling men were seen as a sign of dominance. So then we should smile a lot, right?  Here’s the catch: too much smiling makes us appear unauthoritative and subservient. So what’s a gal to do when presenting to hit the right note?

Match Emotion to Subject

I will often hear a presenter say “The first quarter results are up 30%” and I will ask them “Is that good news or bad news?” They will usually look incredulous and say “Good news, of course!” The problem was that from the way they said it, I couldn’t tell the difference!  I encourage my clients to actually decide on an emotion for each slide or section of their presentation in advance so that they can practice communicating the emotion vocally AND visually  e.g. Slide 1 – Enthusiastic Slide 2 – Concerned Slide 3 – Frustrated Slide 4 – Proud etc. You can then choose strategically where a smile, or a furrowed brow, or raised eyebrows would help emphasize a point. Cammie Dunaway, Executive VP of Sales and Marketing at Nintendo’s E3 2009 press conference made  the mistake or being serious, sober and statistical for a gaming company launch – an event that gave her licence to be enthusiastic and more on the playful side.

Philosophical Professor vs Angry Teacher

One of the tips I often give to both men and women is to adopt a more philosophical tone when delivering a presentation. The vocal intonation that you would use for pondering “I wonder what would happen if…” is the kind of feeling I’m suggesting. Keep it light, not preachy. Alternate this tone with moments of conviction/passion and you will come across as more neutral and detached, thus preventing your audience from feeling like they are on the receiving end of a hard-sell or a scolding.

No Hand Jive

Waving an index finger or pointing can be perceived negatively by both male and female audience members. And using your hands too much when you talk can be distracting and reduce the impact of what you are saying. The Fix:  Practice presenting while holding a yellow pages or something equal in size and weight at navel level. Feel the heaviness at your centre and plant your feet firmly on the floor about 1’ apart. Then repeat without the phone book keeping your hands at waist level either clasped, or holding fingers lightly (watch Entertainment Tonight or The Weather Network for how on-air hosts do this). Now you are grounded and your hands are ready to gesture when needed.

Feel free to smile as much as you want when your audience applauds your passionate delivery – you deserve it!

Want to get some hands on presenting experience and coaching from Liz -Check out our Boot Camp this Fall

By Liz Radzick of Manifest Consulting

Fran Capo is The Guinness Book of World Records fastest talking female clocked at 603.32 words in 54.2 seconds. That works out to 11 words a second! Chances are no-one is going to give you an award for breaking the speed barrier when you are talking quickly. What you may get instead are confused listeners who feel bowled over by your rapid-fire speech and who eventually tune out.  So for you fast talkers out there here are some speed bumps you can use to help you slow down.

1. Breathe: Oxygen is Free

Most people do not breathe before they speak, so they end up running out of air and then rushing to the end of the sentence.  Begin by taking in a breath this way: put your hands on your ribs, and breathing  SLOWLY through your mouth fill up the space between your hands. Breathe in for 4 beats, hold for 3, and exhale for 5. Think of breathing wide vs. deep because you don’t want your shoulders hitching up around your ears. Do this a few times and you will notice that you start to relax. When you speak you should be exhaling at the same time; when you notice you are starting to run out of air, top-up the breath and continue. Most fast talkers run their sentences together and breathe infrequently.

2. Use Word Stress

Now using a nursery rhyme like Jack and Jill, take a WIDE breath and say “Jack and Jill went up the hill to fetch a pail of water” then top up the breath and say “Jack fell down and broke his crown and Jill came tumbling after.” If you are still racing through the rhyme, really stress the rhythm of the lines: “JACK and JILL went UP the HILL…” while looking at the second hand of a watch or clock.  You should be reading at 2 words a second and every time the second hand moves is when you should be saying a stressed word. Yes, THAT SLOWLY. I know it feels dorky. Stay with me!

3. Practice a Real Life Situation

Type out what you say on your outgoing voicemail at work. Capitalize the words you want to stress e.g. HI, YOU have REACHED SANDRA CAPELLI at APPLEGATE ACCOUNTING. I’m NOT AVAILABLE  to TAKE your CALL right NOW…”etc.  Read it aloud slowly with the stress and the breathing. If you sound robotic pick-up the pace a little. Now record yourself by calling your voicemail and see if it sounds slower than your old message. Chances are it does.

For additional practice, read aloud from the newspaper, the novel you’re reading or if you have kids use their storybooks which are meant to be read aloud. Going slower will allow you to think more clearly, connect with your audience and feel more confident. GOOD LUCK and NOW go PRACTICE!

Are you a fast talker? Have any suggestion on how to slow down -share them with us!

By Liz Radzick of Manifest Consulting

I was working at my desk the other morning and for over an hour annoyed comments about a female presenter scrolled on my TweetDeck.  ”She’s pretentious,” “Annoying,” “She’s BORING.”

Who IS this person getting all this negative press? I wondered.

Turns out it was Cammie Dunaway, Executive VP of Sales and Marketing at Nintendo’s E3 2009 press conference – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tBy2FJAKeC8

Now this is a serious gig for a female executive – in fact, WIRED magazine wrote last year that it was unusual if not unprecedented to have a platform holders’ press conferences run by a female executive. My hat is off to her for her very well-rehearsed management of her technically complex presentation. She dressed well in a beautiful white suit and she was clearly on message. But something wasn’t quite right.

I diagnose Ms. Dunaway as having The Teacher Syndrome. Women who try to sound passionate and who look too serious at the same time often come across as “angry teachers”.  It’s a very common challenge when I’m coaching female clients for sales presentations, especially when they are presenting in a large audience venue. The fact that she was so serious and unsmiling at an event that is about fun and games -literally! – was compounded by 2 other delivery errors:

i) She spoke too slowly and deliberately with lots of pauses. As a consultant for a Japanese-American company, my guess that she may have been speaking that way to either to facilitate simul-translation to Japanese or just to speak clearly and with conviction. The unintended result was that she sounded like she was talking down to people. If most of her audience were experienced Gen Y gamers you can imagine how that went over.

ii) 37 seconds into her presentation Ms Dunaway gave her audience the finger.
No, not THAT finger, but she might as well have. While making a point, she gestured in the air with a pointed index finger. I ban this gesture from the podium/stage because it evokes such negative parental/authoritative associations.

 The Finger + no smiles + deliberate delivery = irritated young, hip audience within the first minute.

So what is a woman to do, you ask?  Smile like the village idiot for every presentation? Stifle her passion? Definitely not. In my next article, we’ll take a look at what you can do to appear approachable, authentic AND passionate at the same time.

Until then, keep smiling.

By Liz Radzick of Manifest Consulting

Many of my clients struggle with clarity and confidence in both routine and high-stakes communications.

1. A creative director appears scattered and nervous during the pitch of a new concept

2. A junior analyst races through her update in a meeting with senior executives present

3. A successful sales associate leaves rambling voicemails for her internal clients

 What all of these situations have in common is that there is an unconscious intention influencing the speaker’s actions.

Let’s start with the 1^st situation.  Negative self-talk such as “My job is on the line!” or “It’s critical that I land this client!” thrusts a presenter into panic mode.  As a result, I often find that anxious presenters have intentions like “I need to look good”, “I can’t make a mistake” or “I need to be perfect”.  All of these intentions create internal anxiety.  I often illustrate this in workshops by standing behind the presenter and whispering all of these statements in their ear as they try to present.  The result: mental blue screen and reduced confidence.

So which intention should you choose to bust your nerves?  My pick: “I want to help my audience/I want to be of service”.  If I am trying to help someone – whether that’s a manager who needs my data to make an informed decision or a group of administrators who need to follow a new policy – my ego goes on the back-burner, my vibe becomes more relaxed and I am more tuned-in to my audience.  You will actually look and sound better if you ignore how you look and sound during your presentation (you can practice that in rehearsals) and focus on how you are helping your audience.

In the 2^nd scenario, all of the above might be true (and only the presenter knows for sure) but I’m guessing that the intention to “get this over and done with as fast as possible”.  This intention is common with analytical and/or more introverted people.  Switching gears to a help/serve intention PLUS focusing on only one person at a time when speaking can help lower the stress levels.

And the final scenario?  I’m guessing there was no intention operating here other than to “leave a message”.  If you know you ramble or sound too informal setting the intention to be “clear and concise” on all of your voicemails will mean that you take time to bullet-point your ideas, re-record if necessary and not multi-task while leaving the message (see: Annoying Communications Part I)

My intention here was to be helpful.  Was I?