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Same Destination, Different Journey
 Here's an interesting story
about two (composite) clients I had who shared the same goal (destination),
but used two different journey styles to arrive there.
Both clients wanted to improve
their presentation skills. As
managers, they knew that they had to be able to give presentations
frequently and effectively. They wanted to be able to communicate
well in these presentations, and they both specifically wanted to
calm their nerves and look comfortable and relaxed and credible when
giving presentations. Their
destinations were the same.
As far as learning how to
become a better presenter, I break this skill down into two basic
categories:
1. Technical ability - which
includes voice tone, stance, eyes, flow, slides, props, as well as
some other things. In general,
these are presentation components that you can adjust as needed after
you practice them enough.
2. Individual style, flair,
personality and personalized content
Client one spent lots of time researching and reading
about the technical aspects of giving a good presentation. He read about lots of techniques
like reducing the number of um's as you talk, making great PowerPoint
slides, being willing to answer questions. He practiced each one quite a bit,
including using a mirror to see the different effects, until he got
it right. This client
approached it in a very linear fashion; he learned one skill and then
set himself to learn another.
He joined a Toastmasters group too, and slowly his confidence
level increased. Eventually he
felt knowledgeable about his topic and how to present it, the nerves
wore off, and his individual style started to show through. Client one was more introverted and
internally driven, and needed structure and learned best by first
reading and getting familiar with the material at hand. He was risk averse and wanted to
have things in really good shape before trying them out in front of a
live audience.
Client two approached things
quite differently. He started
out by translating his stories and style and content into actual
presentations. One time he would
bring in fun props like instruments or toys to emphasize a
point. Another time he would
tell jokes or put out brain teasers for the audience to solve. He made it a point of speaking up
at large personal gatherings. He practiced being himself and being
comfortable in front of large groups.
Once he achieved that level of comfort, he then was able to
look at the technical aspects of his delivery. He did this by asking
audience members for feedback.
It was a much more random and serendipitous journey for him to
become comfortable in front of groups. Client two jumped right in to solve
the problem and learned best by trying things out "live" as
he went along. Client two was very creative and extroverted, and
typically had 3-5 learning lessons and activities going on at any one
time. He frequently did not finish them all, but he did seem to
successfully learn something from each one.
So as you can see, each client
ended up in the same place, in about the same amount of time, but the
journeys that got them there were very different. The way each journey looked and
progressed was what was necessary for each of them to learn and grow
and to create the sustainable results they desired. |
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