#1 Fear that Holds People Back in their CareersWritten by Scott Brown
Surveys have shown average American is more afraid of public speaking than they are of death. No wonder many people have let promotions at work pass them by for fear of having to speak in public. It may not even have been a conscious decision, but public speaking fear has been shown to be cause of missed opportunities for many people. As someone looking to move ahead in your career, working on your public speaking skills even before you need them in workplace can be a smart move. Having public speaking skills could boost your confidence level so that you would be comfortable volunteering to give a presentation that could earn you extra prestige, or give you assurance you need to apply for a particular job.Developing Public Speaking Skills Public speaking is something that does not come naturally for most people. Instead, it is a learned skill. Especially with prominence of politicians these days, it can be easy to get impression that good public speaking skills come naturally to many people. This is not really case. Even politicians work on their public speaking skills, and have benefit of giving speeches on a regular basis over course of a long career. The most visible politicians and business leaders often "cheat" by using speech coaches who help them pinpoint specific things they can do to deliver speeches more effectively, plus they often use speech writers and teleprompters. As an individual interested in getting ahead in your career, you don't need to go to extreme of using a teleprompter or a speech coach. But committing to improving your public speaking skills over long term can have a major impact in terms of your overall career success. Toastmasters is a great organization that has spent decades perfecting a system of teaching people how to speak effectively in public. Their program is designed so you can get as little or as much out of it as you want. Each Toastmasters meeting gives everyone a chance to practice their public speaking skills through various parts of meeting, such as Table Topics, where each attendee can give a brief two-minute impromptu speech based on a topic given to them by host. Most Toastmasters clubs also have mentorship programs where a more experienced speaker will work with you one on one to help you improve your skills.
| | COACHING SKILLS Written by Steven J. Stowell, PhD
Introduction The question for leaders in organizations today is how do we go about unleashing motivation, facilitating idea creation, promoting information flow and go beyond being Number One? How do we distance ourselves from our competitors? We cannot relax and take our success for granted. Our competitors are fierce and anxious to take back market share, produce next blockbuster product, or invent some new technology to better serve customers. One of our greatest competitive advantages is our people and culture. If we can continue to teach, inspire, and select best, we can continue to be a premier organization in world. We will continue to be first in bringing value added and quality enhancing products to people around world. We will also continue to be employer of choice. In order to achieve this goal, managers can subscribe to many leadership theories and concepts. Some of these theories provide only a general awareness of successful leadership techniques. Some are too complex and academic to be useful in real world. Today’s manager needs tools that are specific, detailed, and practical that will enable managers to: help team members achieve their highest potential motivate team members to contribute their best effort maintain core values and standards of conduct manage performance and results promote innovation and help others think “outside box” create a culture of continuous improvement build productive and valued relationships with customers tap into each employee’s reservoir of experience, talent, and creativity achieve maximum teamwork, inclusion, and communication across functions Leaders today want practical and uncomplicated solutions that they can apply immediately. The Coaching program was designed by Dr. Steven J. Stowell and his team at Center For Management and Organization Effectiveness (CMOE) for this purpose. Research over past two decades revealed a lack of effective coaching skills by many leaders. As a result of field research and hands on interaction with 325 organizations in 13 different countries, Dr. Stowell has defined a set of coaching skills used by effective leaders. This road map is not a checklist or a “quick fix.” Although steps are easy to learn, effective coaching skills are only developed when managers decide to apply them and tackle real issues that drive business forward. A Road Map Coaching Skills training provides leaders with powerful, proven, and practical skills that help you define direction, shows you sharp turns mileposts in a coaching discussion. But just like driving, weather and road conditions change each time you set out on a coaching journey. Good judgment, common sense, along with an understanding of person is needed to be successful. This will allow managers to gain maximum effectiveness from each interaction. What is Coaching? Coaching is a skill that leaders practice as they manage performance, mentor, problem solve, teach, and guide others. Coaching requires: effective two-way communication and dialogue
|