Nick Morgan, Public Words

Today We Are Rich

Publication of a new book by Public Words’ good friend Tim Sanders is an event to celebrate, and in this case, Today We Are Rich:  Harnessing the Power of Total Confidence, is a special cause for celebration.  The book is packed with great stories, jammed with wonderful tips on how to improve your own confidence and performance, and overflowing with the character of Tim’s grandmother, Billye, who took him in and raised him up to be the dynamo that he is. 

The book is Tim’s most heartfelt and revealing to date.  This one is personal.  We get the story of Tim’s tough childhood and his ‘sideways’ years after his father was murdered and Tim simmered with anger and rejection. 

The stories are memorable, and the advice is spot on: 

Feed your mind good stuff.  (Turn off the junk TV and bad news.)

Move the conversation forward.  (Keep it positive but don’t ignore the realities.)

Exercise your gratitude muscle.  (Remember everyday what is good about your life.)

Give to be rich.  (Take what you need and share the rest.)

Prepare yourself.  (Do your homework.)

Balance your confidence. (Keep it real and have a purpose.)

Promise made, promise kept.  (Follow through on your commitments.)

If you work with Tim, you’ll find that these are indeed the principles he lives by, so the guy is for real.  And if you take these principles on, you’ll find that you are indeed rich – from today forward. 

If you get a chance to see Tim speak, seize it.  He’s one of the best public speakers on the planet.   Today We Are Rich is a top-notch self-help book from a charismatic speaker who’s lived a real life and knows what he’s talking about.  Highly recommended.  

What goes wrong when you try to communicate?

I spoke last week to an Air Force Special Ops team, and to a pharmaceutical company, about persuasive communications.   Today, I’m talking to a group of Harvard mid-career students from all over the world about the same subject.   Each time I talk I spend some time making sure I understand their particular issues in the realm of communications, so that the advice I give them is focused. 

What’s fascinating is that such different groups often face the same challenges – in different guises, of course – across professions, fields, age, gender, culture and global divides.   In particular, I see three issues that come up over and over again.

1.  Lack of Authenticity 

When you experience a lack of authenticity, it’s because the messenger isn’t one with the message.  You’re saying the words, but you don’t believe what you’re saying.   That’s always been difficult to carry off – and why would you try? – but it’s even more difficult now.  

One of the unintended consequences of an interconnected world is that it has become much harder to deliver inauthentic messages anywhere.  People are too hip, too quick, and too connected to be fooled.  From the protestors demanding freedom in the Arab world to patients asking about the efficacy of a drug, to students worldwide, you can’t give them oversimplifications, half-truths and distortions.   They’ll smoke you out. 

It’s now a transparent world, and our communications have to become truly authentic in response. 

2.  Lack of Connection 

The second problem I see is a lack of connection with the audience.  You’re passionate about your message, but you haven’t taken the time to understand what the particular needs of specific audiences are.  One size never fits all.  That’s the bad news.  The good news is that if you take the time to understand each audience, you will begin to see the common elements that tie them together. 

All communications, like politics, is local. 

3.  Lack of Passion

The third problem that comes up over and over again is lack of passion.  For a variety of reasons, the communicator isn’t delivering his or her news with the passion necessary to get the message to stick.  Once we’re open to you, and we see that you’re authentic, only your passion will keep us focused on you.  There’s simply too much going on today in our lives, and in the world, to listen to anyone who isn’t completely passionate about what he or she does.

Get passionate or go home. 

What am I missing?  What problems do you see with communications in your work?  What comes up again and again? 

 

What Happens When You "Wing" A Speech? Ask Tony Hsieh

In his NY Times Bestseller, Delivering Happiness, Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh advises public speakers to “wing it.”  I am driven to take up the cudgels and protect people from that spectacularly bad advice. 

What’s Hsieh’s story?  As CEO of the phenomenally successful Internet-based shoe company, Hseih received more and more invitations to speak as the company became better and better known. 

Apparently, it was not a task that he looked forward to with much enthusiasm.  He says he had done little of it, and got quite nervous beforehand.   But he agreed to the speaking because each speech represented an opportunity to tell the Zappos story to a new audience and spread the good word about the company’s success.  In that way, Hseih figured, he’d sell more shoes, get more recruits, and continue to grow the business.  Very smart. 

Unfortunately, as smart as he was in realizing a good marketing opportunity, he turned out to be sadly dumb in his approach to public speaking.  Here’s what he did.  He wrote the speech out beforehand, and “spent a month memorizing it and rehearsing it.”  As a result, when the day came, he was nervous, short on sleep, and glad when the speech was over. 

He reports that he did an “OK” job, but the whole experience was not a pleasant one, even though it was good for Zappos business. 

Part of his dislike of the whole experience came from when he inevitably forgot one of those memorized lines, and went into a tizzy trying to recall it so that he would give the audience the entire speech as written. 

Then, in the midst of all this misery, Tony had an “ah ha” moment.  He realized that the audience didn’t know when he dropped a line, because it didn’t know the speech beforehand.  That was liberating, but there was more to come. 

Tony started getting feedback from his audiences that they really enjoyed his personal stories about the business, because he was passionate about those stories and Zappos, and that made for a more entertaining speech.

So for his next speech, he abandoned the script and the rote memorization and just told stories selected on the fly from the stock that he had developed during his Year of Living Miserably giving memorized speeches. 

The result?  He got into the “flow” and had a ball telling the stories.  The audience responded better, and the whole thing just clicked.  So, Tony concludes, when you’re going to give a speech, “just wing it.”

But hang on a minute.  Tony’s not winging it.  Winging it is making it up as you go along.  But Tony already has a pretty good idea of what he’s going to say.  He’s going to choose from a finite list of stories he’s told many times, and about which he’s passionate. 

That’s not winging it, that’s giving a modular speech, a speech constructed out of familiar chunks that you’ve done many times before. 

Tony’s advice is quite good, when you ignore the headline and concentrate on what he’s really saying.  Don’t wing it, because you’ll always look like you’re doing it for the first time.  The result is that your body language will telegraph “first time!” and your audience will get an impression of you (inexperienced, nervous, inauthentic) that is most likely very different from the one that you want to convey:  confident, cool, in charge, competent – you pick the adjectives. 

Instead, tell stories that you’ve rehearsed many times and that you know really, really well.  Stories that you’re passionate about.  Put those stories into a simple structure (like the problem-solution format that I've blogged on before) that makes the point that you’re trying to make with those stories, and you’re all set. 

Oh, yes:  and keep it real.  Then you’ll rock the house just like Tony. 

How to Produce a Great Speaker Video

If you’re a professional speaker, you need a video showcasing your talents; it’s an essential part of your marketing.  You want that video to show you delivering a fantastic talk in front of an engaged, appreciative audience.  What are the ins and outs of creating such a video?  I recently had the opportunity to interview ace cinematographer Geoff Birmingham of Reflection Films.  Geoff has prepared a number of such videos, and has some great advice on how to make them work.  You can learn more about Geoff and his team here:  http://www.reflectionfilmsonline.com/ 

Q.  Geoff, thanks for talking with me.  From your perspective, what does it take to make a great speaker video?

Two things come immediately to mind:

1. A successful video will only show the good stuff.  There's no rule that says your video must be totally true to how you performed that day.  Were you flat in the middle?  Edit it out! 

2. A successful video won't just be you on camera; it will also have a variety of good audience reaction shots.  The audience shots will include plenty of close-ups of people laughing at your jokes, nodding in agreement with you, or showing some other facial expression that demonstrates they're engaged.

Q.  If something goes wrong during the speech as it's being filmed -- like a serious verbal stumble, or a hostile question, or something more mundane like a problem with the sound -- can you fix it in the editing room?

In the film and video world, there's a saying: "It'll get fixed in post."  Translation: Mistakes during filming can often (but not always) be corrected during editing.  So speakers don't need to feel like they must be absolutely perfect in front of the camera.  There are plenty of ways to edit out most mishaps that may occur during a speech.

Q.  What makes a speaker visually interesting from your point of view -- the point of view of a filmmaker?  Should I emote a lot?  Jump around a lot?  What should I do differently when you're filming me?

  I think the answer to this is subjective, so I'll just share my own opinion.  I would never encourage a speaker to do anything differently than he/she would do if there were no camera - I think it would come off as unnatural and forced.  Having said that, however, I recently talked with a speaker who realized that, after watching herself on camera, her presentation needed to be more dynamic.

So perhaps the short answer is this: don't do anything that is unnatural or forced, but do your best to bring an authentic energy to your presentation.

Q.  If I use slides (or video clips) in my presentation, how do you include those in the video? 

If you use slides or video clips, just make sure to deliver the source material to your producer to edit directly into your video.  They will be much more legible that way, versus asking your cameraman to capture shots of the slides or video off the screen during your presentation.

Q.  How much does a good speaker video cost? 

Filming a speaker's presentation doesn't need to be an elaborate production.  Still, you want to make sure that you hire people who know what they are doing.  In most cases, I think two cameramen - one recording the presenter, and one capturing audience shots - would suffice.  And one of the cameramen also must be responsible for hooking the speaker up with a wireless lavalier microphone. 

Depending on what kind of existing lighting your location has, your crew might need to bring in a small light or two to add extra illumination.

To hire a two-person crew, pay for the camera and sound equipment rental, and have someone edit your video will probably cost about $2,500 to $3,000.  This is assuming that you are creating a video that is approximately 15 minutes long from a single presentation.

Q.  Can I draw from a number of videos of different qualities and different dates if I've got the video archives?  Is that a good idea? 

I think this is certainly an idea worth considering.  It may not work so well if you hire a professional crew to record a big or important presentation, but have asked a friend to help with the "smaller" ones.  The difference in quality will be significant, so it could be hard to edit those together and maintain a consistent look.

My suggestion would be to hire a professional crew for an important speech, and then for other, smaller presentations seek out help from students at a local college or cable access station.  If you go the student route, just make sure he/she brings the right audio gear - sound recorded off of the camera from the back of the room will not work.

Q.  How soon do I need to think about starting all over again to update my video?

There's no one answer to this, but here are some times that a speaker might consider creating a new video:

* when you have new presentation

* if you have a different or interesting venue that will enhance your profile

* if you speak in front of a unique audience or one that will add greater credibility to the work you do

Q.  Thanks, Geoff.  I've worked with Geoff and his team a number of times and I'm delighted to report that they are professional, reasonably priced, and great people to collaborate with. 

 

 

Why Leaders Need To Be Authentic

For my blog today, I'm connecting to a podcast I did with Connie Dieken on her Influential Leaders blog.  Connie is super smart and does her homework and we had a great conversation about leadership and why leaders today need authenticity above any other quality.  The link will take you to Connie's blog, and links to both the podcast and a pdf of the transcript are right there.  Enjoy, and thanks, Connie!

 

5 Leadership Lessons from The King's Speech

For my blog today, I'm pointing to a new ebook on Amazon and iTunes that I've just written and published thanks to New Word City:  5 leadership lessons from The King's Speech.  I was inspired by the vivid portrayal of the relationship between the King and his coach to recall relationships with my 'coachees' and to derive 5 lessons about the journey leaders need to go on to find their unique voices.  I believe that a unique voice -- think Steve Jobs, Gary Vaynerchuk, or Chris Brogan -- is essential.  Without it, you won't be able to get people to pay attention to your leadership long enough to lead.  This ebook shows you how to develop yours.  Enjoy!

Why Most of What You Know About Communication Is Wrong

Here's the beginning of a speech I gave last year on the new brain research.  The opening story will be familiar to regular readers of this blog, but the talk on insights into communication should be worthwhile.  Enjoy!  The excerpt lasts about 10 minutes. 

 

 

How to Connect with an Audience

Here's a brief video excerpt from a speech I gave last year about how to connect with an audience by using the physical space between speaker and audience.  Enjoy!

 

 

What Do You Do With Your Hands?

What do I do with my hands? is a question I get asked all the time.  Here's the answer, along with some additional information about the space between people and how to use it, in a quick, 2-minute video from a speech I gave last year.  Enjoy!

 

 

How to Conduct a Virtual Meeting

Virtual meetings are both a necessity in these straitened times -- and a curse.  Once you cut out the visual elements of meeting face-to-face, the interpersonal bandwidth shrinks from fast to dial-up.  But there are ways to make virtual meetings more productive.  Today, I'm linking to a blog I did yesterday for HBR.org on making virtual meetings a little more useful.  Enjoy!

What makes a cool speaker video? Ask David Meerman Scott

Occasionally I comment on the business of public speaking in this blog, and one of the key pieces of any public speakers' kit is a great video.  Of course, if you're just starting out, it's hard to get a cool video.  And if you are getting the speaking gigs, you're always chasing better sound, better lighting, a better venue, even a better performance or a better audience.  Late last year we started talking to David Meerman Scott about a new way to conceive of the speaker video in the Age of Twitter and Social Media.  David threw in some ideas, we threw in some ideas, and a whole bunch of other people also contributed.  What David came up with is a great new video, worthy of an Oscar if only they gave them out in this world.  What's innovative about it?  David gave out flip cams to a dozen audience members, to get their perspective.  He included the live Twitter feed at the bottom of the video so you can see what people were saying about him as he spoke.  And then he cut the whole thing to give you a remarkable feeling that you were there.  Risky?  The result is a very different take on the genre.  Check it out.  Here's the trailer, and from there you can watch the whole speech.  Enjoy!