Losing Flow...

from www.ebl.org/flow_original.gif

I'm auditing a sales course today and learning a lot.

Unfortunately, I'm not learning about sales.

Instead, I'm learning about flow... and how to lose it.

Mihalyi Csikszentmihalyi identified 'Flow' as the happy place where challenge and skill reach an equilibrium. As your skills grow, the challenge should be increased.

When your skills are lower than the challenge, you get anxious and demotivated.

When your skills are higher than the challenge, you get bored and demotivated.

In the mid-range, time flies, you are energized, you learn, and you are 'happy'.

You can guess where I am right now (with most of the attendees) - below the line.

Why? The challenge is not meeting the skill of the group.

We have a lot of sharp folks in the room right now, and they're being asked to listen to a lecture.

Have you ever had to sit for three hours, listening to somewhat talk about things you already understand? I bet you have...

Please don't do it to others.

Engage the audience early. Challenge them to an appropriate degree. Have them do things!

Or they'll lose flow... and you'll lose them

Finding an Anchor...

One of my favorite facilitations is our presentation workshop.
It's always fun and productive. Talk about learning, unlearning and re-learning...

I learn every time I watch someone present. I learn about humility, perseverance, and authenticity. There are a million different ways to present, but the most successful path is always the path of authenticity.

I try to unlearn bad habits every time I present. Video is great for this. Knowing I'm going to be taped is always incentive to drop filler words, limit my distracting movements, and try to control my tendency to go 'off script' (that's a nice way to put it!).

I also re-learn forgotten lessons. In our last workshop, I was reminded of the power of 'anchoring'.
Many people get nervous when they present. I have found that almost everyone can find an anchoring stimulus that will calm them down.

• For some, it's simply eye contact. When they make one-on-one eye contact, they forget that they are presenting to a group, turn it into a conversation, and relax.
• For some, it's answering a question. So, why not open by inviting questions, or asking the audience a question.
• I've coached a few people who are anchored by writing. They start off nervous, but as soon as they write on a whiteboard or flip chart, they are fine. We coach them to get to the board as quickly as possible. As a bonus, people who write in real-time, look way smarter than PowerPoint jockeys.
• One of our participants found an anchor in his eyeglasses. He found that the act of stopping, taking off his glasses, and speaking directly to one person centered him. He could then get another 'break' or pause, by putting the eyeglasses back on. It looked great - not fake at all - and it made him comfortable.
• For me, sitting is an anchor. If I can sit on the edge of a table, or even sit in a chair with my audience, I slow down and become more present. I always look for a chance to do that.

What are your anchors? Do you have one? More?
Experiment... and let me know what you find.

Mindmapping slide:ology

A couple of weeks ago, I combined two cool things: mindmapping and Nancy Duarte's "slide:ology".

Since today is DesignComm day at huesworks, I thought I'd share it with you.

I built this mindmap at bubbl.us

Remember to buy the book and practice the principles!

No Shortcuts in Life?

My colleague Ken and I led a presentation workshop over the past two days. Anytime I participate in this class, one thing becomes obvious to me:

Whoever coined the oft-repeated phrase, "there are no shortcuts in life" was either stupid or lying.

For better or worse, there can be no question that presentation skills are one shortcut in life.

We've all known people who are really smart but can't present their ideas. Chances are they didn't get very far.

We also know people who aren't so smart, but can make a great presentation. Bet they got pretty far, huh?

The goal, of course, is to achieve both.

If you watch videos by famous scientists and researchers, you'll be surprised how many of them can give a good speech. Even the biggest geeks in the group can tell a good story and get his or her message across. 
Watch Richard Feynman, Francis Collins, or Buckminster Fuller to see what I mean.

I don't think that this is an accident.
They had to get funding. They had to get their ideas heard.

That wouldn't have happened if they couldn't communicate.

Here's Richard Feynman, a great storyteller (and Nobel Prize winner)

Next time you think that presenting is a pain in the butt, think again.

It may be just the shortcut you're looking for.

Five Books to Enhance Your Presentation Skills

I watch a lot of presentations.... and most of them stink.

For example, today a group of us watched a 30 minute presentation that felt like 4 hours.
Don't get me wrong; the speaker had a lot of positive attributes.
He moved well. He engaged audience members. He had good stories. He was passionate.

The problem was that he had no (and I mean NO) structure.
We had no idea where he was taking us. It was a disorienting journey, with no end in sight.

Guy Kawasaki says (I'm paraphrasing), "The only thing worse than listening to a sucky presenter, is listening to a sucky presenter and not knowing when he will stop sucking".

Learning point: always show an agenda.

After he left, I asked the group what his key point was. I got 6 different answers.
When that happens - you failed.
Wait. Sorry, YOU FAILED!!!

Learning point: always have a core message.

If you don't have one, don't talk.
If you have more than one, you have none. Eliminate all but one.
Repeat your core message many, many times (hint: at least three times).
Make the core message short. Supplement it with appropriate gestures and image(s).
Lather, rinse, repeat.

If you want to get better at presentations, here are a few places you should go:

• Presentation Zen - The best frequent blog on presenting
• Presenting to Win: The Art of Telling Your Story by Jerry Weissman - As someone who teaches and coaches presentation skills, I've read most of the presentation books out there. While all have something to offer, this is the best. If you only buy one, buy this one.
• In The Line of Fire by Jerry Weissman - This DVD and it's partner book shows how to handle the toughest of questioning. The well-known video clips and Weissman's expert analysis provide powerful examples for us to learn from.

By the way, besides being an excellent host, Weissman seems to be a genuinely nice guy. We had a phone conversation today (part of what triggered this post), and he was very generous with his time to answer my questions.

• Beyond Bullet Points by Cliff Atkinson - The best book specifically on using PowerPoint. Here's Cliff's blog.
• Finally, check out Edward Tufte; a fascinating, slightly controversial figure who hates, hates, HATES PowerPoint. He also has some interesting views on The Visual Display of Quantitative Data. I love his books, love his site, and am looking forward to seeing him in San Jose on December 6th.