Building and Protecting your Reputation |
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I was hoping really hard that we'd hear some inspiring rhetoric from the candidates to become the next Prime Minister of the UK.
Alas, I've given up waiting. Perhaps when the field is down to the last two, they will tour the country giving stunning speeches to admiring audiences.
I'll be keeping an eye on them on your behalf. As I write, the field is down to five candidates. It looks extremely likely that the two candidates to go to the members ballot will be Rishi Sunak and Penny Mordaunt. And Penny Mordaunt will win, I reckon. She can start working on her first speech as PM right now. I'm here to help if required. |
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We had a rare old time in Liverpool last week, celebrating my wife Heather's birthday.
We even found time for a round of golf, and even the windmill hole wasn't too much of a challenge.
I hope the golfers who are playing in the 150th Open Championship at St Andrews are able to cope with similar struggles. |
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There are three places available on my Exceptional Speaker coaching programme.
Be quick - the places always go! |
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 | Brian Walter is a past president of the National Speakers Association in the USA. He is also a fantastic speaker, MC and organiser of extreme meetings.
He's also going to be one of the MCs at the Global Speakers Summit in Dublin this autumn, which will be all the better for his input.
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MediaMaestro, MediaMug of the Week |
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The MediaMaestro is Mo Farah, or to call him by his real name, Hussein Abdi Kahin.
He was brought to the UK illegally as a child and forced to work as a domestic servant, he has revealed.
The Olympic star has told the BBC he was given the name Mohamed Farah by those who flew him over from Djibouti.
Sir Mo says he wants to tell his story to challenge public perceptions of trafficking and slavery.
"I had no idea there was so many people who are going through exactly the same thing that I did. It just shows how lucky I was," he says.
"What really saved me, what made me different, was that I could run."
How true that is.
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The MediaMug is Fox News.
I'm obliged to my good friend Niels Brabandt for spotting this story.
In a truly beautiful bit of irony Fox News columnist Suzanne Venker mistakenly used a photo of a lesbian couple (which was supposed to show a “traditional couple”) to accompany her column on the failures of feminism and female independence.
The photo, which first appeared on Huffington Post, is of Lela Mc Arthur and Stephanie Figarelle a lesbian couple from, Alaska on their wedding day. McArthur and Figarelle were the first same-sex couple to marry at the top of the Empire State Building after New York State legalized gay marriage…recreating the famous scene from the movie Sleepless in Seattle.
The story first appeared in 2013, but has recently reappeared as an internet meme, which is a great opportunity to mention it.
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Speaking Tip of the week - That's Amore |
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Sometimes people craft acronyms that explain what they do, or how to do it. Speakers do it all the time, like the excellent Paul McGee with his brand SUMO (Shut up, Move on). So I've done it too, in an acronym to describe a speech.
A - Audience The first thing you should consider. Who are they? What are they interested in? What will move them to take action?
M - Message Your key theme, which should be brief, simple and relevant. Keep this in mind throughout your speech.
O - Opening The first 15 seconds are crucial. Don't waste your time on pleasantries, get right to your message.
R - Recap Hey! What happened to my speech? Well, that's the easy part. It's important that whatever you said, you provide a summary to reinforce your message.
E - Ending The killer closing line that will hammer home your message and bring you a standing ovation.
That's Amore.
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Media Tip of the week - Four tough questions |
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"Anticipate the worst, and you will always be pleasantly surprised." That's what a journalist told me 35 years ago, when I was learning how to cope with media interviews. I wasn't too sure about the advice at the time, but it turned out to be invaluable. If you prepare yourself for the toughest questions, you will never be stuck for an answer. Here are a few tough interview questions - and how to cope with them.
1) The incomprehensible question. Don't even try to untangle it. Simply take from it what you will, and talk about your core message. You can even ignore it completely and talk about your message. Don't ask the interviewer to explain, you will only waste time and make matters worse.
2) The leading question. Don't allow the interviewer to take control, and never repeat an accusation in order to deny it. As above, state your case, clearly and concisely. However, if the assumption in the question is damaging, make it absolutely clear that you have spotted their tactic, and say why their assumption is wrong.
3) The pause. OK, not strictly a question, but a technique. You have two options. Firstly, you can say nothing, in which case the interviewer will have to fill the space. Alternatively, you can say something like "I have nothing to add on that point. However, another interesting aspect is...."
4) The post-final question. This is the one that comes after the interview appears to be over. "Oh, just one more thing, while you are here..." It shouldn't worry you, since you never assume the interview is over until you are well away from the microphones and cameras. Stay sharp until then
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Social Media Tip of the week - You can't always get what you want |
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Many organisations and individuals use social media to ask their customers questions about products and services. I know of a number of banks who use private social media groups to test ideas for new services. It's like those focus groups, beloved by political parties, whose opinion is used to hone campaigns. I spent twenty years in a research organisation, and I have views about how this process works, and how useful it is.
One issue is that people often respond in a way that they think sounds acceptable, rather than how they actually behave. A study from Mintel showed that over 80% of visitors to a chain of fast-food restaurants said that they would prefer to purchase healthy options such as salads and herbal teas. The restaurant changed its menus accordingly, only to find that 77% of diners bought burgers and fizzy drinks (exactly the same percentage as before the changes).
Another factor is that people who respond to questions on social media will often be those who want to argue with your proposal, giving you a biased response. In neither case do you get what you want, which is how people will react in practice rather than in theory. Nonetheless, even the negative feedback can teach you something that you've overlooked about your offering.
If you do use social media for research, be aware that you don't always get what you want, but if you try sometimes, you just might find, you get what you need.
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It's the 150th Open Championship at St Andrews this week. Even for professionals, things can go awry. |
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The information in this ezine may be freely re-used in any online or offline publication, provided it is accompanied by the following credit line - "This information was written by Alan Stevens, and originally appeared in "The MediaCoach", his free weekly ezine, available at www.mediacoach.co.uk." https://em-ui.constantcontact.com/em-ui/em/page/em-ui/email# |
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