Leon Sergent

(*How to stand out from competitors when they presented before you and took the sizzle out of your proposal?).

If only it were that easy. Of course, well intentioned business gurus will tell you that when you have to deliver a recommendation to a more resistant audience, you just have to look ‘em in the eyes, show confidence and paint a smile on your face. There is no silver bullet. If the structure of the presentation is not built on solid ground, no amount of eye contact nor smiling will get you closer to your goal. The way you deliver the message is important, however, the formulation must satisfy the following three conditions: More… »Convince, sell or win over to your ideas... do you mean there is a formula? No, but there is a winning formulation.

So, what now? It is unlikely that we will go back to pre-pandemic client drop-in meetings and large professional gatherings to present our organisation and speak to the key client influencers about our solutions. Internally, we may be relying more on electronic means of communications over face to face meetings to interact and engage our partners, colleagues, and employees. Unsettling changes in the way we conduct business. What has not changed is that the key skills of professionals who made a difference before worldwide restrictions were imposed still apply in the virtual world and in any type of hybrid live/virtual communication strategy. So, what makes them breakaway from the pack? More… »Three essential communication skills for the third quarter.

Now that you are engaged in daily web conference meetings and sharing your screen with your colleagues, do you wish you could have some sort of menu that would allow you to jump effortlessly and quickly to different sections of your Powerpoint presentation in a non-linear mode to support your business case? More… »Are you zooming on Zoom?

So, your next presentation will be before an audience that will be tough to win over? And you only get one chance to appear before them live or virtually? Decide right away what you want out of this presentation and be clear. Are your audience members to approve your recommendation, do you want them to take a course of action or buy in to your solution? More… »Build your presentations backwards!

For a few months now there has been a marked increase in the number of professionals working from home because of an unprecedented worldwide health crisis. As more of our presentations are likely to be delivered from home through a web-based teleconferencing software, it is still important that these presentations be professional and effective. Here are 6 tips to help you make sure your presentations hit the mark:

There is probably little doubt that, for some time now, you are no longer presenting to audiences in a meeting room. Your presentations are now virtual and from the comfort of your home. The goal of both live and virtual presentations is to attract and sustain the attention of your listeners so that you can convince them to buy your solutions. The best practices for presenting in front of a live audience still apply to virtual presentations.

One of the key responsibilities of leaders is to effectively convey difficult decisions to others. When this is bad news, this responsibility is arguably one of the most challenging for leaders. Here are 7 guidelines: More… »7 quick guidelines for delivering bad news

In the last publication, I wrote that, in many public speaking situations, it is often appropriate to be strategically silent in order to be better understood. What about those situations where one SHOULD speak? Whether you are expected to give your opinion at the end of a meeting you are attending or invited to say a few words to employees of your organization or in another branch, take this opportunity to offer the following: More… »The art of impromptu speaking. The prerogative of leaders.

You are a few hours away from making an important presentation in front of an audience you have never met and suddenly you submerged by this uncomfortable sense of doubt, your stomach seems more fragile and your body temperature seems to have changed in the last few minutes. We are all prone to a certain nervousness at the perspective to speak in public. I really don't know anyone who has not experienced, at various levels, the feeling of "butterflies" in the stomach at the prospect of presenting in public. Here are three causes of these symptoms in three simple questions that you certainly may ask yourself and 3 strategies to recharge your batteries: More… »When you lost your nerve. Three comforting thoughts to recharge your batteries.