How to craft a clear message

When I first work with a client in one on one format, or with a group of participants in my ‘Delivering memorable messages’ program, one common area that people struggle with, is how to be very clear on what their take away message(s) is – that they want the audience to retain and/or act upon – and then be able to translate that words into a one to two sentences or up to three bullet points.

Here is a simple, powerful process to determine your take away message(s) prior to delivering a presentation.

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34 MISTAKES I see EXECUTIVES make

After chatting with a coach of mine, I came up with an in-depth list of mistakes I see executives make in their leadership communication.

In no particular order, here’s the list:

  1. Entering a room (Virtual or In-person) with no radiation of warmth and energy and calm enthusiasm.
  2. Rushing/lack of knowing how to own time, in either movement, gesturing and speaking. Doesn’t know how to own time.
  3. Lack of awareness in what is open and encouraging body language.
  4. Lack of awareness of how they’re perceived when under pressure.
  5. Not knowing how to pair gestures with a word or phrase.
  6. Not knowing how to determine their key message(s) for a presentation and frame it in a simple way.
  7. Not having key questions to understand what senior leaders want from them in presentations.
  8. Unsure of the real reason they’ve been invited to present to Leadership team and boardroom meetings.
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The BEST Communication – Right MESSAGE, Right TONE…RFK

If ever there was a speech that was the right one, at the right time, by the right person, in the right manner, for the right reason, and with the right feeling tone – a speech that had a direct correlation to preventing violence – this speech HAS to be on the short list.

The above is text from a post I wrote back in 2017 about an impromptu speech delivered on 28 June 1968 by Robert F. Kennedy, in Indianapolis, Indiana, USA soon after Dr. Martin Luther King was assassinated.

After King’s assassination, there were riots in all major American cities, but –

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