presentation skills - burn fat fast, weight loss, build muscles fast, lean muscle mass, transform body, boost confidence, well toned muscular body Lose Weight Fast Build Muscles and Grooming Workshops

Your Blog To Looking & Feeling Good

Build Confidence Through Fitness, Grooming & Communication

presentation skills

Personal Coaching: The Art Of Story Telling

Posted by: lionel on Jun 03, 2011

Many in times in life, we look for a mentor or coach who can bring us to another level. It's not only about moving into the bigger league. It's also about achieving more happiness and success in life. I had the privilege to morph into that role again today by becoming a personal life coach to one of my clients.

From what my client, let's call him J shared, I could sense the enthusiasm in him. What he specifically wanted to achieve in this coaching session was to further ignite his passion and propel forward.

Helping him tap into the deeper recesses, I unlocked his memories one by one.

Less you think I hypnotised him, I did not. What I merely did was to trigger the memories of his past.

From the day we were born to this very day, all of us have unique experiences that have helped shape the type of person we have become through the years. These experiences are stored within us as stories.

Stories are not just for kids. Stories are for all of us. Since time immemorial, stories have been the chief medium to pass information from one generation to another. Stories have been the biggest influence in history. From Jesus Christ to Homer to Confucius to Adolph Hitler to Winston Churchill, we have come to realize the importance of great storytelling.

Storytelling is how we convey an event in words, images and sounds. People talk to each other in stories. When we complain about a situation or person, we are telling a story. When we are relaying information, we are also telling a story.

We all have stories to tell. The stories can make us happy, angry or sad. They can make us laugh or cry. It doesn’t matter. What matters is that storytelling and human emotion are closely linked together and they strongly influence every aspect of our life. More importantly, these stories belong to us and nobody can steal them away from us. Just think of these stories as our precious memories. When we walk down memory lane and unlock the floodgates to these memories, which stories in your life have left indelible impressions on you till date?

As a leader in his organisation, J wanted to further help his team boost sales and also do well enough himself to be considered for promotion. Indeed, who would not want to move up the ranks in the corporate world? Moving up would mean having a better quality of life (hopefully). But moving up would also mean knowing how to brand yourself. In short, sell yourself to your bosses, colleagues and suppliers to say you deserve the promotion, the deal or the big project.

At first, J thought it strange why I would want him to refresh all the memories over the years, some of which had been buried and almost forgotten. Then gradually, he understood my reason.

By telling others directly you want that promotion is a little too abrupt in the Asian context. However, much as you hanker it, you can still hint at it subtly by showing, through your stories, of what you have done in the past to warrant it. The art of story telling, and telling it well, helps us understand ourselves better and also helps others to know us by building a bridge into our world. By exploring our inner selves through words and stories, we come to understand the “real” us living inside our body.

As a life coach, I don't teach the normal boring stuff that you can read from textbooks. I share with you real life experiences that work in the practical world. Why do I love telling stories? Because stories attract, entertain and invoke emotions.

If you too want to be a master at the art of story telling to brand yourself at the top of your game, contact me now :)

Comment (1)

Effective Speaking Skills Talk For NXP Semiconductors Singapore

Posted by: lionel on May 26, 2011

Tagged in: presentation skills

nxp_semiconductor_sg_speaking_well_training_img

Living in a world where we are constantly surrounded by people, it does not matter if we like to give ours a good impression or not. We have to! After knowing how to impress using our clothes, the next step is to impress through giving a solid presentation each and every time. Think of the presentation as our own sales pitch selling our own brand.

So if it’s the Lionel brand, then it’s all about Lionel and what he does, whether it is conducting grooming workshops, teaching fitness trainings or transforming lives of others in one way or another. If it’s your own brand, how would you want to brand yourself?

This in essence summed up what I shared with the 8 participants in the “Effective Speaking Skills” talk today at NXP Semiconductors Singapore. Unknown to many, NXP Semiconductors Singapore is actually a subsidiary of Philips Singapore. Nestled in the Toa Payoh estate, NXP Semiconductors Singapore is like a quiet sanctuary of its own, thanks to the sheltered overhead bridges linking all four buildings together, overseeing the busy roads below.

I teach grooming and fitness as not only are they my passion, but they are also what I excel at. So what do you excel at?

When you excel at something, you are either naturally good at it because it is an innate talent of yours. Otherwise you are good at it because it is something you are schooled through the years – think either through the years in school or work.

speaking_with_confidence_talk_nxp_semiconductors_sg_img

I loved it when one female participant shared that one of her natural talents was sleeping. So she could talk on and on, all about the benefits of sleeping. Although many in the audience laughed, but we have to give her credit for sharing. She hit the nail on the head. To deliver an effective presentation, one must always choose something of direct relevance to one’s career or passion. If you ask me to speak on sewing, I would definitely feel like a fish out of water. Worse, I would come across as 100% unauthentic and unconvincing. In her case, because she loves sleeping, the enthusiasm and sheer amount of information that she can share will be voluminous. She will speak with confidence. Excellent!

Secondly, to sustain interest in a presentation, one should not attempt to cram too much information in it. The human brain is not designed to cope with more information. So when information overload kicks in, we automatically switch off. My advice is to keep it to a maximum of three points. Go beyond the magical number of three and watch the interest of the audience wane off and worse, others doze off!

effective_speaking_skills_training_nxp_semiconductor_sg_img

And to put what I preach into practice, my last point would be practise, practise, practise! No respectable speaker or trainer gives a talk without rehearsing and polishing it until the speech shines. Every word chosen, every exercise developed, every pause dramatically designed has been beta-tested finite times. If they do so, all the more you should too!

Wanting to equip yourself with great oratorical skills is not difficult. All you need to do is to truly understand what makes you rock and capitalise on that! If you need help on this, then speak to me :)

nxp_semiconductor_sg_effective_presentation_skills_img

Comment (0)

Be Prepared To Speak Talk For Best World International

Posted by: lionel on Mar 25, 2011

Tagged in: presentation skills

It is perfectly normal to have butterflies in your stomach, especially if you have to do a presentation to a group of people. They may be your colleagues, the vendors or worse…your bosses!

I was in the same shoes as you too when I first did my public presentations in varsity. Back then, it was made worse by the fact that my grades would be directly or indirectly affected by how well we presented.
Fast forward to today and I’m a lifestyle coach with an arsenal of workshops and programmes. If you ask me if I ever prepare for my workshops and programmes, I’ll give you a resounding YES. No talk or workshop is considered ready to see the light of day unless I have rehearsed it at least five times. And of course the more you practise, the better you become at it. Well, you need to be convincing as you never know what questions the audience might ask you.

public_speaking_skills_training_workshop_best_world_img

presentation_skills_training_best_world_img

This was the essence of what I shared with the staff at Best World International as part of my “Be Prepared to Speak” talk.
If I had to choose a topic to present, it would be something along the lines of either my talents or experiences. There is a difference between talents and experiences and this distinction needs to be made clear.

Talents refer to an innate ability which you may be born with. It is something you are naturally good at. For example, if I recall back from my childhood days, I enjoyed doodling to such a great extent that no wall in my house was spared from my Picasso-like drawings. Also, I loved to sing. So doodling and singing are my talents.
On the other hand, experiences are skills you have acquired over the years, either because of your formal training at the office or through your degree of specialization in varsity. So if you may have an accountancy degree, that means wanting you to speak on how to read financial statements would be a breeze for you.
Now that you know the difference between talents and experiences, do take some time to come up with a separate list for both. Once your list is ready, you will never be dumbfounded should you be asked to speak off the cuff.

Remember, creating credibility is all about being in familiar ground. The more familiar you are with the topic, the more you will be able to speak convincingly and galvanize the audience into taking the necessary actions. Personally, I can speak for hours or even days on topics such as grooming, fitness, nutrition, NLP, service excellence etc as these are very close to my heart. I certainly wouldn't be sharing the euphoria of knitting nor baking as I'm a complete novice at these!

best_world_corporate_public_speaking_training_workshop_img

And I like it best when the audience participated actively with my series of mnemonics designed to help them learn more effectively. Here's proof of that! :)

Comment (0)

Corporate Lunchtime Effective Presentation Skills Talk Series: Marina Bay Golf Course

Posted by: lionel on Jan 12, 2011

Tagged in: presentation skills

Besides grooming which remains my staple offer, the Stanchart corporate lunchtime series for 2011 now has more titles added! Today's corporate talk is for the staff of Marina Bay Golf Course and I am going to bring to them my "Effective Presentation Skills" talk.

Drawing from my previous seven years of work experience where I had to deal with members of public, colleagues and complaints almost on a daily basis; and my extended involvement in debates and interview panels, speaking to me has become almost second nature. I'm now more than happy to be able to share what has worked for me with others :)

This is my first time stepping into a golf course and needless to say, I'm excited! I've heard of politicians and businessmen discussing deals on the greens but having a talk at the golf course is still a first for me. I love what I do as it really brings me around the island!
Marina Bay Golf Course, which is Singapore's only public golf course, is one of the most picturesque places I've been in the start of this new year. Only one word can be used to describe the view from Canopy Cafe, where my talk will be held - breathtaking. Here's proof! With the Singapore Flyer, Marina Bay Sands, Science Arts Museum and new constructions presenting an almost perfect skyline background, what else can one expect?

marina_bay_golf_course_img

Amidst such beautiful scenery, it's only natural that I was feeling extra relaxed. The last thing one should feel before giving a talk on effective presentation skills is feel stressed! Haha...

In any golf course, it's common to find two categories of staff - one wearing uniform (think caddies, golf assistants, front desk reception etc) and non-uniformed staff (think those working in HR or customer relations). Not surprising, the bulk of customers or clients that Marina Bay Golf Course has are members or walk-in guests. Thus, learning how to engage in an effective presentation is of utmost importance.

effective_presentation_skills_training_img

While some may argue that a presentation refers strictly to one speaking in front of an audience (like what I was doing), I explained that if we were to stretch that definition, a presentation would refer to any occasion when we had to engage or speak to our colleague, friend, member of public or stranger. Every moment in our lives, we are either persuading, convincing or influencing others to our point of view. If we are not persuading, convincing or influencing others to buy our products or services, then we are being persuaded, convinced or influenced to accept someone else's viewpoint. So like it or not, we are "presenting" all the time.

Sometimes, when we think too much, we tend to get into paralysis mode. So it's best not to dwell too much on getting it perfect. After all, practice makes perfect. What is more important is knowing your stuff (ie. contents) inside out and developing your own style as a presenter.

marina_bay_golf_course_presentation_training_img

In this age and time, it's easier to remember things using acronyms. Similarly, I have my own set of acronym as well. But in order to aid the participants in remembering it, I decided to add in hand gestures as well. So while they said the acronym and then the word behind each alphabet, they were also encouraged to do the hand gestures with me. Research studies have shown that once the entire physiology is involved, the mind remembers better.