Communication Mini Series (Part 1) : How to Inspire Our Clients Through Presentation

contributed by Lawrence Quek, member of AS-MS Team

Presentation to our client with Inspiration and Passion, and our client would be impressed with us that they bought the product from us! During presentation, the butterflies in our stomach seem to fly everywhere and not in formation, there are ways and means to make the butterflies in our stomach flies in formation.

Know Our Material Knowledge is wealth. Keep on doing our research and ensure that we know everything on what we are presenting. Our clients are so intelligent that they can tell whether we are knowledgeable about our products via the Questions and Answers Session. Focus on the message, and ensure that we communicate the message right to the heart, mind and soul of our clients.

Practice! Practice! Practice! Practicing is the only ways to ensure that our mind don’t go blank when we come to our actual presentation! We can gather few of our colleagues together before the actual presentation, and we can take turn to play the role of being the “client”. The “client” can anticipate questions, and “throw” the questions to the presenter during the Questions and Answers Session. We can provide constructive and creative feedbacks to each other after the practice session.

Know Our Clients We can break the ice with our clients before the presentation through small talk. By doing so, we get to know more about them, and we will feel less nervous during the presentation to our clients.

Know The Room And The Equipments We can be meeting our clients in different meeting room in our own building, or in our client premises meeting room. Be there early, and take a good look at the surrounding, especially the equipments. It is good to test our Microsoft Powerpoint slides with the projected screen and wireless presenter before the presentation to avoid any embarrassment during the presentation.

Relaxation We may visit the wash room to freshen ourselves, and take a deep breath to further relax our mind and our muscles. We need to sleep early the night before, so that we are more alert on the very day for our presentation. Remember to drink more water before the presentation, or put a cup of water in front of you (we can drink it during the presentation).

Visualise Ourselves Giving The Speech Don’t just sit in the corner, and wait for time to pass for your presentation! Imagine ourselves giving the speech, and it will help us during the actual presentation. It is a form of practice in the actual meeting room (if we have the luxury of time).

Proper Planning Prevent Poor Performance Remember, we only have one chance of creating good image of ourselves, as well as creating good image of our products and services during the presentation. By doing so, our client could help us to spread good words for our company. The company benefits from the clients, and we benefit too.

Leadership Mini Series (Part 1) :Bonding An Organisation

contributed by Lawrence Quek, member of AS-MS Team

There are three types of peoples in the world :
- Peoples who make things happen
- Peoples who wait for things to happen
- Peoples who ask what happen

To shape organizations in today global economy, we need peoples who make things happen. It doesn’t matter whether it is volunteer organizations or non-volunteer organizations. It is very critical and crucial that things happen in the right direction base on organizations mission statement and vision statement. We need to bond peoples from all walks of lives, peoples of different cultures, and peoples of different races. It is not what happens to organizations, but how organizations handle what happens that makes the difference. To achieve that, we need 4Cs – Commitment from all individual, Adapting to Changes, Communication of daily affairs, and “Commence with an end in mind” mindset.

Commitment from all individual
Everyone from every level in organizations needs to comprehend and agree on the mission statement and vision statement of the organizations. Upon understanding and agreeing on the mission statement and vision statement, every individual needs to commit on it. The organization would be stronger as every member of the organizations is the ambassador of the organizations.

Adapting to Changes
Change ! Change ! Change ! Change is the only constant in today global economy. We need to embrace changes in organizations, as individual, and as a team. Through embracing changes, we would be positioning ourselves better in any organizations, and help the organizations to grow from strength to strength.

Communication
As ambassador of the organizations, information is required to flow down from top management to every individual in organizations without distortion in the message. With updated information, the creditability of the organizations would be well maintained, as every individual has been updated with the latest “happening” in the organizations.

“Commence with an end in mind” mindset
It is vital for us to have “commence with an end in mind” mindset. We face problems and issues when we are performing our roles. We need to “close” the problems and issues, and not “to sweep it under the carpet” temporary. Challenging the problems and issues, as a team, and as an individual, would help organizations to be more productive and more efficient.

I would like to conclude with the following quotation of Arthur Friedman

"Men of genius are admired
Men of wealth are envied
Men of power are feared
But only men of character are trusted"

Bringing Out A More Confident Person and A Leader In You

contributed by Lawrence Quek, member of AS MS Team

Close your eye and imagine this world without communication. Communication is the only tool in the world to bond the peoples together. The ability to communicate clearly, correctly and confidently is critical and crucial. We can be misunderstood through miscommunication, and miscommunication can cause misunderstanding.

Five years ago, my friends invited me to a Toastmasters Club chapter meeting, it was a free preview session. There were Table Topics Session for members to practice speak off the cuff, Prepared Speech Session for members to do their projects to achieve different objectives each time, and Evaluation Session for the Project Evaluator to provide creative and constructive feedbacks for those who has done their projects. The Language Evaluation Session inspires me the most, the Language Evaluator in this session is someone who evaluates the usage of English Language, and provides word of the day. I realized that nobody is born to be an effective public speaker or presenter, he or she requires practice, only Toastmasters environment can help us to be a better public speaker or presenter.

Are we born to a leader? Is our direction to our followers clear and concise, and they get what we mean? It doesn’t matter which organization we are in, volunteer or non-volunteer organization, leadership skills count! It can make an organization grow stronger or grow weaker!

After being a club officer for six months, I was invited to be Vice President Public Relation Officer for one year. Attending to public enquiries about Toastmasters and its benefits, as well as newsletter publication is my roles and responsibilities. The club achieved President Distinguished Club status in the term 2003/2004, the highest award any Toastmasters Club can achieved and recognized by Toastmasters International. I realized that nobody is born to be a leader, a leader can only be respected and being a friend, unless he or she motivates and inspires his or her followers.

Two years later, Whampoa Toastmasters Club was chartered with the objective of helping peoples to be a better public speaker or presenter, and a better leader. It was done with the help of Pioneer District 80 Governor, Gea Ban Peng, Distinguished Toastmaster.

Communication skills and leadership skills work hand-in-hand for all of us. With effective communication skills, we can lead more effectively being a leader with effective leadership skills. At the same time, we are shaping ourselves and shaping our world, inspiring peoples and enhancing lives.

Visit http://whampoa.freetoasthost.com for more details on Toastmasters and its benefit, or email us at whampoatmc@yahoo.com.sg for further enquiries. Contact Lawrence Quek @ 9459-4197 for chartering of Toastmasters Club for companies or other communities.