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10 Tips to Get Others to Take You Seriously

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StrategyDriven Professional Development Article |Get Others to Take you Seriously|10 Tips to Get Others to Take You SeriouslyWe all know those people who command a room the moment they walk through the door. How do they signal that they have what it takes?

Recent research identified three qualities as key for commanding the respect of others — gravitas, communication and appearance. Gravitas, as in serious and impressive, mattered most, with 67 percent considering it crucial if you want to be taken seriously.

Use these 10 tips to establish your gravitas.

1. Prepare thoroughly. If you want others to take you seriously, bring your A-game. The biggest challenge to preparing is that we put it off because we’re nervous. The answer? Embrace technology and use voice notes on your phone to record your pitch or your presentation. Practice saying it out loud and listen back. The recording let you know when you’re ready to “go live.”

2. Be concise. To draw attention, be concise. Drill down to your elevator pitch — what you’d say to pitch your business in the time it takes to travel between floors. Think like a news reporter. Introduce your topic, offer up two or three supporting points, then conclude with an impactful statement. Keep it simple and punchy and you’ll earn respect as a clear thinker.

3. Banish Powerpoint overkill. Hiding behind your slides is a good way to lose the respect of an audience. You are the expert, so step away from the slides and distill your content down to a few bullet points. Make your argument compelling with powerful examples and stories. Take the audience on a journey. Bring your ideas alive in the way that only you can.

4. Change gear. Choosing the right tone for the situation is key to earning respect. When preparing for a meeting, ask yourself what approach is required here? Crisp and formal and focused on the task? Or smiling and conversational and focused on relationship-building? If you need to change gear fast, a palms down gesture is good for credibility. A palms up gesture and a warm smile will up your approachability.

5. Use your breath. Actors will tell you that giving a powerful performance relies on maintaining a relaxed breathing pattern. Why? It signals that you’re in control. If you can stay calm when the pressure hits, you earn respect. Controlling your breathing is the key to getting out of the nervous system’s panic room and into a space where you can think. Notice the butterflies, then breathe down into them, relaxing your shoulders. Notice the feeling of relief. Your breath gives you a quick way to settle down the nerves.

6. Practice active listening. The best speakers are always the best listeners. To show gravitas, don’t commit the cardinal sin of repeating what’s already been said. People take you seriously when you respond with something relevant that shows you’ve been paying attention. The key to owning any encounter is to turn up, listen, speak your truth and don’t be too attached to an outcome.

7. “Talk low, talk slow, don’t say too much.” John Wayne offered this advice. Researchers have found that voters tend to prefer political candidates with a lower voice. A low voice shows that you’re relaxed and in charge.

8. Put the brakes on. If nerves speed you up, consciously put the brakes on. Speak in short sentences, with a full stop between each one. One thought, one sentence. Take a relaxed breath in between (think of breathing in a lovely smell). By slowing down, you can take your audience with you. Natural pauses raise the audience’s perception of the speaker’s intelligence.

9. Show teeth. If you want gravitas, you need to be able to do what’s called “showing teeth.” No, it doesn’t mean showing off your pearly whites. Instead, it means that you can push back when required. The best way to approach an opposing viewpoint is to remember why you’re there. Think: “Who am I? Who are we? What’s our common purpose?” Then you can stand up for your beliefs in a way that works for the group.

10. Stand firm. Gravity is intrinsic to having gravitas. The Sanskrit word “guru” means “weighty one.” Staying grounded signals to your audience that you’re not a pushover. Find the points of support between your body and the earth. Focus on the feeling of your feet on the floor (or, if sitting, your bottom on the chair), moving your mind away from anxious thoughts. Try it — it has real power. It brings you “down to earth” when under pressure and communicates presence and calm to others.

About the Author

StrategyDriven Expert Contributor | Caroline GoyderCaroline Goyder has an international reputation as an expert speaker and trainer with senior management within organizations as well as private individuals. She worked for many years at London’s Royal Central School of Speech and Drama as a voice coach before launching her own company. She is regularly sought out by the media, and her extremely successful Ted Talk has had over 7.5 million viewers. Her new book is Find Your Voice: The Secret to Talking with Confidence in Any Situation (Penguin Random House UK, Jan. 30, 2020), along with previous books Gravitas: Communicate with Confidence, Influence and Authority and The Star Qualities: How to Sparkle with Confidence in All Aspects of Your Life. Visit www.carolinegoyder.com, or find her across social media: @Carolinegoyder.

How to Improve Your Entrepreneurial Skills

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StrategyDriven Entrepreneurship Article |Entrepreneurial Skills|How to Improve Your Entrepreneurial SkillsBeing your own boss may sound like a novelty, but it can be a challenging career path. Although aspiring entrepreneurs may have a concrete vision and idea for a potential business, there are vital skills needed to turn that concept into a reality. Unless you have worked in business before, it can be difficult to know how to become a successful entrepreneur; this is because there is no-one to support you from higher ranks, unlike typical employment.

If you require some advice on which skills are essential to become a successful entrepreneur, this blog will come in useful:

Attend business training and seminars

Unless you have carried out formal training, it is impossible to understand the basics of business. Enrolling onto a training program will give you an insight into theories and methods which could be applied to your personal business development. It will allow you to gain more in-depth knowledge into the responsibilities of becoming a business owner and how to enhance your productivity and performance.

Find a business mentor

In the early days of becoming an entrepreneur, you may feel as though you need a helping hand to make crucial decisions when it comes to your business growth. You can only learn so much from books and websites; however, a business mentor will be able to share first-hand advice of their own experiences and provide guidance when it comes to making crucial decisions. According to a survey by Sage, 93% of entrepreneurs believe that having a business mentor was the key reason for their success.

Travel far

If you have the determination to expand your business globally, it would be wise to travel to different countries to get an insight into which countries may be best suited to your business niche. Popular countries for business expansion include the likes of China, Japan, and India. Once you have decided which country will benefit your business, it would be wise to hire translators from globalcitizenstranslation.com to communicate with professionals abroad in the native language for effective communication.

Practice communication skills

If you’re not much of a social butterfly and find it difficult to communicate on a personal and professional level, you must work on your communication skills to succeed in business. You’ll be expected to deal with customers and clients both face-to-face, via phone call, video call, and email, to name just a few. However, being a poor communicator as an entrepreneur can result in misinterpretation of information and potentially even catastrophe. There are different ways you can develop your communication skills, such as:

Learn from your mistakes

Upon starting out in business, you’re bound to make mistakes along the way; however, you should turn the negative thinking into positive by learning from what went wrong and how to avoid these errors future. Ask yourself, ‘what could I have improved on?’ and make a list of pointers that you can refer to if you’re ever in the same position again.

4 Ways To Be An Exceptional Manager To Your Team

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StrategyDriven Management and Leadership Article |Manage Your Team|4 Ways To Be An Exceptional Manager To Your TeamDo you want to be a better manager to your team? These tips will help you master management and be just that

1. Be A Good Communicator

It is crucial to be an effective communicator with each and every member of your staff, since all employees are unique this may mean that you need to refine your communication approach for each member. Granted, if you tend to bark orders at your staff they may quickly get into line, so to speak, but the atmosphere that you will create will be one that lacks motivation or good morale, in fact, you may even leave yourself open to a case for bullying or harassment in the workplace.

It is true that there are times when you may need to be firm, however, this can be done by using a clear and direct approach, on the other hand, other staff may respond more favorably if you use a friendly and casual approach. The more effective you are at communicating with your staff the better performance you will see.

Your communication should be consistent across the board and not lean towards favoritism. If you want to create a working atmosphere that is all about development and independence than you need to create a sense of stimulation rather than demand.

2. Employ An Open-Door Policy

When it comes to staff satisfaction, effective communication is key. Staff will tend to feel happier within their position when they feel that they have a boss they can turn to freely. The best managers are ones who encourage suggestions and are even open to constructive criticism; employees could easily have an idea that hadn’t even entered into your head. Employee engagement is something that should be desired not shunned. This provides a great basis to talk about current issues and possible solutions; the best results always come from the whole team working together. Managers that are at the top of their game tend to be the ones who genuinely care about their staff and recognize the value of worker feedback when it comes to the success and continues growth of there company.

3. Employees Need Feedback And Praise

Each staff member needs to know how they are doing. There are few things that could come even close to motivating employees than a sincere well done. When you need to give feedback that isn’t positive, it should still be given in a constructive way. This will all help your reputation.

For instance, if there is an area to an employee’s work that you want to be improved it would be a good idea to first remind them of areas where they are performing well. If you go in with only negative feedback there is every chance the employee will respond with a sense of resistance and your message will be lost.

A healthy team thrives on regular feedback, an aspect which is all too often overlooked. With a workload planner you can monitor task completion and give credit where it’s due, click here to find out more. A boss that is supportive feels compassion towards employees and is ready to provide the right support when required.

4. Be The Example Your Staff Need

The actions, speech, and attitude of the leader are ultimately what the rest of the team will imitate, hence the leader needs to set the right tone for the whole team. This tone isn’t complicated it’s about the simple things; being punctual, showing an understanding of what each staff member does, supporting team members, and the likes.

As well as this, a good leader will take responsibility when they make a mistake rather than try to lay the blame elsewhere. This will create an atmosphere of trust and respect meaning that your team will willingly go the extra mile for you.

Three reasons why you should study a Women in Leadership Certificate

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StrategyDriven Professional Development Article |Women in Leadership|Three reasons why you should study a Women in Leadership CertificateIf you’re an ambitious businessperson, you might be considering ways to upskill yourself to ensure that you remain at the top of your game. One way of doing this is by taking further training courses to hone particular skills relevant to the world of business. While leadership skills are taught on many courses, from bachelor degrees to training certificates, there are certain components that, as a woman in a leadership position, are particularly relevant to you. Considering this, here are three reasons why you should study a Women in Leadership Certificate.

1. The “double bind” of female leadership

Despite having in-depth technical expertise, women often find themselves in a so-called “double bind” when they are promoted to leadership positions, resulting in an unconscious bias against her from colleagues and subordinates. If she shows strong, confident leadership—a managerial style lauded in men—she is seen as being abrupt and unlikeable. If, however, her leadership is more collaborative and empathetic, she may be seen as being incompetent and too soft. A certificate designed for women leaders in business will teach you how to recognize and deal with this unconscious bias in your workplace. You will learn how to balance a strong managerial style while still remaining approachable. Having this emotional and social intelligence is key to strong leadership and will allow you to bridge the gap between different personalities.

2. Build on existing communication skills

There is growing evidence to suggest that men and women think and communicate differently. For instance, women use verbal communication as a way to process issues and come up with solutions, whereas men tend to be solution-focussed and prefer communication to be to the point and action-based. Misunderstandings can often arise because of these intrinsic differences, which, if left unresolved, can lead to unhappiness at work and reduced productivity. Through a course for women leaders in business, you will learn the theory behind gender-based communication styles and expand your toolbox of communication skills so that you can persuasively and confidently communicate ideas and information to different audiences.

3. Build on existing negotiation skills

Negotiation is an intrinsic skill for business. Whether you are persuading a client to use your services, discussing the terms of a contract, or explaining why you deserve that promotion, the fact is that you need to have a strong negotiation toolbox in order to get ahead in the business world. Despite this, it’s long been believed that women are less likely to attempt negotiation than men, perhaps due to women traditionally being socialized to be more accommodating to others’ needs. However, with specific negotiation and self-advocacy training, women can be just as successful as men.

A Women in Leadership Certificate will teach you negotiation strategies and give you the opportunity to practice them in roleplay scenarios to ensure that when you enter a real negotiation in your place of work, you will be confident in your skillset to get what you need.

5 Employee Training Tips for Smoother Operations

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StrategyDriven Managing Your People Article |employee training tips|5 Employee Training Tips for Smoother OperationsIt’s the start of the year, which means you might be onboarding new employees soon.

In order to make your new employees comfortable and get operations running smoothly, you need to train them well.
This article will give you five employee training tips so that your new employees will feel at home in no time.

1. Communicate Well

Good communication is at the heart of any relationship, and that includes employee-boss relations.
It’s important you communicate to your new employees what is expected of them.

Give them clear instructions on daily, weekly, and monthly tasks. If they’re not performing well, communicate early so they’re aware of the problem.

To enhance business communication, use a website like Slack where you and your employees can communicate professionally.

2. Start Small

Beginning a new job can be very overwhelming.

Your new employee is dealing with both the social and mental strains of starting at a new company.

Don’t feel like you have to teach them everything in one sitting. Microlearning and microtraining are great ways to give your employees the information they need in small doses.

This short training time ensures they can stay focused on the information all the way through the training and that nothing falls through the cracks.

3. Try Team Bonding

It’s important that your new employees feel like they can acclimate to your workplace.

They will feel happier at work if they can form bonds with others.

Take your staff out for a team bonding exercise. Try an escape room or another activity that causes everyone to put their heads together.

Bring in lunch for your new staff once a week so everyone can bond over sandwiches. It’s a nice gesture that will show your new employees that you care.

4. Make Welcome Folders

It’s true, we live in the digital age where almost everything is online.

Still, it can be nice for new employees to have learning materials to hold in their hands.

Make them a welcome packet with all the information they need to survive at your company. This packet can be something they take home and study at night so they’re up to speed on their role at the company.

5. Check-In

Be a good boss and check-in on your new employees regularly.

Your senior employees know what they’re doing and don’t need to be asked, but your new employees most likely have questions.

Sometimes they might be too afraid to ask a question out of fear of sounding stupid. Be sure to assure your new employees there are no stupid questions and ask them how they’re doing regularly.

Now You Have the Best Employee Training Tips

These employee training tips will take your new hires from novices to experts quickly.

Remember to include your new employees in team bonding activities, communicate well, and check-in on how they’re doing.

Want more information on how to succeed in the workplace? Check out our other articles for more tips on how to run an effective business.