Point Taken Winter Newsletter 2010: Issue 26

Coaching for the Gold

The people behind the scenes in the midst of glory at the 2010 Winter Olympics don’t take the gold, silver or bronze, but their input greatly benefits the skier, snowboarder or skater. They work tirelessly to help their athletes perform to the best of their abilities. They are the coaches behind the athletes. At Point Taken, we love our role as coaches and guides toward presentation and meeting success. Whether you are fine tuning a large group presentation to your peers or trying to lead a team meeting to better outcomes for your organization, Point Taken’s coaches can help you reach for the gold.

Tips to remember for that Olympic Presentation

In figure skating, many medals come from the skater’s individual style, expressed on the ice. Just ask Rachael Flatt. She knows that persuading even the toughest judge on the ice comes from being herself in front of any size crowd.

In most meetings, honing your presentation skills and then adding in your own personal touch make all the difference in the impressions made. Get your audience or team ready to take action by following these simple techniques.

Use compelling evidence that is credible and interesting to your audience
Use different types of persuasive proof, such as:
- Logical
- Emotional
- Narrative (stories, myths)
Address audience needs with specific benefits

Keep the Olympic Torch Burning

As Shaun White prepares to ride on his snowboard, Bud Keane has his back, giving feedback at every curve and helping him along his way to an Olympic medal. Point Taken’s coaches are here to help while you are preparing for your next big presentation.

Learn more about how Point Taken’s one-on-one executive coaching skills workshop can help your next presentation take home the gold.

Famous Quote:

"The Internet is becoming the town square for the global village of tomorrow. "
– Bill Gates

Got any points you want taken?

Send us an email at askatrainer@PointTaken.net
and you may see your comments in the next newsletter.

Her Point Exactly:

A message from the president

The Olympics are inspiring. Most of our daily meetings are not. Sometimes we feel our lives are very far removed from the world of gold medals and world class performance. It’s easy to forget (since we don’t see it) that even for these Olympic athletes, their usual day-to-day is pretty boring too. What makes the difference is that they use their routine time, away from the competition, to focus on performance improvement, while we ‘corporate athletes’ focus on surviving the gauntlet that is our Monday morning. It’s a difference in mindset and approach, and it makes all the difference in performance.

We too should look at our days and our tasks as training and learning opportunities. If we focus on improvement, over the course of a month, a year, or a job rotation, we can master and excel in some key performance areas. To do so requires conscious commitment to a goal of learning, focused resources like coaching, and measuring and tracking our outcomes. We can incorporate process improvement into our flow of work, just like these athletes do.

And then who knows? Maybe we’ll be on the podium accepting our gold medal in the sixty minute meeting category!

~Beth Rogers