WHY DO YOUR POOR COMMUNICATION SKILLS ARE STOPPING YOU FROM GETTING PROMOTED?

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5e94477741d0495ff78f4f764a730c0a?s=96&d=mm&r=g WHY DO YOUR POOR COMMUNICATION SKILLS ARE STOPPING YOU FROM GETTING PROMOTED?

WHY DO YOUR POOR COMMUNICATION SKILLS ARE STOPPING YOU FROM GETTING PROMOTED?

 

I was inspired by the book Pitch perfect by Bill McGowan and Alisa Bowman. 

 

In the following paragraphs, I summarized the key lessons + my insights about them. 

pitch perfect WHY DO YOUR POOR COMMUNICATION SKILLS ARE STOPPING YOU FROM GETTING PROMOTED?

1. You have only one opportunity to deliver the right message in many situations.

Assertive communication is vital for your career and relations in general. One study found that the main obstacle to promotion is poor communication skills. These include offensive jokes, racist comments, cursing, avoiding eye contact, not turning your camera on at virtual discussions, getting nervous when public speaking, or not speaking at all at physical or online meetings. 

Getting your message articulated clearly from the beginning will not only give you an excellent reputation but will also save you time and questions from your audience.

Please do not be hesitant to express your thoughts. Take this with a grain of salt. You want to express yourself coherently and adequately. Do not spit unorganized and interminable thoughts to answer in a rush. For example, when your boss asks you about your opinion on an improvement, they lead. You will lose a valuable opportunity to share your ideas and reveal how analytical and thoughtful you are if you answer poorly and do not share your views. 

On the other hand, use the nature of people in your favor. No one likes to be told they are wrong or did a poor job. Frame your message correctly so the other person does not feel criticized but inspired by you.

Pitch-perfect communication is fundamental to getting the results you desire. Two-thirds of proposed ideas are rejected because they are expressed poorly. Not because they are bad ideas.

Nobody cares how you had the idea about whatever you are proposing. Please talk about the benefits, ROI, improvements, and resources needed to implement it. 

2. Start with a concise, compelling statement to make listeners want to know more.

When you start a presentation, you only have 30 seconds to convince your audience to continue paying attention to you. Be excited and passionate about your idea, be funny and memorable to catch their focus. Spread your good vibe to hook them up.

If your tone of voice is off and you are not confident, you will lose them, and they will be checking their smartphones in a blink.

The author suggests here to avoid using agendas and start right away.

 I disagree, though.

Agendas help respect everyone’s time and avoid unnecessary early questions from the audience that you will answer later on. I recommend providing a crisp and concise schedule. Do not reveal many details, just enough to make them want more.

Bonus: your tone of voice is vital to maximizing attention and building authority

This one is hard for me, as my tone of voice is very high, impacting my credibility.

A businesswoman, Elizabeth Holmes, scammed Silicon Valley’s angel investors, raising more than 700 million USD from them. How? she had a great pitch told in a deep voice, and she wore simple, casual, but neat clothes like Steve jobs.

Our brains automatically label(unwillingly) deep voices as more trustworthy.

 

3. Use visuals to illustrate your point and keep listeners hanging on to every detail.

Use animations to show new information and variables to create surprise and expectations for your audience.

4. For the audience to receive the message the way you want them to perceive it, intonation pauses and pitch pace is crucial.

To capture your colleagues, partners, or clients’ attention, you must analyze HOW you want to say things. You have several tools at your disposal; ensure you turn the camera on (if you are remote), so they can see your expression, hand gestures and manage the pace and pitch projection to create the desired effect.

5. Boil down your argument to its vital message to make it as rich and brief as possible.

Your audience will not receive your message if you take too long to reach your core statement. If you are of those, who talk a lot and do not get to the point fast, boil your argument until the message is rich and brief.

Nowadays, people’s attention span is so tiny! Provide digestible information on key pieces. That is why Twitter and TikTok are so successful. These platforms deliver a single, concise, and focused message in a blink. On the other hand, fewer people read blogs, books, or newspapers each time.

Ensure your speech is not longer than 18 minutes.

PITCH PERFECT SUMMARY 1 WHY DO YOUR POOR COMMUNICATION SKILLS ARE STOPPING YOU FROM GETTING PROMOTED?

6. Think before you speak. Slow down and give yourself a couple of seconds to think when you are uncertain of your following sentence.

Some talk faster and for more extended periods -nonstop- when tense or nervous.

Give your brain time to structure your ideas and develop a good line of thought. This practice makes your thinking more focused and your arguments more persuasive and sharp, which will raise your confidence.

7. Use clothes that make you feel confident and maintain an excellent posture to increase self-confidence.

Standing up for a few minutes before an important conference, you will lead or stand while talking arise your confidence levels.

8. Increase people's favor by having genuine interest in them.

Know your audience—research about them. If you cannot ask questions to your listeners directly when starting your conference, google them or ask your network about them so you can strategize how to connect and make your topics relevant to them.

If you are pitching to someone that is very risk-averse, ensure to make an excellent risk assessment to mitigate any concern from their side. If you are proposing an idea to a technical expert, do your homework so you can pitch them in a language they will relate, understand and empathize with you. 

 

9. Set a clear plan of what you will discuss and the conference's outcome.

Do not let the audience take over and move the conversation away from your goal.

Senior managers tend to over ask questions and move the conversation away from your objective. That is why your planning and research before the meeting are vital. You must think about all the possible fears and questions the audience will have so you can gracefully answer those and fastly move back to your plan.

10. Avoid being spontaneous. Instead, be prepared.

Being spontaneous is great, but not when public speaking, pitching, or influencing a demanding audience. If you want to succeed; convince your managers and affect your network; study the topics, research, anticipate concerns, and practice a lot to deliver a clear, convincing, and intelligent message.

11. Arrive earlier so you can chat with your audience casually to build trust and familiarity, check your visual aids work, and avoid any unnecessary stress due to delays.

Take a deep breath, enjoy the moment and speak with calm. If you start in a rush, your voice may get shaky, and your audience will perceive your lack of confidence which heavily impacts your credibility and executive presence.

12. Remember to be empathetic and avoid being inappropriate.

Some people, when nervous, say rude jokes, prepare ahead, so you do not be that person. Be empathetic and respectful with your audience. 

If someone has a concern, step in their shoes and clarify their doubts with that empathetic perspective to build trust and partnership.

Good tips acrooss the book.

I am 100% certain that poor communication skills cost promotions and great jobs to talented and intelligent people. Humans are relational creatures; nourish your charisma and network by having impeccable pitching. It will be a game-changer—100% guaranteed.

Author: Ruth Valverde A.

 

PITCH PERFECT 2 WHY DO YOUR POOR COMMUNICATION SKILLS ARE STOPPING YOU FROM GETTING PROMOTED?

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