Any guide to success in an endeavor will tell you that there is no magic formula to success. But in a lot of fields of endeavor, there seem to be “insider secrets”. And taking on the challenge of becoming a truly great public speaker is a noble ambition. But if you could learn the insider secret that makes the difference between good public speakers and great ones, that would help you make that transition.
Actually there is one great secret to what makes speakers that really shine in front of a group so great. But it isn’t magic or something that you can take as a pill and an hour later, presto, you are ready to stand up and dazzle the crowd. It is a very simple process that is something you already know a lot about. It is just simple, old fashioned hard work and preparation.
In the same way that engineers look alike, so do companies. They have huge, low plants, large parking lots, carpeted executive suites, sexy receptionists, engineers who need haircuts, sales managers who need to diet, and comptrollers who need to smile. The companies aren’t the same, however, and the successful ones have ideas that make the difference.
To understand the full force of ideas, you have to turn to history, but certainly not ancient history. One day in 1915 one man far down the executive ladder wrote a memo and passed it along to his boss. The man with an idea was the assistant traffic manager of the Marconi Wireless Telegraph Company. Here is his memo, which I quote in full because it is one of the most astounding documents in business history:
I have in mind a plan of development, which would make radio a “household utility” in the same sense as the piano or phonograph. The idea is to bring music into the house by wireless.
Are you familiar with the term ‘ambidexterity’? This term is used to describe the ability to use both hands. Famous individuals like Albert Einstein, Fleming, Harry Truman, Leonardo da Vinci, and Michelangelo were said to be ambidextrous individuals. As you can see, it’s quite hard to use both hands with dexterity. If you’re a right-handed individual, you will find it hard to use you left hand in the same way, and vice versa. Do you think it will be possible to achieve whole-brain thinking? Well, that’s not impossible because you can do that if you know mind mapping.
Being ambidextrous can also be achieved if you’re able to do multiple tasks at the same time. For example, you’re watching TV as you answer the phone; while talking over the phone, you will jot down important notes or information dictated by the person on the other end of the line. If you can do these things, then it can be said that both hemispheres of your brain is functioning. Unknowingly, most individuals are utilizing both hemispheres of their brain everyday in accomplishing their tasks.
Everyone is constantly sending nonverbal information to the world through body language. It has been shown that even people blind from birth exhibit complex expressions of body language. Since it is so much a part of the human condition, it is important to know at least a little of this language.
Body language tells others how you feel. If you walk briskly and erect, you exude confidence. If you sit back with your hands behind your head and your legs crossed, it can mean confidence too. However, it can also mean that you feel superior or are arrogant.
Many different body language cues point to a lack of self confidence. If you are patting your hair or playing with it, you seem less self assured. Most people see nail-biting as a nervous behavior. Yet, it can also suggest a feeling of inferiority.
Body language can help a person to tell if you are interested or bored. If you are bored, you might sit with your legs crossed and you might kick one leg slightly. You could rest your head in your hands and look down. This body language would make you appear bored.
Are you a naturally negative person? Do you have trouble seeing the good in anything? Many people find themselves in this pit of negative thinking after having gone through a sequence of “bad” things happening to them. One way to help yourself out of this is to practice positive thinking on paper. Here are some tips to help you get started:
* Read books on self-improvement. Sometimes the best thing you can do for yourself is head to the library and check out several books on self-improvement. Reading these books will help you develop yourself. They can also help you learn how to think more positively.
* Keep a self-improvement journal. Buy yourself a nice journal and ink pen. At the beginning of the journal, write a list of goals you’d like to accomplish. Every day make a record of what you did to reach one of your goals. Every day you should work towards one of these, positive thinking, being the main goal. At the end of every month, go back and read your journal entries to see what kind of progress you’ve made. At the end of the year, you’ll have a record book full of entries and you will be able to see how you’ve grown and are thinking more positively about yourself.
