The lack of great acceptance speeches at the Academy Awards is nothing new — Joseph Lindsay has posted an excellent article on that here.

One “thing” that stood out to me more than any other last evening…reports indicate that the number of viewers increased by 15 % from 2009, and stood at over 41 million. 41,000,000. Think about that.

Over 41 million people watched the ceremony, during which awards were presented to a cadre of film professionals.  Said professionals participated in those movies and films that were watched by, oh, I don’t know…maybe some of the 41 million people who tuned in last night.

Not one acceptance speech focused on the one group who made each award possible – THE AUDIENCE.  No one spent significant time thanking the fans who voted with ticket purchases and their time.

There is a crucial public speaking lesson here — if you should ever win an award (and I hope each of you win a number of them), when you accept,  remember your audience, always.

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The similarity was striking, and there are

1.  You are presenting for your audience, not yourself — It doesn’t matter if you are presenting on the floor of the House of Representatives or on the floor of a private equity investors boardroom — your presentation is not about you, it is about the folks you are presenting to.

2. Focus – What are you trying to accomplish? – Rallying support behind a cause? Garnering votes for a bill? Gaining the interest/investment of equity groups?  Moving poll numbers? Placating a board?  Far too many presentations have no focus,  fail to answer this central question and fail to get the desired response.  Wonder why?

3. Reading verbatim IS NOT fundamental - First of all, the organization Reading is Fundamental does truly wonderful work.  There is one situation where reading is not fundamental, and then is when you are presenting.

I watched an entire Congressional hearing where EVERY opening statement was read verbatim, with eyes failing to meet anything but the copy of the testimony — three things were obvious:  1) the Congressional member reading was rarely, if ever, the author of what was being read; 2) the Congressional member displayed very little, if any, ownership of the words written; and 3) the chances of connecting with the audience was non-existent (Watching reporters and interested parties typing away on iPhones and Blackberry’s is not a positive sign)

To Legislators:  It is understandable that you have staff prepare comments prior to committee meetings and floor votes – your time is very limited and the pressures on you are great.  However, if you do not have the time to take the prepared comments, introduce your own thoughts, and re-write sections in your own words and language, you are better off not speaking at all.

To Entrepreneurs:  It is understandable that you are nervous, have a lot of information to convey, and have written it down in order to ensure that you are able to introduce every concept you feel is necessary.  Reading directly off of a script, or even worse, off of a PPT (the subject of another post) will not allow potential investors to see how passionate and confident you are about your company, your fund or your idea.

Invest the time in practice and preparation. If the President can re-write comments, practice and invest countless hours in preparation for an address, so can everyone else.

The President does it because he is well aware of the fallout should he fail to prepare.  The question is, what is the fallout should you fail to prepare?

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As an IT professional, you need to be able to present to your boss, your boss’s boss, the CEO, and investors or shareholders how the loss of you as an individual, or the loss of your team, would impact the business and its bottom line. In these economic times, communication is no longer a “soft skill” or “luxury” for an IT pro. It can mean the difference between maintaining your position or losing it and/or the difference between being able to retain funding for your division or your division shrinking.

So how can an IT leader become more effective at communicating? These six steps will certainly help:

1. Develop relationships within your organization but outside of the IT department- This seems like common sense but this often gets pushed to the side in favor of day-to-day responsibilities that yield immediate results. It is much easier to communicate what you do and why it is important to someone who is used to hearing from you regularly. Make a habit of trying to develop a relationship within a different division of the business at least once a month.

2. Develop a message – How does what you do, or what your team does, further the efforts of the organization? How does it help the business achieve its bottom line objectives? Being able to articulate this is crucial.

3. Be open. Be available.– IT can often breed a solo or small team atmosphere. If you are a leader in your organization, be seen. Nothing is worse than a CIO, CTO, EVP, etc., who stays behind closed doors and remains silent.

4. Treat your top talent as you would your board and investors – If you think you have talked to them enough, go back and talk to them one more time. Trust me, if your top talent is nervous– and they are– and you are not communicating with them, they are looking elsewhere. As times get more challenging, your top talent becomes more valuable to competitors. Replacing superstars in this environment is not easy.

5. Be consistent – Nothing deflates an organization or a team more than perceived inconsistency in communication or communication style. Everything you do sends a message, and communications, or lack thereof, sends a clear message. (Hint – not a positive one)

6. Be open with information – Within an organization, information hoarding is a thing of the past – the reality is that whatever information you have, others will be able to access soon enough. Information hoarding within an organization is poisonous and breeds distrust.

Remember, in tough economic times, leadership is always looking for places to cut. It is your job as an IT leader to be prepared to educate those in the company hierarchy who don’t understand the value of IT as well as those who view IT as a basic commodity rather than an individualized function that improves a company’s bottom line. This could mean the difference between funding increases or decreases, headcount reductions or stabilization, or even the difference between keeping some function in house rather than outsourced.

* This post ran last week on Experts Exchange, which is “…an IT and computer solutions community of more than 50,000 experts dedicated to exchanging knowledge and solving your technical problems. Experts Exchange is the most efficient and reliable IT resource on the Internet as evident by more than 2.6 million tech solutions.”   It is a terrific resource, and I encourage everyone to join.

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Today will focus 0n a few of my favorite breathing techniques to use prior to presenting or giving a speech:

1. Three Deep Belly Breaths – Sounds like what it is.  Slowly inhale through the nose for a count of 5-15 (15 is optimal). Keep one hand on your diaphragm and feel it enlarge as you inhale.  Hold for 5-10 seconds, and then exhale through your mouth slowly, again for a count of 5-15 seconds (15 is optimal).  Repeat three times.  This is awesome for the few minutes before you are actually going to be speaking.  Immediately relaxing.

2. Ujjaiy Breathing - Also known as Oceanic or Victorious Breathing – it is awesome. It is a yogic breathing technique I first learned from struggling through Vinyasa yoga classes with Nicole, and now practice for 5-10 minutes every day. Similar to deep belly breathing, however this time the mouth stays closed the entire time.  The best way to learn how is to watch demonstrations -  here, here and here.

3. Alternate Nostril Breathing Technique (my favorite) – All you need for this is your thumb, your pinkie finger, and your nose (sounds like the start of a bad joke!).  To begin, simply cover your left nostril with your left thumb, and slowly and deeply inhale for 5 seconds to start (10 is optimal).  Then immediately cover your right nostril with your left pinkie finger, while keeping your left nostril pressed closed – at all times your mouth is closed as well, so at this point you are essentially holding your breathe.  Again, hold for 5 seconds (10 is optimal). Then remove your left thumb from your left nostril and slowly exhale for a 10 count.  Wait two seconds and repeat the same technique, inhaling through your left nostril as your right nostril is still closed, etc. I usually do 10-15 rounds of this every day, and the feeling is amazing, and very relaxing.

While not “cures”, these techniques all do a good job of reducing  public speaking anxiety and fear associated with public speaking.  Again, while there are no “cures” (and don’t believe anyone who tells you there are!) there are techniques and strategies to alleviate public speaking fear.  Stay tuned for Pt. III…

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1. Develop your Message – Today! – The Prius was a groundbreaking achievement, Lexus is a leader in the luxury class, and Toyota has always been dependable;  A week later, there is no message, which is a message.

2. Speak Publicly Immediately — You are simply taking too much incoming fire at this point; a member of the Toyoda family must speak, now, today, and every day going forward until this crisis is settled

3. Appear Publicly – Again, every day until this situation is calmed.  At this point, there is no such thing as overexposure. None.

4. Show up where your customers are – I would recommend factories, showrooms, individual dealerships, etc. – not events where very, very, very few people have access to you — speaking at Davos and Davos only might have been worse than not speaking at all

5. Demonstrate Emotion – Pronto! – Set up a fund  to assist grieving families that have suffered as a result of the malfunctioning pedals.

6. Get Media Trained – Immediately – Based on the statement Akio made at Davos, media training of all top execs is an immediate priority.  Immediate.  I understand that caution and the prevention of over-reaction were crucial, but that horse has left the barn, you need to address it now.

7. Follow your Crisis Management Plan — A lesson in advance for every other CEO out there — if you don’t have a crisis management plan in place, get one in place this week.

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Toyota may be an international powerhouse, however at the same time it is a family-based brand, the family being the Toyoda family.  Akio Toyoda is the President, and his father Dr. Shoichiro Toyoda, is the Honorary Chairman.

This crisis struck what seems like a lifetime ago in terms of media cycles, and every day, this crisis brings more and more news, none of which is good.

Toyota is doing very little to stem the tide.  Toyota’s head of U.S. Operations, Jim Lentz, tried to address the issues on The Today Show, but the reality is no matter what Mr. Lentz said, it would not have solved the problem.  Why?

The company is not branded as Lentz Motor Sales — in all fairness to Mr. Lentz, customers, the press and the public want to hear from a member of the Toyoda family.  So far, the only comments issued by the family were statements Akio Toyoda made at Davos at the end of last week :

“We’re extremely sorry to have made customers feel uneasy. Right now, we are trying to establish the facts and preparing for giving an explanation so anxiety among customers would be removed as soon as possible.”

Not very convincing or illustrative of any emotion.

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That being said, I’m in pretty good company — it has been noted that Sir Winston Churchill and President Lincoln also got quite anxious prior to speaking publicly.

Unfortunately, no matter how many books, courses, DVDs, websites or snake oil salesmen promise to “cure” you of your fear of public speaking, it is never that simple, or that easy.  That being said, there are a number of techniques, strategies and tactics to use to alleviate the fear and anxiety that come calling prior to speaking publicly.

Tips and Tactics, Pt.I :

1. Prepare. Prepare. Prepare - Simply put, the more you prepare and the better handle you have on the material you are presenting, the better it will go.
2. Practice. Practice. Practice – Once you have prepared, you MUST practice, early and often.  Rumor has it that Churchill practiced for one hour per one minute of speech content he was delivering.  5 minute presentation = 5 hours practice.  How long are you practicing?
3. Check out/Read the room before – Familiarity breeds comfort; surprise the day of a presentation are no fun and ratchet up anxiety tenfold.
4. Remember – the audience is on your side- 9 times out of 10, the audience is rooting for you to succeed, not waiting for you to fall flat.
5. Breathing - My three favorite breathing techniques – 3 Deep Belly Breathes, Ujaia breathing, and the Alternate Nostril technique – more on each in a later post
6. Listen to Music – Watch a boxing or MMA competition; watch Kobe or LeBron prior to getting on the court – always listening to music, getting in the zone, eliminating outside distraction and chasing away anxiety and negative thoughts — it works prior to public speaking as well (I do this each and every time)
7. Remember – You are always more nervous than you look – ALWAYS!

Stay tuned for Pt. II…

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He was also one of the greatest communicators of the past century. Dr. King was always relentlessly on message, and always spoke with passion and energy.

This clip is important for a number of reasons.  It is the conclusion of his final speech, given at Mason Temple in Memphis on April 3rd — he was assassinated the next day.

He was speaking in support of the striking sanitation workers in Memphis, however as was usually the case when Dr. King spoke, his message was consistent regardless of who he was addressing, and he was always on message.

The sheer energy that this clip contains is unbelievable. One can feel the power through the small clip on a computer — imagine the energy that must have been in the room that day in Memphis!

Dr. King’s use of tempo, inflection and pause during this speech are masterful. It is not possible to sleep through this speech. It was not possible to drift away into another thought if you were watching. It is not possible to walk away indifferent after hearing this speech.

How many times have you witnessed presenters or speakers fail to make eye contact, speak in a monotone or rush through each thought? How often have you walked away from a presentation unable to remember hours later what the speaker said? How many times have you witnessed a speaker that had absolutely no energy or passion, and seemed to be going through the motions?

The notion that it is better to say something than to say nothing is just false.  If you don’t believe in what you are saying, you are better off saying nothing.

If you think that you can fool an audience, think again.

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Social Media outlets are not diaries, confidants or private/confidential conversations. The reality is that now, more than ever, social media conversations are public, or at the very least semi-public.

Whether “friends, followers or connections” the reality is that every day more and more of what you post is available via search.  More importantly, even without search, what you post can leave your immediate universe of friends and followers, and in some cases, even go viral.

Who cares? You should, especially if a friend, follower or connection becomes a foe, gets annoyed with you, or just decides that something you wrote is so interesting, ingenious (controversial, embarrassing) that they just have to share it with a friend who is not your friend. 

Below are examples of some gems that have been circulating around the web — all examples and further reminders of why you should read, re-read, and then read once more before you hit send, share or tell Twitter “what’s happening.”

The following examples were sent over by my good friend Ed Kuhn (who just passed his P.E. exam – congratulations Ed!)  The language in some is a little rough, so consider yourself warned:

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“New York City’s new comptroller, John Liu, has ordered his staff to rise whenever he enters the room and to address him as “Mr. Comptroller.”

The New York City Comptroller’s mission:

“The mission of the office is to ensure the financial health of New York City by advising the Mayor, the City Council, and the public of the City’s financial condition.”

Wow. 

Business and political bookshelves are filled with examples of leaders who do everything to fit in, who talk about the importance of “team,” who pick up garbage when they pass it and who proudly describe no task, regardless of how menial, being beneath them.

I have had the opportunity to work with myriad elected officials over the years, a few who took the actual title (what he or she was called) very seriously, and most who took the job a lot more seriously than the title.  One group includes men and women who were beloved long after they left office, and the other group (the “title” group) does not. 

In this day and age, when people are hurting, incumbents are vilified and being a man or woman of the people is what’s in (watch C-SPAN for any random 5 minutes, listen to a speech or testimony and you will see what I mean), I am not sure what message Mr. Liu is trying to send.  

I am quite sure about the message that the general public has received.

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