PRESENTATION SKILLS & PUBLIC SPEAKING 1.1

PRESENTATION SKILLS & 

PUBLIC SPEAKING 1.1

“A presentation is a live mode of sharing information for a selected audience. It’s a form of oral communication in which a person shares factual information with a particular audience in an impressive and convincing manner.”

Definition of Presentation

I. “A structured, prepared and speech-based means of communicating information, ideas, or arguments to a group of interested people in order to inform or persuade them”

II. “To inform, inspire, entertain, demonstrate, prove and to persuade, that is an objective of a good presentation.”

 

 COMMON PURPOSE OF BUSINESS PRESENTATIONS

Oral presentations can be categorized according to their purpose. The four basic reasons for giving a presentation are to inform, to persuade, to motivate, and to entertain. Most of our presentations or speeches will be informative, requiring a straightforward statement of the facts. If you’re involved in a marketing or sales position, however, we’ll probably be writing and delivering quite a few persuasive presentations and speeches.  Motivational speeches tend to be more specialized, so many companies bring in outside professional speakers to handle this type of presentation. Entertainment speeches are perhaps the rarest in the business world; they are usually limited to after-dinner speeches and to speeches at conventions or retreats. Whatever your purpose, your speech will be more effective if you keep your audience interested in your message. To do so, you must understand who your audience members are and what they need.

PRESENTATION SKILLS: A Must !!!

• Necessary as a Student, Researcher, Manager or a Job Seeking Person.
• For Communicating Your Information Clearly.
• For Creating a Very Good Impression about You as a Speaker.
• For Building Confidence and Removing Stage Phobia/ Fear Factor/ Public Hesitation.
• Personality Development.

 FUNDAMENTALS OF 

PROFESSIONAL PRESENTATION

I. Purpose:

• To Decide the Content & Style
• “Why Am I Giving This Presentation…?!!”
• You May be Giving the Presentation to, a. Inform People about an Idea, b. Describe a Business Opportunity, c. Gain Support for Some Cause of Action, d. Gather People’s View on New Plans or Products, e.Create Awareness

II. Audience:

• Before Making a Presentation, Know the Audience You are Going to Address.
• Number, Nature, Needs, Level of Knowledge & Attitude.
• Focus Your Presentation on Those Issues that would be of Their Interest.
• Look for Some Smiling Faces :-) SMILE YOURSELF (whenever necessary)!!!
• And Adjust Your Style Accordingly.

note: YOU MUST KNOW: Who is Your Audience? Why Are They Attending Your Presentation? What is Their Background and Level of Knowledge? How Many Persons will There be? What Are Their Interests, Likes and Dislikes? Are They Familiar with the Topic? How is Their Attitude? Age Range? Gender Distribution? What is the Outcome of Your Presentation?

III. Content:

• Collect Material for Your Presentation.
• INTRODUCTION ~ MAIN BODY ~ CONCLUSION.
• Say What You Want to Say --> Say It --> Say What You've Already Said.

note: A. INTRODUCTION: Get the Attention of the Audience, State the Purpose, Preview the Main Points. B. MAIN BODY: Main Points backed by Supporting Material, Advantage/Benefit/Gain/Profit, Convince Your Audience!, Expand-Explain-Elaborate, C. CONCLUSION: Review the Main Points, ‘FINISHING TOUCH’. 
      

IV. Audio Visual Aids:

• Black Board/ White Board/ Overhead Projectors/ LCD Projectors/ Power Point Software.
• Charts/ Figures/ Images/ Pictures/ Tables/ Graphs.
• For Making the Audience See What They Hear. 
• Keeping the Audience Attentive and Absorbed. 
• Using Different Colors To Highlight Different Points.
• Safer to carry Printouts or Written Notes. 

note: Take Care: a. Do Not Use Too Many Visual Aids As They Will Lessen Their Impact. b. Plan To Use Your Visuals By Determining Your Main Points. c. Don’t Fill A Slide With Too Many Words. d. Write Points in place of long sentences. e. Your Speaking and Slide Projection Must be in accordance. f. Explain, Don’t Just Read to Enhance the Value of Our Presentation & Effective Delivery.

IV. Delivery:

• Whatever you say and whatever you show; it is you, yourself which will remain the focus of the audience's attention. 
• There are five key facets of the human body which deserve attention in presentation skills: 1. Eye Contact, 2. Voice Modulation, 3. Expressions, 4. The Body Movement, 5. Gestures & postures.

note: Mind Your Body Language: a. Do not stand in front of the screen when the projector is on, b. Smile!, c. Dress for Success, d. Knees unlocked, head up and shoulders released down, e. Make proper eye contact, f. Breathe & Relax, g. Do not lock arms, h. Connect with the audience, i. Finish positively. 
 

 [to be continued...]

NEGOTIATION 1.2

 NEGOTIATION 1.2 

[RADPAC Model of Negotiation]

RADPAC Model of Negotiation:

R - Rapport

A - Analysis

D - Debate

P - Propose

A - Agreement

C - Close

R - Rapport: As the name suggests, it signifies the relation between parties involved in negotiation. The parties involved in negotiation ideally should be comfortable with each other and share a good rapport with each other.

A - Analysis: One party must understand the second party well. It is important that the individual understand each other’s needs and interest. The shopkeeper must understand the customer’s needs and pocket, in the same way the customer mustn’t ignore the shopkeeper’s profits as well. People must listen to each other attentively.

D - Debate: Nothing can be achieved without discussions. This round includes discussing issues among the parties involved in negotiation. The pros and cons of an idea are evaluated in this round. People debate with each other and each one tries to convince the other. One must not lose his temper in this round but remain calm and composed.

P - Propose: Each individual proposes his best idea in this round. Each one tries his level best to come up with the best possible idea and reach to a conclusion acceptable by all.

A - Agreement: Individuals come to a conclusion at this stage and agree to the best possible alternative.

C - Close: The negotiation is complete and individuals return back satisfied.

Let us again consider Mohan and Shina’s example to understand RADPAC Model,

R - Rapport between Mohan and Shina. They must be comfortable with each other and should not start the negotiation right away. They must first break the ice. The discussions must start with a warm smile and greetings.

A - Both Mohan and Shina would try their level best to understand each other’s needs. Mohan’s need is to grab the opportunity while Shina wants to hire an employee for the organization.

D - The various rounds of discussions between Mohan and Shina. Mohan and Shina would debate with each other trying to get what they want.

P - Mohan would propose the best possible salary he can work on while Shina would also discuss the maximum salary her company can offer.

A - Both Mohan and Shina would agree to each other, where both of them would compromise to their best possible extent.

C - The negotiation is complete and probably the next course of action is decided, like in this case the next step would be generation of the offer letter and its acceptance.

******

NEGOTIATION 1.1

NEGOTIATION 1.1

Negotiation is defined as a discussion among individuals to reach to a conclusion acceptable to one and all. It is a process where people rather than fighting among themselves sit together, evaluate the pros and cons and then come out with an alternative which would be a win win situation. Negotiation helps in reducing conflicts and disputes among each other. Negotiation is essential in every walk of life for a peaceful and stress free living.

Let us go through various models of negotiation:

Win Win Model - In this model, each and every individual involved in negotiation wins. No body is at loss in this model and every one is benefited out of the negotiation. This is the most accepted model of negotiation. Let us understand it with the help of an example:

Dheeraj wanted to buy a laptop but it was an expensive model. He went to the outlet and negotiated with the shopkeeper to lower the price. Initially the shopkeeper was reluctant but after several rounds of discussions and persuasion, he quoted a price best suited to him as well as Dheeraj. Dhreej was extremely satisfied as he could now purchase the laptop without burning a hole in his pocket. The negotiation also benefited the store owner as he could earn his profits and also gained a loyal customer who would come again in future.

Win Lose Model - In this model one party wins and the other party loses. In such a model, after several rounds of discussions and negotiations, one party benefits while the other party remains dissatisfied.

Please refer to the above example once again where Dhreej wanted to buy a laptop. In this example, both Dhreej and the store owner were benefited out of the deal. Let us suppose Dhreej could not even afford the price quoted by the storeowner and requests him to further lower the price. If the store owner further lowers the price, he would not be able to earn his profits but Dhreej would be very happy. Thus after the negotiation, Dhreej would be satisfied but the shopkeeper wouldn’t. In a win lose model, both the two parties are not satisfied, only one of the two walks away with the benefit.

Lose Lose Model - As the name suggests, in this model, the outcome of negotiation is zero. No party is benefited out of this model. In this model, generally the two parties are not willing to accept each other’s views and are reluctant to compromise. No discussions help.

Had Dhreej not purchased the laptop after several rounds of negotiation, neither he nor the store owner would have got anything out of the deal. Dhreej would return empty handed and the store owner would obviously not earn anything.

Let us understand the above three models with an example from the corporate world.

Mohan got selected with a multinational company of repute. He was called to negotiate his salary with Shina- the HR Head of the organization. 
 

Case 1 - Shina quoted a salary to Mohan, but Mohan was not too pleased with the figure. He insisted Shina to raise his salary to the best extent possible. After discussions Shina came out with a figure acceptable to Mohan and she immediately released his offer letter. Mohan got his dream job and Shina could manage to offer Mohan a salary well within the company’s budgets - A win win negotiation (Both the parties gained).

Case 2 - Shina with her excellent negotiation skills managed to convince Mohan at a little lower salary than he quoted. Mohan also wanted to grab the opportunity as it was his dream job and he was eyeing it for quite some time now. He had to accept the offer at a little lower salary than expected. Thus in this negotiation, Mohan was not completely satisfied but Shina was - A win lose negotiation.

Case 3 – Mohan declined the offer as the salary quoted by Shina did not meet his expectations. Shina tried her level best to negotiate with Mohan, but of no use. A lose lose model of negotiation. No body neither Mohan nor Shina gained anything out of this negotiation.

[to be continued...]

MOTIVATION 1.6

 MOTIVATION 1.6

[THEORIES OF MOTIVATION]

c. Herzberg's Two Factors Theory

• According to Herzberg, there are some job factors that result in satisfaction while there are other job factors that prevent dissatisfaction. 
• According to Herzberg, the opposite of “Satisfaction” is “No satisfaction” and the opposite of “Dissatisfaction” is “No Dissatisfaction”.

Herzberg classified these job factors into two categories,

1. Hygiene Factors:  Hygiene factors are those job factors which  do not lead to positive satisfaction for long-term. But if these factors are absent, then they lead to dissatisfaction. These factors are extrinsic to work. Hygiene factors are also called as dissatisfies or maintenance factors. 

2. Motivational Factors:  According to Herzberg, the hygiene factors cannot be regarded as motivators. The motivational factors yield positive satisfaction. These factors motivate the employees for a superior performance. These factors are also called satisfiers.

d. McClelland’s Achievement Motivation Theory

McClelland studied the behavioral effects of three needs:

1. Strong Need for Achievement People

• Take responsibility for results of behavior
• Willing to take calculated risks
• Set moderate achievement goals
• Prefer to set performance standards for themselves
• Prefer non-routine tasks to routine assignments
• Welcome feedback about how well they are doing

2. Strong Need for Power People

• Focuses on ‘controlling the means of influencing the behavior of another person’ 
• Having strong effects on other people
• Means of influence:  anything available to the person to control the behavior of another
• Actively searches for means of influence

3. Strong Need for Affiliation People

• Focuses on ‘establishing, maintaining, and restoring positive affective relations with others’
• Want close, warm interpersonal relationships
• Seek the approval of others, especially those about whom they care
• Like other people, want other people to like them, and want to be in the company of others

 ******

MOTIVATION 1.5

 MOTIVATION 1.5

[THEORIES of MOTIVATION]

 a. Maslow's Need Hierarchy Theory 

The basis of Maslow's theory of motivation is that human beings are motivated by unsatisfied needs, and that certain lower needs need to be satisfied before higher needs can be addressed. Physiological Needs are those required to sustain life, such as Air, Water, Food, Sleep. If these fundamental needs are not satisfied, then one will surely be motivated to satisfy them. Higher needs such as social needs and esteem are not recognized until one satisfies the needs basic to existence.

Once physiological needs are met, one's attention turns to Safety and Security in order to be free from the threat of physical and emotional harm. Such needs might be fulfilled by living in a safe area, medical insurance, job security, financial reserves. According to the Maslow hierarchy, if a person feels threatened, needs further up the pyramid will not receive attention until that need has been resolved.

Once a person has met the lower level physiological and safety needs, higher level motivators awaken. The first level of higher level needs are social needs. Social Needs are those related to interaction with others and may include friendship, belonging to a group, giving and receiving love.

After a person feels that they "belong", the urge to attain a degree of importance emerges. Esteem Needs can be categorized as external motivators and internal motivators. Internally motivating esteem needs are those such as self-esteem, accomplishment, and self respect.  External esteem needs are those such as reputation and recognition. Some examples of esteem needs are: Recognition, Attention, Social Status (external motivator) and Accomplishment, Self-respect (internal motivator)

Self-actualization is the peak of Maslow's motivation theory. It is about the quest of reaching one's full potential as a person. Unlike lower level needs, this need is never fully satisfied; as one grows psychologically there are always new opportunities to continue to grow. Self-actualized people tend to have motivators such as truth, justice, wisdom, meaning. According to Maslow, only a small percentage of the population reaches the level of self-actualization.

  

b. McGregor X-Y Theory

 [to be continued...]