All eyes are on you. Yes, it’s true. In business presentations, you are in charge. You are the leader. As the leader in a presentation, you are in charge of the pace, flow, and impact of your story.

In business presenting, a lot of professionals confuse their audiences by multi-tasking. This is a really bad idea. Instead of giving your audience a clear direction, multi-tasking points them in 15-directions at once.

Let’s look at the common (but awful) practice of talking while changing PowerPoint or Keynote slides.

If you talk, change slides and keep on talking, what should the audience do? Should they listen to your words? Should they focus on the slide? What is the right place to look? They aren’t sure.

The audience doesn’t know what is the top priority. Simply put, if your audience is confused, they will check out. Instead of staying connected to your message, their attention will drift.

Next thing you know, people will be checking email, daydreaming or having side conversations. This is NOT how to command attention.

What can you do differently? Slow down. Do one thing at a time.

Here’s the simple tip: Announce where you are going. Pause. Then change the slide. Next, describe where you are.

This is just the same kind of step-by-step approach that you need to take when giving a tour, or managing the attention of a young child. Only now, you’re acting as a patient tour guide for your audience.

Here’s the break down in precise detail.

Tip 1: Tell Where You Are Going

Announce where you are going in advance. This tip applies to your entire presentation, each slide, and the next action.

For the whole presentation: always give an overview. This helps participants get oriented for the entire journey. Even if everyone is familiar with the topic and you’ve met before, give an overview.

For each slide: prepare participants for what’s in the next slide – before you go there. This is important. The mind can wander. It’s your job to tell people where you are and what’s coming next – before you go.

For each action: tell people what you want them to do. Announce this in advance.

Then…

Tip 2: Change The Picture

After you have alerted participants, it’s time to do what you promised. Change the slide.

If you are not using slides, you can still do this step. Change to a flipchart. Change to a video. Or change to a whiteboard. You also might be changing to an exercise or activity.

Whatever you promised to do, do what you have announced.

Tip 3: Show Where You Are

Now that you are in a new slide, or a new whiteboard discussion — show people around. Familiarize them with the new part of the presentation.

I like to think of this as playing the tour guide. It doesn’t take a lot of time, but it shows how much you care about your audience. It shows you care deeply about their experience.

Are you commanding attention in client and prospect presentations? Get the skills you need to focus attention with visual storytelling. 

Debt negotiation has become a common solution for those who are desperately trying to get rid of debt. Eliminating a substantial portion of your dues will sound great but only if you negotiate your debt with the help of a responsible and an expert debt negotiation Company. In any event, a legitimate service provider has to be selected before we embark on this journey.

However, before opting for debt negotiation, we need to be aware of some fundamental risks associated with the negotiation process. We will then have to take a decision as to whether we vote for negotiation or some other alternative approach in order to avoid or mitigate those risks.

The major drawback of debt negotiation is its impact on the credit score. The success of the negotiation process depends on its ability to obtain a sizable discount on a particular debt. Once the settlement is reached at the end of the repayment period, the creditor will write off the balance debt and report the credit as “Settled”. This is where the problem originates. If a debt is tagged as “Settled”, the future creditors and the Companies who analyze your credit score will know that you have not settled the debt in full! Therefore, your credit score will go down making it difficult to borrow in the future-the record can remain in your credit history for up to 10 years. Therefore, before starting repayments under a debt negotiation service, you need to request for a written confirmation from the creditor and the negotiation Company that the debt will be recorded as “Settled in full” once it is settled.

Also, remember that a part settlement of a debt never forms valid consideration under the law of contract unless the relevant agreement is in writing. Therefore, subsequent to the negotiation process, before the repayments begin, you need to obtain a written confirmation from the creditor stating that the residual debt will be charged off and that your payment constitutes full and final settlement of the debt. This confirmation needs to be recorded on an official letter head of the Company and has to be signed by an authorized officer of the Company.

It is also important to retain all the records pertaining to the negotiation process and the agreements reached at the negotiations for future reference. These can be very important in the event the negotiation process becomes unsuccessful and the creditor threatens to file legal action against you. If the negotiation Company does not emphasize on these requirements it is important that you know the fundamentals behind the process in order to take corrective measures proactively.

Have you ever thought to yourself when interacting with others in social situations; you know I have heard all this BS before. Indeed it seems that even intelligent people show up at a party and begin discussing; How about those Yankees or How about the weather?

Indeed most of us have nothing against baseball, as it is about as American as Apple Pie and Automobiles. And the 2005 Atlantic Tropical Hurricane Season, certainly changed the weather headlines for months on end, as if it would never stop.

Nevertheless are you simply tired of all the linear thought out there? If so well then it sounds like you are someone who could certainly benefit from higher level dialogue and assist us in bettering the Republic and moving linear thought from flickering cave walls to the masses.

Would you rather discuss other things? Do you ancient studies fascinating, do you ever wonder if all the history we have been taught and everything we know is wrong and we are doomed to repeat even if we study it because we are studying nothing more than re-written purported falsehood by the victors of that past period?

http://ezinearticles.com/?Is-Your-Knowledge-of-History-Correct?&id=233411

If we have all be sold a bill of goods on history then we need not discuss the past. If everyone in the present is stuck in linear thought, then why bother discussing anything but the future road ahead? Too philosophical for you; I see, well then; How about those Yankees do you think the weather will hold out for next weeks game? Think on this in 2006.