Going negative

I love this George Bernard Shaw quote. Because it says what I preach all the time. Effective communication is more subtle and difficult than one might think. Being a great communicator can be hard, but being a bad communicator is regrettably pretty easy. I don’t believe in going negative, but sometimes, ya gotta. So, here are the Six Big Mistakes Lackadaisical Communicators Make:

1. You have a content problem.
You don’t have a great message and a provocative useful idea; you’re boring and derivative. You don’t tell stories. You don’t engage as a human with your audience at all. Your slides are full of marketing jargon and acronyms.

2. You are a robot.
You use stilted choreographed hand gestures because someone told you that’s what good speakers do. You avoid eye contact. You are unnatural and creepy, because you’ve done nothing to prepare your body. You’ve lost touch with your natural self.

3. You are that bozo reading his slides.
When you read your slides at people, it either shows people you’re so arrogant you didn’t think you needed to prepare, or it shows them you’re not in command of your content, which is even worse. This is not the look you’re going for . . .

4. You are a clueless narcissist.
You focus entirely on what you want to say, without giving a thought to what your audience might want to hear. Remember - your audiences do not find you, your company, or your products nearly as interesting as you find yourself, your company, or your products. Show your audience that what you built can help them realize their dreams. Products in context are great. Products alone are super boring.

5. You let yourself become that reporter’s bi#&h.
The most common mistake everyone makes in media interviews is this: trying to please the reporter. It’s not your job to make the reporter happy. Your prime directive is to make your customers and investors happy. A reporter writes a great article about you when you have a great story to tell – with great messages, great data, and a compelling, unique point of view. Media relations is 100% transactional. Show merit, receive coverage. Help your company. Learn the proper spokesperson techniques.

6. The big mistake behind all the others: Not taking communication seriously.
Know this - it’s the soft skills that will elevate or sink you. Stephen Covey says, “Communication is the most important skill in life.” Why on earth would you skip over mastering the most important skill in life? Hopefully, you’ll only need to stumble badly once to realize you never want to do it again!

Communication can be incredibly hard and scary. So, get help! Commit yourself to learning. Practice. Practice some more. Note and celebrate your progress – even in tiny increments. And most importantly, be gentle and good-humored with yourself as you climb the learning curve!