Billie Jean King, winner of 39 tennis grand slams, says:
“Sport is entertainment; everything is about the audience whether you give a speech or play tennis.”
After Billie Jean’s retirement from top-class tennis, she was regularly asked to speak. Here are the three pieces of advice she gave to audiences!
- Relationships are everything
- Keep learning and keep learning how to learn
- Be a problem solver
Let me explore with you how these three excellent pieces of advice are applicable in your daily lives.
The Interview:
Audience:
Research the company and ideally the people who will be interviewing you (use LinkedIn, Facebook etc.).
Learning:
Talk about what you’ve learned/observed in your previous positions and how you hope to continue to learn and face new challenges
Problem solver:
Most importantly, talk about your ability to solve/overcome problems. Ideally, have some stories that demonstrate
Pitching – Presenting to Win Business
When pitching for business, you also need to address these three objectives.
Audience:
What did you discover about the organisation and what do you know about the people in the room and their issues?
An in-depth knowledge of the following is critical to your success.
The current situation:
A brief recap of the current position, ideally as said to you by the prospect.
Their objectives:
What would be a measure of success for the people in the room?
Can you articulate clearly the value to the organisation?
Note: Measure of success and value to the organisation may often be different, you need to understand and articulate both! (see case study below)
Continue learning:
The above is what we have learned about your company; we would welcome the opportunity to increase our understanding of your issues and tease out any misconceptions we may have.
Problem Solver:
Finish your pitch by reminding them of the problem they have and get their agreement, then paint a word picture of them enjoying the benefits to their organisation.
Case Study:
I recently worked with a very dynamic energy management company and helped them to create their pitch.
Let me show you how I articulated their story using Billie Jean’s Questions:
Audience:
Global Management Team
Current situation:
Multinational Organisation who wished to reduce global energy costs.
Objectives:
Energy savings with the minimum disruption to production.
Measure of success:
Less breakdowns (Stress) due to increased reliability.
Value to Organisation:
Significant Energy saving with the added bonus of as a world leader in the area of environmental management.
Why not try completing these 3 Steps for your business; it’s always good to take a fresh look at how you tell your story?
If you need assistance why not avail of my free 15 min consultation? Get In touch Below
Two Day Communications Programme | Booking Now Open
Booking for the Aristo Two Day Communications Programme is now open.
Click on the image below to reserve your spot…
