Article Summary:
Practical tips to help you speak like a leader.
How To Communicate Like A CEO
CEOs are the people that we look up to in an organization (most of them anyways). Granted, not all of them have excellent communication skills, however, many of them do.
Marcus Buckingham in The One Thing You Need to Know says this about leaders:
“The leader’s role is to be able to paint a vision of a future that is better than where we are today and inspire others to work toward creating it.”
I believe that communication is the foundation for good leadership. How is your “leadership” communication? Do you project confidence and credibility though your communications?
Here are a few questions to ask yourself, to see if you have a solid foundation of communication skills to help you be seen as a leader in your organization.
1. Do you project optimism to those who work with and for you?
2. Do you acknowledge others’ contributions out loud?
3. Do you paint the picture of a better future with a clear vision?
4. Do people feel encouraged and inspired after your meetings or presentations?
5. Do your team members know what you expect of them?
6. When making a request are you specific?
In one of our workshops, the most powerful exercise is called CEO for a Day. We promote each of our participants to CEO of their companies. We then ask that they each craft their opening message to their executive team and deliver it. What is dramatic about this activity is that our participants rise to the challenge and present themselves more powerfully and persuasively, as if they are the CEO.
I’ve learned from conducting this exercise numerous times that sometimes all people need, is to be given permission to project their best and most confident selves. It’s up to you to do this when you are standing up at the front of the room or leading a meeting. Others look to you for your opinion, how you feel about a particular topic, and your recommendations.
Are you able to, as Marcus Buckingham says:
“Paint the picture of the future that’s better than where we are today and inspire others to work toward creating it”?
Dana Bristol-Smith is the founder of Speak for Success, an organization that works with companies that want their people to communicate with confidence and credibility. She is the author of Overcome Your Fear of Public Speaking interactive manual. Dana works primarily with managers, sales and technical professionals and has delivered presentations and training to more than 100,000 people since 1992. For more information, visit Speakforsuccess.net
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