50 One-Minute Tips to Better Communication

Description:

The 50-Minute Manager Series was designed to cover critical business and professional development topics in the shortest time possible. With a wealth of hands-on exercises, the 50-Minute Manager course keeps you engaged and help you retain critical skills.

We’re all called upon at meetings and in documents every day to clearly communicate ideas, report on past achievements and persuade others into effective action. Here are 50 easy-to-implement suggestions for how to make all your communications more powerful. Learn how to put new communication strategies in place right away in this course.

Duration: 1 day

Table of Contents:

Part 1: Fourteen Tips to Improve Your Meetings

Tip 1: Think of Meetings as Investments
Tip 2: Forecast Your Meetings
Tip 3: Use “Meeting Focus” Posters in Meeting Rooms
Tip 4: Use a “Recipe” to Start Meetings Well
Tip 5: Know How Effective Leaders Behave
Tip 6: 10 Key Statements of Effective Meeting Leaders
Tip 7: Use “Funneling” to Brainstorm on Single Issues
Tip 8: Use “Fast Networks” to Brainstorm on Multiple Issues
Tip 9: Use the FAST Formula to Manage “Meeting Theft”
Tip 10: Use a “Recipe” to Finish Meetings Well
Tip 11: Evaluate Meetings to Ensure Productivity
Tip 12: Quick Strategies for Ad Hoc Meetings
Tip 13: Quick Strategies for One-on-One Meetings
Tip 14: Use Special Strategies for Teleconferences

Part 2: Fourteen Tips to Improve Your Business Writing

Tip 15: Know the Facts and Myths About Business Writing
Tip 16: Ask Yourself Questions Before You Give Answers
Tip 17: Brainstorm Now, Organize Later
Tip 18: Put First Things First-And Last
Tip 19: Practice “Aerobic Writing”
Tip 20: Use “Big-Middle-Little” Revising
Tip 21: Add “Breathing Space” for Reader Friendliness
Tip 22: Make Subject Lines and Headings Longer, Not Shorter
Tip 23: Simplify and Clarify Your Document
Tip 24: After You Check Spelling, Proofread
Tip 25: How to Comment on Each Other’s Writing
Tip 26: E-mail Time Savers and Etiquette Points
Tip 27: Format Points for Technical Reports
Tip 28: Write Clear Action Steps in Procedures
The A-POWR Writing Process

Part 3: Fourteen Tips to Improve Your Presentations

Tip 29: Plan to Speak to Listeners on Their Terms
Tip 30: Use a Recipe to Begin with Confidence
Tip 31: To Build Credibility, Use Personal Stories and “Fast Facts”
Tip 32: To Organize Points, Use the B.E.S.T. Recipe
Tip 33: Create Uplifting Conclusions
Tip 34: Handle Questions with Care
Tip 35: Gesture from the Audience’s Point of View
Tip 36: Improve Your Voice “Music”
Tip 37: To Improve Eye Contact, Think: “Who’s the Sleepiest?”
Tip 38: For Impromptu Presentations, Answer Three Questions
Tip 39: To Sell to a V.I.P., Converse; Don’t Lecture
Tip 40: Deliver Smooth Team Presentations
Tip 41: Think of Mistakes as Assets
Tip 42: When Presenting, Be Just Nervous Enough

Part 4: Eight Tips for Using PowerPoint

Tip 43: Start Creating Your Presentations Without PowerPoint
Tip 44: Use Directory Visuals to Focus Your Audience
Tip 45: Use “Signpost” Slides
Tip 46: Use Dynamic On-Screen Menus
Tip 47: To Focus Within Complex Slides, Use On-Screen Enhancements
Tip 48: “Unhide” Slides if Listeners Need More Information
Tip 49: Create Audio-Visual Cooperation
Tip 50: Use the Room to Clarify the Structure of Your Presentation