As a speaker, I want to know how I am doing. However, I think that asking for and receiving feedback can be one of the hardest parts of working on our skills that exists.

Oftentimes, when we have given a presentation, members of the audience rush up for one of the following reasons:

• To tell us how much they enjoyed and gained from our presentation.
• To ask a question about something we addressed or didn’t address.
• To tell us about a part of our presentation or something we did that they particularly liked or
• To tell us something we did incorrectly, left out or were mistaken about.

All of the above types of feedback are important, not only because they make us feel good or bad, but also because they can show us what areas of our speaking are strong and can be used to our advantage and what areas we need to examine and work on. We must ask ourselves, however, if we can honestly agree with the feedback and then if the suggestions are feasible.

We should never try to change so much that we become uncomfortable or not ourselves. We do need to maintain our uniqueness, even if it “ruffles a few feathers.”

How about the evaluation sheets that audience members are often asked to fill out?

• Other presenters and I have mixed emotions about these kinds of evaluations.
• First of all, let me say that if we receive 100 great evaluations and two that are poor and/or degrading evaluations, we tend to focus on the two (it is human nature).
• I know speakers that throw a whole stack of evaluations in the waste basket without even looking at them. They feel that most of the time, the sheets are destructive and useless.
• My advice is to take what you feel is constructive and worth changing (usually a technique or skill), but forget what attacks you as a person (your character, style or uniqueness).
• I find that if the same comment is repeated often, this is something that I should work on improving.

What are other ways to receive feedback? I often mention Toastmasters. It doesn’t matter what level of speaking we have achieved, we will receive helpful evaluations on a regular basis if we join a Toastmasters club. Every speech we give will have an evaluator assigned. Just be sure to tell him or her what areas to focus on, and how tough you want your evaluation to be. You will also learn a huge amount by doing evaluations yourself. There are also advanced clubs available where you will have the opportunity to work at a more intense level with tougher evaluations.

When should we give feedback? I would never give any kind of critical feedback, unless asked to, and I also hesitate to give feedback to some others who ask for it. These are the people who do not really want to follow any kind of advice and will also take the defensive and argue with you about your feedback. I feel that I am not helping them and am only gaining an enemy for the time and effort expended.

The world economy is in a state of extreme tension and competition. The current times are such that all companies expect their employees to prove their efficiency by exhibiting impeccable interpersonal skills and confident public speaking. Doing good work is no longer the only criterion that makes someone successful in their job. Making presentations is also an integral part of excelling in today’s corporate environment. These presentations go a long way in determining the understanding of the individual regarding the topic at hand.

Many people are fearful of making presentations as they wonder if they will be able to pull them off. Also, they are not sure of being able to cover the entire content and prepare a presentation that meets industry standards. Presenting the content in front of many people is another aspect which sends shivers down the spine of persons who have not made a presentation before. The following tips are sure to assist an individual considerably when they are out to make a PowerPoint Presentation.

1. Understand that the presentation is a means to complement your program; your program does not revolve around it.
2. Always remember to take back up of your presentation on a disc to ensure that the content is not lost and can be retrieved in spite of a computer crash.
3. While using handouts, it is always advisable to carry an original copy of the presentation. In cases where the handouts fall short, these copies prove to be saviors.
4. Experts suggest that the person presenting on PowerPoint should always position himself in a lighted area. This ensures that the audience can see the face of the presenter even while the lights have been put off in order to make the screen clearly visible. Not being able to see the presenter adversely affects the efficiency of the presentation.
5. Usually, the final slide of the presentation always contains the contact information of the presenter. It helps to put this slide up while the question-answer session with the audience is on. This tip helps immensely because this way, the details of the presenter is visible to the audience for the longest possible time. The audience is given enough time to take note of the name, email address and phone number of the presenter.

People who keep all the above points in mind while making a presentation can be sure of coming up with a presentation that meets the highest standards of quality and professionalism.

During March Madness sports fans affectionately refer to the NCAA Basketball tournament as “bracketology”. It’s a 65 team playoff, over 18 days, single elimination (winner keeps going, loser goes home)…one ultimate winner. I think it’s the best event in sports.
In negotiation, we sometimes pride ourselves on “thinking on our feet” or “winging it.” Don’t fool yourself. There is a better way. It’s called “bracketizing.”

The best chance for Negotiation success comes from what we call “Aggressive Preparation”. In the Humble Confidence Negotiation Workshop we dive into the 6 Stages of Negotiation Preparation. Stage 5 is what we call “bracketizing” our offers. We prepare and bracket 4 offers:

1) The Best (better than expected)
2) The Realistic (what it should be)
3) The Fallback (acceptable range of backup)
4) The Alamo (don’t go there…call a timeout!)

Bracketizing means we project ahead and determine a range of offers. We gain the discipline of staying within the plan, or “bracket”. We never “wing it” or freelance deals at the table. Never.

Now that’s not to mean we’re rigid or “un-creative”. Not at all. But it does mean we control our emotions and don’t get caught up in the euphoria of deal-completion. Sometimes we just want to be done…be careful not to let your desire to finish drive a sub-par outcome.

Bracketizing is just one stage. There are 5 more in “Aggressive Preparation”. We call it “Aggressive” because you have to drive your team and yourself to embrace the process. And remember, 90% of a successful negotiation happens in this stage, before you even get in the room!