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 Here are some real-life stories from professionals who've worked with Diane to resolve communication obstacles in their careers. The names have been changed to protect privacy but the results are real. Diane would like to make you a success too! Is Fear Making You Invisible? Situation: Joan was a bright, successful executive for a Fortune 500 company who was deathly afraid of giving presentations, even at monthly meetings. Joan's fear of speaking was causing her to lose valuable opportunities for visibility in her organization. Realizing the seriousness of the situation, she was eager to begin the speech coaching process. Solution: Diane took a two-pronged approach. She reframed Joan's thinking about public speaking and reduced her perfectionism, which was underlying the fear. Then Diane got Joan practicing breathing and pausing techniques to gain control. Result: After 8 hours of coaching, Joan developed a new confidence. At the next monthly meeting she spoke up and felt good about it. She reported to Diane that her nervousness was reduced and that she was actually the best presenter in the group! P.S., Joan now shares speaking tips with other speakers in her group! Do you know people who are losing career opportunities due to fear of speaking? Diane can help make them more visible. Are You Embarrassing Your Team? Situation: Bill, a bright, young entrepreneur, was a principal of a software company. He was on his way to the West Coast to deliver a presentation when he called Diane for some coaching. His company was positioned to sell their start-up to a large company and his partner was concerned about their image because Bill was such a terrible presenter. As a principal, Bill knew how important it was to be visible and to get out there and speak. He was motivated to change. Solution: Diane helped Bill work on his transitions. She reduced the number of slides in his PowerPoint presentation, got him to slow down his speaking pace, and coached him to connect eye-to-eye with the audience. Result: After only TWO HOURS, Bill had transformed his image. He faxed Diane the results of his first speech and the results after coaching. He went from scoring a 2.6 on his audience evaluations to a 4.0 on a scale of 1-5. Audience members praised his presentation as "entertaining," "informative," and "clear." His partner in the firm was blown away by the transformation. Do you know people who need to project a better image? Diane can help them polish up their presentation skills. Do You Suffer From Verbal Diarrhea? Situation: Donald was a director-level manager who was getting complaints from his boss that his voice-mails were long-winded and that his too business-like demeanor was failing to gain buy-in from his staff. One of Donald's biggest problems was that he didn't listen. His conversations were like running monologues and it was difficult for others to break in. His assignments lacked the detailed information required to get the job done. Solution: Through the Exec-U-Lead coaching program, Diane and Donald worked on developing a concise message. The target was getting Donald to deliver a 30 second voice mail message, which he nailed. In the next phase, Donald practiced listening and relationship skills by sharing something personal and asking people about themselves. Result: Donald's boss was pleased. He reported that Donald's voice mails were now concise and that his personality was coming through to his staff at meetings. He was listening more and explaining the purpose of team tasks. Donald felt good about being more respected. Do you know people who talk incessantly? Do they leave long lingering voice mails? Diane can coach them to cut to the chase and train them to listen. Are You Seen But Not Heard? Situation: Karen was newly appointed to her position in finance, where she was responsible for managing and keeping the department on budget. Soft-spoken and petite, Karen had a hard time making herself heard during meetings, as her aggressive team shouted over her and challenged her when she questioned their figures. Karen's team was over budget, and she was concerned about her credibility when she had to present her figures to corporate at an up-coming meeting. Solution: Diane worked on increasing the volume and conviction in Karen's voice. She created a template for Karen to organize her ideas so she would not get intimidated and lose her train of thought. Together, they practiced breathing exercises before the meeting to calm Karen's nerves. They also developed strategies for dealing with people who lobbed hostile barbs or tried to interrupt Karen when she was speaking. Result: After the big meeting, Karen said she felt prepared, organized, and confident. She was able to hold her ground and support her position. The note-taking system helped her to stay focused and maintain her credibility. Do you know people who get lost in the crowd? Diane can help them rise above the noise and communicate with confidence. When It Comes To Public Speaking Do You Freeze Like A Deer In The Headlights? Situation: Brad, a corporate executive, was referred by his boss for speech coaching. His presentation style was dry and he was losing credibility among the staff. Brad's nervousness on the platform was getting the best of him. He would memorize his slides and freeze up when he saw people roll their eyes. He knew his subject matter but had a difficult time "getting what was in his head and heart to come out of his mouth." Solution: During the first coaching session, Brad learned to stop memorizing his slides and use them for reference only. He added more stories, anecdotes, and examples to his presentations, and worked on projecting his energy so his voice wouldn't trail off. Result: Brad gave a presentation at the next meeting a few days later. When asked if his presentation was any better after only one coaching session, his boss replied, "significantly, significantly, significantly, significantly better." Liberated from the cue cards, Brad now speaks with more confidence and style! Do you know people who freeze during a speech? Tell them about Diane's Exec-U-Lead coaching program. Is Confusion Bringing You To A Standstill? Situation: Marjorie, an owner of a coaching practice, was feeling stuck. Her dilemma: she needed to bring in money by developing her own coaching clients. At the same time she was a TEC facilitator who was expected to recruit a certain number of members to coach. She also had recruiting responsibilities for a woman's organization for which she was paid an honorarium. If she didn't meet her quota for TEC she wouldn't be able to continue. But if she devoted her primary efforts to TEC she would continue to have cash flow problems. Solution: It was clear that Marjorie was putting herself last. Diane talked about setting priorities and the importance of putting herself first. She helped Marjorie realize that her first priority had to be her own business, TEC would be second, and the women's group would come last because it didn't bring in much money. Diane developed a strategy for Marjorie to sell her coaching services as a priority and then up-sell the TEC membership as a means of ongoing group support. Diane then worked on an elevator speech to help her position that message. Result: Marjorie is no longer confused and has a strategy that supports her best interests and will increase her cash flow from now on. She said, "This is the best coaching I've ever experienced." Do you know people with businesses that have come to a standstill? Diane can help revive a consistent cash flow. Does Your Executive Image Need Polishing? Situation: Robert was a brilliant MD who worked for a health care company. But he was not projecting a strong leadership image because of his rambling, academic style and his extensive technical vocabulary that tended to alienate his listeners. Not only was Robert not connecting with his peers, visually he didn't look like a leader. He wore a plaid shirt, a sweater vest, and casual shoes. The brilliance his boss recognized in him was not shining through to others. Solution: As part of Diane's Exec-U-Lead coaching program, Robert learned to use an executive summary approach and to speak in snappy sound bites. By using simpler, shorter words his message had more impact on his audiences. Diane got Robert to change his look from weekend casual to corporate coat and tie, so he could look more like an executive. Result: Robert was able to change the image he projected to others - both visually and verbally. He was able to gain respect and be acknowledged for his leadership. Today, he looks and sounds like a leader and he's taking his team to new heights. Do you know people who could use a top-down leadership makeover? Diane's Exec-U-Lead program can help.
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Gallery DiResta Communications, Inc. helps organizations and their executives fine tune the art of public speaking, business presentations, media training, and media planning by using our training workshops that consist of team building, business training, managing effective meetings among others. | Copyright © 2006 DiResta Communications, Inc. All rights reserved.
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"It was a pleasure working with you. The sessions were paced just right, and I was able to add another
layer of skills to each new session. . . . You were able to key into personal areas where I needed improvement
and really brought out the best in me by our last session . . . . . . As a result of our time spent together, I've improved my ability to facilitate meetings to get results and now look forward to making a formal presentation." L. Bodmer, Product Manager, Medco Health Solutions |