Please watch my brief video invitation to the June 6 Jackson County Area Chamber of Commerce Breakfast, where I’ll speak on a vital, timely topic:

“Always Push the Up Button: How to Stay Highly Motivated–Every Day!”

As the video mentions you can register on the Chamber’s Web site:
http://www.jacksoncountyga.com

Or register by calling 770-387-0300

Hope to see you there. . .as we both Push the Up Button!

VISIT MY WEB SITE
On my Web site, note that you can enter your name and e-mail address in the slots provided, to subscribe to my online complimentary monthly newsletter:
http://www.championshipcommunication.com

In this lively video interview, veteran Atlanta business leader Ricky Steele explains why he considers LinkedIn the number one business tool. You’ll want to jot down the 3 major advantages he mentions, along with other significant details he provides.

CONTACT RICKY STEELE
Click on the link under the video to access his Web site. Or you can reach his site with this link:
http://www.rickysteele.net

Here’s his company Web site: http://www.htrjobs.com

E-mail him: ricky@rickysteele.net

WE WELCOME YOUR COMMENTS
Ricky and I will welcome your response. Go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

WATCH RICKY’S EARLIER INTERVIEWS ABOUT FACEBOOK AND TWITTER
Before talking with Ricky about LinkedIn, I interviewed him about Facebook and Twitter. Here are those videos:

Facebook: http://bit.ly/HpqOBR

Twitter: http://tinyurl.com/7cmfvg3

BOOST YOUR COMMUNICATION SKILLS–VISIT AND “LIKE” MY FACEBOOK BUSINESS PAGE
http://bit.ly/iRv6EA

I help companies identify their communication problems, and then find solutions to them. Also, I help leaders develop their speaking skills, so they will speak with “poise, power, and persuasion.”

On my Facebook page, you’ll find beneficial articles, podcasts, and videos–all designed to “Help You Finish in First Place.” When you visit the page,click “Like” to stay connected for updates.

Here’s that link again:
http://bit.ly/iRv6EA

Linda and Dan, Together in Life/Business

Ever-zestful Canadian Linda Sztanko describes her life this way: “Life is grand, and I am grateful every day.”

If you assume that her life has been easy and exciting all along, your guess would be way off base.

How exciting was her life during the 27 years she worked on an assembly line in an automobile plant?

How easy was her life when she endured cervical cancer twice? During twelve years of her illness, she spent eighty percent of her time in bed. Additionally, Linda still confronts the challenge of Epstein Barr, an immune deficiency syndrome.

Yet Linda took control of her life when she retired from her assembly line job. She enrolled in Continuing Medical Education courses for credit. Her reason: “It was because of the improved quality of life I experienced from Glyconutrients that I went back to school…not to find out about my medical condition, but rather to learn why these products worked where traditional medicine failed.” Eventually, she built a client list for two health care products she found beneficial.

Linda recognized that to succeed in managing her own business, she would have to learn plenty from marketing experts. She reads books and attends seminars. She listens to educational and motivational CDs as she drives, engaging in what she calls “car university.” In her words, “I am building my self esteem and confidence.”

Three years ago she became a passionate representative for SendOutCards, an innovative greeting card service that operates online. She helps her clients walk through the simple process of customizing cards that get mailed without the sender having to make a trip to the post office or a greeting card store.

She says, “How can I not love my job? I make people smile every day.”

Linda speaks highly of Kody Bateman, the man who founded SendOutCards. She comments that he is “true to his word that he truly wants to change the world through kindness.”

When Linda sent me a copy of Bateman’s autobiographical motivational book Promptings, I produced this brief video review for Amazon:
http://bit.ly/HYdmGy

Linda and her husband Dan work together as a team professionally. Personally, they have “two great kids,” 16 and 19. “We are at the stage,” she notes, “where the kids need constant chauffeurs.” Add to her family credentials that she is a very versatile cook.

As I became acquainted with Linda through Facebook and a referral from our mutual friend Gina Carr, not only did I admire her for moving beyond a monotonous job and serious health issues, I found her sense of humor delightful. Late one evening she wrote, “I am falling asleep. The snoring of the two puppies beside me is addictive.” On another occasion, “The kettle is boiled and my tea is calling my name.”

Let’s go back again to what makes Linda Sztanko feel that her life is grand, and that she is grateful every day. In her words: “Making someone else feel special is always a good thing.”

She recognizes that her amazing resilience and her strong values are not entirely self-generated. Quietly yet steadily, she points to her religious belief as central to her success in business and in life.

Linda inspires me. I look forward to the day when our professional travels put us in the same city, and we can share lively conversation in person.

READ MORE ABOUT LINDA AND CONTACT HER
You’ll find more information about her, including her contact information, on Facebook:
http://facebook.com/sztanko

Also, check her wonderful SendOutCards business on this site:
http://www.sendoutcards.com/sztanko

RESPOND WITH YOUR COMMENTS
Linda and I will welcome your response. Go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

BOOST YOUR COMMUNICATION SKILLS–VISIT AND “LIKE” MY FACEBOOK BUSINESS PAGE
http://bit.ly/iRv6EA

I help companies identify their communication problems, and then find solutions to them. Also, I help leaders develop their speaking skills, so they will speak with “poise, power, and persuasion.”

On my Facebook page, you’ll find beneficial articles, podcasts, and videos–all designed to “Help You Finish in First Place.” When you visit the page,click “Like” to stay connected for updates.

Here’s that link again:
http://bit.ly/iRv6EA

When you hear the word “networking,” several organized activities might come to mind:
-talking with lunch partners at your civic club’s weekly meeting
-circulating among the crowd at a Chamber’s “Business After Hours” reception
-introducing yourself to headhunters at a job fair
-chairing a fund raising drive for a prestigious charity

These interactions will generate visibility and respect for you, so they deserve your regular participation. Yet while you are giving your time and talents to highly public events, make room in your schedule for smaller, less formal networking opportunities.

DOUG TAKES TO THE LINKS

Consider how Doug Magnus (appearing with me in the bottom photo above) used informal networking to launch and then keep expanding his heating and air conditioning company. After ten years of working for the best known provider in his locale, Doug established his own company–Conditioned Air Systems in Gainesville, Georgia–starting with a true skeleton crew. He followed the standard procedures for getting known in the community. He served on committees and boards, and as his profits grew he became a leading contributor to charitable causes.

Soon Doug recognized that many of the community’s business leaders were avid golfers. He noticed that relationships that started as informal buddy time on the links often blossomed into business affiliations. So he went to the Chattahoochee Golf Club and told the pro, Rodger Hogan, “I want to play golf.”

“Oh, you want a tee time now?” Rodger responded.

“No,” Doug answered, “I’m not ready for that. I want to schedule some lessons with you, so that when I do play out here I won’t slow down the good golfers or embarrass myself with bad play.”

“So,” Roger asked, “you want five or six lessons?”

Doug responded, “Let’s don’t set a number. I want to take as many lessons as I need to be able to play at an advanced skill level.”

The lessons lasted a year. When Doug started playing, he moved comfortably into the circle of more established golfers. Not only that, he expanded his friendship circle by playing with strangers. “I’d just go to the practice area, start talking to some people I didn’t know, and when they had a vacant slot they’d ask me to join their group.”

Eventually, Doug started playing amateur golf tournaments—and he had no hesitancy teeing up with two former PGA Tour professionals from his hometown. With his low key, non threatening friendly manner, it was natural for golf pals to ask, “What’s your line of work, Doug?” When he described his company, the conversation led quite often to residential or commercial contracts.

Doug’s company is celebrating its thirtieth year, all of them profitable. Without question, his willingness to learn a highly sociable sport played a significant role in connecting him with people who would hire him and refer him later.

His corporate Web site: http://conditionedairsystems.com/

I have the privilege of serving as a business communication consultant for Doug’s company this year, as we implement the “Coaching for Champions” program.

BEAU MAKES A COFFEE SHOP HIS HEADQUARTERS

Now consider Beau Henderson (pictured with me in the top photo above), a financial adviser, who launched his company–RichLife Advisors–also based in Gainesville, Georgia. Recognizing that his professional title might create the image of an austere, impersonal numbers-cruncher, Beau established a new perception by meeting with prospects and clients in a rather ordinary looking coffee shop. In fact, he became such a regular customer that the manager let him “run a tab,” which he would pay monthly.

Yes, he did establish a conventional office just around the corner for those occasions when his conversational partner would welcome more privacy. Yet his slogan remains, “Let’s talk about that over a cup of coffee.”

What has Beau’s informal networking strategy accomplished? Just ask his 3,000 clients.

Beau enlisted my services as his Speech Coach at the start of his career, and now he hosts a popular radio show every Saturday on WGAU.

His Web site: http://www.richlifeadvisors.com

FOLLOW THEIR EXAMPLE OF CREATIVITY

As you consider how Doug and Beau built their businesses in more casual but still highly respectable ways, start thinking about how you can do the same. When you implement your refreshingly different approach, not only will you boost your profits, you will put some much-needed fun into your work day.

RESPOND WITH YOUR COMMENTS
Doug and Beau will welcome your response. Go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

BOOST YOUR COMMUNICATION SKILLS ANOTHER WAY–VISIT AND “LIKE” MY FACEBOOK BUSINESS PAGE
http://bit.ly/iRv6EA

I help companies identify their communication problems, and then find solutions to them. Also, I help leaders develop their speaking skills, so they will speak with “poise, power, and persuasion.”

On my Facebook page, you’ll find beneficial articles, podcasts, and videos–all designed to “Help You Finish in First Place.” When you visit the page,click “Like” to stay connected for updates.

Here’s that link again:
http://bit.ly/iRv6EA

Ricky Steele serves as the Chief Development Officer for Hunter Technical Resources in Atlanta, Georgia. Throughout his professional career, he has established valuable relationships through his highly developed networking skills. His book–The Heart of Networking, Second Edition–belongs on the bookshelf of every professional who wants to build his or her business.

In this brief video interview, Ricky discusses the value of Facebook. You will want to take careful notes as you watch my interview with him, so you can implement his recommendations.

VISIT RICKY’S WEB SITE
You can access his site by clicking on the blue link under the video, or by clicking here:
http://www.rickysteele.net

In addition to learning more about his services, you will find his contact information there.

RESPOND WITH YOUR COMMENTS
Ricky will welcome your response. Go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

BOOST YOUR COMMUNICATION SKILLS ANOTHER WAY–VISIT AND “LIKE” MY FACEBOOK BUSINESS PAGE
http://bit.ly/iRv6EA

I help companies identify their communication problems, and then find solutions to them. Also, I help leaders develop their speaking skills, so they will speak with “poise, power, and persuasion.”

On my Facebook page, you’ll find beneficial articles, podcasts, and videos–all designed to “Help You Finish in First Place.” When you visit the page,click “Like” to stay connected for updates.

Here’s that link again:
http://bit.ly/iRv6EA

Want to start your own business?

If you answer “Yes,” then you will want to read practical, field-tested advice from Tag Goulet. She is:
*Syndicated columnist for the Calgary Sun in Alberta, Canada
*Co-founder of the immensely popular FabJob.com
*Internationally known for her expertise on careers and entrepreneurship
*Author of books, e-books, and hundreds of articles
*Quoted often by major networks and Web sites, including AOL, CNN, and CareerBuilder
* Frequent university lecturer in mass communications
*Trainer for leading corporations

Clearly, she has mastered the job and career arena. As a new or aspiring entrepreneur,
you will benefit greatly from her article, “Business Tips for Newbies.” The link:
http://bit.ly/HPPVcl

TAG GOULET’S WEB SITE
You will find much more information about the immensely resourceful Tag Goulet on her Web site:

http://www.FabJob.com/tag.html

Her contact information appears there also.

RESPOND WITH YOUR COMMENTS
Tag and I will welcome your response. Go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

BOOST YOUR COMMUNICATION SKILLS ANOTHER WAY–VISIT AND “LIKE” MY FACEBOOK BUSINESS PAGE
http://bit.ly/iRv6EA

I help companies identify their communication problems, and then find solutions to them. Also, I help leaders develop their speaking skills, so they will speak with “poise, power, and persuasion.”

On my Facebook page, you’ll find beneficial articles, podcasts, and videos–all designed to “Help You Finish in First Place.” When you visit the page,click “Like” to stay connected for updates.

Lifelong Friend Dr. Jim Woods Hosted Me

Recently I spoke to the Rotary Club in Clemson, SC, at the invitation of a lifelong friend from my hometown of Columbia, Mississippi, Dr. Jim Woods.

As a retired orthodontist, Jim enjoys using his newly created free time to serve as a volunteer for worthwhile organizations in his community. He told me that he learned something valuable about communication during my Rotary speech, which he applied with highly satisfactory results a few days later at another group’s planning session.

My Rotary speech focused on three essential steps for becoming a highly effective communicator: using clear language, making the most of that unique instrument known as your voice, and listening intently and non-judgmentally.

Later in the week, Jim participated in a second group session, geared to explain a fund raising campaign to Board members of a charity seeking $20 million in gifts. To expose the members to various viewpoints small groups circulated around the room until they heard presentations from six discussion leaders. Jim was one of those leaders.

To keep the group moving, the Board chairperson announced, “These will be twelve-minute breakouts. Each time, I will announce the ten-minute mark, so you can start winding up your interaction.”

When the first group came to Jim’s table, he launched into his outline of the capital campaign’s plan, detailing where the gifts would come from and how the Board would allocate them. During his fast-paced delivery, the Board chair announced: “Ten minutes gone, wrap it up in two minutes.” Jim decided he’d better talk even faster to cover all he wanted to say.

Yet before he resumed speaking, an attorney friend sitting beside him tapped him on the arm and asked: “Jim, I’ve got a question: Don’t you want our input? We’ve got some questions and probably some good ideas we want to share with you.”

Instantly, Jim realized that his monologue had dominated the allotted time. A bit red-faced, he answered: “Why of course, you’re right. I’ll be quiet for the next two minutes. Please pardon my misstep as a leader, and tell us your thoughts.”

When the seven people starting contributing their ideas, a fresh stream of energy began to flow around the table. Jim felt the change, and so did the others.

At the twelve-minute mark, Jim’s first group left and the second arrived. This time, Jim announced at the outset why he was altering his initial format: “I’ll begin by telling you what happened at my Rotary club meeting on Monday. Sometimes I don’t remember what our weekly guest speaker said, but this time his message stuck with me, especially when he talked about listening as one of our most powerful communication skills, yet also one of our most neglected skills. Using several brief stories, he illustrated that keen listeners learn far more—and even contribute far more—than great speakers. He challenged us to reduce our talking time and increase our listening time, both in conversations and in meetings.”

Jim admitted further, “With my first group today, I forgot that advice. I talked the entire ten minutes before we got the ten-minute signal. Then one of my friends asked me, quite politely, if I would welcome comments and questions. That jarred me. I acknowledged that I had prevented input by everyone else because I had failed to listen. So in this session and the following ones, I am going to revise my approach. I will give my overview of the campaign quickly in the first two minutes. Then the next ten minutes are yours. This will give us a chance to hear questions, objections, suggestions, and campaign endorsements that we’d miss if I did all the talking. So get set to jump in two minutes from now with what you’re thinking about this multimillion dollar campaign.”

That session, and the ones following, fostered lively, frank, and creative analysis of the campaign. Jim sensed what the change from monologue to dialogue had accomplished in the group’s mood, too. He reported, “I could feel that they felt valued and appreciated.”

A couple of days later, Jim called me tell me how my tips about listening had revolutionized his style as a moderator—and how rewarding the results were. Jim said, “Maybe you wonder if audience members ever follow the advice you give when you speak. Well, I can assure you that at least one person—me—tried what you recommended on Monday. And I guarantee, the change in the group’s response was so magical that I have overcome my tendency to do all the talking when I give a presentation. I’m going to remember, and act on, that advice you gave from Stephen Covey: ‘Seek first to understand, and then to be understood.’”

Clearly, the lesson Jim learned about listening brought a permanent improvement in his communication. So put the power of listening to the test, as he did. The results will amaze you, and all those you lead.

RESPOND WITH YOUR COMMENTS
Dr. Jim Woods and I will welcome your response. Go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

MY BOOK AND AUDIO CDs WILL BOOST YOUR COMMUNICATION SKILLS
I invite you to visit this page, to check my book and audio CDs that will boost your communication skills. You’ll note that you can order some of the CDs as downloadable MP3s, so you can access them instantly. Major credit cards accepted for your convenience.
http://tinyurl.com/ljr54y

Ricky Steele, Chief Development Officer for Hunter Technical Resources in Atlanta, Georgia, has established a stellar, widespread reputation for his ability to create and maintain professional relationships. “Networking” could serve as his middle name, quite easily.

Included in his area of expertise: Social Media. So I invited Ricky to share some of his ideas and recommendations about twitter in this first of three video interviews about Social Media. Watch this video to learn how you can get maximum advantage from twitter, and even discover shortcuts that will save valuable time.

CONTACT INFORMATION
You’ll find Ricky’s contact information on his Web site:
http://www.rickysteele.net

ORDER HIS BOOK
When you visit his site, order his book, The Heart of Networking, which I have given a 5-star review on Amazon. You’ll note that I endorse the book in this video as well.
Or you can order from Amazon: http://bit.ly/GK0op4

RESPOND WITH YOUR COMMENTS
Ricky Steele and I will welcome your response. Go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

DEVELOP YOUR COMMUNICATION SKILLS IN THE SAME WAY RICKY STEELE DID
How did Ricky Steele become such a magnetic leader? Why is he widely known as a powerful networker and sales professional? What turned him into an author and an in-demand speaker?

The answer is simple. He disciplined himself to learn year after year from other professionals. Did you hear him say this during our interview? “I follow some really influential people, certainly Tom Peters, Guy Kawasaki, and Seth Godin.”

Sure, Ricky has natural talent, as we all do. Yet raw talent alone will not shape you into a top-tier communicator. You get there by reading books, articles, blogs, and newsletters. You improve by watching training videos. You sign up for seminars and conferences. You listen to podcasts. You hire mentors and coaches.

So I offer you two opportunities to boost your communication skills–starting today. First, subscribe to my complimentary newsletter, “Winning Words and Ways.” Just enter your name and e-mail address in the slots provided on my Web site: http://www.championshipcommunication.com

Second, I invite you to visit this page, to check my book and audio CDs that will boost your communication skills. You’ll note that you can order some of the CDs as downloadable MP3s, so you can access them instantly. Major credit cards accepted for your convenience.
http://tinyurl.com/ljr54y

Follow Ricky Steele’s example. Become a lifelong student of communication. Eventually, someone could very well interview you about your area of expertise, and produce a video that benefits others.

This brief video above invites you to my April 10 Small Business Success Seminar for the Greater Hall Chamber of Commerce.

Click the link under the video to go to the Chamber’s site and register, or call Jean McCullough, 770-532-6206

See you on April 10!

RESPOND WITH YOUR COMMENTS
To respond, go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

November 7, 1967 set Lee Ellis, an Air Force fighter pilot, on a new adventure he hadn’t planned and didn’t desire. In a bombing raid over North Vietnam, here’s what happened: “Suddenly, an explosion rocked our aircraft. A terrifying sound, like marbles in a blender, alerted me that the metal of our expensive flying machine was ripping apart. The cockpit was still intact, but it was rapidly filling with smoke. The control stick was frozen. . .and we were tumbling end over end through the sky.”

Fortunately, Ellis ejected. Unfortunately, North Vietnamese combatants captured him. He stayed at the now infamous “Hanoi Hilton,” the sarcastic name applied to the prison camp that also housed the POW we would come to know as Senator John McCain.

After his release from the service, Lee Ellis started sharing the leadership lessons he learned for survival. He has become a popular speaker and consultant for leading corporations. Now his book–Leading With Honor: Leadership Lessons from the Hanoi Hilton–makes his valuable concepts about communication, morale, team building, and motivation available to a larger public.

I invite you to watch my brief video review of this stirring book, steeped in patriotism and in outstanding management advice.

PRE-ORDER FROM AMAZON
Though the book will not hit the market until May, you can pre-order from Amazon, using this link:
http://bit.ly/x0R86Q

CONTACT LEE ELLIS
His Web site provides his contact information:
http://www.leadershipfreedom.com

RESPOND WITH YOUR COMMENTS
Lee Ellis and I will welcome your response. Go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

BOOST YOUR COMMUNICATION SKILLS–VISIT AND “LIKE” MY FACEBOOK BUSINESS PAGE
http://bit.ly/iRv6EA

Want to speak with “poise, power, and persuasion”? You’ll find beneficial articles, podcasts, and videos–designed to help you generate “attention, agreement, and action.” Click “Like” to stay connected for updates.

They said he was too short to play quarterback in the NFL. They said he’d never overcome a horrendous shoulder injury. They said the New Orleans Saints had always been losers, and would continue to be cellar dwellers. Yet Drew Brees proved that the naysayers and critics were wrong on every one of those points. Winning the 2009 Super Bowl silenced his doubters.

In the brief video above, you’ll see why I recommend that you read, underline, and re-read Coming Back Stronger: Unleashing the Hidden Power of Adversity. You’ll embrace Brees’ astounding ability to even refer to adversityas a friend. I explain that in the video.

You can be sure that I will be sharing the Drew Brees story and quoting portions of this book, as I did in the video, in my keynote motivational speeches at conferences and conventions.

RESPOND WITH YOUR COMMENTS
I will welcome your response. Go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

ORDER MY MOTIVATIONAL AUDIO CD
For additional motivational strategies, order my popular audio CD, “Always Push the Up Button: How to Stay Highly Motivated–Every Day!”

You’ll find the CD when you scroll down my Web site’s shopping cart page:
http://tinyurl.com/ljr54y

NOTE: You have a choice–order the CD or the downloadable mp3, whichever you prefer.

BOOST YOUR COMMUNICATION SKILLS–VISIT AND “LIKE” MY FACEBOOK BUSINESS PAGE
http://bit.ly/iRv6EA

You’ll find beneficial articles, podcasts, and videos–designed to help you generate “attention, agreement, and action.” Click “Like” to stay connected for updates.

McLuhan at Work

When I was earning my Ph.D. at Ohio University, communication guru Marshall McLuhan spoke to a campus auditorium jammed with students. McLuhan had garnered a reputation as a true communication guru. So I was delighted to see one of my fellow communication colleagues–Pat Rocchi–feature McLuhan in his blog. With Pat’s permission, I am sharing his tribute to McLuhan with you.

December 31, 2011 marks 30 years since media guru Marshall McLuhan died, a victim of a final stroke after suffering from a series of them. How kind thei ntervening years have been to him. At the time of his death, he was viewed in his native Canada as somewhat of an embarrassment, but today he is an oracle, having essentially foreseen Facebook Amazon, Twitter, the iPhone and other modern media. In the words of a New York Times article published this past summer to mark McLuhan’s centenary, “Instead of being viewed as an academic fraud, McLuhan is now widely celebrated as the man who prophesied both the Internet and its impact on society.” Indeed, Professor B. W. Powe of Toronto’s York University, and one of the organizers of a week-long series of memorial events in that city, said this: “We read the 21st-century media through his eyes.”

Quite a turnaround for one man, though not unusual. As with most social visionaries, McLuhan challenged tightly held beliefs, and most people are afraid to let go of such ideas. His vocabulary was also new and alien. He introduced us to his definitions of “hot” and “cold” media: Hot media, such as print and the cinema, are sharp in definition, filled with data, exclusively visual and verbal. He also asserted that these media were psychologically damaging and low in audience participation. Other hot media, according to McLuhan, were photography, competitive spectator sports and radio. Moreover, he said that hot media make people think logically and independently rather than naturally and communally. McLuhan preferred “cool” media, noting that while they are low in information, they also challenge their users by forcing them to fill in the “missing” information. He saw the telephone, modern painting and, most significantly, television as cool media because they are oral-auditory, tactile and visceral. McLuhan believed that these media would be a unifying force, putting modern “back into the tribal or oral pattern with its seamless web of kinship and interdependence.” These behaviors would, in turn, create his “global village,” a term that he coined

As with many prophets, McLuhan’s revolutionary ideas were not regarded kindly in his own time. A Time magazine review of his book Understanding Media — regarded today as the seminal work on the effect of media in the modern world and which contained many of the concepts described above — called the book “pseudo science.” Yet years later, when Time published their obituary of McLuhan, the magazine stated that “his writing was clumsy, his thoughts badly organized, and even he complained that he had trouble understanding his ideas. But…when he died last week in Toronto at the age of 69, Marshall McLuhan was recognized as one of the most influential thinkers of the ’60s. Some of his insights into the nature of television and the electronic age became conventional wisdom.”

One of McLuhan’s prime principles was that “we shape our tools, and thereafter our tools shape us.” Can we doubt that statement today, given how we interact through Web 2.0? We make “friends” through Facebook, we reveal our innermost thoughts through our blogs, we make spectacles of ourselves through YouTube, and we have learned to communicate succinctly in just 140 characters through our Twitter accounts.

Once again, we are currently reminded of the power of the media in our politics. And I do not mean our primary Presidential politics. No, the “global village” that McLuhan foresaw also has global politics. Time scoffed yet again when McLuhan stated in Understanding Media that “Had TV occurred on a large scale during Hitler’s reign, he would have vanished quickly.” No, the Old Professor was on target, as we have seen Twitter and Facebook cut through censorship and propaganda to produce an Arab Spring or rally for the rights of the disenfranchised. And here in this country, presidential front runners fall back almost immediately as they wilt under the glare of the media spotlight. That durability under scrutiny seems to determine winners more than any other obstacle. Some partisans may complain that Barrack Obama did not face any real scrutiny during his primary campaign, but come on; I was viewing fresh footage of his pastor, the incendiary Rev. Jeremiah Wright, every morning, whether through the network news or the Internet. And will Mitt Romney, seemingly made of asbestos and impervious to the heat of battle, win his party’s nomination because no medium will be able to lay a finger on him long enough to count him out as they have so many others? We’ll see.

When McLuhan made his pronouncements more than 40 years ago, some listened while many others dismissed them as nonsense. He stated that media are “not neutral; instead they have an effect on people.” Today, as we study the effects of television on what we buy, who we elect and how we learn, and as we study how video games and the Internet are affecting the linearity of our thinking, his theories are easily echoed. Yet because they are so commonsense and commonplace, we forget their origins. However, we learned similar lessons from Einstein, whose ideas were so advanced that they were also ineffable because no suitable language existed to express them. (How does one explain E=MC squared?)

The global village did not exist when Marshall McLuhan coined the phrase. But somehow he emerged from his intellectual rabbit hole to glimpse it, and then he wrote many books and essays to prepare us for it. Let’s stay aware of the power we possess through our media, which have indeed become our extensions and have united us (and conformed us) in ways that only he seemed to imagine.

RESPOND WITH YOUR COMMENTS
Pat Rocchi and I will welcome your response. Go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

CONTACT PAT ROCCHI
Pat Rocchi is an acclaimed speaker, business consultant, speech writer, and author. Check his Web site, and contact him for information about his services:
http://www.patrocchi.com

BOOST YOUR COMMUNICATION SKILLS–VISIT AND “LIKE” MY FACEBOOK BUSINESS PAGE
http://bit.ly/iRv6EA

You’ll find beneficial articles, podcasts, and videos–designed to help you generate “attention, agreement, and action.” Click “Like” to stay connected for updates.

We all make mistakes while speaking. I do, for sure.

What’s the biggest communication blunder you ever made before a large audience?

I still wince and squirm today when I remember mine. I was a college official reading the citation honoring a prominent alumna–with 400 audience members listening. I was supposed to say that she wrote a play about the college in 1956. Accidentally, I said she wrote the play in 1856. By placing her in a previous century, I made her appear ten decades older than she was. Odd thing was, I wasn’t aware of my goof up until a fellow administrator kidded me about it afterward. “Oh,” I answered, “that explains why everybody was laughing when I said that.” As you can guess, I apologized to the honoree afterward, though I couldn’t retract the 100-year mistake.

Possibly that memory prompts me to select the top ten communication blunders made annually–the goofs, gaffes, and glitches that brought the most embarrassment. Here’s my list of the inglorious winners for 2011, along with the lessons their mistakes offer.

1. In Spartanburg, South Carolina, Michele Bachmann urged the crowd to join her in celebrating Elvis Presley’s birthday. Thinking that was a grand applause line, she was stunned by the tepid response. Turns out that August 16 wasn’t the Rock and Roll King’s birthday. Quite the reverse, as that was the date of his death thirty-four years ago.

LESSON: Check your facts or have somebody else do that before you speak.

2. Following a gaudy, much-ballyhooed wedding ceremony, Kim Kardashian announced the end of her marriage after 72 days, citing “irreconcilable differences.”

LESSON: Every married couple faces irreconcilable differences. Wise up, Kim. Your next boyfriend and you will have them, and you’ll encounter them with all of your future husbands. Those of us who stay married to each other recognize that the irreconcilable differences are going to stay there, aren’t as devastating as we first thought, and can be tolerated. Eventually, both the husband and wife can learn to laugh at their foibles and differences.

3. Mitt Romney bet Rick Perry $10,000 that Romney didn’t support a national health care program based on the one Romney had championed in Massachusetts.

LESSON: Never flaunt your affluence. When a tenth of the U.S. is out of work, and a large percentage of those employed are pinching pennies because they don’t know when they will be downsized, disengaged, or whatever else means they’ll no longer get a paycheck, announcing your ability to make a five figure wager doesn’t keep you in touch with the men and women who are deciding which candidate understands their plight.

4. Perry, though, had his own “Oops” moment when he insisted he would eliminate three government agencies soon after his inauguration: “Commerce, Education, and. . . .er.” For 47 agonizing seconds, he tried to think of the third agency he had targeted, but couldn’t. Shortly afterward, he spoofed himself on David Letterman’s show, hoping that self-deprecating humor could repair the damage.

LESSON: Don’t promise to do more than you can even remember yourself.

5. Alec Baldwin continued to play a “Words with Friends” game on his phone, after American Airlines flight attendants asked him to shut down the device as the crew prepared for takeoff. Baldwin went nuclear, and then deplaned involuntarily after confronting attendants with impolite language. Interviewed afterward, Baldwin lamented that he was “singled out by this woman in the most unpleasant of tones.” He equated commercial airline travel to riding a “Greyhound Bus,” monitored by attendants who resembled a 1950s gym teacher on duty.

LESSON: When you’ve broken the rules, and continued to do that after several warnings, admit your mistake. Assume the blame yourself, without chiding others who are just doing their job.

6. When New York Representative Anthony Weiner sent lewd pictures of a portion of his anatomy to a woman via Twitter, as the scandal broke he proclaimed repeatedly, “Somebody hacked my account.” Turns out the early reports were an underestimate, because Weiner ultimately confessed that he had used his anatomical photographic skill to woo at least six women.

LESSON: Blaming the Internet for something you caused yourself is like blaming your car for crashing after you left a bar at 4:00 a.m.

7. Discussing a golf match between President Obama and House Speaker John Boehner, Hank Williams Jr said the links pairing was comparable to having Adolf Hitler play 18 holes with Benjamin Netanyahu. Almost immediately, ESPN dropped Williams’ theme song from the Monday Night Football opening segment.

LESSON: Be careful about comparisons. Hitler was a bad guy,very evil. Murdered millions of people, devastated the face of Europe. Worst racist in history. Whatever your opinion of the President of the United States, you aren’t smart to mention the President in the same sentence that refers to Herr Hitler.

8. Of course, the President himself voiced a disconnect between his brain and his tongue more than once. Prime example: When meeting with a jobs council in Durham, NC, he responded to those who said that cumbersome government regulations were blocking work on America’s infrastructure–a program Obama had championed. The President answered, “Shovel-ready was not as. . uh. . .shovel-ready as we expected.”

LESSON: Humor at the wrong time will backfire horribly. Cute play on words, Mr. President. However, the council didn’t want a quip, they wanted your commitment to facilitate thousands of jobs for people eager to rejoin the employment arena.

9. Vice President Joe Biden took a 25-second nap during President Obama’s speech touting his deficit reduction plan. You Tube helped make Biden’s snoozing infamous to tens of thousands of viewers.

LESSON: You don’t even have to speak to make a major communication blunder. The experts are right–body language transmits unmistakably clear messages.

10. On the highly popular weekly TV football show College Game Day, Lee Corso became careless while talking about the game between the University of Houston and SMU. Defying the odds makers who assured a Houston win, Corso picked up an SMU microphone and shouted the “F” word (and he wasn’t referring to the cheerleader’s typical plea for the team to “Fight”).

LESSON: Be careful with your customary daily lingo. Ed McMahon, Johnny Carson’s sidekick on the Tonight Show for thirty years, claimed in his autobiography that he never used profanity off the air–because he was afraid that offensive words could become habitual, and he would use them during a broadcast. Rather wise advice, because our daily habits become quite transparent when the spotlight hits us and tension mounts.

Those are my Top 10 communication blunders for 2011, with the lessons they provide. Have some you want to add? Respond, please, through the comments section.

RESPOND WITH YOUR COMMENTS
I’ll welcome your response. Go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

BOOST YOUR COMMUNICATION SKILLS–VISIT AND “LIKE” MY FACEBOOK BUSINESS PAGE
http://bit.ly/iRv6EA

You’ll find beneficial articles, podcasts, and videos–designed to help you generate “attention, agreement, and action.” Click “Like” to stay connected for updates.

Storyteller Karen Chace in Action

While she refers to herself whimsically as “Storybug,” Karen Chace–based in East Freetown, MA–is quite seriously dedicated to her storytelling profession. That’s why I turned to her when I wanted a Christmas story to share with my blog readers. You’ll find this story heartwarming, with a grand message.

THE BEST WISH–THE STORY OF THREE BROTHERS AND AN ANGEL
NOTE: This story is a public domain European folktale found in Czechoslovak Fairy Tales by Parker Fillmore.

There were once three brothers whose only possession was a pear tree. They took turns guarding it. That is to say while two of them went to work the third stayed at home to see that no harm came to the pear tree.

Now it happened that an Angel from heaven was sent down to test the hearts of the three brothers. The Angel took the form of a beggar and approaching the pear tree on a day when the oldest brother was guarding it, he held out his hand and said:

“In heaven’s name, brother, give me a ripe pear.”

The oldest brother at once handed him a pear, saying:

“This one I can give you because it is mine, but none of the others because they belong to my brothers.”

The Angel thanked him and departed.

The next day when the second brother was on guard he returned in the same guise and again begged the charity of a ripe pear.

“Take this one,” the second brother said. “It is mine and I can give it away. I can’t give away any of the others because they belong to my brothers.”

The Angel thanked the second brother and departed.

The third day he had exactly the same experience with the youngest brother.

On the following day the Angel, in the guise of a monk, came to the brothers’ house very early while they were still all at home.

“My sons,” he said, “come with me and perhaps I can find you something better to do than guard a single pear tree.”

The brothers agreed and they all started out together. After walking some time they came to the banks of a broad deep river.

“My son,” the Angel said, addressing the oldest brother, “if I were to grant you one wish, what you ask?”

“I’d be happy,” the oldest brother said, “if all this water was turned into wine and belonged to me.”

The Angel lifted his staff and made the sign of the cross and lo! the water became wine from great wine-presses. At once numbers of casks appeared and men filling them and rolling them about. A huge industry sprang up with sheds and storehouses and wagons and men running hither and thither and addressing the oldest brother respectfully as “Master!”

“You have your wish,” the Angel said. “See that you do not forget God’s poor now that you are rich. Farewell.”

So they left the oldest brother in the midst of his wine and went on farther until they came to a broad field where flocks of pigeons were feeding.

“If I were to grant you one wish,” the Angel said to the second brother, “what would you ask?”

“I’d be happy, father, if all the pigeons in this field were turned to sheep and belonged to me.”

The Angel lifted his staff, made the sign of the cross, and lo! the field was covered with sheep. Sheds appeared and houses and women, some of them milking the ewes and others skimming the milk and making cheeses. In one place men were busy preparing meat for the market and in another cleaning wool. And all of them as they came and went spoke respectfully to the second brother and called him, “Master!”

“You have your wish,” the Angel said. “Stay here and enjoy prosperity and see that you do not forget God’s poor!”

Then he and the youngest brother went on their way.

“Now, my son,” the Angel said, “you, too, may make one wish.”

“I want but one thing, father. I pray heaven to grant me a truly pious wife. That is my only wish.”

“A truly pious wife!” the Angel cried. “My boy, you have asked the hardest thing of all! Why, there are only three truly pious women in all the world! Two of them are already married and the third is a princess who is being sought in marriage at this very moment by two kings! However, your brothers have received their wishes and you must have yours, too. Let us go at once to the father of this virtuous princess and present your suit.”

So just as they were they trudged to the city where the princess lived and presented themselves at the palace looking shabby and travel-stained.

The king received them and when he heard their mission he looked at them in amazement.

“This makes three suitors for my daughter’s hand! Two kings and now this young man all on the same day! How am I going to decide among them?”

“Let heaven decide!” the Angel said. “Cut three branches of grape-vine and let the princess mark each branch with the name of a different suitor. Then let her plant the three branches to-night in the garden and to-morrow do you give her in marriage to the man whose branch has blossomed during the night and by morning is covered with ripe clusters of grapes.”

The king and the two other suitors agreed to this and the princess named and planted three branches of grape-vine. In the morning two of the branches were bare and dry, but the third, the one which was marked with the name of the youngest brother, was covered with green leaves and ripe clusters of grapes. The king accepted heaven’s ruling and at once led his daughter to church where he had her married to the stranger and sent her off with his blessing.

The Angel led the young couple to a forest and left them there.

A year went by and the Angel was sent back to earth to see how the three brothers were faring. Assuming the form of an old beggar, he went to the oldest brother who was busy among his wine-presses and begged the charity of a cup of wine.

“Be off with you, you old vagabond!” the oldest brother shouted angrily. “If I gave a cup of wine to every beggar that comes along I’d soon be a beggar myself!”

The Angel lifted his staff, made the sign of the cross, and lo! the wine and all the wine-presses disappeared and in their place flowed a broad deep river.

“In your prosperity you have forgotten God’s poor,” the Angel said. “Go back to your pear tree.”

Then the Angel went to the second brother who was busy in his dairy.

“Brother,” the Angel said, “in heaven’s name, I pray you, give me a morsel of cheese.”

“A morsel of cheese, you lazy good-for-nothing!” the second brother cried. “Be off with you or I’ll call the dogs!”

The Angel lifted his staff, made the sign of the cross, and lo! the sheep and the dairy and all the busy laborers disappeared and he and the second brother were standing there alone in a field where flocks of pigeons were feeding.

“In your prosperity you have forgotten God’s poor,” the Angel said. “Go back to your pear tree!”

Then the Angel made his way to the forest where he had left the youngest brother and his wife. He found them in great poverty living in a mean little hut.

“God be with you!” said the Angel still in the guise of an old beggar. “I pray you in heaven’s name give me shelter for the night and a bite of supper.”

“We are poor ourselves,” the youngest brother said.

“But come in, you are welcome to share what we have.”

They put the old beggar to rest at the most comfortable place beside the fire and the wife set three places for the evening meal. They were so poor that the loaf that was baking in the oven was not made of grain ground at the mill but of pounded bark gathered from the trees.

“Alas,” the wife murmured to herself, “it shames me that we have no real bread to put before our guest.”

Imagine then her surprise when she opened the oven and saw a browned loaf of wheaten bread.

“God be praised!” she cried.

She drew a pitcher of water at the spring but when she began pouring it into the cups she found to her joy that it was changed to wine.

“In your happiness,” the Angel said, “you have not forgotten God’s poor and God will reward you!”

He raised his staff, made the sign of the cross, and lo! the mean little hut disappeared and in its place arose a stately palace full of riches and beautiful things. Servants passed hither and thither and addressed the poor man respectfully as “My lord!” and his wife as “My lady!”

The old beggar arose and as he went he blessed them both, saying:

“God gives you these riches and they will be yours to enjoy so long as you share them with others.”

They must have remembered the Angel’s words for all their lives long they were happy and prosperous.

ABOUT KAREN CHACE
Visit Karen’s Web site, where you will find valuable resources about stories. Read her blog, and enter your e-mail address in the slot to sign up for her newsletter. Use her contact information to talk with her about a professional presentation to your conference/convention. Her site link: http://www.storybug.net

HEAR MY RADIO INTERVIEW WITH KAREN CHACE
As the host of “The Communication Corner” on WBCX-FM, I was privileged to interview Karen about storytelling, a profession she has mastered. This link gives you access to the full 60-minute interview:
http://thecompletecommunicator.com/?p=2021

RESPOND WITH YOUR COMMENTS
Karen will welcome your response to this story. Go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

BOOST YOUR COMMUNICATION SKILLS–VISIT AND “LIKE” MY FACEBOOK BUSINESS PAGE
http://bit.ly/iRv6EA

You’ll find beneficial articles, podcasts, and videos–designed to help you generate “attention, agreement, and action.” Click “Like” to stay connected for updates.

Charlyn Shelton's Great Advice

A few weeks ago I became acquainted with ever-zestful Charlyn Shelton, a well-known “Boomerpreneur” and adviser to those who become “Suddenly Single.” As I browsed her stimulating articles, one impressed me so much that I requested her permission to reprint it. Fortunately, she said yes. So I can share with you her great lesson about becoming more aware of the marvelous people, scenes, and experiences surrounding us every moment. Now. . .here is her article.

IT’S ALL IN YOUR PERCEPTION, VALUE

In Washington, DC, at a Metro Station, on a cold January morning in 2007, this man with a violin played six Bach pieces for about 45 minutes. During that time, approximately 2,000 people went through the station, most of them on their way to work. After about 3 minutes, a middle-aged man noticed that there was a musician playing. He slowed his pace and stopped for a few seconds, and then he hurried on to meet his schedule.

About 4 minutes later: The violinist received his first dollar. A woman threw money in the hat and, without stopping, continued to walk.

At 6 minutes: A young man leaned against the wall to listen to him, then looked at his watch and started to walk again.

At 10 minutes: A 3-year old boy stopped, but his mother tugged him along hurriedly. The kid stopped to look at the violinist again, but the mother pushed hard and the child continued to walk, turning his head the whole time. This action was repeated by several other children, but every parent – without exception – forced their children to move on quickly.

At 45 minutes: The musician played continuously. Only 6 people stopped and listened for a short while. About 20 gave money but continued to walk at their normal pace. The man collected a total of $32.

After 1 hour: He finished playing and silence took over. No one noticed and no one applauded. There was no recognition at all.

No one knew this, but the violinist was Joshua Bell, one of the greatest musicians in the world. He played one of the most intricate pieces ever written, with a violin worth $3.5 million dollars. Two days before, Joshua Bell sold-out a theater in Boston where the seats averaged $100 each to sit and listen to him play the same music.

This is a true story. Joshua Bell, playing incognito in the D.C. Metro Station, was organized by the Washington Post as part of a social experiment about perception, taste and people’s priorities.

This experiment raised several questions:
* In a common-place environment, at an inappropriate hour, do we perceive beauty?
* If so, do we stop to appreciate it?
* Do we recognize talent in an unexpected context?

One possible conclusion reached from this experiment could be this:
If we do not have a moment to stop and listen to one of the best musicians in the world, playing some of the finest music ever written, with one of the most beautiful instruments ever made…how many other things are we missing as we rush through life?

Enjoy life NOW…it has an expiration date

FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT CHARLYN SHELTON
Guarantee that your organization’s next event will succeed–beyond expectations. How? Bring in Charlyn Shelton as your keynote speaker and seminar director. Read more about her here, and contact her:

Web site: http://www.charlynshelton.com

Facebook: http://facebook.com/charlyn.boomerpreneur

RESPOND WITH YOUR COMMENTS
Charlyn will welcome your response to this article about perceiving the value that embraces us daily. Go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

ALSO. . .GET VALUABLE SPEAKING STRATEGIES FROM MY NEW FACEBOOK BUSINESS PAGE
http://bit.ly/iRv6EA

You’ll find beneficial articles, podcasts, and videos for speaking so skillfully that you will generate “attention, agreement, and action.” Click “Like” to stay connected for updates.

Amy Sullivan Hammond Listening Intently

When a speaker claims, “I really wowed that audience,” he or she is taking far too much credit for the success of the presentation. Why? Because give the same speaker an audience who doesn’t offer interest and support, and the result will be dismal. Far more than we estimate, audiences play a central role in the results of a speech.

Here are ten audience behaviors that will boost every speaker’s performance:

ONE: GIVE POWERFUL VISUAL CUES
In the photo above, Amy Sullivan Hammond illustrates the expression that would energize any speaker. Her posture is alert, and her pleasant demeanor reflects that she is enjoying the speech. Too, she appears inquisitive. She is making direct eye contact. Contrast this with the audience member who is doodling (or texting, which constitutes the contemporary version of doodling), looking out the window, or–at worst–nodding off with closed eyes. Again, note Amy’s vibrant nonverbal participation. She serves as a role model for facial and physical messages.

TWO: BE PUNCTUAL
Arrive several minutes before the speech starts, and when the group breaks for refreshments or a meal be among the first to return to the meeting room. Invariably, latecomers prompt other audience members to turn around to see who opened the door, and they become more distracted when the tardy attendant has to crawl over several people to reach his seat. The speaker notices those movements, too, and loses a vital sense of audience command.

THREE: SILENCE YOUR ELECTRONICS
Imagine that you’re addressing an audience, when suddenly a cell phone goes off–and continues ringing, because the owner cannot remember which pocket holds his phone, or a lady starts digging through her purse to find hers. If you were the speaker, you would become uncomfortable, and probably annoyed. As a preventive precaution, silence your phones, pagers, and beepers before you walk into the auditorium. You and the speaker will be glad you did.

FOUR: PARTICIPATE, BUT DON’T DOMINATE
Most presenters recognize the value of audience participation. Discussion brings variety of format, and often introduces provocative ideas. Your speaker will be delighted when you offer a comment or question, and will even welcome a challenge to her stated position. Yet keep your comments brief, and don’t comment too often, so you’ll give others a chance. As elementary school teachers tell their classes, this is “share time,” and no one person deserves total attention.

FIVE: AVOID SIDE CONVERSATIONS
An amazing transition happens when we become adults and start speaking in our company meetings, in civic clubs, or at professional conferences. Suddenly, we become acutely aware of how noticeable side conversations are. During our high school days, we assumed the teacher didn’t see or hear us because we sat on the tenth row. Now we realize that those mumblings and murmurings remain conspicuous even when the chatterboxes sit as many as twenty or thirty rows from the podium. So hold your chit chat until an announced break.

SIX: BRING RELEVANT MATERIALS
Completing an evaluation form after an all-day seminar, a participant complained: “Why didn’t somebody tell me I needed something to write with?” Sound atypical? Unfortunately, it isn’t. As a session begins, the speaker might hear “I didn’t bring along the information you e-mailed us. Got a spare copy with you?” Avoid sounding unprepared. Demonstrate that you rate the session valuable enough to come equipped with all relevant materials. Your speaker will welcome that courtesy, along with the eagerness you reflect.

SEVEN: JOIN THE APPLAUSE
In show business, comics refer to non-responsive audiences as “sitting on their hands.” For the speaker, that’s discouraging. So when you agree with the speaker’s statement, show your appreciation by applauding. Don’t worry if you’re the first one to applaud, others are likely to join you quickly. Certainly you retain the privilege of not applauding when you don’t endorse the speaker’s words. Again though, when you’re in favor of what is said, express your approval through applause.

EIGHT: DON’T CHECK YOUR WATCH
Next time you’re part of an audience, note what happens when someone near you checks her watch. The person next to her checks his. People across the isle see their action, and look at theirs. Does the speaker notice these time-checkers? Yes, even from farther away than you might guess. Well, what if no one else saw you check the time, not even the speaker? You still are not giving the speaker your complete attention. So trust that the speech or meeting will end in a reasonable amount of time, and stay absorbed in the message.

NINE: INTERACT WHEN INSTRUCTED TO
Today’s speakers recognize that people learn more and remember more when they interact during a presentation, under the leader’s guidance. However, some audience members lack enthusiasm for these activities. Either they leave the room, or they remain and start reading their e-mails. To support your speaker, go along with the interaction she requests. Although the words and motions might seem pointless initially, most of the time the dialogue or brief team work will make a valid point that amplifies the theme. Your speaker will appreciate your cooperation, and you will gain perspective you’d miss otherwise.

TEN: COMPLETE THE EVALUATION SHEET
Frequently a presenter asks you to complete an evaluation sheet after the speech. Although we’re tempted to gather our belongings and head for the exit, we will assist the speaker greatly with our candid, constructive feedback. As long as you offer your recommendations tactfully, your speaker will use your suggestions to improve his speech for the next audience. When you write, “PowerPoint slides needed more graphics,” the speaker will insert photos and clip art to enliven the visual aids. Tell what you liked, too: “I’m glad your speech was so well organized, made it easy to follow.”

In short: As an audience member, potentially you are a valuable ally for the speaker. Follow these ten suggestions, and help speakers accomplish their mission, so you and others will get the full benefit of the expertise they offer.

RESPOND WITH YOUR COMMENTS
I’ll welcome your response to this article about how listeners can help speakers. Go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

LEARN MORE ABOUT AMY SULLIVAN HAMMOND’S SERVICES
Amy Sullivan Hammond is a remarkable entrepreneur who operates a thriving business while caring for four children. Fortunately, she helps other “Mompreneurs” succeed in business and in life. Here’s her Facebook page:
http://facebook.com/amy.sullivan.hammond

ALSO. . .GET VALUABLE SPEAKING STRATEGIES FROM MY NEW FACEBOOK BUSINESS PAGE
http://bit.ly/iRv6EA

You’ll find beneficial articles, podcasts, and videos for speaking so skillfully that you generate “attention, agreement, and action.” Click “Like” to stay connected for updates.

Star Athlete Who Starred in Life

Eagle Day and I grew up less than a mile apart in the tiny town of Columbia, Mississippi. In high school, he became one of my early heroes, because of his remarkable athletic skills. Consider these achievements:
–Earned 16 letters at Columbia High School: football, baseball, basketball, track
–All-SEC Quarterback at Ole Miss, leading the team to consecutive SEC crowns
–Most valuable back in Cotton Bowl, where he spearheaded a dramatic victory over TCU
–Cotton Bowl, Missisippi, and Ole Miss Halls of Fame
–Played fourteen years of professional football, most valuable player in 1962 in the Canadian Football League

Thrilling as it was to watch my boyhood friend and idol go that far, Eagle Day turned into a different kind of hero for me after his playing days. He became a solid family man, civic and church leader, and supporter of his alma mater. He spoke at youth camps and churches, and volunteered for numerous charities. He helped young athletes hone their skills. Professionally, he established a successful insurance business, then became Executive Director of the Mississippi Motor Vehicle Commission.

On February 22,2008, this grand champion of athletics and life died from cancer. I lost a lifelong friend. Let me share with you, though, Eagle Day’s ten lessons from winning at life, as I understand them from our many discussions across several decades.

LESSON ONE: Keep an upbeat attitude. Across many years, whenever I would call Eagle and ask, “How are you doing?” he offered a one-word answer: “Fantastic.” Life to him was fantastic. He endured setbacks like everybody else, but he considered them nothing more than temporary challenges.

LESSON TWO: Have a goal. I asked Eagle once, “How did you have the discipline to keep going–practicing, eating right, training, and avoiding the bad habits most of us had as teenagers? What made you stick with athletics so faithfully?” He answered: “I wanted to catch the bus out of town.” He loved that little town,yet he knew that his talent and dedication could take him many more places.

LESSON THREE: Never envy anyone else. Eagle grew up in very moderate economic circumstances. He could have become bitter about his school mates who enjoyed many more privileges. But he never complained. In fact, he told me once, “The other man’s grass might look greener. . .but did you ever try to mow it?”

LESSON FOUR: Don’t let others intimidate you. “Bill,” he told me, “I never think of myself as better than anybody else. At the same time, I never think of anybody else as better than me. We’re all on equal footing.”

LESSON FIVE: Prepare thoroughly. “At Calgary, I was the first player on the practice field, and the last to leave,” he explained. At Ole Miss, he had 150 plays to remember, plus their various formations. “Before a big game, I might not sleep more than three hours, as I pictured every possibility, and how I would react.” In his words, “Win before you ever hit the field.”

LESSON SIX: Help your teammates. As head of the Motor Vehicle Division, he spent many hours preparing his board chairman for a leadership role in the meetings.

LESSON SEVEN: Always be available to those who need you. In 1975, my mother suffered a severe stroke, and was hospitalized in Jackson, MS. I called Eagle, and told him how much it would mean if he visited my distraught, aged father. Eagle came to the hospital that afternoon. Immediately, I could see my father’s spirits lifted.

LESSON EIGHT: Take a risk when you have the ability. Ole Miss was losing that 1956 Cotton Bowl in the closing minutes. Ole Miss had the ball, but it was fourth down. Eagle knew that Coach Johnny Vaught wanted Eagle to punt. Eagle had confidence he could complete a pass. He did, to get the first down. Shortly afterward, Eagle ran 25 yards to the five yard line. The score on the next play, plus the extra point, assured the 14-13 victory over TCU. Sports writers dubbed Eagle “The Mississippi Gambler.” He disagreed, saying he knew all along he could make the fourth down pass play work.

LESSON NINE: Take pride in your appearance. Coach Vaught instilled that in his players–”Look good, and you’ll feel like a champion.” While others welcomed “business casual” and carried it to sloppy extremes, Eagle invariably looked like a man out of Esquire.

LESSON TEN: Look beyond human help. For many years, Eagle was active in Jackson’s First Baptist Church. He ushered and attended Tuesday Bible study lunch meetings. In a speech to a men’s group at the church, he concluded with: “Don’t remember me as number 19 (his football jersey number). Instead, remember me as a man of integrity.”

Shortly after Eagle’s untimely death, I remembered what Vince Lombardi said about the Green Bay Packers: “We never lost a game. Sometimes the clock just ran out.” I can assure you, Eagle Day was a winner in every phase of life. The clock ran out, but the score remains in his favor nevertheless.

ORDER MY AUDIO CD THAT TELLS THE EAGLE DAY STORY
Eagle Day’s inspiring story plays a prominent role in my audio CD, “Always Push the Up Button: How to Stay Highly Motivated–Every Day!” To order your audio CD today and hear more about “The Mississippi Gambler”–and other inspiring role models I describe–use this link to my online store:
http://tinyurl.com/ljr54y

NOTE: In addition to being available as a CD, “Up Button,” you will see, is available as a downloadable MP3.

Again, use this link to place your order:
http://tinyurl.com/ljr54y

RESPOND WITH YOUR COMMENTS
We welcome your response to these life lessons from Eagle Day. Go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

Are you producing videos to promote your business–or planning to do that? Then watch my brief video above, offering advice on how you should speak for video production.

After you watch the video, I invite you to click on the link under the video, to order your copy of my audio CD, “How to Speak with Poise, Power, and Persuasion.” You will benefit from the tips I share from my fourteen years as a professional speaker and Speech Coach.

Or you can click here to order the CD:
http://tinyurl.com/ljr54y

RESPOND WITH YOUR COMMENTS
We welcome your response to the recommendations provided in this video. Go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

ALSO. . .GET VALUABLE SPEAKING STRATEGIES FROM MY NEW FACEBOOK BUSINESS PAGE
Here’s the link to my new Facebook business page, titled: “Dr. Bill Lampton- Speech Coach for Champions”
http://bit.ly/iRv6EA

You’ll find beneficial articles, podcasts, and videos for speaking so skillfully that you generate “attention, agreement, and action.” Click “Like” to stay connected for updates.

Lorrie Thomas Ross, Internet Master

Lorrie Thomas Ross–CEO of Web Marketing Therapy, based in Santa Barbara, California (three time zones away from Georgia)–set her alarm extra early, so she could join our 9:00 a.m. broadcast in “The Communication Corner,” my weekly interview program on WBCX, 89.1 FM.

During our highly informative discussion, co-hosted by Kristina Rhoades, Lorrie covered these and related topics:
–Her own unlikely start as an Internet professional
–Why “maximizing relationships” is absolutely “the true meaning of marketing”
–Logical sequence of steps for getting started with the Web
–Her observation that “flash can be trash” on Web sites
–A persuasive way to ask people to sign up for your online newsletter
–The power of “content marketing”
–Making the most of your blog
–Video as a vital component of your marketing plan

HEAR LORRIE THOMAS ROSS’S SUPERB ADVICE
Click the arrow near the bottom of this page, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering. You’ll hear our full 60 minute interview.

RESPOND WITH YOUR COMMENTS
We welcome your response to Lorrie’s Internet guidelines. Go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

CONTACT LORRIE THOMAS ROSS
You will find her contact information on her corporate Web site:
http://www.webmarketingtherapy.com

Lorrie will welcome your inquiries about her services.

ORDER LORRIE’S BOOK, Online Marketing
Here’s a link that takes you to Amazon’s page featuring Lorrie’s book, Online Marketing.:
http://tinyurl.com/4dbpv8x

Scroll down to my video review of the book. Once you have watched my review–one of 17 reviews that give a 5-star ranking–order this book that will hep you “master the essentials of online marketing.”

Once again, here’s the link to Online Marketing:
http://tinyurl.com/4dbpv8x

GET VALUABLE SPEAKING TIPS AND STRATEGIES FROM MY NEW FACEBOOK BUSINESS PAGE
Lorrie Thomas Ross’s energetic, articulate interview demonstrated the professional advantage you have when you can speak clearly and compellingly,to an audience you’re facing– or even an invisible audience on radio or TV. Do you want to speak with “poise, power, and persuasion” as Lorrie does? Then I encourage you to contact me about my Speech Coaching service. Here’s the link to my new Facebook business page, titled: “Dr. Bill Lampton- Speech Coach for Champions”
http://bit.ly/iRv6EA

You’ll find beneficial articles, podcasts, and videos for speaking so skillfully that you generate “attention, agreement, and action.” Click “Like” to stay connected for updates.

Yep, football season has started, after fans waited for many long months. As you watch the games, think about the remarkable parallels between great football teams and great speakers. What are they?

Watch my brief video above which explains the similarities. And then to learn more about becoming a champion speaker, click the link under the video. Scroll down the page, and you’ll find my audio CD, “How to Speak with Poise, Power, and Persuasion,” along with ordering instructions.

Or you can click here to access my Web site’s shopping cart:
http://tinyurl.com/ljr54y

COMMENT ON THE VIDEO
I’ll welcome your response to the video. Go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

GET VALUABLE SPEAKING TIPS AND STRATEGIES FROM MY NEW FACEBOOK BUSINESS PAGE
To get additional guidelines for great speaking, click this link to my new Facebook business page, titled: “Dr. Bill Lampton- Speech Coach for Champions”
http://bit.ly/iRv6EA

You’ll find beneficial articles, podcasts, and videos for speaking so skillfully that you generate “attention, agreement, and action.” Click “Like” to stay connected for updates.

With College Counselor Dr. Jean DuPree

Parents and high school students know that they need to be very busy now applying for college admission for the 2012-13 academic year. In fact, some may have been active in the process already.

Want some expert advice on the process? Then listen to my entire interview with Dr. Jean DuPree, College Counselor at Lakeview Academy in Gainesville, Georgia. I hosted her in “The Communication Corner,” my weekly interview program on WBCX, 89.1 FM. As usual, I welcomed the vital assistance of co-host Kristina Rhoades.

During our lively conversation, Dr. Dupree talked about:
–Why going to college might not be the best decision for some students
–Advantages/disadvantages of small colleges and large universities
–Whether extracurricular activities in high school impact college admission
–Annual cost of college, and getting financial aid
–How students benefit from work/study arrangements
–What parents should do during a campus visit
–Selecting a roommate
–Other relevant topics

HEAR MY INTERVIEW WITH DR. JEAN DUPREE
Click the arrow near the bottom of this page, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering. You’ll hear our full 60 minute interview.

RESPOND WITH YOUR COMMENTS
We welcome your response to Jean’s advice about finding the right college or university. Go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

CONTACT DR. JEAN DUPREE

E-mail: mailto:Jean@DuPreeCollegePrep.com

Web site for her company, “Smart Steps”: http://www.dupreecollegeprep.com

Web site for Lakeview Academy: http://www.lakeviewacademy.com

Jean will welcome your inquiries about her services.

GET VALUABLE SPEAKING TIPS AND STRATEGIES FROM MY NEW FACEBOOK BUSINESS PAGE
Dr. Jean DuPree’s energetic, articulate interview demonstrated the professional advantage you have when you can speak clearly and compellingly,to an audience you’re facing– or even an invisible audience on radio or TV. Want to speak with “poise, power, and persuasion”? Then I encourage you to contact me about my Speech Coaching service. Here’s the link to my new Facebook business page, titled: “Dr. Bill Lampton- Speech Coach for Champions”
http://bit.ly/iRv6EA

You’ll find beneficial articles, podcasts, and videos for speaking so skillfully that you generate “attention, agreement, and action.” Click “Like” to stay connected for updates.

Early in life, we start equating riches with a combination of cash on hand, savings accumulated, property holdings, and sound investments in our portfolio. Now financial planner and advisor Beau Henderson offers a radically fresh slant on what the “Rich Life” really is.

At the top of this blog, watch my video review of this book. Then use the link under the blog to order The Rich Life:Ten Investments for True Wealth.

Or you can click on this link to order Beau’s booK:
http://tinyurl.com/3v4rrup

RESPOND WITH YOUR COMMENTS
We welcome your response to Beau Henderson’s book, once you have read The Rich Life. To share your feedback, go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

CONTACT BEAU HENDERSON
To learn more about Beau’s services and contact him:
Web site: http://www.richlifeadvisors.com

Beau will welcome your inquiries, and will respond promptly.

BOOST YOUR BUSINESS GROWTH AS BEAU DID–BY DEVELOPING MAGNETIC COMMUNICATION SKILLS
In only fifteen years, Beau Henderson has attracted a huge following of clients and advocates–primarily through his remarkable communication skills. So I encourage you to consider my Speech Coaching service, to jet propel your business growth. Here’s the link to my new Facebook business page, titled: “Dr. Bill Lampton- Speech Coach for Champions”
http://bit.ly/iRv6EA

You’ll find beneficial articles, podcasts, and videos for speaking with “poise, power, and persuasion.” Click “Like” to stay connected for updates.

With Meredith Bell

For more than three decades, Meredith Bell of Newport News, Virginia has been a leader in fostering personal and professional development. In “The Communication Corner” on WBCX-FM, co-host Kristina Rhoades and I hosted Meredith for a very informative hour. Meredith described what she has learned by serving top-caliber individual and corporate clients.

Among the topics we covered:
–Working harder on ourselves than on our job
–Meeting the challenge of changing our habits
–How to give constructive feedback
–Why employees value compliments so highly
–A lesson learned when stung by a yellow jacket
–Steps toward discovering your “top strength”
–Her F-A-R formula for making improvements
–”Rewiring the brain” so you can make changes
–Role of mentors and coaches in our development

HEAR MY INTERVIEW WITH MEREDITH
Click the arrow near the bottom of this page, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering. You’ll hear our full 60 minute interview.

RESPOND WITH YOUR COMMENTS
We welcome your response to Meredith Bell’s ideas and recommendations. Go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

CONTACT MEREDITH
To learn more about her company’s services and products–especially the ProStar Coach system:

E-mail: mailto:meredith@prostarcoach.com

Web site: http://tinyurl.com/44hw7vk

Meredith will welcome your inquiries.

GET VALUABLE SPEAKING TIPS AND STRATEGIES FROM MY NEW FACEBOOK BUSINESS PAGE
Meredith Bell’s WBCX highly articulate interview demonstrated the professional advantage you have when you can speak clearly and compellingly,to an audience you’re facing or even on radio or TV. So I encourage you to consider my Speech Coaching service. Here’s the link to my new Facebook business page, titled: “Dr. Bill Lampton- Speech Coach for Champions”
http://bit.ly/iRv6EA

You’ll find beneficial articles, podcasts, and videos for speaking with “poise, power, and persuasion.” Click “Like” to stay connected for updates.

You hear so much advice about giving speeches, such as:
–Don’t say “uh”
–This speech is very important for your career. . .in fact it’s critical
–Be sure not to leave out anything significant
–Rehearse your speech aloud several times
–Don’t refer to your notes very often
–Enunciate clearly
–Our most important clients will be at this meeting
–Vary your speaking rate

Well, no wonder we get so uptight about making a speech. Our colleagues tell us this is a “do or die” situation, so we start believing that ourselves. Plus, we get overwhelmed by the instructions and tips well-meaning advisers offer. To borrow a sports phrase, we fall victim to “paralysis by analysis.”

That’s why I encourage you to watch this video on how to lighten up when you speak.

FOR MORE SPEAKING GUIDELINES, ORDER MY AUDIO CD
You’ll hear additional helpful advice when you order my audio CD, “How to Speak with Poise, Power, and Persuasion.” This CD summarizes the keys I share with my coaching clients, and include in the presentation skills seminar I direct for corporations.

To place your order, notice that you can click the blue link under the video. That takes you to my Web site’s shopping cart. Scroll down until you see the CD description

Or you can click on this link to get to my shopping cart:
http://tinyurl.com/ljr54y

RESPOND WITH YOUR COMMENTS
We welcome your comments about this video’s message. Go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

Frank, Sandy, and their beloved Daisey

Here’s an inspiring story about a Delmar, Delaware couple that didn’t let the current economic slump stop them from succeeding:
http://tinyurl.com/4y62zbp

This article merits your close attention, primarily because of the life and business values that Frank and Sandy cherish, and the creative steps they took during a financial crisis.

Clearly, they just changed directions. . .yet never stopped moving forward. No wonder RequestMaster.com featured them as the Business of the Week. Congratulations, and thanks for this highly motivational example!

Again, be sure to read the article that honors Frank and Sandy Honess:
http://tinyurl.com/4y62zbp

RESPOND WITH YOUR COMMENTS
We welcome your comments about Frank and Sandy’s success story. Go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

HEAR ABOUT OTHER PEOPLE WHOSE SUCCESS WILL INSPIRE YOU
To hear inspiring stories about others who succeeded against strong odds, order my audio CD, “Always Push the Up Button: How to Stay Highly Motivated Every Day!” Go to my online shopping cart, and scroll down until you find the description of the CD:
http://tinyurl.com/ljr54y

NOTE: You have the option of ordering the CD or the downloadable MP3

Dr. Jim Benson, Riverside Military Academy

Slightly more than two years ago, Dr. Jim Benson became President of Riverside Military Academy in Gainesville, Georgia. Already his leadership has generated progressive changes–with more to come.

During his guest appearance in “The Communication Corner”–the program that I host weekly on WBCX-FM, “The Voice of Brenau,” with the vital assistance of co-host Kristina Rhoades–Dr. Benson explained his ideas about leadership and talked about RMA, including:

–Milestone events in the history of RMA
–Mission of the Academy
–Community service given by the cadets
–Value of athletics as a learning experience
–Why RMA launched a philanthropy program, and what it accomplishes
–His highly-decorated Marine Corps career
–Books he considers helpful for aspiring leaders
–How compliments improve individual and group morale

HEAR DR. BENSON’S IDEAS ABOUT LEADERSHIP
Click the arrow near the bottom of this page, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering.

RESPOND WITH YOUR COMMENTS
We welcome your response to Dr. Benson’s interview. Go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

CONTACT DR. JIM BENSON
E-mail: mailto:jbenson@riversidemilitary.com

Web site: http://www.riversidemilitary.com

SIGN UP FOR MY COMPLIMENTARY ONLINE NEWSLETTER
To get monthly communication tips and strategies: On my Web site sign up for my complimentary online newsletter, “Winning Words and Ways.” Just enter your name and e-mail address in the slots provided.
http://www.championshipcommunication.com

GET VALUABLE SPEAKING TIPS AND STRATEGIES FROM MY NEW FACEBOOK BUSINESS PAGE
Eager to become a fluent, energetic, inspiring speaker like Dr. Jim Benson? Then you’ll want to learn about my Speech Coaching service. Here’s the link to my new Facebook business page, titled: “Dr. Bill Lampton- Speech Coach for Champions”
http://bit.ly/iRv6EA

You’ll find beneficial articles, podcasts, and videos for speaking with “poise, power, and persuasion.” Click “Like” to stay connected for updates.

Are you engaged? Married recently? Married a long time? Experiencing trouble in your marriage?

Whatever your marital situation, the video above reviews a must-have book for you:
The Gift of a Lifetime, by Barbara J. Peters

Watch my video review, and then order the book from Amazon by clicking on the link underneath the video. Or you can click here:
http://tinyurl.com/3m2ooxz

CONTACT BARBARA J. PETERS
Web site: http://www.bjpcounseling.com

E-mail: mailto:luvanrn@att.net

VISIT THE BLOG MY WIFE SANDRA AND I HOST
We’re in our fifth decade of marriage, and we are happy to share our relationship thoughts with you. Please visit our blog:
http://livebiggerlovebetter.com

Since 1980 I have admired Mike Banks in his three professions–radio broadcaster, fund raiser, and banker. So when I launched my WBCX-FM program, “The Communication Corner,” fourteen months ago, I was delighted to host him as my first guest.

Kristina Rhoades, my co-host, and I enjoyed a second opportunity to interview him, this time about mastering relationships. Among the topics we covered:
–His affiliation with “Miss Kitty” of TV’s “Gunsmoke”
–Definition of “Servant Leadership”
–Attitude you must have to build productive relationships
–How to “pay it forward” when someone does you a favor
–Why listening skills attract people more than your words would
–Establishing strong bonds with your children
–7 personality traits of top sales people
–Books he considers helpful
–Hosting international travelers and keeping them compatible
–The value of volunteers in civic and charitable organizations

HEAR MY INTERVIEW WITH MIKE BANKS
Click the arrow near the bottom of this page, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering.

RESPOND WITH YOUR COMMENTS
We welcome your response to Mike’s relationship guidelines. Go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

CONTACT MIKE BANKS
E-mail: mailto:wmbanks@northgeorgia.edu

SIGN UP FOR MY COMPLIMENTARY ONLINE NEWSLETTER
To get monthly communication tips and strategies: On my Web site sign up for my complimentary online newsletter, “Winning Words and Ways.” Just enter your name and e-mail address in the slots provided.
http://www.championshipcommunication.com

GET VALUABLE SPEAKING TIPS AND STRATEGIES FROM MY NEW FACEBOOK BUSINESS PAGE
Eager to become a fluent, energetic, inspiring speaker like Mike Banks–who once served as the public address announcer at Sanford Stadium for the University of Georgia football team? Then you’ll want to learn about my Speech Coaching service. Here’s the link to my new Facebook business page, titled: “Dr. Bill Lampton- Speech Coach for Champions”
http://bit.ly/iRv6EA

You’ll find beneficial articles, podcasts, and videos for speaking with “poise, power, and persuasion.” Click “Like” to stay connected for updates.

“What,” you may wonder, “a health care institution as a role model for customer service?”

Yes, that’s right. Prescription for Excellence–by Joseph A. Michelli, Ph.D.–gives a thorough, well-documented analysis of why the UCLA Health System has become known world-wide for its patient care. The good news: UCLA’s approach is transferable to any industry.

After you watch my brief video review, you can click on the blue link under the video to order the book from Amazon. Or you can use this link to go to Amazon’s page for the book:
http://tinyurl.com/3l2aakb

GET ADDITIONAL COMMUNICATION STRATEGIES FROM MY NEW FACEBOOK BUSINESS PAGE
Eager to become a fluent, energetic, inspiring speaker? Then you’ll want to learn about my Speech Coaching service. Here’s the link to my new Facebook business page, titled: “Dr. Bill Lampton- Speech Coach for Champions”
http://bit.ly/iRv6EA

You’ll find beneficial articles, podcasts, and videos to help you speak with “poise, power, and persuasion.” Click “Like” to stay connected for updates.

GUEST COLUMNIST
At my request, Meredith Bell of ProStar Coach shared her thoughts about encouragement, which she accurately called “a very important communication topic that people don’t write about very much.” I’m very grateful for her splendid article, and you will be, too.

When you see that someone is discouraged, you may be tempted to give advice or offer a solution. But neither of these responses is helpful or welcome at a time like this. Instead, if you really want to be an encourager, cover these four steps.

Start with LISTENING. Invite the person to open up by saying something like, “You don’t seem like yourself today. Want to talk about it?” As he expresses his feelings about the situation, don’t criticize or evaluate. Just give your full, undivided attention and check to be sure you understand what he’s trying to say.

In step two, you AFFIRM the person. When things go wrong, people often blame themselves and lose self-confidence. They temporarily lose sight of what they’re capable of. This is your opportunity to remind the person of his personal strengths, the ones that will get him through this challenge. Remind him of obstacles he’s faced before in equally tough situations – and what he did to succeed.

After that, OFFER PERSPECTIVE, the third step. When people are discouraged, they focus on the negatives. To restore a balanced, realistic perspective, acknowledge the negatives, but remind the person that the situation also has advantages, opportunities, and other upsides. Pointing these out is helpful, because the positives are real.

The final step is SUPPORT. You remind the person that he doesn’t have to go it alone. Let him know that you will be there for him, and ask what he needs from you now. This keeps you from making assumptions about the type of support that would be most helpful to this particular individual.

One of my two business partners, Paula Schlauch, was once out on extended medical leave. I absorbed most of her responsibilities during those two months. At times I found myself getting anxious and discouraged from the additional pressures. My other partner, Denny Coates, works in another state and couldn’t help with most of these day-to-day tasks. But he was my encourager.

One day, when I was feeling really overwhelmed, I told Denny how hard it was to juggle everything. He asked me to talk about what was bothering me. After listening without interruption, he acknowledged that what I was doing was hard. He reminded me of a time when I excelled despite some tough obstacles.

Denny affirmed my personal strengths and reassured me that in the end I’d be able to get everything done. And he made a suggestion: “It’s true that the last eight weeks have been just as hard as you say. But instead of focusing on the past, try shifting your perspective to the future. You know Paula will be back in a week or so. Think about that, and how great that will be.”

And then he reminded me that he was there to support me in any way he could.

That simple conversation helped change my outlook. I felt like a new person when I went home that day. I had my confidence back. And I thought how great it is to have a partner who knows how to encourage.

You can have that same impact on someone you care about if you implement these four steps when you sense the person is discouraged.

RESPOND WITH YOUR COMMENTS
We welcome your response to Meredith’s article about encouragement. Go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

CONTACT MEREDITH
E-mail: mailto:meredith@prostarcoach.com

Call: 800-488-6463 or 757-873-3700 x201

VISIT THE PROSTAR COACH SITE
To explore this valuable personal and professional development system:
https://pssinc.infusionsoft.com/go/PSC/DRBILL/

GET VALUABLE SPEAKING TIPS AND STRATEGIES FROM MY NEW FACEBOOK BUSINESS PAGE
Eager to become a fluent, energetic, inspiring speaker like Meredith Bell, who will give a major conference address in November in Atlanta? Then you’ll want to learn about my Speech Coaching service. Here’s the link to my new Facebook business page, titled: “Dr. Bill Lampton- Speech Coach for Champions”
http://bit.ly/iRv6EA

You’ll find beneficial articles, podcasts, and videos for speaking with “poise, power, and persuasion.” Click “Like” to stay connected for updates.

With Relationship Counselor Barbara J. Peters

Barbara J. Peters–relationship counselor and author–brought helpful marital guidelines to listeners of “The Communication Corner,” my weekly interview program on WBCX, 89.1 FM, “The Voice of Brenau.”

Included in our discussion:
–Why couples will divorce after 30 or 40 years of marriage
–Value of premarital counseling
–Whether to tell your spouse everything
–Keeping romance going after the birth of your first child
–Impact of tough economic times on marriage
–The “criticism sandwich”
–Benefit of marrying a great friend

HEAR MY INTERVIEW WITH BARBARA J. PETERS
Click the arrow near the bottom of this page, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering.

RESPOND WITH YOUR COMMENTS
We welcome your response to Barbara’s relationship guidelines. Go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

CONTACT BARBARA J. PETERS
E-mail: mailto:luvanrn@att.net

Facebook: http://facebook.com/giftofalifetimebook

ORDER BARBARA’S BOOKS
Use these links to preview and order her books from Amazon:

The Gift of a Lifetime
http://tinyurl.com/42ckqrz

He Said, She Said, I Said
http://tinyurl.com/3lktkzu

SIGN UP FOR MY COMPLIMENTARY NEWSLETTER
To get monthly communication tips and strategies,on my Web site sign up for my complimentary online newsletter, “Winning Words and Ways.” Just enter your name and e-mail address in the slots provided.
http://www.championshipcommunication.com

GET VALUABLE SPEAKING TIPS AND STRATEGIES FROM MY NEW FACEBOOK BUSINESS PAGE
Eager to become a fluent, energetic, inspiring speaker like Barbara J. Peters? Then you’ll want to learn about my Speech Coaching service. Here’s the link to my new Facebook business page, titled: “Dr. Bill Lampton- Speech Coach for Champions”
http://bit.ly/iRv6EA

You’ll find beneficial articles, podcasts, and videos for speaking with “poise, power, and persuasion.” Click “Like” to stay connected for updates.

With YMCA Executive Rich Gallagher

Rich Gallagher–CEO/President of the Georgia Mountains YMCA–enthralled listeners with his description of the mission and services of the YMCA. Rich was my guest in “The Communication Corner,” my interview program aired weekly by WBCX, 89.1 FM, “The Voice of Brenau.” My co-host Kristina Rhoades contributed greatly to the conversation.

Among our major topics:
–How Rich began his YMCA affiliation as a volunteer
–Why volunteers remain so valuable to the Y
–The Y’s involvement in America’s patriotic efforts
–Original purpose of the Y
–Exciting Special Needs programs: Adaptive Sports, Heroes League, and Zero Entry swimming
–Relationship between the Y and the Parks and Recreation Program
–Guidelines for behavior and courtesy
–Role of charitable giving in the Y’s mission and expansion

HEAR MY INTERVIEW WITH RICH GALLAGHER
Click the arrow near the bottom of this page, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering.

RESPOND WITH YOUR COMMENTS
We welcome your response to Rich Gallagher’s interview. Go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

CONTACT RICH GALLAGHER

E-mail: mailto:rgallagher@georgiamountainsymca.org

Web site: http://www.georgiamountainsymca.org

Rich will be happy to discuss Y membership, charitable contributions, and how you can become an active volunteer.

SIGN UP FOR MY COMPLIMENTARY NEWSLETTER
To get monthly communication tips and strategies,on my Web site sign up for my complimentary online newsletter, “Winning Words and Ways,” by entering your name and e-mail address in the slots provided.
http://www.championshipcommunication.com

GET VALUABLE SPEAKING TIPS AND STRATEGIES FROM MY NEW FACEBOOK BUSINESS PAGE
Want to reach the executive level, as Rich Gallagher did with the Y? Then you’ll want to learn about my Speech Coaching service. Here’s the link to my new Facebook business page, titled: “Dr. Bill Lampton- Speech Coach for Champions”
http://bit.ly/iRv6EA

You’ll find beneficial guidelines for speaking with “poise, power, and persuasion.” Click “Like” to stay connected for updates.

Sure, you want to accelerate your sales. Every dedicated professional does.

Then read–and put into action– Mark Rodgers’ Accelerate the Sale. As the subtitle says, you will “Kick-start Your Personal Selling Style to Close More Sales, Faster.”

After watching my 6-minute video review, click on the link beneath the video to order your copy from Amazon, or click here:
http://tinyurl.com/4xov8hh

FOR MONTHLY COMMUNICATION GUIDELINES, SIGN UP FOR MY COMPLIMENTARY NEWSLETTER
On my Web site, sign up for my complimentary online newsletter, “Winning Words and Ways,” by entering your name and e-mail address in the slots provided.
http://www.championshipcommunication.com

GET VALUABLE SPEAKING TIPS AND STRATEGIES FROM MY NEW FACEBOOK BUSINESS PAGE
Sometimes during interviews you will need to speak to a selection committee. That’s where my Speech Coaching comes to your assistance. Here’s the link to my new Facebook business page, titled: “Dr. Bill Lampton- Speech Coach for Champions”
http://bit.ly/iRv6EA

You’ll find beneficial guidelines for speaking with “poise, power, and persuasion.” Click “Like” to stay connected for updates.
–

With Career Search Leader Dick Simmonds

Dick Simmonds, President and Founder of metro Atlanta-based Miramonte, joined “The Communication Corner” on WBCX-FM. He provided valuable strategies for job interviews. Using his advice, your interviews will change from stressful to successful.

Among the topics we covered:
–Most effective ways to get interviews scheduled
–Researching your potential employer
–Appropriate dress code
–PowerPoint presentations
–Describing your qualifications without bragging
–The most persuasive nonverbal signals
–Negotiating a salary offer

HEAR MY INTERVIEW WITH DICK SIMMONDS
Click the arrow near the bottom of this page, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering.

RESPOND WITH YOUR COMMENTS
We welcome your response to Dick Simmonds’ advice about job interviews. Go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

DICK SIMMOND’S CONTACT INFORMATION
Web site: http://www.miramonte.biz
E-mail: mailto:dsimmonds@miramonte.biz
Phone: 404-606-8836

WATCH MY VIDEO INTERVIEW WITH DICK SIMMONDS RE SALARY NEGOTIATIONS
http://bit.ly/rjovDY

SIGN UP FOR MY COMPLIMENTARY NEWSLETTER
On my Web site, sign up for my complimentary online newsletter, “Winning Words and Ways,” by entering your name and e-mail address in the slots provided.
http://www.championshipcommunication.com

GET VALUABLE SPEAKING TIPS AND STRATEGIES FROM MY NEW FACEBOOK BUSINESS PAGE
Sometimes during interviews you will need to speak to a selection committee. That’s where my Speech Coaching comes to your assistance. Here’s the link to my new Facebook business page, titled: “Dr. Bill Lampton- Speech Coach for Champions”
http://bit.ly/iRv6EA

You’ll find beneficial guidelines for speaking with “poise, power, and persuasion.” Click “Like” to stay connected for updates.
–

Let’s assume you’re ready to boost your business. . .big-time. Yet you need a highly qualified expert to lead you through the bewildering maze of:
Google+
Facebook Business Page
Blogging
Video production
LinkedIn
Twitter
Search Engine Optimization
GoToMeeting
Skype
Webinars
Building “Tribes” for Networking
Marketing
Web Site Development

My brief video above offers 5 reasons why Gina Carr is the remarkable resource you will want to contact. After watching this 3 minute 25 second description of her services, you will understand why I call her “Genius Gina.”

You can link onto her site by clicking the blue link just beneath the video. Or you can click here:
http://www.GinaCarr.com

Call her: 678-653-0115

VISIT MY FACEBOOK BUSINESS PAGE THAT GINA HELPED ME CREATE
I invite you to visit my new Facebook business page, which Gina Carr helped me create. You will get tips and strategies for speaking with “poise, passion, and power,” so you will generate “attention, agreement, and action.”
http://bit.ly/k69F5C

While you’re there, be sure to click “Like” so we will stay connected.

RESPOND WITH YOUR COMMENTS
We welcome your comments about Gina Carr. Go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

After watching my video review above of From Idea to Success, written by Gregg Fairbrothers and Tessa M. Winter, you will want to order this dashboard atlas for entrepreneurs. In addition to covering the basics of launching and sustaining a business, the book gives step-by-step guidelines relating to intellectual property, working with your Board, securing financing, sales and communication, and accounting and money management–a skill you hope you will need.

NOTE: Gregg Fairbrothers spent 23 years in oil exploration and production, preparing him to help launch the Dartmouth Entrepreneurial Network. Clearly, he learned his entrepreneurial theory through his own ventures.

Under the video, you can order the book by clicking the link to Amazon’s page for From Idea to Success or you can use this link:
http://bit.ly/piCkyw

Even if you have other books on your shelf about becoming a successful entrepreneur, you will want to add this one.

GET MORE COMMUNICATION TIPS AND STRATEGIES ON MY FACEBOOK BUSINESS PAGE
I invite you to connect with my new Facebook business page, where you will get tips and strategies that will strengthen your communication, both professional and personal:
http://bit.ly/k69F5C

Be sure to click “Like” so we’ll stay connected there.

Relaxing with Greg Lee in His Pro Shop

Greg Lee–Head Golf Professional at Chicopee Woods Golf Course in Gainesville, GA–brought very strong credentials with him as my guest in “The Communication Corner.” Among his tournament accomplishments:
Wiiner, Atlanta Open
Winner, Georgia PGA Championship
Winner, Georgia Professionals National Championship
Played six times in the National Club Professionals Tournament

Not only have I admired his victories, I have benefited from the lessons he has given me.

So hosting Greg on WBCX, 89.1 FM “The Voice of Brenau” was both a personal and professional privilege.

Among our topics:
–The British Open and its champion, Darren Clarke
–The 3 or 4 best golfers of all time
–The mental side of the game
–When and how to introduce golf to your children
–Why top athletes in other sports might not succeed in golf
–Getting on the PGA Tour, and staying there

HEAR MY INTERVIEW WITH GREG LEE
Click the arrow near the bottom of this page, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering.

RESPOND WITH YOUR COMMENTS
We welcome your response to Greg Lee’s observations about golf. Go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

GREG LEE’S CONTACT INFORMATION
To contact Greg:
mailto:gregleemeister@yahoo.com
Phone: 770-534-7322

As a regular student of Greg’s, I assure you that his golf instruction is friendly and encouraging–and that you are very likely to experience improvement in your game.

SIGN UP FOR MY COMPLIMENTARY NEWSLETTER
On my Web site, sign up for my complimentary online newsletter, “Winning Words and Ways,” by entering your name and e-mail address in the slots provided.
http://www.championshipcommunication.com

GET VALUABLE SPEAKING TIPS AND STRATEGIES FROM MY NEW FACEBOOK BUSINESS PAGE
Here’s the link to my new Facebook business page, titled: “Dr. Bill Lampton- Speech Coach for Champions”
http://bit.ly/iRv6EA

You’ll find beneficial guidelines for speaking with “poise, power, and persuasion.” Click “Like” to stay connected for updates.
–

Dr. Ted Garner, Lover of Wisdom

“Philosophy is interesting and relevant to my everyday life.”

Really? Well, maybe you haven’t believed that previously, but you will after hearing my interview with Brenau University professor Dr. Ted Garner.

Set aside sixty minutes for a fascinating hour of listening and learning, as Dr. Garner and I discuss:
–What prompted Dr. Garner to study philosophy
–Socrates, the “gadfly of Athens”: the Socratic method, his trial, and his influence on later generations
–Descartes, Dr. Garner’s favorite philosopher
–How we use inductive and deductive reasoning daily
–Philosophy and medical ethics
–Philosophy and politics
–Pragmatism

DR. GARNER AND WBCX
As Brenau’s Director of Media Services, Dr. Ted Garner has been central to the development of WBCX-FM, the station that hosts my Tuesday morning interview program, “The Communication Corner.” Among his contributions: securing grant support totaling more than $300,000.

LISTEN TO MY INTERVIEW WITH DR. GARNER
Click the arrow near the bottom of this page, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering.

RESPOND WITH YOUR COMMENTS
We welcome your comments about Dr. Garner’s interview. Go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

DR. GARNER’S CONTACT INFORMATION
You can reach Dr. Ted Garner by e-mail:
mailto:tgarner@brenau.edu

VISIT MY SPEECH COACHING PAGE
Do you wish you could speak as fluently, confidently, and compellingly as Dr. Garner did during our interview? That’s something I have helped many of my Speech Coaching clients achieve. Visit this page, and then contact me to describe your speaking goals.
http://bit.ly/j3sVwA

SIGN UP FOR MY COMPLIMENTARY NEWSLETTER
While you’re on my Speech Coaching page, sign up for my complimentary online newsletter, “Winning Words and Ways,” by entering your name and e-mail address in the slots provided.

GET VALUABLE SPEAKING TIPS AND STRATEGIES FROM MY NEW FACEBOOK BUSINESS PAGE
Here’s the link to my new Facebook business page, titled: “Dr. Bill Lampton- Speech Coach for Champions”
http://bit.ly/iRv6EA

You’ll find beneficial guidelines for speaking with “poise, power, and persuasion.” Click “Like” to stay connected for updates.

Investment Professional Damon Ladd-Thomas

Let’s admit it—there are many financial terms we read in the press and hear on radio and TV that confuse us. Well, my interview with investment professional Damon Ladd-Thomas, based in Grayson, GA, helps us cut through the terminology—and understand financial lingo.

Among the topics covered:
–How to choose a financial advisor
–Realistic expectations for investors
–What’s a Ponzi Scheme?
–Why economic collapse in Greece impacts the U.S. economy
–Dollar cost averaging

His official title: Investment Professional with NEXT Financial Group, Inc., Member FINRA/SIPC.

LISTEN TO MY INTERVIEW WITH DAMON
Click the arrow near the bottom of this page, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering.

RESPOND WITH YOUR COMMENTS
We welcome your comments re Damon Ladd-Thomas’s interview. Go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

DAMON’S CONTACT INFORMATION
You’ll find Damon Ladd-Thomas’ contact information at these sites:
http://www.damonladd-thomas.com/
http://www.dltmontana.com/
http://www.georgiacommerceclub.org/

VISIT MY SPEECH COACHING PAGE
Do you wish you could speak as fluently, confidently, and compellingly as Damon did during our interview? That’s something I have helped many of my Speech Coaching clients achieve. Visit this page, and then contact me to describe your speaking goals.
http://bit.ly/j3sVwA

SIGN UP FOR MY COMPLIMENTARY NEWSLETTER
While you’re on my Speech Coaching page, sign up for my complimentary online newsletter, “Winning Words and Ways,” by entering your name and e-mail address in the slots provided.

GET VALUABLE COMMUNICATION TIPS AND STRATEGIES FROM MY NEW FACEBOOK BUSINESS PAGE
Here’s the link to my new Facebook business page, titled: “Dr. Bill Lampton- Speech Coach for Champions”
http://bit.ly/iRv6EA

You’ll find valuable information about how to speak with “poise, power, and persuasion.” Click “Like” to stay connected for updates.

Ever thought about becoming an entrepreneur? Or have you become one already? Either way, this book–School for Startups–will serve, as the authors suggest, as “The Beginners Guide to Low-Risk Entrepreneurship.”

As I mention in the video review, I launched my own business in 1997, following decades as a top-level manager. I’m totally familiar with the obstacles and fears the authors describe. And I fully embrace their guidelines and solutions.

After viewing my review, you can click on the link below the video and order School for Startups. Or here’s the link again:
http://bit.ly/mpKhuC

INVITE YOU TO MY FACEBOOK BUSINESS PAGE
I invite you to my just-launched Facebook business page, where you will find articles and videos designed to elevate your communication skills. While you’re on the page, please click “Like” so we will stay connected:
http://bit.ly/k69F5C
Take a minute, please, to browse the Info section, where you’ll learn about my Speech Coaching service.

Award-winning Storyteller Karen Chace

Wanting to help my WBCX-FM listeners understand the central role of storytelling in our past and present, I interviewed Karen Chace of East Freetown, MA. I couldn’t have made a better selection. In 2009 Karen won the coveted Brother Blue Award. Next month she will travel to Texas and receive the National Storytelling Networks Oracle Award for Service and Leadership in the Northeast.

During our stimulating interview, we covered these and other topics:

–What prompted her to become a professional storyteller
–High points in the historical development of storytelling
–How storytelling skills can apply beneficially to business settings
–Essential ingredients of a great story
–One of Karen’s favorite brief stories from Dan Keding, which she told during the interview
–Storytelling and theater. . .similarities and differences
–Origin of her moniker “Storybug”

HEAR MY INTERVIEW WITH KAREN CHACE
Click the arrow near the bottom of this page, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering.

KAREN’S CONTACT INFORMATION
You’ll find her at http://www.storybug.net While you’re there, visit her fascinating blog–and sign up for her newsletter.

Next time you’re in charge of an event, call Karen. She will inform and entertain your audience in spellbinding fashion. . .after she has researched your organization thoroughly, and discussed what you want her presentation to accomplish.

RESPOND WITH YOUR COMMENTS
We welcome your comments re Karen Chace’s description of storytelling. Go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

DAN KEDING
Dan graciously granted permission for Karen to tell his story during our interview. Here’s how you can follow up with Dan:
Dan Keding’s website: http://www.dankeding.com
The Story of The Two Warriors are on his CD Promises Kept, Promises Broken http://www.dankeding.com/cds.html
The story may also be found in this book: The Healing Heart for Communities
http://tinyurl.com/3kecoot

VISIT MY SPEECH COACHING PAGE
Do you wish you could speak as fluently, confidently, and compellingly as Karen Chace did during our interview? That’s something I have helped many of my Speech Coaching clients achieve. Visit my Web site’s Speech Coaching page–and then contact me to discuss your speaking needs and goals:
http://bit.ly/j3sVwA

SIGN UP FOR MY COMPLIMENTARY NEWSLETTER
While you’re on my Speech Coaching page, sign up for my complimentary online newsletter, “Winning Words and Ways,” by entering your name and e-mail address in the slots provided. As a subscriber, you’ll get frequent communication tips you can apply immediately.

GET VALUABLE COMMUNICATION TIPS AND STRATEGIES FROM MY NEW FACEBOOK BUSINESS PAGE
Here’s the link to my new Facebook business page, titled: Dr. Bill Lampton- Speech Coach for Champions
http://bit.ly/k69F5C

Once you visit there, I invite you to click “Like,” to keep you connected.

World-Wide Educator, Dr. Bill Lightfoot

As an educator with vast global experience, Dr. Bill Lightfoot–Dean of Brenau University’s College of Business and Mass Communications–brought international perspective into “The Communication Corner,” when I interviewed him on WBCX, 89.1 FM, “The Voice of Brenau.” With the able assistance of my co-host Kristina Rhoades, Dean Lightfoot told listeners about:

–The work ethic he learned as a boy in Connecticut
–His early love of international travel, paving the way for his ultimate career
–His fifteen years in business before he became an academic
–How Brenau helps students of all ages benefit from their studies
–Educational involvement in Finland, Guatemala, Monaco, France, and India
–Comparing the U.S. higher education system to educational offerings elsewhere
–Value of a liberal arts education
–Brenau’s Business and Mass Communications College, which he heads

HEAR MY INTERVIEW WITH DR. LIGHTFOOT
Click the arrow near the bottom of this page, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering.

RESPOND WITH YOUR COMMENTS
We welcome your comments re Dr. Lightfoot’s observations about higher education. Go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

CONTACT DR. BILL LIGHTFOOT
His e-mail address:
mailto:wlightfoot@brenau.edu

VISIT MY SPEECH COACHING PAGE
Do you wish you could speak as fluently, confidently, and compellingly as Dr. Bill Lightfoot did during our interview? That’s something I have helped many of my Speech Coaching clients achieve. Visit my Web site’s Speech Coaching page–and then contact me to discuss your speaking needs and goals:
http://bit.ly/j3sVwA

SIGN UP FOR MY COMPLIMENTARY NEWSLETTER
While you’re on my Speech Coaching page, sign up for my complimentary online newsletter, “Winning Words and Ways,” by entering your name and e-mail address in the slots provided. As a subscriber, you’ll get frequent communication tips you can apply immediately.

So, you want to become an entrepreneur. . . or you have become one already. Either way, you’ll welcome the guidelines Beau Henderson gave when I interviewed him in “The Communication Corner,” my weekly program on WBCX, 89.1 FM, “The Voice of Brenau.”

During our lively sixty minute conversation, Beau covered:
–Important lessons gleaned from his University of Georgia football career
–Business and Life Coaches and mentors he has learned from
–How he applies what he learned from studying psychology
–His career as an Athens, GA policeman
–Books that he ranks most important for his development
–Why giving value is the best way to grow your business
–The magic results that will come from “ask, ask, ask”

HEAR MY INTERVIEW WITH BEAU–AND BENEFIT IMMEDIATELY
Click the arrow near the bottom of this page, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering.

RESPOND WITH YOUR COMMENTS
We welcome your comments about Beau Henderson and entrepreneurship. Go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

CONTACT BEAU HENDERSON
Beau Henderson is a financial advisor, author, coach, radio personality, and CEO of RichLife Advisors. He has helped over 3,000 clients to not just improve their relationship with money, but to live the life of their dreams

Use this link to access more information about Beau, along with his contact information.
http://www.richlifeadvisors.com

Be sure to note Beau’s radio show, coaching program, book, and blog. Clearly, he is the “go to guy” for financial advice, and for kick-starting your business–while maintaining a balanced life.

VISIT MY SPEECH COACHING PAGE, SIGN UP FOR MY ONLINE NEWSLETTER
Beau Henderson and I met when he enlisted me as his Speech Coach, so he could present to groups with greater “poise, power, and persuasion”–and generate “attention, agreement, and action.”

What about you? Do you have challenging professional presentations scheduled soon? Want to upgrade your speaking skills dramatically? Visit my Speech Coaching page, where you will see testimonials from some of my top-tier clients, along with my contact information.
http://tinyurl.com/otlcgz

Note that in our high tech age, I can provide Speech Coaching for you wherever you are located.

While you’re on my Speech Coaching page, please enter your name and e-mail address in the slots provided, to subscribe to my online newsletter, “Winning Words and Ways.”

Creative Business Builder Gina Carr

During the last few years, Atlanta native (now Orlando based) Gina Carr has emerged as a terrific resource for people who want to start a business or expand their current business. I tagged her “Genius Gina,” because of how she has mastered the Social Media, and how she helps us understand the geek jargon.

In our interview in “The Communication Corner”–the weekly program I host for WBCX-FM–Gina offered detailed steps for using Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn. Among our discussion topics:
–3 ways she describes and compares Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn
–Her top 5 ways to build a tremendous Facebook following
–Advantages of establishing a Facebook business page as well as your personal page
–Why you should write Facebook Notes instead of regular posts
–Making the most of LinkedIn groups membership
–Importance of continuing your professional education

..and much more. As you listen, you’ll want to jot down her major suggestions, and implement them quickly.

HEAR MY INTERVIEW WITH GINA NOW
Click the arrow near the bottom of this page, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering.

RESPOND WITH YOUR COMMENTS
We welcome your comments about Gina Carr’s interview. Go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

CHECK THESE IMPORTANT LINKS FEATURING GINA CARR
You’ll access vital information, along with her contact information.

htto://www.ginacarr.com

http://www.tribebuildingtips.com

Also, watch my video interview with Gina about tribe building:
http://tinyurl.com/c7fd6h

SUBSCRIBE TO MY COMPLIMENTARY BLOG, NEWSLETTER, AND PODCAST
To automatically get every new posting to this blog instantly, click the RSS button on the upper right of this page, and follow the instructions to subscribe.

To subscribe to my online newsletter, Winning Words and Ways–and gain access to value-packed tips on communication, sales, customer service, and motivation–visit my Web site, and then enter your name and e-mail address in the slots provided on the home page:
http://www.championshipcommunication.com

To subscribe to my weekly podcast, titled “Speech Coaching Radio,” and get brief weekly audio tips on how to speak with “poise, power, and persuasion,” visit my podcast site and look under Subscribe on the right side of the page:
http://tinyurl.com/4jype49

Homeland Security Expert Brett Braaten

Ever since September 11, 2001, Homeland Security has become a major concern for American citizens. That’s why I invited Brett Braaten–a Homeland Security official for 29 years–into “The Communication Corner,” the weekly interview program I host for WBCX, “The Voice of Brenau,” on 89.1 FM.

During our fascinating conversation, we covered these and other topics:

–Origin and development of the U.S. Customs service
–Regulation of intellectual property rights
–Attempts at immigration reform
–Internet fraud, originating mainly from Nigeria
–Canadian-based smuggling of Rogaine to pharmacies
–Counterfeit products sold in reputable U.S. businesses
–Explanation of the H1b visa fraud, impacting skilled American workers

HEAR MY INTERVIEW WITH BRETT BRAATEN
Click the arrow near the bottom of this page, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering.

RESPOND WITH YOUR COMMENTS
We welcome your comments about Brett Braaten’s interview. Go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

CHECK OUT BRETT BRAATEN’S HIGHLY PROFESSIONAL VIDEOGRAPHY SERVICE
Brett helps families create a videographic family history that family members will treasure for generations. To learn more about his highly professional work in helping you preserve timeless memories, visit his Web site: http://www.storybookproductions.net

You’ll find his contact information on that site.

SUBSCRIBE TO MY COMPLIMENTARY BLOG AND NEWSLETTER
To automatically get every new posting to this blog instantly, click the RSS button on the upper right of this page, and follow the instructions to subscribe.

To subscribe to my online newsletter, Winning Words and Ways–and gain access to value-packed tips on communication, sales, customer service, and motivation–visit my Web site, and then enter your name and e-mail address in the slots provided on the home page:
http://www.championshipcommunication.com

Ricky Steele, Master Networker

Ricky Steele has made a career of meeting highly influential people and establishing mutually beneficial relationships with them. Having him as my guest in “The Communication Corner” on WBCX-FM became even more special after I read his book, The Heart of Networking, Second Edition.

During our conversation, Ricky gave his ideas about topics that will help professionals get jobs, expand their networks, and become unselfish contributors to their communities. Among our topics:

–Valuable lessons his Father taught him
–His first bold networking step when he moved to Atlanta
–The value of volunteering
–Why he dislikes the “ABC” sales formula
–Advantages of becoming a “connector”
–His practice of arriving early at networking events
–Maximizing meal opportunities with clients and prospects
–LinkedIn and other Social Media
–What he means by being “available” at networking functions

HEAR MY INTERVIEW WITH RICKY STEELE
Click the arrow near the bottom of this page, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering.

COMMENT ABOUT RICKY STEELE’S NETWORKING STRATEGY
We welcome your comments about Ricky Steele’s networking strategy. Go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

ORDER STEELE’S BOOK ABOUT NETWORKING
Watch my brief video review of The Heart of Networking, and click the link below the video to order the book from Amazon:
http://tinyurl.com/3j8fx2n

CONTACT HIM
You’ll find Ricky’s contact information on his Web site:
http://www.rickysteele.net

SUBSCRIBE TO MY COMPLIMENTARY BLOG AND NEWSLETTER
To automatically get every new posting to this blog instantly, click the RSS button on the upper right of this page, and follow the instructions to subscribe.

To subscribe to my online newsletter, Winning Words and Ways–and gain access to value-packed tips on communication, sales, customer service, and motivation–visit my Web site, and then enter your name and e-mail address in the slots provided on the home page:
http://www.championshipcommunication.com

If you have been in the business and professional work force for even a moderate length of time, chances are strong you have encountered powerful people–those who consider themselves “larger than life.” One big problem: Usually they want you and everyone else to view them that way, too.

What if you haven’t dealt with these ultra egos yet? Stay tuned, because you will.

My brief video above reviews Dirk Schlimm’s book, Influencing Powerful People. He details how to “engage and command the attention of the decision makers to get what you need to succeed,” as the subtitle says. After you have listened to my review, click on the blue link under the video, “Order Schlimm’s book.” The link takes you to his Amazon page.

Having dealt with arrogant bosses, colleagues, clients, and prospective clients myself–during my twenty-three years of management–I can verify that Schlimm’s guidelines will make unlikely alliances more productive. You won’t change the powerful person, yet you will benefit by changing the way you talk and interact with him or her. You’ll change the results, too.

COMMENT ABOUT INFLUENCING POWERFUL PEOPLE
We welcome your comments about working around, with, and for powerful people. Go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

SUBSCRIBE TO MY COMPLIMENTARY BLOG AND NEWSLETTER
To automatically get every new posting to this blog instantly, click the RSS button on the upper right of this page, and follow the instructions to subscribe.

To subscribe to my online newsletter, Winning Words and Ways–and gain access to value-packed tips on communication, sales, customer service, and motivation–visit my Web site, and then enter your name and e-mail address in the slots provided on the home page:
http://www.championshipcommunication.com

Master networker Ricky Steele released the second edition of his acclaimed book, The Heart of Networking. In my brief video above, I describe some of the highlights–and encourage you to get your copy, study his networking advice, and implement his approach.

I assure you, this book does not echo networking guidelines you have read about elsewhere. Following Steele’s system, you will distinguish yourself from those who stick with methods that have become stale by overuse.

Ricky has established an incredible track record as a renowned networker. Everything he proposes has worked for him.

As my video says, Ricky Steele will help you enjoy networking more, and also enjoy your expanding client list.

NOTE: Just below the video, click on the blue link “Order Ricky’s Book,” and you’ll land on his Amazon page for The Heart of Networking

COMMENT ABOUT RICKY STEELE
We welcome your comments about Ricky Steele. Go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

SUBSCRIBE TO MY COMPLIMENTARY BLOG AND NEWSLETTER
To automatically get every new posting to this blog instantly, click the RSS button on the upper right of this page, and follow the instructions to subscribe.

To subscribe to my online newsletter, Winning Words and Ways–and gain access to value-packed tips on communication, sales, customer service, and motivation–visit my Web site, and then enter your name and e-mail address in the slots provided on the home page:
http://www.championshipcommunication.com

Looking for the right motivational speaker to ignite your organization? If that’s your question, Kristina Rhoades is the answer.

Watch the brief video clip above–a one minute sample of her incredible vitality.

She mentions that she is in a wheelchair. Never walked a step, never will. Yet I guarantee. . .she stands taller than anyone you’ll ever meet.

Under the video, you’ll find a link to her Web site. Go there. You’ll read her marvelous story of courage and triumph.

Then contact her. Schedule her for your next retreat, annual meeting, or conference. Your organization will benefit tremendously–and permanently.

Here’s her Web site again:
http://www.kristinarhoades.me

COMMENT ABOUT KRISTINA’S VIDEO
We welcome your comments about Kristina Rhoades’ video. Go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

When Lee Ellis–Colonel, USAF (Ret.)–contacted me, he was designing his speech for a dynamic audience–the national conference for the Collegegiate Strength and Conditioning Coaches Association. Starting weeks ahead, we strengthened his content and sharpened his delivery, using video to assess his presentation progress.

Speaking about his Vietnam War experiences–being shot down in 1967 (after flying 53 combat mission) and held captive for five and a half years–he titled his talk, “Building Strength from the Inside Out.”

When our Speech Coaching sessions concluded, Lee offered his brief video testimonial about my services. Watch the video at the top of this blog page.

LEE’S REPORT ABOUT THE EVENT
Immediately after the conference in Kansas City, Lee drove to Iowa to visit a long-time military associate and friend. On his way, he called to tell me that his audience responded enthusiastically to his presentation–not only during his speech, but afterward when they came by his exhibit booth. As his Speech Coach, I was proud of his accomplishment–and grateful for the opportunity to work with him.

CONTACT LEE ABOUT PURCHASING A PRE-PUBLICATION COPY OF HIS BOOK
Colonel Ellis will welcome your inquiry about ordering a pre-publication copy of his upcoming book, Leadership Lessons from the Hanoi Hilton. His e-mail address:
mailto:lellis@leadershipfreedom.com

His Web site:
http://www.leadershipfreedom.com

Also, Colonel Ellis will welcome your inquiry about his professional speaking and training offerings.

VISIT MY SPEECH COACHING PAGE
Are you–Like Colonel Ellis–ready for highly professional, personalized Speech Coaching? Then visit my Speech Coaching page, by clicking on the link under Colonel Ellis’ video. Or use this link:
http://tinyurl.com/otlcgz

Training/Development Leader Linda Hensel

Linda Hensel made her second guest appearance in “The Communication Corner,” my Tuesday morning interview program on WBCX-FM, “The Voice of Brenau.” On her initial guest shot, she talked about maximizing your vocal skills. Her return interview focused on organizational training and development–a function she knows well as the Training and Development Specialist with the State Personnel Administration, based in Atlanta, Georgia.

Among the subjects Linda discussed:

–Why expenditures for training and development should not be reduced during tough economic times
–Major shifts in training strategies in the last two decades
–Advantages of having the organization’s leader participate in training sessions
–Dealing with shy participants and their opposites, excessive talkers
–Why shortened attention spans and current technology make interactive sessions more welcomed
–Including a review of “best practices” from other companies in your industry
–Fostering guidelines for ethical behavior
–Getting and using honest feedback from trainees

HEAR MY INTERVIEW WITH LINDA HENSEL
Click the arrow near the bottom of this page, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering.

COMMENT ABOUT THIS INTERVIEW
We welcome your comments about Linda Hensel’s interview. Go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

CHECK LINDA’S SERVICES AS A VOICE-OVER ARTIST
Looking for a voice-over artist? Visit Linda’s Web site:
http://www.adnils.com

You’ll see what she offers through her company, Adnil Productions.

E-mail her: mailto:adnilsvoice@yahoo.com

GET UPDATES TO THIS BLOG AUTOMATICALLY
To get information-packed updates to this blog automatically–every time I post a new entry–click on the RSS button at the top right of this page and follow the instructions.

SUBSCRIBE TO MY COMPLIMENTARY ONLINE NEWSLETTER
You’ll receive highly useful professional advice through my online newsletter, “Winning Words and Ways.” To subscribe, enter your name and e-mail address in the slots provided on my site’s home page: http://www.championshipcommunication.com

For several weeks, I enjoyed the privilege of working with Bob Pennington–President and CEO of Willis Investment Counsel–as he prepared his commencement address for Emory at Oxford, a revered college near Atlanta, Georgia. We collaborated on developing the message, and–using video repeatedly–sharpening his delivery.

To hear Bob’s appraisal of my Speech Coaching Service, watch his very brief video above.

VISIT MY SPEECH COACHING PAGE
Look under the video, and you’ll find a blue link to the Speech Coaching page on my Web site. I invite you to click it and visit there, to read a description of how I work with those who want to speak with “poise, passion, and power,” so they will generate “attention, agreement, and action.” Also, on that page you’ll see testimonials from other prominent clients I have helped.

CONTACT ME TO DISCUSS A SPEECH COACHING PLAN THAT MEETS YOUR NEEDS
No matter where you’re located, I can assist you. Let’s discuss your speaking goal–and how I can help you get there.

mailto:drbill@championshipcommunication.com
678-316-4300

SUBSCRIBE TO MY “SPEECH COACHING RADIO” PODCAST
On a complimentary basis, you’ll hear my weekly podcasts, hosted by the Entrepreneur Podcast Network. Here’s the link:
http://speechcoachingradio.podbean.com/

Click on “Profile” in the upper right corner, which will lead you to instructions on subscribing.

COMMENT ABOUT BOB PENNINGTON’S ENDORSEMENT
We welcome your comments about Bob Pennington’s endorsement. Go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

Hosting Writing Expert Dr. Debra Dobkins

Thirteen years ago, Dr. Debra Dobkins joined the Brenau University faculty, teaching English and launching the Writing Center–which has helped hundreds of students develop their writing skills. As my guest in “The Communication Corner” on WBCX-FM, “The Voice of Brenau,” she spoke zestfully about:

–Her childhood interest in writing, and how that progressed during her formal education
–Personal and professional advantages of knowing how to write well
–How the Brenau Writing Center helps students become proficient writers
–Her favorite authors, and the power of poetry
–Why reading widely is essential for writing success
–Resumes that get results
–Why reading your written piece aloud helps you evaluate the impact
–Writing for the Internet

HEAR DEBRA DOBKIN’S INTERVIEW ABOUT WRITING
Click the arrow near the bottom of this page, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering.

COMMENT ABOUT THIS INTERVIEW
We welcome your comments about Dr. Debra Dobkins’ interview. Go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

SUBSCRIBE TO MY COMPLIMENTARY NEW PODCAST ABOUT GIVING SPEECHES
For weekly tips and strategies about speaking with “poise, power, and persuasion,” subscribe to my recently launched podcast, “Speech Coaching Radio.” These brief podcasts–appearing on the Entrepreneur Podcast Network–will help you generate “attention, agreement, and action” when you give presentations to audiences:
http://speechcoachingradio.podbean.com/

GET UPDATES TO THIS BLOG AUTOMATICALLY
To get information-packed updates to this blog automatically–every time I post a new entry–click on the RSS button at the top right of this page and follow the instructions.

Yes, the title above expresses what we’ve all hoped for. . .sales strategies that will make our sales approach special, so that we:

–Don’t sound like everybody else who is making a pitch
–Appear genuinely creative
–Grab and hold attention
–Use visual aids that are far more stimulating than Power Point
–Get new clients
–Enjoy the sales process more than we ever thought we could

The above video introduces you to a sparkling new McGraw-Hill book, Conversations That Win the Complex Sale.

Just below the video, you’ll see that I provided a link to Amazon’s page, so you can place your order now.

Authors Erik Peterson and Tim Riesterer provide tips and strategies that will revitalize your sales career–and results. I encourage you to implement their advice this week.

FOR ADDITIONAL SALES GUIDELINES THAT PROPEL YOUR CAREER, ORDER MY POPULAR AUDIO CD
During your next commute, listen to my audio CD, “How to Succeed in Sales!” This CD capsules the sales training I offer for major corporations and for individual clients. Order the CD from my Web site’s shopping cart:
http://tinyurl.com/ljr54y

Veteran Actress Danielle Di Fede

Veteran actress Danielle Di Fede, from the College of Fine Arts and Humanities at Brenau University, energized “The Communication Corner”–my weekly interview program on WBCX, 89.1 FM–with a discussion of “all things theater.”

Speaking with the vitality an audience would expect from an accomplished actress, Danielle covered these and other topics:
–Why acting interested her initially
–Favorite productions she acted in
–Performances she has enjoyed seeing the most
–Relevance of Shakespeare today
–”The illusion of the first time”
–Overcoming problems that happen backstage or on stage
–Life lessons that theater participation teaches us
–Origin of the expression “Break a Leg”
–Teamwork required for a successful production

HEAR DANIELLE’S DISCUSSION ABOUT THEATER
Click the arrow below, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering.

COMMENT ABOUT THIS INTERVIEW
We welcome your comments about Danielle Di Fede’s interview. Go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

SUBSCRIBE TO MY COMPLIMENTARY NEW PODCAST ABOUT GIVING SPEECHES
For weekly tips and strategies about speaking with “poise, power, and persuasion,” subscribe to my recently launched podcast, “Speech Coaching Radio.” These brief podcasts–appearing on the Entrepreneur Podcast Network–will help you generate “attention, agreement, and action” when you give presentations to audiences:
http://speechcoachingradio.podbean.com/

Atlanta Detective Mike Williams joined me in “The Communication Corner,” broadcasted live by WBCX, 89.1 FM on Tuesday at 9:00 a.m. ET, with a 6:00 a.m. Thursday rebroadcast. I interviewed him about a highly relevant, much-needed topic–how to protect yourself from criminals.

Speaking from the vantage point of 25 years in law enforcement, Mike discussed:
–How “Neighborhood Watch” programs protect residents
–What to do when a stranger rings your doorbell
–Safest ways to protect your home when you travel
–Keeping your purse and wallet away from pickpockets
–Making your visit to the ATM machine a safe one
–Having a “bogus set” of keys with you
–Internet scams to avoid

And our 60-minute conversation included other creative crime-preventing strategies.

MIKE WILLIAMS’ CONTACT INFORMATION
Web site: http://www.stayalertseminars.com
E-mail: mailto:mike@stayalertseminars.com
Phone: 404-786-4286

ORDER MIKE’S book
You’ll find witty, wise advice in his brief book, Stay Alert, Stay Alive

The Amazon link: http://tinyurl.com/5rl3y5k

COMMENT ABOUT THIS INTERVIEW
We welcome your comments about Mike Williams’ interview. Go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

SUBSCRIBE TO MY COMPLIMENTARY NEW PODCAST ABOUT GIVING SPEECHES
For weekly tips and strategies about speaking with “poise, power, and persuasion,” subscribe to my recently launched podcast, “Speech Coaching Radio.” These brief podcasts–appearing on the Entrepreneur Podcast Network–will help you generate “attention, agreement, and action” when you give presentations to audiences:
http://speechcoachingradio.podbean.com/

Leading publisher McGraw-Hill asked me to review one its most recent business books. Because I spent twenty-three years in management myself–and because I deal with managers at all levels in my current profession–the topic held great interest for me. I’m sure that you will benefit from watching my video review, and then purchasing the book.

The just-released book: Managers, Can You Hear Me Now? Hard-Hitting Lessons on How to Get Real Results

As I suggest in my video review, this book offers guidelines for:

–Aspiring Managers
–Current Managers
–Those who are being managed

Definitely, this book deserves a 5-star ranking. I encourage you to add it to your must-have business books. Once you have read it, share it with your staff and start discussing the book’s recommendations. Your management performance will improve visibly, and so will the results you generate.

ORDER FROM AMAZON
Note that below the video you’ll find a link to Amazon’s page about the book, so you can place your order easily.

SIGN UP FOR MY COMPLIMENTARY ONLINE NEWSLETTER
To read ongoing valuable guidelines about communication, sign up for my online newsletter. Just enter your name and e-mail address in the slots provided on my site’s home page:
http://www.championshipcommunication.com

With Technology Guru Terry Brock

As my guest in WBCX-FM’s program “The Communication Corner,” internationally acclaimed technology expert Terry Brock explained that mastering technology is not an end in itself. Instead, we master technology so we can build relationships–and build our business as a result.

WHAT OUR INTERVIEW COVERED
Our lively discussion included Terry’s advice about:
–LinkedIn as the “Country Club” of Social Media, and how to maximize its potential
–Facebook as the Social Media “Bar-B-Q,” where a business page is essential
–Attracting followers through Twitter
–The one factor essential for online succes: provide value
–Skype as a powerful way to connect with one person or a small group
–The most beneficial Apps for iPad, such as Flipboard
–Following up through video rather than customary e-mails

We’re most grateful that Terry joined us for our first live telephone interview, from his office in Orlando, Florida. I have benefited from his guidance and friendship for years, and that made hosting him both a personal and professional privilege.

HEAR TERRY BROCK’S ADVICE ABOUT USING TECHNOLOGY TO FOSTER PROFESSIONAL RELATIONSHIPS
Click the arrow below in the Podcast section of this blog page, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering.

CONTACT HIM
E-mail Terry: mailto:terry@terrybrock.com
Web site: http://www.terrybrock.com

While you’re on his site, be sure to subscribe to his information-packed blog, and read about his “High Achievers Coaching System.”

COMMENT ABOUT THIS INTERVIEW
We welcome your comments about Terry Brock’s interview. Go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

SUBSCRIBE TO MY NEW PODCAST ABOUT GIVING SPEECHES
For weekly tips and strategies about speaking with “poise, power, and persuasion,” subscribe to my recently launched podcast, “Speech Coaching Radio.” These brief podcasts–appearing on the Entrepreneur Podcast Network–will help you generate “attention, agreement, and action” when you give presentations to audiences:
http://speechcoachingradio.podbean.com/

Dr. Stewart Blakley, Mass Communication Expert

Television dominates many of our waking hours. We turn TV on for news, sports, weather, talk shows, history, gardening, travel, song and dance, cooking, comedy, movies, and so much more. To discuss TV’s development and current status, I welcomed Dr. Stewart Blakley–Mass Communication Department Chair at Brenau University–to “The Communication Corner,” the program I host Tuesday mornings at 9:00 a.m. on WBCX, 89.1 FM.

Among our very interesting topics:
–His favorite broadcasters, past and present
–Best advances in TV in the last decade
–Worst mistakes of the last ten years
–TV coverage of the Japan earthquake and its aftermath
–What he teaches Brenau students that will benefit them in the job market
–Instant replay in football. . .just boring, or worthwhile?
–His experience in TV production
–What might come next in technology that improves TV viewing

HEAR MY CONVERSATION WITH DR. BLAKLEY
Click the arrow below in the Podcast section of this blog page, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering.

CONTACT HIM
E-mail Dr. Blakley:
mailto:sblakley@brenau.edu

COMMENT ABOUT THIS INTERVIEW
We welcome your comments about Dr. Blakley’s interview. Go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

SIGN UP TO RECEIVE MY COMMUNICATION GUIDELINES REGULARLY
You can sign up for my monthly complimentary online newsletter quite easily. Just enter your name and e-mail address in the slots provided on my Web site’s home page.
http://www.championshipcommunication.com

With Debbie Shapiro, Jill Peck

A few months ago I interviewed Debbie Shapiro on “The Communication Corner,” the weekly sixty minute program I host for WBCX-FM, 89.1 FM, “The Voice of Brenau.” I had read in the Atlanta Business Chronicle that she had earned distinction as the 2010 Small Business Person of the Year in Atlanta. So I knew she would be able to share helpful ideas about marketing and advertising. I was right. Her interview was highly informative. I told her I would want to host her again, because of her business expertise.

However, in later conversations I found that Debbie had an amazing personal story as well. So we changed topics for her second appearance today. Our conversation revolved around “persevering through personal and professional challenges.” As you’ll see in the photo, Debbie’s business partner Jill Peck participated in the interview, too.

Among the topics we covered:
*Death of a business partner, ending a twelve-year collaboration
*Her eventual health problems, and those her husband experienced starting early in their marriage
*Loss of jobs for her and her husband
*Encouragement from family and mentors
*”Giving back”–volunteer efforts her company engages in
*Excerpts from one of her favorite books, The Giving Tree
*How Debbie and Jill are preparing their children for college life
*Lessons listeners can apply from Debbie’s triumph over difficulties

HEAR MY CONVERSATION WITH DEBBIE AND JILL
Just click the arrow below in the Podcast section of this blog page, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering.

VISIT THE CORPORATE WEB SITE
You’ll find valuable information about Henderson-Shapiro Peck on the firm’s Web site, including contact information. Here’s the link:
http://www.hendersonshapiro.com

COMMENT ABOUT THIS INTERVIEW
We welcome your comments about Debbie and Jill. Just go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

SIGN UP TO RECEIVE MY COMMUNICATION GUIDELINES REGULARLY
You can sign up for my monthly complimentary online newsletter quite easily. Just enter your name and e-mail address in the slots provided on my Web site’s home page.
http://www.championshipcommunication.com

Bob Willis Discusses World Oil Crisis

So Bob emerged as the ideal guest for my weekly radio interview program– “The Communication Corner,” hosted by WBCX-FM, “The Voice of Brenau University”–when I needed someone to help our listeners understand the current international oil crisis.

We opened our discussion with a nostalgic review of former eras when gas prices remained moderate, with little fluctuation. Next, we talked about times of scarcity–such as the Second World War and the early 1970s. More recently, the BP disaster in the Gulf of Mexico reminded us we cannot take oil and gas stability for granted. Naturally, our opening comments then focused on the Middle East crisis, with Libya front and center on the news stage.

Among the major topics we explored during our 60-minute interview:
–OPEC’s role in the world oil situation
–SPR (Strategic Petroleum Reserve). . .a resource intended for extreme emergencies only
–Impact of speculators on oil prices
–How an average national gas price of $3.51 per gallon affects consumer spending
–Surprisingly large role of Canada as an import source of oil for the U.S.
–Surprisingly small percentage of oil the U.S. imports from Libya
–What’s behind the oil price jump from $35 to $107 per barrel?

Near the conclusion of the interview, Bob Willis stated that he and his investment team share “robust optimism” about the economic climate. As he observed more than once, “The United States has proved its resilience throughout its history, and will do that again now.”

HEAR BOB WILLIS’ EXPLANATION OF THE WORLD’S OIL SITUATION
Just click the arrow below in the Podcast section of this blog page, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering.

VISIT BOB’S CORPORATE WEB SITE
You’ll find valuable information about Willis Investment Counsel on the firm’s Web site, including Bob’s contact information. Here’s the link:
http://www.wicinvest.com

COMMENT ABOUT BOB WILLIS’ INTERVIEW
We welcome your comments about Bob Willis’ interview. Just go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

SIGN UP TO RECEIVE MY COMMUNICATION GUIDELINES REGULARLY
You can sign up for my monthly complimentary online newsletter quite easily. Just enter your name and e-mail address in the slots provided on my Web site’s home page.

http://www.championshipcommunication.com

When I interviewed Sarina Roth in “The Communication Corner”–my weekly radio program on WBCX-FM– she gave 7 tips for amateur photographers. They were so valuable that I wanted to offer them again in a video interview. Fortunately, Sarina agreed.

Take notes as you watch and listen, and then apply her recommendations to your photography. Watch your skills increase, along with your enjoyment of photography.

VISIT HER WEB SITE:
You’ll find detailed information about Never the Rock’s services at her company Web site:
http://www.nevertherock.com

VISIT MY WEB SITE, TOO
When you visit my Web site, be sure to sign up for my complimentary online newsletter. Here’s the link:
http://www.championshipcommunication.com

COMMENT ABOUT SARINA ROTH’S PHOTOGRAPHY TIPS
We welcome your comments about Sarina Roth’s video interview. Just go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

Greg Lee, My Superb Golf Pro

For several years, I have relied on one golf professional for lessons–Greg Lee of Chicopee Woods Golf Course in Oakwood, Georgia, near my home in Gainesville, Georgia.

One attraction for me is that Greg plays the game at very high competitive levels, and scores well. He can do what I ask him to teach me. I have followed him in several tournaments, including the Nationwide Tour event held annually in nearby Athens, Georgia. Last year he led the qualifying round, winning the qualifying medal by three strokes (tough to do in just 18 holes).

Also, I welcome the way Greg can demonstrate–during a lesson–a skill I am trying to learn. Fortunately, his teaching method isn’t complicated. He gives me simple drills to practice, so that those helpful motions will become habits.

Greg encourages me. Previously I have worked with golf pros whose comments centered on what I was doing wrong. Greg does the opposite. He tells me what I’m doing right, and urges me to continue. “Your stance and grip are much better than they were last week,” he’ll say.

To schedule a lesson with this masterful golf pro, call Greg: 706-255-0611 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting              706-255-0611      end_of_the_skype_highlighting

REFLECTS MY SPEECH COACHING STRATEGY
Worth noting: Greg Lee’s approach to coaching his golf students reflects how I work with my Speech Coaching clients. As a professional speaker, I demonstrate what I want to teach–sometimes before audiences of 500 people. Too, I help clients simplify speaking by using the ideal method for preparation/delivery. Third, I center on the positive side of a performance.

For more about my Speech Coaching, use this link:
http://tinyurl.com/otlcgz

Call me today to learn how I can help you speak with “poise, power, and persuasion,” so you will generate “attention, agreement, and the action you desire”:
678-316-4300

Lee Highsmith, Challenged Child and Friends

Some children appear to be different from others we see. Customarily, people might refer to them as crippled or handicapped. Yet those terms refer to a child’s limitations. Fortunately, there’s an organization that takes a more positive outlook. That’s reflected in the name: “Challenged Child and Friends.”

What a privilege I had–interviewing Lee Highsmith, Director of Development and Marketing for this group, for “The Communication Corner,” my Tuesday morning interview program for WBCX, 89.1 FM, “The Voice of Brenau University.”

Affiliated with Challenged Child and Friends as a staff member since 2004, Lee spoke with great enthusiasm about its service to children and their families. Included in our conversation:
*How the group originated
*Special services for parents, such as “Respite Night”
*Major public events the group sponsors
*The $25,000 challenge grant opportunity from McDonald’s
*Medical services provided
*Interaction with other area nonprofits
*Integration between typical children and challenged children
*Vital role of volunteers
*Inspiring stories of children who live triumphantly with their limitations
*”Summer Sensations” program

HEAR LEE HIGHSMITH’S INTERVIEW
Just click the arrow below in the Podcast section of this blog page, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering.

CONTACT LEE TO LEARN MORE AND PROVIDE GIFTS AND SERVICES
Her e-mail address: mailto:lhighsmith@challengedchild.org

Her phone: 770-535-8372 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting              770-535-8372      end_of_the_skype_highlighting begin_of_the_skype_highlighting              770-535-8372      end_of_the_skype_highlighting

Web site: http://www.challengedchild.org

COMMENT ABOUT LEE HIGHSMITH’S INTERVIEW
We welcome your comments about Lee Highsmith’s interview. Just go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

With Conflict Resolution Expert Dr. Ken Frank

Heard of the famous Hatfield-McCoy Feud, between rival families in Kentucky and West Virginia? Familiar with the decades-long North Korea, South Korea conflict? Aware that the divorce rate still hovers around 50% in the U.S.? Involved in a dispute with your neighborhood association because of a regulation you don’t like? Watching newscasts about a million people who are taking to the streets in Egypt, to vigorously oppose the country’s 30-year leader? Spotted factions that are reducing the effectiveness of your local government?

Of course. Then you’re ready to hear about a problem-solving approach that helps people settle their differences without bloodshed, and without one group expecting to get everything while the other group gets nothing. That’s called Conflict Resolution.

How does this work? Dr. Ken Frank explained when I interviewed him in “The Communication Corner,” on WBCX, 89.1 FM, “The Voice of Brenau.”

Dr. Frank–Chair of Brenau University’s Department of Humanities–covered these and other vital topics when we spoke:
–How Conflict Resolution developed as a discipline
–The essential steps in the process
–How different cultures apply the principles
–Defining mediation, arbitration, conciliation, and conflict resolution
–How Brenau University students get competitive experience in Conflict Resolution
–Conflict Resolution’s value in marriage, business, and government
–The long-range value of “win-win” solutions

HEAR DR. FRANK’S INTERVIEW
Just click the arrow below in the Podcast section of this blog page, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering.

CONTACT DR. FRANK
To learn more about Conflict Resolution and for information about Brenau University’s courses in this field, contact Dr. Ken Frank:
His e-mail address: mailto:kfrank:@brenau.edu

COMMENT ABOUT THE INTERVIEW
We welcome your comments about Ken Frank’s interview. Just go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

MY COMPLIMENTARY NEWSLETTER OFFERS ONGOING INFORMATION
For additional communication tips and strategies, subscribe to my online complimentary newsletter. Just put your name and e-mail address in the slots provided on my Web site’s home page:

http://www.championshipcommunication.com

JOIN ME IN THE SOCIAL MEDIA
Will be delighted to welcome you to my Social Media sites:
Linked-In: http://www.linkedin.com/in/billlampton
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/doclampton

And tweet me @doclampton

Juli Clay, Assistant Professor of Mass Communication at Brenau University, appeared as my guest on “The Communication Corner,” the weekly hour-long interview program I host for WBCX, 89.1 FM, “The Voice of Brenau.”

In addition to her extensive academic study of the media, Juli Clay worked in several professional positions–such as media and event planner–prior to becoming a faculty member, which gave her frequent, first-hand experience with newspaper, radio, and TV journalists. This double vantage point gave her on-air comments extra credibility.

During “The Communication Corner” hour, we discussed:
*Why every organization needs a crisis communication plan
*How to format that plan
*Cultivating media relations during ordinary times
*Writing letters to the editor
*Becoming a bylined columnist
*The drift away from solid news to widespread entertainment in radio and TV
*How Paul Harvey blended news and entertainment perfectly
*Radio as “theater of the mind”

HEAR JULI CLAY’S OBSERVATIONS ABOUT MASS MEDIA
Just click the arrow below in the Podcast section of this blog page, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering.

CONTACT JULI CLAY
To learn more about mass media, and for information about Brenau University’s courses in this field, contact Juli Clay:
Her e-mail address: mailto:jclay1@brenau.edu

COMMENT ABOUT THE INTERVIEW
We welcome your comments about Juli Clay’s interview. Just go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

MY COMPLIMENTARY NEWSLETTER OFFERS ONGOING INFORMATION
For additional communication tips and strategies, subscribe to my online complimentary newsletter. Just put your name and e-mail address in the slots provided on my Web site’s home page:

http://www.championshipcommunication.com

BLOG WITH BILL LAMPTON REGULARLY
I invite you to access my previous WBCX-FM interviews by scrolling back through the various posts. And you can initiate a steady feed of new articles by clicking the RSS button at the top right of this page.

Super Sales Advice from Realtor Pat Cohen

“Sales,” you wonder, “why would I want to know anything about sales? I’m not in sales, and wouldn’t even think about doing that.”

Oh, really? What about when you attend a Chamber of Commerce Business After Hours, and introduce yourself to several people? What about when you want to persuade someone that a date with you would be desirable? What about that speech you gave to a civic club last week? In those cases and many more, you are selling yourself. You want results and rewards you don’t have yet.

Well, since we are all in sales to some degree, let’s hear from a sales expert, Pat Cohen, residential Realtor with and founding partner of Keller Williams Lanier Partners. During the past twelve years, Pat has consistently reached the multimillion dollar producer level.

As all of us know, the residential sales arena has fallen into tough times. In Georgia and across the nation, numerous residential realtors have transitioned to other professions. Not Pat Cohen. Not only has she endured, she has prospered.

To learn why, and to determine how her sales strategies will help us professionally, I interviewed Pat on WBCX, 89.1 FM, “The Voice of Brenau,” in my weekly program, “The Communication Corner.” As expected, Pat traced her career through its inevitable high times and through its more demanding down times. Then she outlined the tools, attitudes, and practices required for sales success.

LISTEN TO PAT COHEN’S SALES ADVICE
Just click the arrow below in the Podcast section of this blog page, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering.

CONTACT PAT
Visit her Web site: http://www.patcohen.com
While you’re on her site, be sure to sign up for her online newsletter.

E-mail her: mailto:patjcohen@charter.net

Call her: 678-617-2390 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting              678-617-2390      end_of_the_skype_highlighting begin_of_the_skype_highlighting              678-617-2390      end_of_the_skype_highlighting begin_of_the_skype_highlighting              678-617-2390      end_of_the_skype_highlighting

COMMENT ABOUT HER INTERVIEW
We welcome your comments about Pat Cohen’s interview. Just go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

BLOG WITH BILL LAMPTON REGULARLY
I invite you to access my previous WBCX-FM interviews by scrolling back through the various posts. And you can initiate a steady feed of new articles by clicking the RSS button at the top right of this page.

ORDER MY NEWEST AUDIO CD, “ALWAYS PUSH THE UP BUTTON”
How important is motivation to sales success? You know the answer. Only when you remain highly motivated–even during rejections, slumps, contract cancellations, and broken appointments–will you become a sales leader.

You’ll find this new audio CD (available, too, as a downloadable MP3) on my Web site’s shopping cart, as you scroll down the page:
http://www.tinyurl.com/ljr54y

Note the subtitle: “How to Stay Highly Motivated. . .Every Day.”

Definitely, as you increase your level of motivation you will boost your chances for superlative selling.

With Business Professor Dr. Bill Haney

The term business communication comes close to being redundant, because in order to maintain a successful business you must practice compelling communication–from top to bottom, internally and externally, today and tomorrow.

Dr. Bill Haney, Professor of Business Administration at Brenau University, gave important business communication guidelines as my guest in “The Communication Corner,” the hour-long interview show I host weekly for WBCX, 89.1 FM, “The Voice of Brenau.” The program airs Tuesday at 9:00 a.m. ET, and appears as a re-broadcast Thursdays at 6:00 a.m.

During our high-energy conversation, Dr. Haney spoke about these topics, among others:

*”Brenau Business Briefs,” the program he hosts for WBCX
*Communication skills required for success in management
*Profile of today’s typical college student
*How higher education has become genuinely international
*How technology has helped instructors make learning more interesting and memorable
*Why business etiquette is essential for leadership roles
*Value of learning foreign languages
*How U.S. higher education compares to that of other countries

HEAR DR. BILL HANEY’S POINTERS ABOUT BUSINESS COMMUNICATION
Just click the arrow below in the Podcast section of this blog page, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering.

CONTACT DR. HANEY
His e-mail address: mailto:whaney@brenau.edu

COMMENT ABOUT THE INTERVIEW
We welcome your comments about Dr. Haney’s interview. Just go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

MY COMPLIMENTARY NEWSLETTER OFFERS ONGOING INFORMATION
For additional communication tips and strategies, subscribe to my online complimentary newsletter. Just put your name and e-mail address in the slots provided on my Web site’s home page:

http://www.championshipcommunication.com

BLOG WITH BILL LAMPTON REGULARLY
I invite you to access my previous WBCX-FM interviews by scrolling back through the various posts. And you can initiate a steady feed of new articles by clicking the RSS button at the top right of this page.

ORDER MY NEWEST AUDIO CD, “ALWAYS PUSH THE UP BUTTON”
You’ll find this audio CD (available, too, as a downloadable MP3) on my Web site’s shopping cart:
http://www.tinyurl.com/ljr54y

Note the subtitle: “How to Stay Highly Motivated. . .Every Day.”

Definitely, as you increase your level of motivation you will boost your chances for demonstrating superlative business communication.

Voice Over Specialist Linda Hensel

With my Speech Coaching clients, I refer to the voice as “our spoken signature.” The parallel is obvious. Just as each of us has a distinctive written signature, your voice is uniquely yours. Remember when you called a former classmate you hadn’t talked with in fifteen years? Before you even identified yourself, your friend recognized you and called your name.

With our voice carrying such remarkable significance, we want to make maximum use of our vocal skills. That’s why I interviewed Linda Hensel of Stockbridge, Georgia. She serves as President of Adnil Productions, Inc.

Her reputation as a voice over producer has grown rapidly, and she has expanded her client list to cover a comprehensive array of industries.

In my interview with Linda in “The Communication Corner”–the program I host weekly for WBCX-FM, 89.1, “The Voice of Brenau”–we discussed how to make the most of your voice. Among our topics:

–Should we imitate great voices we admire?
–How does our normal conversational voice differ from our public speaking voice?
–What voice tips will help us in our job search?
–Overcoming a monotone voice
–What a rapid rate of speaking indicates
–Impact of regional accents
–Why don’t recordings of my voice sound like I think they should?
–Instructions for your company’s new receptionist
–Best guidelines for your voice mail
–Becoming a voice over professional

LINDA’S CONTACT INFORMATION
You can contact Linda by e-mail and phone:
adnilsvoice@yahoo.com
770-870-9887

You’ll find vital professional information about her on LinkedIn:

http://www.linkedin.com/pub/linda-hensel/a/248/7b

She is available as a voice over artist for your company–one of the wisest business investments you could make this year.

HEAR THE INTERVIEW
Spending sixty minutes hearing Linda’s advice will strengthen your vocal presentations tremendously. Just click the arrow below in the Podcast section of this blog page, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering.

ADD YOUR COMMENTS
We welcome your comments about Linda Hensel’s “Communication Corner” interview. Just go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

SUBSCRIBE TO MY COMPLIMENTARY NEWSLETTER
For additional communication tips and strategies, subscribe to my online complimentary newsletter. Just put your name and e-mail address in the slots provided on my Web site’s home page:

http://www.championshipcommunication.com

BLOG WITH BILL REGULARLY
I invite you to access my previous WBCX-FM interviews by scrolling back through the various posts. And you can initiate a steady feed of new articles by clicking the RSS button at the top right of this page.

You can be sure that I’m eager to give the keynote speech for your conference on January 27. Both the Virginia and South Carolina pest management associations hosted me as their convention speaker, so I am well acquainted with your industry.

Meanwhile, please start thinking about our topic:

“Maintaining Maximum Motivation: Strategies for Staying in High Gear!”

Be sure to visit my Web site, where you can sign up for my complimentary newsletter:
http://www.championshipcommunication.com

People who succeed in life stay motivated.

In fact, they stay highly motivated every day.

“Oh, well,” you might want to respond, “that’s easy for you to say. You’ve never had things go wrong.”

Really? How about my undergoing sixteen surgeries, starting at age eight? How about my cancer treatment in 2008? How about losing two lifelong friends, without an opportunity to tell them goodbye? How about being ushered out of a major job at an advanced stage of my career?

Despite many challenges, I “Always Push the Up Button.” And that’s the title of the new audio CD I just produced, so that you and many hundreds of others will learn strategies and tactics that will work day after day.

SHARING MY OWN METHODS
Yes, I share my own personal three major ways of maintaining maximum motivation. You’d expect that.

SHARING WHAT MY INCREDIBLE COLLEAGUES HAVE TOLD ME
However, I go well beyond that. I called on colleagues I have known and respected for years. They were gracious enough to share their motivational keys with me, and now with you. In this 26-minute audio CD, you will hear from and about:

–A receptionist in an office building
–James Allen, author of As a Man Thinketh
–Kristina Rhoades, partially paralyzed during infancy, yet unfailingly buoyant and productive
–Eagle Day, a winner in college and professional athletics and in life
–Matthew Lampros, acclaimed sales leader
–Ellen Wickersham, a government official
–Lori Davila, job and career expert
–Lianne Griffin, Senior Program Manager with Yahoo
–Terry Brock, known world wide for his marketing and technology mastery
–Annie Gray, longtime ESPN staff member

YOU WILL WANT TO ORDER TODAY
With access to this many eminently successful people–who habitually “push the up button”–you will want to order this just-produced audio CD today. In fact, please consider ordering additional copies you can share with professional associates, family members, and friends.

HOW TO ORDER
One way to order is to click “Order CD Now,” just below the video that introduces this blog posting. That will take you to my Web site’s shopping cart.

Another way is to use this link to my Web site’s shopping cart page:
http://tinyurl.com/ljr54y

NOTE: The “Up Button” CD is the first one described on the shopping cart page.

YOUR TWO CHOICES
And notice these choices: You can order the CD, and/or you can order the downloadable MP3 version, available instantly after processing of your payment.

START YOUR NEW YEAR IN HIGH GEAR!
Your competition may have trouble starting the new year. They will sluggishly focus on their domestic disputes, budget slumps, illness, being snubbed by a neighbor, and the daily barrage of bad news from the media. While they are mired in those energy-draining thoughts, you will. . . .

“Always Push the Up Button,” and stay highly motivated. . .every day.

Professional Photographer Sarina Roth

My WBCX-FM “Communication Corner” guest Sarina Roth–a professional photographer based in Braselton, Georgia–explained how to improve your photography skills, as we discussed these topics, along with others:

–How her grandfather sparked her early interest in photography
–The origin and development of photography
–Why black-and-white photos still carry strong impact
–Famous photos that portray major milestones in American life and history
–Steps to take before e-mailing a photo
–Storing your photos somewhere other than your computer
–Criteria to use when buying a camera
–Her 7 specific tips for becoming a better photographer

Give special attention to her 7 tips, found in the second half of our 60-minute interview. Her advice will help you become more creative and imaginative, and have more fun, too.

HEAR SARINA ROTH’S GUIDELINES FOR IMPROVING PHOTOGRAPHY
To hear my highly informative interview with Sarina, click the arrow below in the Podcast section of this blog page, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering.

VISIT HER WEB SITE AND E-MAIL HER
Visit Sarina’s content-rich Web site, where you’ll find samples of her excellent photography:
http://www.nevertherock.com

E-mail Sarina:
sarina@nevertherock.com

ADD YOUR COMMENTS
We welcome your comments about photography. Just go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

SUBSCRIBE TO MY COMPLIMENTARY NEWSLETTER
For additional communication tips and strategies, subscribe to my online complimentary newsletter. Just put your name and e-mail address in the slots provided on my Web site’s home page:

http://www.championshipcommunication.com

BLOG WITH BILL REGULARLY
I invite you to access my previous WBCX interviews by scrolling back through the various posts. And you can initiate a steady feed of new articles by clicking the RSS button at the top right of this page.

With Customer Service Leader Theo Gilbert-Jamison

Picture the scene: The Ritz-Carlton Hotel, Dearborn Michigan. The occasion: The hotel company’s annual “Symposium on Legendary Customer Service.” Time: Noon. The Challenge: The audience has heard presentations the entire morning, and has had no stretch break at lunch, as the meal was brought in. This meant that the speaker would face an audience that didn’t welcome the prospect of another speech. . .this one slated for two hours.

How do I know the scene so well? I was there, writing a story for Expert Magazine about the hotel’s selection and training of employees. As a professional speaker, I felt sympathy for the speaker. Just a couple of minutes after she started her presentation, my sympathy changed to admiration. Soon after that, I felt awe–because Theo Gilbert-Jamison, then Vice President of Training for the company, held the audience entranced as she described how other organizations could incorporate the Ritz-Carlton customer service model into their group.

Not long after that event, Theo left the hotel company to establish her own training firm, Performance Solutions by Design. We continued to keep in touch. Today Theo became my guest in “The Communication Corner,” the hour-long weekly interview program I host for WBCX-FM, “The Voice of Brenau.” Among our topics:
–Her bad experience with a rental car company, illustrating the “lifetime value of a customer”
–Words customers hate to hear, and what we should say instead
–What to say when you write a complaint letter
–Making sure we hire people who embody our company’s culture
–The advantages of employee empowerment
–What a “gap analysis is,” and how we can close the gap
–Direct connection between how employees are treated and how they treat customers
–Putting variety into employee recognition

And much more. For sure, everyone who wants to upgrade his or her firm’s customer service will benefit from Theo’s recommendations.

LISTEN TO THEO GILBERT-JAMISON’S CUSTOMER SERVICE PRINCIPLES
To hear my highly informative interview with Theo, click the arrow below in the Podcast section of this blog page, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering.

CONTACT THEO
Ready to schedule Theo to train your staff and employees? You’ll find her contact information on her site:
http://www.psbydesign.com

While you’re there, watch the complimentary online training videos–and also order her acclaimed book, The Six Principles of Service Excellence

ADD YOUR COMMENTS
We welcome your comments and questions about Customer Service. Just go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

SUBSCRIBE TO MY COMPLIMENTARY NEWSLETTER
For additional communication tips and strategies, subscribe to my online complimentary newsletter. Just put your name and e-mail address in the slots provided on my Web site’s home page:

http://www.championshipcommunication.com

BLOG WITH BILL REGULARLY
I invite you to access my previous WBCX interviews by scrolling back through the various posts. And you can initiate a steady feed of new articles by clicking the RSS button at the top right of this page.

CASA Executive Director Connie Stephens

For years I had admired the dedicated work of CASA’s Executive Director, Connie Stephens, so I felt privileged to welcome her as my guest in “The Communication Corner,” the interview program I host for WBCX, 89.1 FM, “The Voice of Brenau.” The program airs Tuesday at 9:00 a.m., with a rebroadcast Thursday at 6:00 a.m.

Connie Stephens has spent the last two decades helping neglected, abandoned, and abused children in northeast Georgia. Her leadership skills have expanded CASA’s impact dramatically. You will find your heart warmed as you listen to our discussion about these and related topics:

–How CASA initially attracted her as a volunteer
–What the organization does to rescue mistreated children and find supportive placement for them
–The selection, training, and supervision of Advocates
–What the drug scene has done to escalate child abuse
–Thrilling case histories of children CASA has served and nurtured
–”The Little House,” CASA’s new local headquarters
–State and national impact of CASA
–Why volunteering improves the lives of those who commit their time and talents
–The significance of charitable gifts for CASA

CONTACT CASA TO LEARN MORE AND OFFER YOUR SUPPORT
To learn more about this child-centered cause, and to offer your support as a volunteer and contributor, visit CASA’s Web site:
http://www.halldawsoncasa.org

To call CASA: 770-531-1964 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting              770-531-1964      end_of_the_skype_highlighting beg

LISTEN TO MY INTERVIEW WITH CONNIE STEPHENS
To hear my inspiring interview with Connie Stephens, click the arrow below in the Podcast section of this blog page, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering.

ADD YOUR COMMENTS
We welcome your comments and questions about CASA. Just go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

SUBSCRIBE TO MY COMPLIMENTARY NEWSLETTER
For additional communication tips and strategies, subscribe to my online complimentary newsletter. Just put your name and e-mail address in the slots provided on my Web site’s home page:

http://www.championshipcommunication.com

BLOG WITH BILL REGULARLY
Also, be sure to access previous blog features by scrolling back through the various posts. And you can initiate a steady feed of new articles by clicking the RSS button at the top right of this page.

–

Master Networker Damon Ladd-Thomas as WBCX Guest

After starting my business in 1997, I knew I needed to expand my networking skills. While it’s true that making vital professional connections had been important in my previous occupation–twenty-three years as a fund raiser–starting my own company required building a new network. Soon I started studying the most widely known network gurus. I read Harvey Mackay’s classic, Dig Your Well Before You’re Thirsty. Not long afterward, I read Bob Burg’s Endless Referrals. Although I met Harvey and Bob, and established an ongoing friendship with Bob, until today I had not interviewed a networking authority in “The Communication Corner,” my weekly hour-long interview program for WBCX, 89.1 FM, “The Voice of Brenau.” Fortunately, this morning I hosted Damon Ladd-Thomas, an amazing networker.

Based in Grayson, Georgia, not far from my office in Gainesville, Georgia, Damon and I had met through the Internet, and through his primary Web sites I learned about his ability to attract, engage, and create bonds with prominent achievers. Check those two sites:

http://www.damonladd-thomas.com

http://www.georgiacommerceclub.org

What’s most amazing: Damon’s so-called “day job” identifies him as a financial planner. While you listen to our interview, Damon will amaze you with his networking prowess. He accomplishes more with his avocation than many leaders do in their real jobs.

You will become a far more productive networker when you listen to Damon’s advice about:

*The relationship between networking and exceptional success
*How he incorporated the work/balance life style advocated by Timothy Ferriss in his book, The 4 Hour Work Week
*The power of a contact management system
*The most personal “touch base” tactics that keep us in touch with clients, colleagues, and prospects
*Creative, memorable ways to acknowledge promotions and birthdays
*What Seth Godin means about associating with “tribes”
*Why your support group should be neither too negative nor too complimentary
*Why “you-centered” networking prevails over “I-centered” flaunting of your own credentials

LISTEN TO DAMON LADD-THOMAS’ INTERVIEW
To hear my interview with Damon Ladd-Thomas, click the arrow below in the Podcast section of this blog page, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering.

ADD YOUR COMMENTS
We welcome your comments and questions about networking. Just go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

SUBSCRIBE TO MY NEWSLETTER FOR ADDITIONAL COMMUNICATION TIPS
To sign up for my online complimentary newsletter, “Winning Words and Ways,” just enter your name and e-mail address in the slots provided on the home page: http://www.championshipcommunication.com

BLOG WITH BILL REGULARLY
Also, be sure to access previous blog features by scrolling back through the various posts. And you can initiate a steady feed of new articles by clicking the RSS button at the top right of this page.

And the reverse has happened for you. You felt sure your job interview went well. Your interviewer seemed highly positive, and commended you for your answers. However, someone else got the job offer.

Why do some first impressions fail, while others succeed? Are there steps we can take to greatly improve our chances for success in meeting people for the first time?

Fortunately, I know someone who has the answers–Mercedes Alfaro, who heads First Impression Management, based in Atlanta, Georgia. Since 2002, she has helped individuals and corporations sharpen their attitudes and actions, so they will make a strongly positive first impression.

Mercedes’ client list includes Abbott Laboratories, Hyatt Hotels, Motorola, UPS, and AT&T. She has been quoted by the New York Times, Chicago Tribune, USA Today, and other leading publications.

By listening to my interview with this highly energetic leader–an interview recorded in “The Communication Corner,” WBCX, 89.1 FM, “The Voice of Brenau”–you will learn guidelines for the following topics:

–How quickly we form first impressions, and how permanent they are
–Impact of nonverbal behavior
–Whether or not humor is safe in an initial meeting
–The problem with invading someone’s “personal space”
–The power of good posture
–Adjusting your communication style for different cultures
–Smile your way to a grand first impression
–When your first impression is by telephone
–Removing physical barriers, such as desks
–Surefire ways to catch and remember names

LISTEN TO MERCEDES ALFARO’S INTERVIEW
To hear my interview with Mercedes Alfaro, click the arrow below in the Podcast section of this blog page, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering.

VISIT MERCEDES’ WEB SITE AND CHECK HER SERVICES
You will benefit by visiting her Web site, to see how her highly professional services will benefit you and your organization. The link:
http://www.fim-inc.com

Also, note her extensive qualifications and endorsements, as described on LinkedIn:
http://tinyurl.com/2cl56mh

You will see quickly that Mercedes Alfaro’s speaking, training, and coaching will revolutionize the image you and your corporation display. I strongly encourage you to contact her today.

ORDER MY FIRST IMPRESSIONS AUDIO CD
Within the U.S., you can order my “How to Make a Sizzling First Impression” on CD or in MP3 format. Internationally, only the MP3 is available. You can order from my Web site’s shopping cart:
http://tinyurl.com/ljr54y

ADD YOUR COMMENT
We welcome your comments and questions about first impressions. Just go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

SUBSCRIBE TO MY NEWSLETTER FOR ADDITIONAL COMMUNICATION TIPS
To sign up for my online complimentary newsletter, just enter your name and e-mail address in the slots provided on the home page: http://www.championshipcommunication.com

–

There’s something very special about interviewing Johnny Vardeman, a top-tier journalist in northeast Georgia since 1953–because it’s not often that I get to talk for an hour with such a prominent writer/editor. As the guest on my program “The Communication Corner”–aired weekly at 9:00 a.m. on Tuesdays, and re-broadcasted at 6:00 a.m. on Thursdays–Johnny addressed these and other topics:

–Why his columns about the history of northeast Georgia have become so popular
–His response to predictions that newspapers are becoming an obsolete communication form
–How newspapers have adapted successfully to the Internet age
–The role of editorial cartoonists
–Letters to the Editor
–Popularity of USA Today
–Who selects headlines for stories?
–”Inverted pyramid” writing style
–Ralph McGill and other courageous editors
–The most fascinating people he has interviewed

. . .and so much more vital information. You will benefit from this veteran journalist’s comments about his profession and his industry.

LISTEN TO JOHNNY VARDEMAN’S INTERVIEW
To hear my interview with Johnny Vardeman, click the arrow below in the Podcast section of this blog page, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering.

ADD YOUR COMMENT
We welcome your comments and questions about journalism. Just go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

SUBSCRIBE TO MY NEWSLETTER FOR ADDITIONAL COMMUNICATION TIPS
To sign up for my online complimentary newsletter, just enter your name and e-mail address in the slots provided on the home page: http://www.championshipcommunication.com

Charitable Giving Professional Amanda Griffin

Amanda Griffin–Vice President for Advancement at Riverside Military Academy in Gainesville, Georgia–joined me in “The Communication Corner,” the interview program I host at 9:00 a.m. every Tuesday on WBCX, 89.1 FM, “The Voice of Brenau.” Brenau rebroadcasts the program at 6:00 a.m. Thursday for those who missed it the first time.

Following six years as a fund raising consultant, Amanda came to Riverside to help expand the Academy’s charitable giving program. Her leadership has generated a strong increase in giving.

TOPICS OUR INTERVIEW COVERED
When you listen to our sixty-minute interview, you’ll hear Amanda’s comments about these and other topics:

–How has the declining economic climate impacted charitable giving?
–Where do most of America’s contributed dollars come from? Major foundations or individuals?
–What is “Planned Giving”? After all, aren’t all gifts planned?
–The major reasons people make charitable contributions
–How special events, such as golf tournaments and charity balls, boost financial support
–Why gifts of very modest amounts matter greatly to charities
–Explaining the term “not for profit” as applied to charities
–Why people become professional fund raisers

CONTACT AMANDA GRIFFIN
You can call Amanda at 770-538-2924 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting              770-538-2924      end_of_the_skype_highlighting, or e-mail her:
mailto:agriffin@riversidemilitary.com

SIGN UP FOR MY COMPLIMENTARY NEWSLETTER
To receive more information about communicating with poise, power, and persuasion, sign up for my online complimentary newsletter, Winning Words and Ways. Just enter your name and e-mail address in the slots provided on my Web site’s home page:
http://www.championshipcommunication.com

LISTEN TO AMANDA GRIFFIN’S INSIGHTS ON CHARITABLE GIVING
To hear my interview with Amanda, click the arrow below in the Podcast section of this blog page, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering.

ADD YOUR COMMENT
We welcome your comments and questions about philanthropy. Just go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

Lori Davila, internationally acclaimed career expert

You don’t have to be a news junkie to know that the American job market presents a huge challenge for any job seeker–whether you are a new college graduate or a seasoned professional.

The big question: What really works for job seekers? What separates you– successfully--from others who want to enter or re-enter the work force?

To find the answers and share them in “The Communication Corner”–the interview program I host weekly for WBCX, 89.1 FM, “The Voice of Brenau”–I welcomed internationally acclaimed career and job search expert Lori Davila, who provides her services from Atlanta, Georgia.

Our 60-minute discussion covered these topics, and related themes:
–Special tips for workers age 50 and above
–Determining which job or profession suits you best
–How “Laughter Yoga” boosts the applicant’s spirit
–Putting your “gems” (major accomplishments) upfront in your resume
–Replacing the old, obsolete way of job-seeking
–  “Head Hunters”
–Using LinkedIn to full advantage
–Networking effectively
–Interviews that include meals
–Negotiating for greater salary and benefits

Lori Davila provided her answers with vitality, clear how-to examples, and her obvious desire to help you get the job you want in the career slot that maximizes your talent and skill.

VISIT LORI DAVILA’S WEB SITE AND CONTACT HER
After hearing our interview, you will want to visit her two Web sites:

http://www.loridavila.com
This site offers the proverbial gold mine of resources for job hunters–some on a complimentary basis, others for purchasing, such as Lori’s books and coaching plan.

http://jobsinatlantahelp.com
I recommend that you pay special attention to the Success Stories section. Clearly, Lori is making a highly positive impact on the careers of people at all levels.

Lori displays her contact information on both Web sites.

NOW LISTEN TO LORI DAVILA’S GUIDELINES
To hear my interview with Lori, click the arrow below in the Podcast section of this blog page, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering.

ADD YOUR COMMENT
We welcome your comments and questions about careers and job searches. Just go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

You will benefit from hearing Dr. Mace comment on these and other topics:
–The origins of speech teaching in ancient Greece and Rome
–The most outstanding American speaker
–The single most influential speech in recorded history
–Colorful speaking events connected with the Chautauqua circuit
–Why everyone should take a speech course or enlist a Speech Coach
–Controlling stage fright
–The pluses and minuses of Power Point
–Speech preparation and delivery

To contact Dr. Mace, use his e-mail address:
mailto:kmace@brenau.edu

Be sure to listen to the WBCX-FM program he hosts Thursdays at 6:00 p.m. Eastern Time, “Mace on Film.”

FOR ADDITIONAL INSTRUCTION ABOUT SPEAKING EFFECTIVELY
Order my audio CD, “How to Speak with Poise, Power, and Persuasion!”
Here’s the link to my online shopping cart:
http://tinyurl.com/ljr54y

Also, consider how you will strengthen your speaking skills through my Speech Coaching:
http://tinyurl.com/otlcgz

Let’s discuss your coaching needs:
678-316-4300

NOW LISTEN TO MY INTERVIEW WITH DR. KEVIN MACE
To hear my interview with Kevin, click the arrow below in the Podcast section of this blog page, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering.

ADD YOUR COMMENT
We welcome your comments and questions about effective public speaking. Just go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

Banker Rob Andrews on Customer Service

Rob Andrews–Assistant Vice President and Retail Lender for United Community Bank in Gainesville, Georgia–enjoys talking about customer service, because he learned some of the important customer service keys early in life. So he accepted my invitation to appear on WBCX, 89.1 FM, the “Voice of Brenau,” as the guest for my weekly interview program, “The Communication Corner.”

You and your company officials will benefit from Rob’s observations.  You recognize that “word of mouth” about bad service has changed dramatically. Previously, business consultants warned that a dissatisfied customer would probably tell 8-10 people. The Internet multiplied that number alarmingly. Now when you offend a customer, the customer turns to the World Wide Web, posting his or her complaint in blogs, newsletters, and on Web sites–so that potentially tens of thousands will learn about the customer’s unhappiness with your firm.

Clearly, you will want to hear Rob talk about these following issues, not just as they relate to banking but as they apply to every corporation across industries:

–Why do people select a certain bank to handle their assets?
–What do banks do to protect your confidential information?
–What’s a reliable way to get constructive feedback from your customers?
–How do you handle an irate caller and become his trusted advisor?
–Ingredients of an effective voice mail message
–The principle of “lagniape,” going beyond expectations
–Examples of best and worst customer service experiences
–Special recognition for employees who demonstrate superlative customer care

ORDER MY CUSTOMER SERVICE CD
For additional customer service strategies, order my audio CD “How to Give Magnificent Customer Care!” You’ll find the description and ordering instructions here: http://tinyurl.com/ljr54y

CD orders are available for residents of the continental United States. You may want to order enough copies for your administrative staff and department heads. The CD’s content offers productive ideas for discussion at staff meetings, retreats, and conferences. Call me to discuss how I can direct your Customer Care training sessions: 678-316-4300

NOW LISTEN TO MY INTERVIEW WITH ROB ANDREWS
To hear my interview with Rob, click the arrow below in the Podcast section of this blog page, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering.

ADD YOUR COMMENT
We welcome your comments and questions about customer service. Just go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

Marriage/Family Therapist Stephanie Lacy

Late night comedians probably make more jokes about marriage than any other topic. Yet that’s predictable, because habitually we joke about those aspects of life we don’t understand and have difficulty coping with–including death and taxes.

That’s why I hosted Stephanie Lacy, LCSW, LMFT–a Licensed Marriage/Family Therapist–in “The Communication Corner,” my weekly hour-long interview program on WBCX, 89.1 FM, “The Voice of Brenau.” The program airs Tuesday at 9:00 a.m. ET, and Thursdays at 6:00 a.m., streaming live online at http://tinyurl.com/ykvanpm

Stephanie addressed a number of vital topics, including these:

–Reshaping our unrealistic, fairy-tale level expectations about marriage
–How couples should truly listen to each other
–Putting aside our technology devices when they block interpersonal relations
–Adjusting to the changes you and your marriage partners will experience every decade
–Getting through the “empty nest” shock
–Should you tell your mate everything?
–Forgiveness as a process, not a one-time event
–After losing a spouse through death or divorce, how much time should elapse before dating again?

In addition to recommending some beneficial books during the broadcast, Stephanie invites you to select other relationship books from this site:
http://mindfulbooks.net

ORDER THE AUDIO CD, “LISTEN TO THE SPOUSE IN YOUR HOUSE!”
During our interview, Stephanie and I discussed the need for patient, empathetic listening by husbands and wives. For additional marital listening guidelines, order the audio CD titled, “Listen to the Spouse in Your House!” You can read the description of this CD–produced by my wife Sandra and me–on my Web site, and place your order there:
http://tinyurl.com/tinyurl.com/ljr54y

Notice your format choice: You can order the CD or order the mp3 version online, a special advantage for international orders.

NOW LISTEN TO MY INTERVIEW WITH STEPHANIE LACY
To hear my interview with Stephanie, click the arrow below in the Podcast section of this blog page, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering.

ADD YOUR COMMENT
We welcome your comments and questions about marriage and family relationships. Just go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

When I read that Debbi Shapiro, President and Owner of Henderson-Shapiro in Roswell, Georgia had been honored as Small Business Person of the Year for 2010–by the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce and the Atlanta Business Chronicle– I invited her to share her business communication strategies in “The Communication Corner,” the weekly interview show I host for WBCX, 89.1 FM, “The Voice of Brenau.” I was delighted when she accepted.

You’ll benefit from hearing us discuss:
–Her company’s unusual way of finding new employees who will be a good fit
–Why teamwork has become more than a platitude at Henderson-Shapiro
–What weekly staff meetings accomplish that keep them worthwhile
–Her tireless dedication to employee concerns, at an hour when most CEOs have “called it a night”
–The company’s dedication to community service
–Employee recognition as an inexpensive yet highly valuable action
–How Debbi continues to improve through “360 self-assessment”

Too, you will hear the high compliments offered by the award committee that selected her from four other outstanding finalists.

NOW LISTEN TO MY INTERVIEW WITH DEBBI SHAPIRO
To hear my interview with Debbi, click the arrow below in the Podcast section of this blog page, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering.

VISIT HER COMPANY WEB SITE
Learn more about Henderson-Shapiro–also recognized by Working Mother magazine as an ideal place for professional women–by connecting with the company Web site, where you will find Debbi’s contact information:
http://www.hendersonshapiro.com

ADD YOUR COMMENT
We welcome your comments and questions about small businesses and marketing. Just go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

Gestures Add Impact and Meaning

This photo shows an energetic salesman displaying his wares on the lovely Caribbean island of Belize. His big smile and victory sign are gestures that make him seem approachable and friendly.

When you are preparing a speech you may wonder how you can gesture gracefully and meaningfully, like this tee shirt merchant. Among your thoughts:

–My seventh grade speech teacher told me not to put my hands in my pocket, because that looks too casual. He also said not to put them behind my back, for that looks too passive. So where do I put my hands?

–Do I plan or even “can” my gestures, or just let them happen naturally?

–How can I use video to see whether I have distracting mannerisms I need to eliminate?

–If I see someone who uses gestures effectively, should I just copy their movements?

Katie Highsmith asked me these and other questions during her program “The Local Hour,” broadcasted daily on WDUN-AM in Gainesville, Georgia, 9:00 a,m on 550 AM. Listen to our brief interview. My recommendations will help you resolve your uncertainty about gestures. As a result, you will become more confident and poised next time you address a group.

NOW LISTEN TO KATIE INTERVIEW ME ABOUT GESTURES
To hear the interview about gesturing, click the arrow below in the Podcast section of this blog page, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering.

ADD YOUR COMMENT
We welcome your comments and questions about gesturing.  Just go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

Brent Hoffman--20 great years in sales

Brent Hoffman, an award winning leader in commercial real estate services, visited “The Communication Corner”–my weekly interview program for WBCX-FM, 89.1, “The Voice of Brenau”–to describe the qualities you need to succeed in a sales career.

My lively discussion with this Prudential Georgia Realty expert examined:
–Why Brent chose a sales career, and recommends it for dedicated professionals

–Productive networking strategies, in person as well as on the Internet

–Using the Social Media (Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn) to boost sales

–Getting testimonials from satisfied clients

–Essential steps for following through after the first contact

–The sales person as a problem solver, not a product pusher

–Cultivating your potential client’s receptionist

–Enduring sales slumps, both financially and emotionally

BRENT HOFFMAN’S CREDENTIALS
Brent’s sales credentials are numerous. Among his awards:

–Prudential’s Chairman’s Circle, Top 2% of Sales Associates Nationwide since 1995

–Million Dollar or Multi-Million Dollar Producer last 13 consecutive years

Additionally, he has held top volunteer positions with Gainesville, Georgia’s most prestigious organizations.

NOW LISTEN TO MY INTERVIEW WITH BRENT HOFFMAN
To hear my interview with Brent, click the arrow below in the Podcast section of this blog page, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering.

CONTACT BRENT
E-mail him: mailto:BrentHoffman.com
Call him: 770-533-6721 or cell 770-540-5373
Web site: http://www.BrentHoffman.com

ADD YOUR COMMENT
We welcome your comments and questions about sales and a sales career.  Just go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

Daniel Webster, one of America’s greatest statesmen and orators, said: “If I were to lose all of my possessions except one, I would keep the power of communication–for by it I would soon regain all of the rest.

You can agree to that statement easily. In your business, professional, and civic life, you have noticed that those who can speak with “poise, power, and persuasion” will be more likely to:
–Get hired from among many applicants
–Earn promotions to upper level management
–Become CEOs
–Provide dynamic team leadership
–Assume leadership roles in prominent community organizations
–Enjoy a level of self-confidence that even improves their social life

GREATER HALL CHAMBER’S SMALL BUSINESS SEMINAR ON SPEAKING
The Greater Hall Chamber of Commerce is well aware of these and other advantages that compelling speakers enjoy. That’s why the Chamber leaders join me in inviting you to the Small Business Success Seminar I’ll direct at the Chamber office on Tuesday, September 14. The seminar’s title:

“How to Control Your Stage Fright–and Speak with Poise, Power, and Persuasion”

BENEFITS FOR SEMINAR PARTICIPANTS
As a full-time professional speaker and Speech Coach since 1997, I have learned strategies that will help you:
–Reduce your stage fright. . .replace panic with poise
–Learn the best methods of preparation and delivery
–Use humor tastefully
–Replace boring statistics with captivating stories
–Avoid “Death by Power Point”
–Understand why the speaker holds the “trump card”
–Radically change your view of audiences
–Forget perfection, strive for professionalism

REGISTER NOW!
The Greater Hall Chamber joins me in encouraging you to register right away. Here are the details you need:

Small Business Seminar Greater Hall Chamber of Commerce
9/14/2010 7:45 AM   Price: $Free for members, $15 non members

Small Business Success Seminar
“How to Speak with Power, Poise & Persuasion” by Bill Lampton Ph.D.

Contact Information
Brittany Holtzclaw
770 532 6206 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting              770 532 6206      end_of_the_skype_highlighting begin_of_the_skype_highlighting              770 532 6206      end_of_the_skype_highlighting
brittany@ghcc.com

EAGER TO ASSIST YOU
Yes, I am very eager to assist you. For more information about my qualifications to serve as your Speech Coach on September 14, please visit my Web site:
http://www.championshipcommunication.com

Organizational Expert Monica Ricci Gave Valuable Advice in "The Communication Corner"

Monica Ricci became a full-time professional organizer in 1998. Quickly, she earned wide recognition as an innovative problem-solver for individuals and organizations who wanted to escape from an avalanche of clutter, and move up to greater levels of productivity. Additionally, Monica helped them achieve more serenity and balance as a result of adopting time-saving systems.

You’ll want to listen to the entire audio interview below, if you have experienced these and similar problems (and I’m sure you have):

–You felt overwhelmed by your calendar and to-do list. Your assignments appeared impossible to accomplish in the allotted time.

–You misplaced something really vital–a phone message, book you were supposed to return, or a bill you need to pay.

–Constant interruptions from work keep you sidetracked.

–You wish you could streamline your business processes.

–Procrastination keeps you from accomplishing your most difficult and dreaded tasks.

Fortunately, Monica Ricci has helped thousands of people handle these challenges successfully. In this interview–which I hosted in “The Communication Corner” for WBCX, 89.1 FM, “The Voice of Brenau”–you will get the same benefits as her highly prominent clients, such as Paramount Pictures and Earthlink Enterprises.

NOW LISTEN TO MY INTERVIEW WITH MONICA RICCI
To hear my interview with Monica, click the arrow below in the Podcast section of this blog page, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering.

CONTACT MONICA
Monica wants to help you through her company, Catalyst Organizing.
Web site: http://catalystorganizing.com
Phone: 770-569-2642

ORDER HER BOOK
You’ll want to order her book, Organize Your Office in No Time from Amazon:
http://tinyurl.com/2832dsu

ADD YOUR COMMENT
We welcome your comments and questions about getting organized.  Just go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

Enjoying Post-Interview Lunch with Phil Schaefer

Phil Schaefer’s stellar sports broadcasting career launched early, even during his student days at Ohio State University. Soon afterward, he moved into broadcasting roles that eventually included WSB radio, University of Georgia football and basketball, Atlanta Falcons, Atlanta Hawks, Atlanta Braves, and the Masters Golf Tournament, where he was honored recently for hosting 45 tournament broadcasts.

As I explain at the outset of our interview, Phil and I met when I won a WSB contest to help him broadcast the Atlanta Golf Classic, then a regular stop on the PGA Tour. Ever since, we have remained friends.

In “The Communication Corner”–the program I host Tuesdays at 9:00 a.m. for WBCX-FM, “The Voice of Brenau”–Phil shared comments about, for example:

–Brett Favre’s annual charade of “Will he or won’t he play?”
–An amazing halftime practice session commanded by Ohio State’s Woody Hayes
–Greg McGarity, University of Georgia’s new Athletic Director
–Radio as “theater of the mind,” long before TV sports broadcasting
–Keeping his broadcasts of events unbiased
–Why all the negative publicity about indicted athletes and coaches is not truly representative
–His media leadership with the Dekalb County School System
–Early acquaintance with comedian Jonathan Winters
–His contacts with the reportedly gruff “Bear” Bryant

FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
For more information about Phil Schaefer–including how to order his book, Sins of a Southern Sportscaster–visit his Web site:
http://www.southernsportscaster.com

COACHING BRINGS OUT THE BEST IN PERFORMERS
Phil mentioned some of the best-known coaches in the nation in several sports. In every case, they brought out the best in their athletes.

Fortunately, the right coach will make a big difference in your business and professional life as well. That’s why my clients refer to me as the “Speech Coach for Champions.” Using my own portable video equipment, and including wonderful instruments like DISC, I help people speak with “poise, power, and persuasion,” so they will quickly generate “attention, agreement, and action”. . .that is, the action they desire. During the last several years, I have served as the Speech Coach for Gillette, Duracell, Procter and Gamble, Willis Investment Council, Aivant, Turbo Transport, Worldwide, Inc, and other top-tier clients.

Check how I work with my Speech Coaching clients, and then contact me to discuss your presentation skills training needs:
http://tinyurl.comotlcgz

NOW LISTEN TO MY INTERVIEW WITH PHIL SCHAEFER
To hear my interview with Phil, click the arrow below in the Podcast section of this blog page, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering.

ADD YOUR COMMENT
We welcome your comments and questions about sports and sports broadcasting.  Just go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

Messenger of Comfort and Hope

Sue Ellen Williams belongs to the Christian Education class, The Seekers, that my wife Sandra and I joined at Grace Episcopal Church in Gainesville, Georgia. As one of the group’s frequent discussion leaders,  she told us about a recurring miraculous appearance in her life. With her permission, I am delighted to share her inspiring words below:

I belive in red birds. When my daddy died in 1989, I was knocked for a loop. I couldn’t find comfort and I missed him so. One day while my mother and I were sitting at her kitchen table, a beautiful bright red cardinal flew into the dogwood tree just outside her window. At almost the same time, we said “hello DeDe”. My daddy loved, fed, watched, admired and talked to cardinals, my “red birds” he called them. I felt a striking awareness that God had sent me just what I needed, comfort and the sense of my daddy in that red cardinal.

Daddy has been dead for over twenty years. He still comes to me when I need him. After a painful divorce, when I was feeling alone as I ever had, a beautiful red cardinal literally flew from bush to bush around the oval track that I walked sometimes twice a day. I began to talk with that red bird and felt God’s assurance that all would be well.

So it has been that through the years, a red bird has found its way to a yard, or tree or window, to the beach, or the mountains; it has come in times of need and of celebration.

When my mother was dying, there was the constant presence of  a red bird just outside her window, and often, he would literally fly over to my car when I drove up. When Owen made his first visit to our home in Stone Mountain, as Paige drove the van up the driveway, there on the lamp post at the top of the drive, sat a bright red cardinal. DeDe welcoming Owen to the family.

So it came as no surprise on a Saturday in July last year on the day of my mother’s memorial service, that in the tree outside our room was the fattest brightest red cardinal ever! When I spoke to it, that cardinal turned its head toward me and so I knew that all was well with Mother and would be well with me.

While we get the male red bird the most often, now and again we get both the male and the female as Mother joins Daddy in stopping by. So it is that God sends us what we need–His steadfast presence and warm arms of love.

ADD YOUR COMMENT
We welcome your comments and questions about motivational events in your life, including those that seem miraculous.  Just go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

TO HEAR OTHER REAL-LIFE HIGHLY MOTIVATIONAL STORIES
My popular motivational CD will introduce you to other people with uplifting stories. I produced the CD so you can benefit from their inspirational examples, as I have done repeatedly–and will continue to do.

You’ll hear about Eagle Day, Matthew Lampros, Kristina Rhoades, Lori Davila, Terry Brock, and others who have their own “redbird story.” Here’s the link for ordering the CD, titled “Always Push the Up Button: How to Stay Highly Motivated. . .Every Day!”

http://tinyurl.com/ljr54y

NOTE: You can order this message as an audio CD, or as a downloadable MP3, which you will access immediately after your purchase.

Just scroll down the page until you find the description.

Ken Futch and I discussed professional speaking

Since many of us fear public speaking and shy away from opportunities to face audiences, you probably wonder why anyone would choose professional speaking as a career–and how you make the transition into that business.

Veteran professional speaker Ken Futch joined “The Communication Corner”–my weekly interview program on WBCX-FM, “The Voice of Brenau”–to explain why he left his stellar career at AT&T after eleven years to launch his speaking career. With his entertaining, informational, and often motivational style, Ken covered these and other topics:

–His “signature story”–accidentally shooting himself in the head
–The public event he attended that attracted him to professional speaking
–Using humor effectively
–Organizations a new speaker should affiliate with
–Technology the professional speaker must learn and use
–Strategies for getting your audience involved
–Pluses and minuses of Power Point
–The valuable art of telling stories

You will marvel as Ken recalls hear near-death experience. In fact, this Vietnam combat platoon leader uses all of his life’s lessons to help others find the best opportunities in every situation.

CONTACT KEN TO ACQUIRE HIS SERVICES AND PRODUCTS
Visit Ken’s Web site:
http://www.kenfutch.com

His site describes his programs and services, along with giving his contact information. From his site, you can order his book in either hardback or audio. The title: Take Your Best Shot: Turning Situations into Opportunities. Too, you can order his DVD, The Secrets of Influence–Insights for Professionals.

As a fellow professional who has seen Ken in action many times, I can assure you he will make your meeting or conference lively, and will generate long-range results.

SIGN UP FOR MY COMPLIMENTARY ONLINE NEWSLETTER
More than 1,110 subscribers benefit from “Winning Words and Ways,” my complimentary online newsletter–which started as a monthly edition, yet now appears more frequently. You’ll get valuable tips and strategies about communication, customer service, sales, and motivation.

To subscribe, enter your name and e-mail address in the slots provided on the home page:
http://www.championshipcommunication.com

NOW LISTEN TO MY INTERVIEW WITH KEN FUTCH
Now, to hear my interview with Ken, click the arrow below in the Podcast section of this blog page, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering.

ADD YOUR COMMENT
We welcome your comments and questions about professional speaking.  Just go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

My host, Joel Williams, asked for my top 5 ways to improve your conversation

When Katie Highsmith–my usual host for “The Local Hour” on WDUN, 550 AM on Monday mornings–took a short vacation to attend a wedding in Houston, TX, Joel Williams substituted as my interviewer.

We opened our conversation by observing how important conversation is, both for professional success and for personal enjoyment.

Well, if you want to be the person who enters a Business After Hours gathering with increased confidence–because you have the keys to starting and maintaining a compelling conversation–you will want to hear our brief interview. Or if you want to become more persuasive with your sales prospects, or more adept at building relationships, take ten minutes to consider the approach I describe. And for sure, if you’re going through job interviews, recognize that the ability to make small talk can bring big-time returns.

I suggest that you pay special attention to one of the quotes I used, taken from an anonymous writer: “A bore talks about himself or herself, a gossip talks about other people, and a great conversationalist talks about you.

As you listen to my 5 tips, evaluate your own conversational habits. Rate yourself. Are you the person people want at their dinner table? If not, which of the recommended steps should you take?

NOW LISTEN TO MY FIVE TIPS FOR IMPROVING YOUR CONVERSATION
Now, to hear Joel interview me, click the arrow below in the Podcast section of this blog page, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering.

ADD YOUR COMMENT
We welcome your comments–and your questions–about conversation. Do you follow some successful strategies we haven’t mentioned?  Just go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

Fortunately, the word brand carries a different connotation today. Branding has become far less uncomfortable–and far less inflexible. To learn more about branding, I interviewed an acknowledged expert, Justin Honaman, author of Make It Happen: Live Out Your Personal Brand.

After a sterling career with leading companies that include Ernst and Young and Epiphany, Inc., Justin now holds the title Director of Customer Intelligence with Coca-Cola Customer Business Solutions.

Amazingly–in the midst of his hectic professional schedule– he has written, sung, and produced two record albums, illustrating the scope of his multiple talents. He scoffed at an acquaintance who said he was too old to enter the music arena. And he laughs in commenting that he was thirty-one when the doubter made that prediction.

Here are some of the topics our interview revolved around:

*Why clients buy the “people,” not just your product or service
*Comparing your brand to a bank account
*Living a balanced life while you give great effort to your profession
*Networking goes beyond just exchanging business cards and e-mail addresses
*The secret to concentration is elimination
*Communication keys for leading your management team
*His “Inside Out” training program
*The new workplace–where loyalty or seniority no longer guarantee employment or promotion
*Equipping yourself to cope with life’s unpleasant surprises
*Charities Justin selected to benefit from his product sales
*Doing something spectacular that others are not doing

WATCH MY VIDEO REVIEW OF JUSTIN’S BOOK, MAKE IT HAPPEN
This link will take you to my brief video review of Justin’s book, alongside my written comments:

http://tinyurl.com/2gxnujx

You’ll find other highly favorable reviews as well.

FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ABOUT HIS CAREER AND PRODUCTS
You’ll want to order Justin’s book, mentioned above, along with his music CDs. So use this link to his Web site:
http://www.honaman.com

NOW LISTEN TO MY INTERVIEW WITH JUSTIN HONAMAN
Now, to hear my interview with Justin, click the arrow below in the Podcast section of this blog page, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering.

ADD YOUR COMMENT
We welcome your comments about branding, marketing, and business communication–and your questions as well.  Just go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

This event was unlike most book signings, in that part of the sale proceeds will benefit Our Neighbor/Randy’s House, “creating homes for young adults with physical limitations.” It was a privilege to help this fine cause.

More about Alma: She has enjoyed an outstanding journalism career, including executive editorship of The Times newspaper in Gainesville. In 2009, after years of thorough research, she wrote her first book, The Cement Duck, a fictional account of a “back country bank” swindle in north Georgia. The amount stolen was so large that the Wall Street Journal reported the 1971 incident. To watch my brief video review of The Cement Duck, posted along with three additional written reviews, and to order your copy of this intriguing story, use this link:
http://tinyurl.com/2w4hdrb

ORDER THE COMPLETE COMMUNICATOR
U.S. residents can order my book–The Complete Communicator: Change Your Communication, Change Your Life!–by visiting my online shopping cart: http://tinyurl.com/ljr54y

For international ordering of The Complete Communicator, here is your Amazon link (where you will notice 22 5-star reviews):

http://tinyurl.com/2997oj4

ADD YOUR COMMENTS
We welcome your comments. Just go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

Kristina Rhoades has mastered the microphone--and life

Kristina Rhoades has been in a wheelchair for more than two decades, since an accident during infancy. Yet no one who knows her would call her confined. Just consider her motto: “Happiness is yours to choose or reject–so embrace it. Sing out loud, give somebody a hug, smile for me, and don’t forget to dance to the music.”

Interviewing her for “The Communication Corner” on WBCX, 89.1 FM,”The Voice of Brenau,” inspired me greatly. Hearing her comments will inspire you as well. Among the interview highlights:
*How her family sustained and encouraged her
*Her explanation that “I was chosen to sit in this wheelchair and educate and inspire everyone I meet.”
*Her reign as Miss Wheelchair California, including her charitable and political activities
*20th Anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act
*Weird comments from strangers
*Her love of the outdoors and athletic activities
*How relatives encouraged her to pursue a radio career

You’ll laugh, sigh, and possibly cry. You’ll gain a whole new slant about your own life. Listen to the entire hour, and come away invigorated, without a thought of pity. Kristina wouldn’t tolerate that reaction.

HEAR POWER-PACKED INTERVIEWS EVERY WEEK
You can hear power-packed interviews in “The Communication Corner” every week, as I host communication experts at 9:00 a.m ET Tuesdays, with re-broadcasts on Thursdays at 6:00 a.m. Tune in to 89.1 FM if you live in the Gainesville, GA area. Or you can hear “The Communication Corner” streaming live online–wherever you live–if you have access to a computer. Click this link, and then click on the colorful icon on the lower left side of the page:
http://tinyurl.com/ykvanpm

NOW LISTEN TO KRISTINA’S INSPIRING STORY
Now, to hear my interview with Kristina, click the arrow below in the Podcast section of this blog page, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering.

CONTACT KRISTINA
After Kristina’s courageous words boost your spirit, you may want to contact her. Use this e-mail address:
mailto:krhoades@brenau.edu

ADD YOUR COMMENTS
We welcome your comments about Kristina’s triumphant attitude and victorious living. Just go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

Terry Brock--great mentor and friend--shares in this blog highly motivational memories of his father

Whatever your profession, you are fortunate if you have found a mentor who has become a friend as well. That happened for me several years ago, when I became acquainted with Terry Brock, a renowned marketing and technology expert based in Orlando, Florida.

Fortunately for me, Terry travels to Atlanta quite often on business, and includes a visit to his brother in Jefferson, Georgia, near my office location in Gainesville, Georgia. So Terry and I coordinate our schedules whenever he heads this way. He visits my office, and generously shares his ideas about the latest technology developments and marketing strategies.

Usually, we include some social time at a fine restaurant–as the photo above illustrates. In fact, a mutual friend took the photo at an Atlanta restaurant, where numerous friends and admirers threw a surprise party for Terry. We applauded his many accomplishments, and shared stories about his almost legendary availability to assist his colleagues.

So when I learned that Terry’s father had died, I grieved for my friend’s loss. While sending the announcement, Terry shared his deep and highly personal thoughts about his father, going back to Terry’s  childhood experiences of decades ago. Reading Terry’s loving memorial, I remembered my own desolate thoughts when my father left this earth in 1976.

When I finished reading Terry’s description of how his relationship with his father taught him several valuable life lessons, I knew I wanted to pass along Terry’s memoir to my blog readers. Because Terry hoped his words might help others who are enduring a family loss, he kindly granted permission. So here are Terry Brock’s highly motivational memories of his father:

“In Memory of Charles Brock, 8 Aug 1928-2 Aug 2010”

As I type this it is Sunday 1 August 2010. Charles Brock, my father, is still alive—barely. The wonderful nursing staff at the rest home where he has been for the past 4 years has told me and the rest of my family that they don’t think our father has much longer to live.

Charles Brock was my father. He was born on 8 August 1928. On 8-8-08 (August 8, 2008) he turned 80. This is interesting as the Chinese consider the number 8 to be lucky, even related to making lots of money. Yet, Charles Brock did not have a life of a lot of money. Oh, he worked very hard. I remember as a child how he would work two jobs. One was in a factory from 11 pm till 7 am, and the other driving a school bus in the morning and the afternoon. He worked hard to earn money and provide a little better living for his wife and his three kids. I was the first-born of those three kids.

Charles Brock was a man who believed in hard work. Whether it was at his two jobs or at household chores, he gave it his all. His enthusiasm and determination to get the job done were his hallmark — and sometimes his downfall — as strengths taken to an extreme can be. When others are offended and hurt because of the “push” to get things done, problems can arise.

Yes, he made mistakes. He was not perfect. Yet, he did many, many good things in his life. I remember when he would take me to an event in Northern Michigan near Kalkaska during the summers. It was a religious gathering for the church we attended many years. The event was called “The Northmen.” It was held out in the middle of nowhere. No electricity was used save for the generator which provided lighting under the big circus tent they rented to house the meetings for the event. Those attending camped out in the wild breathing clean air, cooking meals over campfires and enjoying the smells of makeshift latrines. ☺

For this little boy who was wide-eyed and absorbing new information from any way he could grab it, this was a great experience! I loved hearing the preachers with their “hell fire and damnation” messages. They seemed to know what they were talking about. They commanded the respect of the men (yes, only men) in the audience. And they received numerous, hearty chants of “Amen” from the devoted followers in the audience.

For me, it planted a seed to want to speak to others. I could see myself on a stage speaking and sharing. Yes, that is what I wanted to do when I grew up.

Well, today I’m a full-time professional speaker. I’ve been doing it for almost 30 years now. I have earned the designation of Certified Speaking Professional from the prestigious National Speakers Association. Recently I was given the lifetime achievement award of being inducted into the Professional Speakers Hall of Fame by that same organization. I am most honored to be in that group and I have to thank my father for planting the seed long ago.

I mention what has happened in my life with deep gratitude to my father. Without the encouragement and direction from Charles Brock, I would not be where I am today. His devotion to take me to the Northmen year after year helped spark that desire for speaking in me. That inspiration has helped me to speak to audiences around the world today.

Thank you, Dad.

He also got me, as well as my brother and sister, to get involved in a swimming class. He felt this would be something that would be good to know throughout life. And yes, to this day, I’m using those skills of swimming I learned in Clarklake, Michigan to exercise and stay healthy.

Thank you, Dad.

He got us involved in Kodokan Judo. He felt that the skills we would learn from Judo would serve us more than participating in baseball, football or other high school sports. Well, the Judo training helped me to teach others about it and make some extra money to put myself through undergraduate school. It also gave me the discipline to get through many other challenges in life.

Thank you, Dad.

No, Charlie Brock was not perfect. He was a human being who made mistakes. Yet he also did many things that are praise-worthy. I guess we’d have to say that he was a human being —- warts and all.

Today, as I looked at the shell of a man lying in a bed dieing, I was able to tell him once again that I loved him and appreciated all he did to make my life what it is today. Did he hear me? Well, I don’t know. I’ll leave it up to the psychologists, the psychiatrists, the medical professionals and others to decide if he could understand my words to him as he looked at me with his eyes open today. Yes, when I asked, “If you can hear and understand me, Dad, please blink,” I saw him blink. Was i imagining it? Could he somehow, somewhere deep inside that Alzheimer-racked brain understand that his first-born son loved him and appreciated all he had done? Well, I don’t know. The older I get, the more I seem to be saying that phrase — “I don’t know.”

What I do know is that I love this man. I always will. He might not have been perfect but he was my father. He loved me in his own way. He helped me in many ways to become who I am today.

I’ll miss you terribly, Dad. Even as I type this, tears and sobbing are overwhelming me. And in the midst of the tears flowing like they haven’t since I was a small child, I feel forgiving and cleansing coming over my being. Charles Brock, you were my father. You raised me and did what you thought was right. For that, I thank you and I love you.

I will miss you and remember your good all my life. Rest in peace, Dad.

Final Note: Charles Brock passed away Monday, 2 August 2010 at 9:06 am Eastern

Charles Brock, 8 August 1928 – 2 August 2010

ADD YOUR COMMENT
We welcome your comments about Terry’s motivational memories.  Just go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

Katie Highsmith hosts me on WDUN's "The Local Hour" to discuss the personal and professional advantages of positive self-talk

“What?” you protest, “I don’t talk to myself!”

Yet think about that for a minute. Haven’t you muttered comments like these?

“I’m always late.”
“This job interview scares me.”
“No way I can speak to an audience without having a panic attack.”
“Usually, I am not a good mother.”
“Remembering names just isn’t one of my talents.”
“Heck, no way I can land that account.”
“Going back to college wouldn’t work. I’m not smart enough.”
“Helen will get the promotion, because it’s a sure thing I won’t.”

Or if you haven’t used those words exactly, chances are good that you have rated yourself low in other ways. With that in mind, Katie Highsmith and I discussed the incredible results that powerful self-talk brings to your life and career. Among our topics:

*What to say to yourself before your job interview
*How your inner dialogue will help you deliver a more compelling speech
*Dr. Shad Helmstetter, author of the pioneering classic book on this topic, What to Say When You Talk to Yourself.
*Helmstetter’s concept of “erase and replace”
*How to access Self-Talk videos on You Tube, one produced by Helmstetter and one that I produced
*Why supportive self-talk carries special importance on Monday morning

SIGN UP FOR MY COMPLIMENTARY ONLINE NEWSLETTER
There’s much more information about communication strategies in my online newsletter, “Winning Words and Ways.” To subscribe to the newsletter, go to my Web site, where you’ll find the slot to enter your name and e-mail address. Here’s the link:
http://www.championshipcommunication.com

NOW LISTEN TO KATIE INTERVIEW ME ABOUT SELF-TALK
Now, to hear my interview with Katie, click the arrow below in the Podcast section of this blog page, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering.

ADD YOUR COMMENT
We welcome your comments about Self-Talk, and your questions as well.  Just go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

Katie Highsmith, WDUN host of "The Local Hour," who interviews me every Monday morning

Notice that I use the term “customer care” in this blog post title rather than “customer service.” Why? Because–as I explained to my weekly WDUN host Katie Highsmith–you can service someone without caring for them. We’ve all seen that happen.

To assure that you are providing the level of customer service that your clients want, need, and expect, you have to know the “10 things your customers don’t want to hear. . .and what to say instead.”

Katie and I opened the interview with a very timely topic: How Steve Jobs handled the widespread customer complaints following the release of the much-publicized iPhone4. We described the technical flaws, and how Apple took steps to remedy the resulting problems and discontent.

Next, Katie asked me to give a good example of excellent customer service I had experienced recently. I described how my cable company came to the rescue quickly when the Internet went down on a weekend.

From that launching point, we identified several mistakes companies make in talking with customers. Among the worst comments we listed:

“That’s not my job.”
“That’s against our policy.”
“Can’t help you now, it’s closing time.”
“Well, you’re in the wrong place for what you want. I’m going to tell you how to get to the department you need.”
“What? You really haven’t heard about our product until now?”
“Gosh, you’re the first person who has ever complained about our service.”

However, we went beyond merely saying that those words and phrases offended customers. More positively, we suggested what company representatives should say instead of those irritating remarks.

Katie’s interview with me lasted eleven minutes. You might consider playing the audio interview in a staff meeting, even in department wide meetings, and then generating feedback from the group. Doing that could lead to happier customers. As we all know, happier customers spend more themselves. . .and bring in additional customers.

READ MY SPECIAL REPORT ABOUT THE RITZ-CARLTON
Additionally, Katie asked me to elaborate on my professional connections with the acknowledged worldwide king of customer care, the Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company. To learn more about the Ritz-Carlton selection and training of employees, here’s the link to the Special Report I wrote about the hotel for Expert Magazine.

http://tinyurl.com/dasjvt

In that article series, you’ll see how the Ritz-Carlton developed its legendary tradition of “ladies and gentlemen serving ladies and gentlemen.”

ORDER MY CUSTOMER CARE AUDIO CD
“How to Give Magnificent Customer Care” is an audio CD that will give you and your company powerful guidelines for keeping your clients enthusiastic about your products and services. Use this link to my online shopping cart. (Note: The CD is available only for United States residents, due to prohibitive international shipping costs.)
http://tinyurl.com/ljr54y

NOW LISTEN TO KATIE INTERVIEW ME
Now, to hear my interview with Katie, click the arrow below in the Podcast section of this blog page, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering.

ADD YOUR COMMENT
We welcome your comments about Customer Care.  Just go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.

Social Media Expert Diane Crompton Just After our Interview in "The Communication Corner" on WBCX

Diane Crompton and I met when she attended my presentation for the Association for Career Professionals International in Atlanta, GA. As we chatted afterward, I learned that she was writing the final chapters of her second book with co-author Ellen Sautter, Find a Job Through Social Networking: Use LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, Blogs and More to Advance Your Career. Clearly, Diane has mastered an area that many of us have just become acquainted with in the last two or three years.

When I launched my radio interview show–”The Communication Corner”–with WBCX-FM, 89.1, “The Voice of Brenau,” Diane and I started searching for an interview date that matched her calendar. Fortunately, we completed her interview this morning. You will be eager to hear her advice on relevant topics like these:

*Building your brand through Social Media
*Corporate rules and guidelines for employee use of the Social Media
*Detailed tips for getting the most out of LinkedIn
*How to get powerful written testimonials for your sites
*Using Social Media groups to bolster your visibility and credibility
*Hash marks, Follow Friday, and other Twitter terms
*Job search and ongoing career management
*Using Social Media for networking
*Creating an optimized professional profile

Whether you are actively seeking employment or just want to sharpen your Social Media skills, you will want to hear Diane share ideas and strategies that hundreds of clients invest sizable fees to hear. For more about her services and her contact information, here’s her LinkedIn link:
http://www.linkedin.com/in/dicrompton

And here’s how you can pre-order her book through Amazon:
http://tinyurl.com/2fothah

LISTEN TO DIANE ANSWER YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA QUESTIONS
Now, to hear my interview with Diane, click the arrow below in the Podcast section of this blog page, located just above the Audio MP3 lettering.

ADD YOUR COMMENT
We welcome your comments about the Social Media.  Just go to the end of the blog entry in the section below and click NO COMMENTS if none have been made, or if comments have been made click 1 comment, 2 comments, or whatever the comments button says. The comments section will appear.