Last week I listened to four of our presidents answer the question, “why would I ever want to be a president?” at the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities Executive Leader Development seminar. Each of them shared a story with our participants that made us smile, or cringe, or laugh, or even tear up a bit. The communication styles were very different but what made each message powerful was how it captured our hearts in one way or another. We actually could feel why they loved being a president!
Their messages reminded me of Anita’s post, “Know your why” from January of this year. Each president was able to effectively communicate their why. Over the weekend I discovered a set of YouTube talks by Simon Sinek, the author of “Start With Why.” If you are looking for ideas to sharpen your communication and capture the hearts of your people Sinek provides a framework and examples in each video. I hope you find them as valuable as I did.
The first video answers the question I posed in the title, “How to begin your presentation.”
He reminds us to:
- leave the facts and figures until later
- start with the feeling or emotion you want everyone to walk away with
- use stories or images
During the month of April we will be sharing additional ideas, examples and resources on effective leadership communication. I invite you to share with your fellow readers any resources you have found valuable as you developed your communication style.
Todd Thorsgaard
Higher EDge 