I have the pleasure of working with a lot of very smart people; people who have created multi-billion dollar companies from nothing; have risen up the food chain to the very top; people with great insight and technical knowledge. I always learn from them. I love that part.
The part that makes me cringe is when an executive says we’ll say this and that and then ‘hope they get it’. Whaaaat? You’ve just spent dozens of person hours on preparing a speech or presentation that likely has a high stakes outcome for you (or you wouldn’t be doing this at all) and after all that money and effort you are going to hope they get the message? Unacceptable, people.
Research shows us that people only remember 10% of what they hear once and that they are distracted and forgetful 25% of the time. That means you are down 35% before you open your mouth. Now is not the time to hope it all turns out the way you’d like it. Now is the time to have a focused and emotionally targeted message that will take you to the outcome you desire (funding, investment, sharing a vision, getting another meeting). Then, be sure you share your message more than once.
It’s not about hoping they get it. It’s about making sure they can’t ignore it.
Happy presenting everyone.
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