Language and Culture: Developing the Speaker Within You

January 30, 2012

Language and Culture.

Maybe I should have called this post on language and culture Minefield.

Because many laws and rules, either written or unwritten may be completely different to what we experience as our normal when we go into other cultures. And without the benefit of local advice and counsel, we may well venture into uncharted waters to the discomfort of both ourselves and our audience or hosts.

The world is a very small place now, and it is quite normal for speakers to be found roaming across the globe, so matters of culture assume much more importance than they once did. At least the frequency of these issues has risen greatly.

It is important for any speaker to understand that significant differences exist not only nationally, that is, within a country’s border, but also within those borders. Many nations have major language and cultural differences within their borders. Sometimes dozens, even hundreds.

Whilst it is unlikely that any visiting speaker will be an expert on such matters, it is essential for us to understand any differences that exist, and to work with our host, or someone from the region we are speaking in to ensure that we have got the basics of language and culture right.

Our job, actually our responsibility is to ensure that we have taken reasonable efforts to acquaint ourselves with the prevailing normal’s in the place we are going to speak.

Some things to consider are, and not in order of importance:

Try to check on the words we propose to speak, as sometimes these can have vastly different meanings, and may in some cases be highly offensive.
Make sure that any gestures and body language we intend to use is appropriate for the place we are to speak.
Check that our form of greeting is culturally right
In some cultures it is inappropriate to touch other people.
Alternatively, in some places it is normal to hug, or kiss others.
Be sure to get this right and avoid any discomfort or embarrassment.
Be very careful of humor.
What might be very funny to us, may not be so for others.
Worse, many cultures will not permit those who are offended to make us aware of this fact. They are often too polite to mention it. But they will have a less than ideal opinion of us as a result of our indiscretion.
There may be no go areas.
Things, issues that are very inappropriate for us to mention or discuss.
Our hosts should be able to make us aware of these, but may not do so unless we discretely ask.
I routinely ask my hosts, quietly and in advance, are there any sensitivities that I need to be aware of?
Our role as speakers is to honour and benefit our audience and our hosts. Not ourselves.
It is not to impose our own customs and norms onto others, but to build them up and encourage them.
Money, and or wealth may be a matter of offense in some places.
Even modest wealth should not be demonstrated or flaunted in places where poverty is rampant.
Eating customs, and what we actually eat, or don’t, can be cause for offense.
Take care that we don’t offend others by what we consider normal, or not.
Likewise, differing religions or beliefs can cause offense.
It is impossible to please everyone, but take care to not deliberately cause offense in these areas.
Dress often arises as an issue in different cultures.
It may not be culturally or socially acceptable to expose arms, legs or other parts of our anatomy in some cultures.
A mix of sensitivity and sound advice will eliminate most of these issues before they become large ones.
Obviously, there will arise different legal conditions and laws wherever we go.
The wise traveler and speaker will be acquainted with these in advance in order to avoid conflict.
It will, at times, be important to acknowledge people we come into contact with, in order, according to local custom.
Our hosts will normally make us aware of these protocols in advance.

In essence, culture, custom and law co-exist in many parts of the world, but custom is often much more enduring than law. We ignore or break any of these issues of language and culture at our peril, and possibly to the embarrassment of our hosts or our audience. Often we will encounter cultures and customs that may be thousands of years older than ours: we have no right to interfere with them.

Let’s determine to add value to our audience wherever we may be, whilst avoiding offense to the best of our ability.

Author Neil Findlay

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Coping With Nervousness: Developing the Speaker Within You

January 27, 2012

By Neil Findlay

Coping With Nervousness.

People often say that one of the most feared things in the world is to stand before an audience to speak. Some even say that the nervousness experienced is worse than the fear of death.

I can recall this fear. When asked to stand before a large audience and speak….the feeling can be one of sheer dread, panic.

But is this really well founded? Why is this so, and what can we do about it.

If we compare speaking informally to a few of our friends, to standing before a microphone–what really is the difference?

It’s the same ‘us’. The same words to be spoken. The same expressions or mannerisms to demonstrate. Surely there must be something else that causes this fearful feeling to arise.

Could it be the thought of failure, or being thought a failure in front of our peers? The fear of public speaking is surely just that: a thought, a mindset or feeling of insecurity that most often has no basis at all.

Consider the analogy of walking across a foot wide plank that is lying flat on the ground: no problem, we could all do that without fear or consequence, even if we were blindfolded. But if that plank was 100 feet up in the air, stretching between two tall buildings, all of a sudden it would be really difficult to do. Same plank. Same width. Same feet we use to walk it. Why?

Perhaps if we were blindfolded so that we couldn’t see the risks it would all of a sudden become easy and quite possible to do.

The problem is in fact not a real one, but is one that is in our mind only. It is usually nothing to do with our ability to speak, or convey the message, but everything to do with our personal perception of ourselves.

So, the fear of public speaking usually does not relate to any real danger, or risk, but is one of our attitude and mindset only. It’s often a question of self-confidence.

There are some things we can all do to manage this feeling of dread, and turn it into a strength:

The first thing to do is to tell ourselves, firmly, and audibly if necessary, that Yes, I can do this! I am up to this task!
The fact of telling ourselves, and reminding ourselves that we are capable and can do this is a powerful weapon in this fight.
It is essential for new speakers and old alike that some practice is invested in the address.
That way we can stand up well prepared, and can tell our nerves I’ve done this already, I can do it again now.
The late great Steve Jobs used to practice incessantly before delivering a key address, a product launch.
We must understand that when we are speaking before any audience it’s not about us, it’s about the audience.
The objective is to benefit the audience, not ourselves. So take the focus off ourselves, and place it firmly on the audience before us.
We are not there to be under the spotlight, even if there is such a spotlight.
We are not there on trial, even if on the day we are being graded for our delivery or performance.
It is about the audience!
It is perfectly normal to experience some nerves before getting up to speak.
The correct tactic is to turn this situation around and realize that our nerves are our friend, not our foe.
Accept that some feeling of nervousness is normal. It’s perfectly OK. Learn to harness these feelings, and the adrenaline rush that can come with them, to improve our performance, not detract from it.
Never, ever, ever apologize for our nerves or make excuses for your ourselves before an audience.
Generally, they won’t have a clue how we are feeling. Unless we tell them.
This means don’t tell them audibly, or by our non verbal messages such as body language.
Maintain a steady pace or speed.
Some people start to run ahead of themselves without any pauses for breath or to keep up with their notes.
Take it easy, pace yourself. carefully deliver bite size chunks of your message, then move carefully on to the next. Don’t rush.
Maintain our breathing, deeply and evenly, as this will maintain oxygen flow and help us pace ourselves.
Some people advocate concentrating on the microphone if there is one, instead of the audience. This can be a great help.
Sometimes it’s good to employ a famous quote as an opener.
Something that we can read carefully and slowly just to get our voice tone and pitch sorted and our nerves settled a bit.
Depending on the audience, it can be highly effective, whether we are an accomplished speaker or a novice, to read a verse or two of a relevant, well-known poem.
I have used this to great effect on many occasions.
Choose the audience, choose the poem, and they will love it!
By the time we have read 20-30 seconds of verse, our voice has settled, we have settled, and we can get on with it unimpeded by nervousness.

Next time when asked to say a few words at an event, don’t cringe or shrink back but jump at the opportunity. This is our opportunity to shine, to grow, to make our mark.

Author Neil Findlay

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Death by PowerPoint: Developing The Speaker Within You

January 25, 2012

By Neil Findlay

Death by PowerPoint.

PowerPoint to speaking appears to be what oxygen is to living: we can’t survive without it.

Or so it seems.

Such is the pervasiveness of the screen, the light show, that many speakers cannot, or will not, get up without it. It seems to have become some sort of badge of honor to have a sensational PowerPoint presentation to accompany our presentation.

Or is that in place of our presentation?

Recently I dared to stand before an august group of business people without PowerPoint. Afterwards, one of the organizers came up to me and remarked that it was a brave move. Today it is almost unheard of to attempt a presentation without all of the text, images, color and pizzazz that comes with a self-respecting PowerPoint show.

But is that normal? Should it be?

The reality is that PowerPoint is a very powerful tool, delivering sensational outcomes when used properly. But, a little bit goes a long way. Like adding salt or pepper to food, the right amount serves us wonderfully, but too much is awful!

Indeed, Less is More when it comes to supporting tools like PowerPoint. Too much text, too many slides, too many dot points are very much like sleeping pills in their effect on an audience.

It is evident that visual aids can add a critical lift to some presentations. But how much is too much? And how should this tool be used?

Let’s see…..

Really, really successful presenters like Steve Jobs always keep simplicity as one of their core principles. They only use one key thought to a slide, and often just one key thought for the whole address.

Their visual presentation is used to support them in what they say and present, not to be used a crutch. Unfortunately some speakers have become lazy and rely on PowerPoint to carry the presentation completely. OK, it may be necessary to lean on PowerPoint heavily if we are simply given the presentation to deliver by a third-party. Especially of it’s not our core area of competency. This happens.

But if we are building the show ourselves we should resist the urge to create a full length feature movie and simply keep to the facts.

Here’s some things to remember:

PowerPoint is not mandatory. We shouldn’t be pushed into doing it if we don’t want to
Never have more than around 10 slides in a presentation.
If possible keep it down to 5-6.
Never have more than 3 dot points per slide, the fewer the better.
Always use consistent transitions right through the entire presentation.
Remember, when moving our presentation from PC to USB stick to PC and so forth, the potential for the presentation to malfunction rises greatly.
It pays to always run the presentation on the hosts system before we get up to speak, and check it carefully before delivering it to make sure that no errors have been introduced.
Sometimes it pays to use no transitions, so the margin for error is reduced.
Always use consistent colors, fonts and templates right through the whole presentation.
It is very distracting to the audience if we skip around all over the place with visuals.
Take great care with our choice of colors.
Avoid pale pastel colors: soft yellows, blues and greens and so forth.
They may look great on our PC while building the presentation, but will likely be invisible when played on the big screen.
It’s too late when we are standing before the audience, only to realize that our key slides are invisible.
Acronyms. Wow! Take care to minimize the use of these, as we can safely guarantee that not everyone in the room will know them all.
Simplicity is key. Avoid deeply technical jargon and mumbo jumbo unless absolutely necessary.
A confused audience is not our goal.
Good idea is for our first slide to outline where the presentation will go.
Good idea to finish with a thank you and contact details: Twitter, email, cell number etc.
Have a backup plan if the file is corrupted or won’t display properly.
Always have two USB sticks loaded, and if it is a really important event, take the laptop along as the ultimate fallback to run the show, or make edits at the last-minute.
Oh! And by the way, always use a clean USB stick, not one that has a bunch of other files on it as well. You know…our companies financial reports and other sensitive stuff.
You get the picture. You just don’t want everyone else to get it as well.
Avoid having purely technical material and show some life, emotional content.
People are different, some will relate to the numbers and formulae, but others will remember the visuals more so.

Finally, the use of PowerPoint is not an excuse to be lazy and not put the effort into a presentation that our audience deserves.

Let’s all use PowerPoint to the full, and harness the power that is in it. But not use it as a crutch, in place of our real presentation, in place of the real us.

Author Neil Findlay

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For Example: Developing the Speaker Within You

January 24, 2012

By Neil Findlay

For Example.

Every good presentation has a topical story woven into it somewhere on the way through. For example, a life story, an account of a business or sporting event and so forth.

Depending on the approach taken, a whole address may revolve around a single story, whether fictitious or factual. And, true to the old adage that truth is often stranger than fiction, there is always a goldmine of true stories out there for the enterprising speaker to avail themselves of.

Or, the speaker can use, as is often the case, a series of quick illustrations to support various points while delivering the body of the address. This could include anything from quotes to experiences to anecdotes.

Truth is, most people love a good story and if it is presented well will sit, almost spellbound, to hear the last of it.

But there are some rules, ranging from the written and unwritten right through to the positively legal!

If we are going to use a real, live story about a true happening or people in particular, then it is wise to do our homework first, before opening our mouth. Even if recounting the well-known story of some great exploit of an explorer or sports person we do ourselves a favour by researching the facts, so we present them factually correct.

This is not only good business practice, but it is a matter of good etiquette and courtesy to do so. Always consider that our integrity is on the line every time we get up to speak.

Not so important if we are simply speaking about a fictional happening, especially of we have created the storyline ourselves: then we have license to fabricate the story line.

Let’s dwell for a moment on the matter of reporting true events or stories about real people.

There may be contentious issues at stake, disputes or unsettled legal matters in progress. In these cases, the speaker should be very wary of wading into the fray. In these cases, be careful to only use material that is clearly in the public domain, and evidence is to hand to prove it.

Often, privacy issues will arise when speaking of other people, and it is wise to carefully consider just what we are about to reveal in a public forum before doing so. The last thing a speaker wants is to receive notification from a lawyer or attorney claiming that we have breached privacy or libeled their client in what we have spoken about.

It is not uncommon to be at a conference or event where a speaker deliberately sets out to embarrass another person in the room ‘all in good humor’.

Be careful! Yes, it is done. Yes, it can be very funny. Yes, it can add life and colour to the event. Yes, it can produce results. But always remember that a little bit goes a long way and always seek permission from the recipient of the humor prior to unleashing it.

Like spilt milk, or a scrambled egg, it is very, very difficult to undo some of these things once they have been set in motion.

A moment or two checking with the subject of the joke or story prior to doing it, especially if they will be in the audience is time well spent.

Story telling is a craft all by itself, and can be thoroughly captivating to an audience if it is well executed. Good research + practice + practice + practice is the formula to getting this right.

Great stories from our own experience are the best, but not essential. It’s Ok to gather up great stories from online or wherever, but do think carefully before using them.

Let’s all set a good example by what we say, and how we say it on stage.

Author Neil Findlay

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When Things go Wrong: Developing the Speaker Within You

January 23, 2012

By Neil Findlay

When Things Go Wrong.

While there are only two kinds of things that go wrong: things we can prevent, and things we can’t prevent, equally we may state it’s not a case of if things go wrong it’s more like when things go wrong.

Those things that we can prevent, well, it’s just up to us to be as prepared and organized as we can be to eliminate them.

Things like:

We lose our notes en route to the event.
Doesn’t happen? I left mine on an airplane once, and on that occasion I really needed them.
It was a real hassle with the airline to get them back before the plane took off again.
Won’t do that again.
Get held up in traffic and miss our time slot to speak.
Well, what can I say? Just allow some margin in our lives to avoid this.
Get a really bad head cold the day before we are to speak.
Tough one this one. Ouch!
But, there is such a thing as looking after ourselves: get some sleep, eat properly, dress for the conditions and so forth.
This is not rocket science, just common sense.
Have our laptop (along with all of our notes etc) stolen from our hotel room the night before we speak.
This is where the whole concept of backup, and multiple copies of material comes in.
We are working on our address and our computer crashes, losing all of our work, just before the event.
See above. Once I am started any work on an address, I automatically keep multiple copies, in different locations.
Once bitten twice shy. And so forth….

As for the things that are not our fault , well, there’s usually a lot we can do to mitigate and manage the risks of these also.

Barring a real disaster, most things can be overcome by simple planning and process. What was that old saying? Prior Planning & Preparation Prevents Poor Performance.

Realistically, we can’t fix everything, but we can go a long way towards it, even if it’s not our fault, and we don’t have direct control over it.

For instance:

The host loses our CV.
We always carry a spare copy with us, don’t we. Always.
Someone takes our conference bag by mistake, along with our notes or memory stick.
See above.
The microphone dies, due to flat batteries or whatever whilst we are speaking.
Stay cool. Don’t lose our cool, just keep speaking, watching the audience, until a replacement turns up.
In an earlier post we discussed how to mitigate this risk, and just cruise over the top of it.
Our paper notes get blown off the lectern by wind or whatever.
Experience will teach us that this just won’t happen to us. Any more than once.
Don’t lose our cool, just calmly continue on while we, or someone else gathers them up and then, we continue on as if nothing happened.
(Did I mention why we always page number everything?)
Seriously, the way in which we manage such surprises will tell the audience that we are really well-organized, experienced, and can handle anything.
The message this gives off is solid gold.
Remember, it’s never what goes wrong that is the problem: It’s what we do about it that counts.
The same principles apply to most other onstage events: our water gets knocked over, the visual aids stop working, the onstage screens fall down.
It all happens at some time, but how well we have prepped the off stage team, and how we calmly continue on sets us apart from mediocre speakers.
If we accidentally use unsavory language, or make a comment that is unacceptable in the context of our audience, or maybe get our facts a bit wrong…
Whoa! Depends on just how bad it was.
If of a very minor nature (only experience will teach us this), and not likely to cause offence, just move on and don’t make a fuss, as this will only serve to upset the audience more and draw attention to our mistake.
If it is something serious, then make sure to fess up. And fess up quickly. Right away. Apologize, maintain decorum, and move on.
Just don’t let it happen again.

There are plenty of things that can go wrong, and Murphy’s Law tells us that they will from time to time. Good planning and attention to detail, coupled with experience will ensure that we don’t make a habit of this.

Author Neil Findlay

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Platform Manner: Developing the Speaker Within You

January 19, 2012

By Neil Findlay

Platform Manner.

There is no doubt that the manner in which we assume and command the platform has a huge bearing on how well we are perceived as speakers, as communicators. And importantly, our platform manner plays a key role in how well the audience takes in our message.

Speaking to people is in some ways the same as leading them: it is essential to command attention and respect, not demand it. The manner in which we stand and deliver our presentation, quite apart from the words we use, will always have a significant bearing on the outcome.

In an earlier post we discussed the 7/38/55 rule and how most of the impression we make on our audience comes not from our words, but rather how we speak, and how we physically conduct ourselves while presenting.

With this in mind, let’s take a look at a few things that can make or break a great presentation. Remembering that these same principles pretty much apply whether we are appearing in person before a small group, a 1000 people or for that matter being videoed.

Let’s first take a quick look at some common distractions that beset speakers. Actually, they distract the audience even more.

Some speakers maintain a poise like a statue, whilst maintaining a vice like grip of the lectern like it was a matter of life or death. And keep that up for the duration of their speech. This conveys the impression that the speaker is delivering bad news. Really bad news. Or that they are really terrified.

I suppose I should add that the first few times I appeared before a significant audience I felt like it was life or death!

Now, there is nothing wrong with periodically resting our hands on the lectern, or the like, but just don’t fasten onto it like a drowning man.

Nor is it a great idea to resemble a gymnast or a dancer by continually prancing around the stage. OK, unless you are one.

It is trendy for speakers today to be continually mobile whilst on the platform. Some mobility can be a good thing, depending on the event and the speaking environment. But it is not helpful to resemble a prowling lion in a cage: continually walking back and forth from end to end of the platform.

Like salt in food, a little bit goes a long way and more doesn’t always equal better. This can become little more than a distraction to the audience, and can be real a pain for the AV team if we are being videoed or the lighting team if they are continually trying to maintain lighting on us.

It’s always good if we have the time and ability to rehearse our stage manner with the event team, no matter how large or small the event is. This will identify audio dead spots, ensure we don’t block out any visual screens and generally allow them to best perform their job.

Remember, we as speakers are there to serve our hosts, not ourselves, and make their event a success.

Some speakers forget this.

It is always best to try and be as natural as possible. Maintain good eye contact with our audience. Use some whole of body gestures, our body language to talk to the audience.

By example, I sometimes say that when speaking to an audience requiring translators, it should almost be possible to speak without the translators and have the different language groups understand us, if our voice tone and body language are working properly and in sync. If we are reading our audience and listening to them, and they are doing the same with us.

This means that physical gestures, our entire body movement should be as natural as if we were simply speaking to two or three friends at a BBQ.

As with most elements of great public speaking, an ounce of experience is better than a ton of theory once we have the right understanding of it.

Author Neil Findlay

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Stand Up, Don’t Slip Up: Developing the Speaker Within You

January 11, 2012

By Neil Findlay

Stand Up, Don’t Slip Up.

Airline pilots, machine operators and truck drivers all share one key task: the pre start inspection to make sure they don’t slip up on critical details.

Immediately before they take off, start their machine or take to the highway they all conduct a formal check of safety and operational functions of their equipment. The reasons are obvious, to avoid accidents, damages and costs to their workplace, themselves and those around them or in their care.

Put simply, the very same pre start process should be a key part of any serious speakers performance. To avoid mistakes, clumsiness and embarrassment. To provide their audience with the best possible performance, every time.

I got up to speak once, when I was much younger I should add, and before I could even open my mouth there was laughter flowing freely from the audience. Now, every speaker loves their audience to respond enthusiastically and laugh at their jokes when they are given. But you just know something is wrong when the audience starts to laugh before you have said anything.

I had somewhat carelessly left my zipper down; a major slip up, or down as the case may be.

This is a great of example of the famous Murphy’s Law: anything that can go wrong, will go wrong, and usually at the worst possible time.

But not all was lost: I learned a valuable lesson, that of being adequately prepared.

The essence of this lesson is that no amount of experience, research and investment will take the place of simply having it all together when called upon to speak.

Today, whenever I get up to speak I have a set routine, a series of things to check through one last time:

Yes. The zipper is up. Won’t get caught with that one again.
The tie (if worn) is straight.
All other elements of my physical presentation are correct.
Usually I drop into the bathroom immediately before a presentation and do a final once over.
Not quite like Superman jumping out of the phone box, but when I emerge, everything should be right.
Usually have a coffee about 15 minutes before speaking.
Yes, the caffeine gives anyone a lift after about 15 minutes, and just adds that little bit of extra energy.
This is especially important if I have been flying, working and going hard for the previous few days, without a lot of sleep.
My notes (if I’m using notes) are all there, in the right page order and ready to be simply opened at the right place, without needlessly shuffling pages around at the dais.
Any props or extras I am using are to hand, and ready to be used.
Usually I make sure these are planted somewhere up onstage before the session starts to further eliminate distractions.
My CV has already been given to the chair or the MC.
I always carry a spare printed copy regardless of whether it has been emailed earlier.
Yes. They get lost, misplaced or the wrong one is used to introduce me.
I have carefully checked if there is anyone in the audience I need to acknowledge from the platform before speaking.
More about that in another post.

As with most elements of great public speaking, it is not rocket science, just common sense and attention to detail that separates a great presentation from an ordinary one.

Excellence is something that every speaker should aim for, and we can all get there.

All of us.

Author Neil Findlay

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Just Be Yourself: Developing the Speaker Within You

January 10, 2012

By Neil Findlay

Just Be Yourself.

How hard it is to measure up, to be ranked well, to compare favorably with others as a speaker. Instead of aiming to just be yourself.

Yet that isn’t the objective, and generally leads to frustration, and potentially, failure.

Our goal as a speaker is not to be someone else. Ever. Ever.

When we try to emulate some other great speakers style, mannerisms, presentation skills or practices we are in fact setting ourselves up for failure. Put simply, we are all different, in how we think, act & speak, so at best comparing ourselves is an unfair comparison.

The greatest strength for a speaker is to be ourselves, to build on our unique nature and outlook. To take what is innately ours and present it to the world in all its originality.

People don’t ask us to speak, and pay us for that experience to try and get someone else. If they want someone else, that is who they should engage.

It is perfectly fine however, perhaps desirable for us as speakers to study, listen and observe the techniques and skills of others, but it is wrong to try and take their skills and simply adopt them for ourselves. Wrong for ourselves. Wrong for the other party. Be yourself, always.

We run the risk of losing ourselves, our individuality, the real us if we go down that road.

It is natural for anyone who speaks, whether professionally or periodically, to enjoy sitting in the audience of a great speaker. To observe their presentation, and perhaps critique it from our own perspective. To measure how they impacted us, aroused our feelings and passions. To recall after the event just how much they imparted to us.

I can recall just this experience: soaking in the delivery of a really fine speaker and then, several years later, still being able to recount their address and how it impacted me.

But it would do me little good to try and copy that performance.

For none of us, not one, will truly reach our potential by simply trying to overlay someone else’s skills over our own. It is fundamentally foreign. Just as our bodies reject a foreign organism so our mind rejects a different style, attitude and skill set if we try to subject ourselves to it. It doesn’t belong.

Inherently we will always do better and achieve more by studying ourselves, identifying our own natural strengths and traits and building on them.

We can all do ourselves a favour, and significantly grow our natural capability, by learning to express what is naturally within us, instead of trying to emulate someone else.

Author Neil Findlay

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Is Our World Sustainable: Reading Between The Lines

January 9, 2012

By Neil Findlay

Is Our World Sustainable, or are We Consuming our Future: The Demand.

As observed in the previous post, global population is growing exponentially.

It appears we will continue to produce people. In growing numbers. We are, in essence, sustainable as a species.

But what about the resources, the food, the consumables that we need as a global population to sustain us, and the rate of growth in demand for these?

If we take a look at the growth in demand, or the associated and closely allied growth in pressure on the resources we consume as people, the results are quite stark.

In a past blog we took International Monetary Fund figures and known demographic and global financial data of the world for the past 110 years to come up with some very concerning facts & trends.

Using Global Population (GP), World Trade Value (WTV) (Normalized to 1990 $US) and the Consumer Technology Invention & Development for Personal Use (CTID), the numbers come up as follows:

Year	GP (Billion)	WTV (Trillion)	CTID
1900	1.8	1.3	1,000
1960	3.9	5.8	4,000
2010	7.0	55.0	141,000

Now, if we take these same figues and calculate the demand, or consumer call (‘M’) on our world’s natural resources by the following formula: M = GP x WTV x I which uses 1900 as a reference value of ‘1’ (the height of the colonial era), we get the following outcomes:

Year Growth in (M)

1900                1
1960              3515%   (or 35 times) the growth in resource use/environmental demand on our planet.
2010          2,108,974% (or 21,089 times) the growth in resource use/environmental demand on our planet.

Ultimately, something has to give.

It is readily apparent that our consumption of consumer goods is also growing at an exponential rate. The obvious question that arises is: can this be sustained, and for how long?

It’s equally fashionable, even popular for doomsayers and other global pessimists to announce the end is nigh.

That does not assist the situation very greatly. But what is evident is that we as a global population do need to think carefully, and soon, about how we will resource our future. We cannot continue to rape and pillage as it were, the planet we have, to the detriment of our successors.

Do we need to continue mining resources: absolutely. Do we need to continue harvesting natural food stocks , fish and others, or course we do. Do we need to continue harvesting timber stocks, for instance: absolutely. Without doubt we will continue to require increasing amounts of steel, aluminum to construct our future. Equally without doubt we will need to plant and produce increasing quantities of renewables like timber to construct our future.

And we should get used to the concept that for the foreseeable future we will need to use fossil fuels like coal to power our lives. The majority of alternative renewable energy sources such as wind & solar are clearly going to play a significant role in future global energy supply, but for the immediate future they will remain, as they currently are, too expensive and unviable.

What we cannot do is sit idly by and watch as resource demand skyrockets as it has over the past 110 years and expect that all will be well in another 110 years, or 500 years. Continuing to consume like there is no tomorrow is, to use a huge understatement, short sighted. Tomorrow will come.

We simply must do better at reusing those resources that we do mine/harvest/consume. And now.

As good stewards, custodians of the world we inhabit, holding it in trust for the generations to come, let’s ensure that we do manage it well and hand it on to our successors in good condition, with an ability to sustain them and subsequent generations.

Authors Neil Findlay with Andreas Helwig.

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Invited to Speak: Developing the Speaker Within You

January 6, 2012

By Neil Findlay

Invited To Speak.

Often a speaker will be conducting their own product launch or promotion, in which case they can set the ground rules, but when we get invited to speak, it’s a whole new ball game.

In the case where a speaker is invited to speak, a whole new scenario unfolds, and there are many issues to consider in order that a successful outcome for both the hosts or organizers and the speaker are achieved.

In this case the role of the host, whoever is doing the inviting, becomes very important.

There are a suite of issues to deal with, and as always, it is wise to cover these off prior to any agreement to speak.

In short, the speakers role is to make their host look good. It’s not about the speaker a.k.a. ourselves, but the host, and their event. As soon as we take the focus off ourselves and understand that our whole effort is to make the hosts event successful, things take on a different perspective.

It is always smart to conduct a careful interview with our host before progressing too far.
Things to consider are:

What is the event all about.What is the requested topic, if any.
Where, and when is it being held.
What are its goals, and is there a theme, for instance if it’s a conference.
It’s really important to ensure that our contribution actually adds value to the event and the organizers.
Ultimately, the aim is to provide attendees with real take home value (so absent in many events) and is not just a talk fest.
An important matter to consider is that of integrity.
Do the organizers and their topic request fit with our beliefs and values .
Nothing matters more than our integrity in this regard. We simply cannot be engaged merely as a hired gun in support of views that we don’t support.
Who will be attending, and how many.
Are there any local or cultural issues, perhaps no-go areas that we need to be aware of.
It is unacceptable to offend either our hosts or their audience through our ignorance, carelessness or bravado on stage.
What particularly is our role in the event.
Are we a keynote speaker or part of a speaker line up, are we participating in a panel discussion.
If other speakers are presenting, who are they, and what are they presenting on.
Sometimes it pays to consult with the other speakers to ensure that we compliment, not replicate or contradict each other and so add better value to the attendees.
How much time do they want.
This is really important, because one of the seven deadly sins of public speaking is to run over time.
Why have we been asked to speak.
Is it because of our knowledge, skills & experience, notoriety even. Or are we there to entertain.
The answer to this question will shape our whole approach, content and delivery.
Are we being paid to appear.
Really important. Always sort this out at the front end, and agree the amount of our fee up front before getting to far into the negotiations.
Often, event organizers have a different world view of speakers fees to the proposed speaker, so be clear about this and decide whether the event is for us at all.
Are we being paid or refunded for our costs: Travel, hotels & meals etc
Can we sell merchandise or books at the event

Ultimately, none of this is rocket science, just simple process.

But timely attention to detail in these matters will ensure that a successful outcome for all is achieved.

Author Neil Findlay

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