The Communicator

The COMMUNICATOR

1. Winning Thoughts

The purpose of life is not to win. The purpose of life is to grow and to share. Then you come to look back on all that you have done in life, you will get more satisfaction from the pleasure you have brought into other people's lives than you will from the times that you outdid and defeated them. ~ Harold Kushner

2. Vocabulary Builder

CONFIDANT This noun, which has the feminine form confidante means "one with whom secrets are shared, a trusted friend." Confident, the adjective, means assured, certain, trusting."During that critical period Jesus was my only confidant.She is confident that the public will respond to our plea.

3. One-Minute Communicator

MEETING ENERGIZERS
Meeting Energizers are brief, interactive exercises and surprising games that you can Plug n’ Play at key points throughout your agenda, and keep everyone guessing about "What the heck is going to happen next?"Energizers work best when they are pre-planned, and thematically linked to meeting topics or principles, and get people actively involved in expressing that topic through fun and upbeat sounds, voice, movement, and interpersonal contact. Also, Energizers give people a needed physiological boost, and a mental break from the usual meeting format.I have collected some meetings organizers. See them at
http://growthsessions.blogspot.com/2006/04/business-meeting-icebreakers.html http://growthsessions.blogspot.com/2006/04/trainers-survival-guide.html

4. Advance Communication Skills

BOARD MEETINGS(From 10 Quick Ways to Improve Board Meetings, by Jan Masaoka, Executive Director of Compasspoint nonprofit services)
When we think about the boards we’re on, we usually think about the board meeting –which says a lot about the importance of having good meetings. In order to make your meeting better, make a resolution to implement one of the following ideas each month:

1. Name tags for everyone, at every meeting. It’s embarrassing to have seen people at several meetings and wondered what their names are. Later it’s really hard to admit you don’t know their names.

2. Post an acronym chart. Make a poster of frequently used external and internal acronyms (such a CWA- Clean Water Act) and post it on the wall of every meeting. (If you distribute the list on paper it is soon lost.)

3. Don’t include committee reports on the agenda just to make the committees feel worthwhile. If a committee has done work but doesn’t need it discussed, put it in the board packet. In the meeting, be sure to recognize the committee’s good work and refer peopleto the written report. Schedule committee reports in the context of the main discussion.

4. Write an “anticipated action” for each agenda item.Examples:

• “Finance Committee report, brief questions and answers: No action needed”
• “Volunteer recruitment and philosophy: Anticipated Action: form committee or three to four board members”
• “Public Policy Committee: Anticipated Action: approve organizational statement to city council on zone changes.”

5. Make sure the room is comfortable! Not too hot or cold or crowded. Offer beverages and something light to eat, such as cookies or fruit.Email me when you want some more tips on conducting meetings. I can send you some practical and proven tips which I have collected, applied, and improved for years. We can also conduct a three-hour growth session (workshop) for your company.

5. Healthy Humour

A doctor gave a man six months to live. The man couldn't pay his bill, so he gave him another six months.==> Age doesn't always bring wisdom. Sometimes age comes alone.==> I started out with nothing & still have most of it left.


6. Lifelong Learning

DON'T DEFEND YOUR POINT OF VIEW AGAINST EVERY CRITICISMAt least once a week from now on, each and every time someone catches a weakness in your argument that you know is a weakness, admit it. Say, "Yes, that does appear to be a weakness." Your argument will gain strength from your added credibility because your listeners will soon learn that you will acknowledge weaknesses where you see them. This will make them feel that when you don't acknowledge weaknesses, there may be actually none!-from Brain Power by Marilyn vos Savant

7. Creativity Center

SHOW AND TELLHave your staff bring something that they've created, that they are proud of, or from their childhood that the group would find interesting or funny. Demonstrate an interesting or unusual talent, perhaps. We loved this game when we were in kindergarten, and for some reason they made us stop playing as we got older.

Jef