Thursday, April 7, 2011
Working in the Bay Area, I'm often asked to help brilliant engineers improve their leadership and communication skills.
"They've got the smarts; if they could just get the interpersonal skills to match, they'd be all set" is what I often hear from companies who bring me in.
Oh, I wish.
Yes, interpersonal skills are important. But even more so are intrapersonal skills; the skills to help you manage what's going on inside yourself. This would include self-confidence; the ability to skillfully handle difficult conversations, emotions or experiences; or the ability to navigate uncertainty-just to name a few.
What goes on inside you affects how you interact with your world.
It impacts your body language; your listening skills; your likeability. It also affects your performance-your critical and analytical thinking, and particularly
your capacity for innovation. In fact, few things affect performance more than the way we feel about ourselves.
So really, it's worth starting there; with these intrapersonal skills as the necessary foundation for leadership. Giving people great external communication skills, without giving them the skills to handle internal stuff, is a bit like putting pretty turrets and balconies on a house with faulty foundations. Nice touch; but at the first earthquake, everything falls apart.
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Known as the "Charisma Coach", Olivia's client list includes Citigroup, Deloitte & Touche and the United Nations. Her passion for communication has brought her to lecture at Harvard, Yale, and MIT; she frequently appears as guest expert in media such as BusinessWeek, Crain's New York, Bloomberg or Sirius Satellite Radio.
Her topics of expertise include charisma (yes, it can be taught!), influence, and persuasion. She is available for TV, radio, and news interviews-- she's witty, charming and your audience will love her. You can ask Olivia..
* How to make a fantastic first impression
* How to master the art of conversation
* How to work a room with ease, grace and efficiency
* Dealing with difficult people
* How to postion yourself as an expert in your field
* How to master the science of influence and persuasion
* Personal Branding: it's All About You