“And now back by popular demand, on the first leg of their world tour is . . .”
At this point, clients often start to see themselves as (a rock star or) a Greek god strutting onto a world stage! And if that is who you REALLY are, then great! However, if what you are doing is making a presentation to your team members, then I suggest you tone it down – just a little!
The PROJECT step can be tricky in some ways. How you think you should portray the character and what is really needed are often at odds with each other.
I mention in my book about a client I worked with who “had a sense that as a CEO he had to walk around with a stern look on his face and be very serious all the time, making him actually very unapproachable. Often, in our roles, we use characteristics that have been put upon us, either through family, business or friends. His concept of a leader was not who he authentically was, but what he thought he was supposed to be. In going through the process, he realized the role that he was playing wasn’t really him, and it certainly wasn’t effective for the company.”
This is why the work you do in advance to truly define all aspects of the character is very important.
As you work through the 4 Step Process, you find for each role both the positive and negative for each of these characteristics, words, voice, facial expressions and body language. In this way, you have pre-determined exactly how you will “be” to authentically communicate for that situation.
This authenticity is critical for being fully heard, understood and getting the results you want. You have experienced instances, I am sure, when you felt someone was not genuine. You may not have been able to put your finger on it, but something just did not ring true with you. As the recipient of the message, what did you do and how did you respond to that communication? Did you react positively? Did you respond negatively? Did you not respond at all? That’s the critical aspect of the wrong message being received. The results will not be achieved.
So be authentic in all aspects of your communication and project that through all the ways you can.
To Being Heard,
Linda