Written by: Kimberly Badtke, Churchill Club Volunteer

Admit it.  You caught the buzzword fever at some point in your career.  Maybe it started slowly with a “game changer” thrown in here and “state-of-the-art” or “innovative, strategic partnership” tossed in for good measure.  It’s time for a reboot.

“It takes courage to speak simply,” shared Carmine Gallo at Churchill Club’s ‘Say Something That Matters’ program on January 18, 2012 sponsored by Aviat Networks.    “Fear stifles inspiring communications.  You may be afraid of what the boss might say.  But remember, your senior executives want you to be seen as an inspiring manager.”

The Churchill Club program featured a panel discussion to help attendees present with authenticity and effectively use body language to get the right message across while truly capturing the essence of the individual.  The panelists were Forbes reporter Kym McNicholas, top-selling author and presentation coach Carmine Gallo, body language expert Carol Goman, and the School For the Well Spoken Woman's KC Baker.

“The key is getting rid of the buzzwords,” advised McNicholas, “Words to erase: the cloud, revolutionary, game changer, consumerization of IT, innovative, drinking the kool-aid and eating our own dogfood, ground breaking, strategic partnership, state-of-the-art, leading, next generation and solutions”.

Instead learn to speak with feeling—when feeling comes through that resonates with others. Baker cited the example of Apple vs. HP.

“I remember a street post at an Apple presentation showing the intersection of technology and liberal arts.  They were in the business of liberal arts and technology was a tool,” informed Baker.  “Apple created an emotional connection.  In comparison, HP said ‘we make a great computer.’  There wasn’t the same emotional tie.”

How Do You Communicate Your Message?

Step 1:  Find your passion
 “It starts with a serious inquiry into the heart and why of what you’re doing,” told Baker.  “Get rooted first in what you want to say and own it.  It is the feeling that comes through then.”  

An exercise to find where passion lies is to have employees write down: “I believe…..” and complete the sentence.  Goman encouraged attendees to use a video to show what your passion is about.  

Step 2:  Create a twitter-friendly headline
Gallo explained “Tell what you do or what your product does in 140 characters.  Remember to start with the big picture before details.  An example is Steve Jobs’ description of the MacBook® Air as ‘the world’s thinnest notebook’.”

Step 3:  Stick with the rule of  three
Forget the product feature list of 22 points, and focus on three.  Gallo reminded the audience that Goldilocks only had three bears and the well-known phrase in the US Declaration of Independence “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.”

Gallo further explained that with a presentation, break it into three sections.  When introducing a product, start with the big picture, that Twitter headline, and support with three points.    

A final thought from panelists on this topic: be different. “It’s all about speeds and feeds in the Valley,” cited Gallo.  “I suggest telling a story to convey your message.”  McNicholas encouraged the audience to “tell me something I don’t know.  Be direct and give an example with impact.”

McNicholas stated that you shouldn’t just tell your marketing message but share how your marketing message came to be.

Adding the Power of Non-Verbal Body Language

Having zeroed in on our buzzword-free verbal message, Goman shared insights on how body language can help or hinder your authenticity.  “Most executives are trained in body language from the waist up.  Therefore, the truth can be found in the telltale movements of legs and feet.”

She recalled a CEO presentation humming along smoothly until the question of CEO compensation was raised.  “Then his feet started flopping and tapping.  And remember, we believe what we see, not what we say.”

The audience was introduced to her tool for predicting the presidential winner:  the counter.  “As an author, I love words.  But boy, the power of body language,” quipped Goman.  “I use the counter to track the blink rate of presidential candidates during a debate.  Blink rates indicate how stressed you are and the higher blink rate candidate loses!”

You can use the power of non-verbal communication to trick your brain too.  “Stand up straight with your feet slight apart and your arms outstretched for a minute or two,”  informed Goman, “This will lower your stress levels and help you feel more confident.  A second trick is what method actors do.  Go back in time and draw on a memory of the feeling you want to convey."

In the age of webinars, where communicators are not seen, body language still plays a role.  “Similar to how you mimic body language, you can mimic voice patterns and talk with a smile in your voice,” said Goman.  “Stand up if you can because it will give you more energy in your voice.”  Baker offered the tip to “perch” and sit on the edge of the chair.  The position can make a big difference in being able to communicate clearly and connect.      

The audience asked the panelists who, in their opinion, is a stellar example of a communicator to watch.  Responses from the panelists included Howard Schultz, Starbucks CEO; Marc Benioff,  Salesforce CEO; Richard Branson, Chairman of Virgin Group;  John Chambers, CEO of Cisco Systems, and Gary Vaynerchuk, The Wine Guy; and of course, there are hours of Steve Jobs’ presentations online.