Articles
Articles written by iSpeak master instructors and collaborators to continue to help you better your business life.
Three levels of persuasive conversations
Why does everyone think the best salesperson is always the best “talker?” It’s as if that is the only skill needed to be a good salesperson? In my 18 years of experience in sales and sales management, I have not found that to be true. Some of the successful salespeople I have observed were good talkers, but oftentimes, they were not the best speakers. In fact, the most successful salespeople I have met were not the best talkers at all. They held a much more valuable selling skill, persuasive questioning.
Congruent Communication
“The single biggest problem with communication … is the illusion that it has been accomplished.” – George Bernard Shaw Many years ago I played for a coach who used a technique to motivate players through fear. He would produce this fear by using verbal, visual and vocal communication. His face strained, his face flushed, eyes [...]
iSpeak, Inc. Named to Aggie 100 for 2011
AUSTIN, Texas – November 4, 2011 – For the second consecutive year, iSpeak, Inc. was named to the 2011 Aggie 100 list, which recognizes the fastest-growing companies around the world that are owned or operated by former Texas A&M University graduates. “It is an honor being named to the Aggie 100 list,” said Russ Peterson, 1991 [...]
CABA can answer the WAILs of your Audience
“The human brain starts working the moment you are born and never stops until you stand up to speak in public.” – George Jessel Tomorrow is the big presentation in front of your boss. You just put the final touches on some magnificent PowerPoint slides and now it’s time to think about how you will [...]
Understanding the job to be done
We often think we understand what must be done to achieve success; yet many times we are not successful. If we are not clear on what the job is, we can become distracted by tasks that consume our energies, thoughts and emotions. So what is it that must be done? Most importantly we must understand the correct job to be done, as this will open up several ideas to accomplish the task, and will also bring us the ultimate prize a win-win scenario.
Don’t shoot yourself in the foot
Kevin Karschnik of iSpeak will present ‘Don’t shoot yourself in the foot’ on May 5, 2011 at 1:00pm central time. Learn to discuss how you can avoid the mistakes that most presenter make when preparing for a presentation: 1) Procrastinating preparation until the last minute, 2) Understanding the the purpose of their presentation, and 3) Understanding the needs of the participants.
More Time – Less Stress
We would all want to have a little extra time in our day. Just some extra time to finish that last proposal, send one more email, spend a little more time with the family or just kick back and relax a little more. While it is not possible to actually ‘create’ time, we can learn better methods for managing the time that we have. How can I put more time back into my day? Learn three methods you can implement immediately to improve your ability to remove tasks from your To Do list.
Industry Leader Bill Kreiger Joins iSpeak
iSpeak continues to grow and implement its strategy of providing quality professional development training. Bill Kreiger has been appointed Senior Instructor at iSpeak, Inc. where he will be responsible for facilitating unsurpassed classroom experiences and assisting in product and content development.
I Want to be the Best I can be
There is no graduation date for a business professional. Success begins with a commitment to continuous improvement and an expectation of accomplishment. Information, combined with Inspiration and Implementation will lead to Improvement. How do you move from knowing to applying? How can you shift from willing to doing? How can you make certain that you are consistently improving your abilities?
The Persuasive Weapon of Counter-Arguing
When we make persuasive presentations or write proposals, our gut reaction is usually to hide any flaws in our logic and minimize any doubts the audience may have in our appeals. But what if, instead of dancing around the audience’s issues, you shine a spotlight on them? What if you took the words right out of their mouths and then provided a compelling answer to their doubts? That’s the art of counter-arguing.
iSpeak Named One of “Nation’s Top Businesses”
DiversityBusiness.com, a leading business-to-business Internet site, recently named iSpeak, Inc. as one of the top businesses in the United States. The companies listed on the Top Business Lists represent the Nation’s top earners are based on gross sales and underline the fact that privately held businesses make a significant contribution to our local and national economy.
Why do so many salespeople love to fish?
There is little doubt in my mind that if you have been in sales for any period of time you have heard the analogies or metaphors relating “prospecting” and “selling” to the sport of “fishing.”
Stressed, me? Do I look Stressed?
With all of the pressures placed on us, it appears that some form of stress will be inevitable for everyone. If you talk to ten people today and ask them each if they have experienced any stress in the past week, my guess is that you will get 10 out of 10 that will say “Yes.” Stress exists because of the pressures applied to us by ourselves, others and by our situation or circumstance. Learn how to manage stress before it manages you!
iSpeak, Inc. Named to Aggie 100
iSpeak, Inc. was named to the Aggie 100 list, which recognizes the fastest-growing companies around the world that are owned or operated by former Texas A&M University graduates. iSpeak was among the winners and ranked 10th on the 2010 list.
Don’t Let Coaching Become Discouragement
The job of a leader is to properly manage their resources to produce the greatest return on investment for the organization. Developing employees is a cornerstone to improving the performance of an organization. As the manager of a team, developing employees will be done through consistent communication and ongoing coaching. When should coaching conversations take place? What should you do before, during and after a coaching session?
Delegation is not giving others the dirty work
When you delegate tasks, it can create motivation within the individuals on your team, as well as free up your time as the manager. It also provides a learning environment to train your team members for future roles in management. However, delegation can also be one of the most difficult managerial attributes to adopt when not done effectively.
Fish and Eggs
I think everyone will agree that life is full of mysteries. Is that what we should call them, “mysteries?” or are they just “creative puzzles that have yet to be solved? By searching for solutions that are not immediately obvious or even possible through traditional means, you are practicing lateral thinking. The more cliché nomenclature used today is “thinking outside the box.”
I can’t stand Dan!
Challenging people will come in many different types and with many different problems. One of the traps you must avoid is getting hooked. Learn to embrace your challenging experiences with people. Since it is always best to remain focused on solving the issue, the following tips can be implemented when dealing as you work to defuse the Dan in your life.
Three Roles of the Leader
As a leader, do we want our followers to “want” or “need” us? It should be obvious that we want our team to “want” us, not “need” us. To be a strong leader, how can we promote an environment where our team “wants” to follow us? The answer lies in three key roles the leader must serve with their teams. These three roles are called Observer, Coach and Guide.