Page 162 - The New Articulate Executive_ Look, Act and Sound Like a Leader

KEEP THE MOMENTUM GOING 153

Don’t worry whether you are too impassioned or too little impas-
sioned. That’s not important—leave acting to actors. What’s impor-

tant is first having a message, then believing in it, and then giving
that message to the audience in a way that leaves no doubt about
your total involvement, commitment, and absolute sincerity. Do
that, and the danger zone will quickly become a safety zone.

EVEN JUST AN UPDATE CAN
BE A CAREER OPPORTUNITY

But not everybody finds that easy to do. CFOs and their staffs, for
example, often object when I encourage them to seek a theme or a
message, even in a quarterly review. The review is the message, they
tell me.
Yes and no. Yes, because a review is obviously a review. But no,
because an update of any kind is also an opportunity to position the
report in a larger, more relevant framework that requires the per-
spective of leadership. For example, what are the market trends driv-
ing the quarter? What changes have emerged that might alter the
business? What worldwide long-term developments are in play that
will affect the numbers, and why? And above all, where are we
going? What is going to happen? What should we do?
So I tell the number crunchers: add value to what you do. Start
by projecting the future, which is what the listeners are really inter-
ested in. Articulate the business as you see it in the months ahead;
then explain that projection based on your conclusions and proposals
drawing from the previous quarter. This is what we defi ned in an
earlier chapter as “reversing the wave.” In effect, start with the end-
ing. Begin at the top of the wave; then surf down the back of the wave
toward your ending. That’s the opposite of how most presentations
are set up. If you were to put it on a graph, it might look like this: