Page 222 - The New Articulate Executive_ Look, Act and Sound Like a Leader

WHAT’S IT ALL WORTH TO YOU? 213

the competition, the customer asks for more, the order is won, con-
tracts are awarded, relationships are sustained, and partnerships
cemented.
Yet in the United States today, very few people ever learn to play
the speaking game. If they do play, they often play by the wrong
rules—as we’ve seen in these chapters. I see a lot of lost opportunity
for millions of people struggling to make it in a tough, often unfor-
giving business universe. How much easier their jobs would be, I am
convinced, if they would but learn to play the game.
Becoming a player can be surprisingly easy. Simply understand-
ing the basics in this book and then applying them can make a mea-
surable difference right away.
If you are just beginning, it might not hurt to join a platform
organization like Toastmasters International. This is a nonthreaten-
ing environment in which you can practice. The more practice the
better. You can get a feel for the game, have fun, and afford to make
a few mistakes. Once you learn to command the room and infl uence
audiences, you are on your way. One success breeds another. Soon you
will discover the thrill of the game and understand, perhaps for the

first time, how incredibly powerful words can be in business and life
itself.
The payoff can be so rewarding, there should be no excuse for
not making a conscious decision to alter our own lives for the
better:

for the CEO who wants to be seen as a leader
for the COO who wants to be CEO
for the CFO who wants to drive the stock straight up
for the lawyer who wants to serve her clients better and build
her practice
for the salesman who wants to run his own region
for the researcher who wants to help his clients and his own
management understand the incomprehensible
for the team leader who wants to see better performance in
his unit