Page 47 - The New Articulate Executive_ Look, Act and Sound Like a Leader

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THE STRONG START

hen you begin your presentation or speech, you don’t have
W to be funny and you don’t have to be clever. But you should
never, ever be boring. So to make sure you don’t get off on the wrong
foot with your audience, plunge right in.
The POWER formula goes like this:

P STANDS FOR PUNCH

To galvanize the minds of the audience, you’ve got to strike quickly. We

have already talked briefly about the philosophical need for a strong

start. Here are eight specific ways to begin with a punch:
1. Begin with the ending. In other words, the conclusion goes fi rst.
Start with a strong statement that embraces your message. Omega
becomes alpha, alpha-omega—the start and finish become one.

This is perhaps the strongest way to begin business presenta-
tions, which are typically rated for their clarity and straightforward-
ness. Nothing could be clearer than an uncompromising statement
that says it all. Nothing could be more straightforward than cutting
straight to the core within just a matter of seconds. And nothing
could make your job of transferring some kind of news to your audi-

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