Business Book Summaries

Somehow, you've suddenly found yourself responsible for giving a speech! Don't fret; you can learn how to overcome the fear of public speaking.

While some people seem to have a natural propensity for public speaking, no one is exempt from nervousness.

What can you do? There are specific action steps you can take to help alleviate your nerves, even if you've never stood in front of a group of people before.

Here are some things you can do to help you get through your presentation:

1. Be prepared. The best thing to do to help you overcome your fear of speaking is to be prepared! Once you know your material and have your speech ready, you're ready to prepare for the final part – speaking.

Having a well-practiced speech will give you confidence. You're the expert on this material, after all, or you wouldn't be speaking in the first place.

Practice making your presentation so you can get into a rhythm and know how the presentation will flow. Say your speech aloud to practice difficult words or names and to time yourself. If you have other presenters, practice as a group and be open to feedback from others. Practice using any slides or power point presentations you've included in your speech.

2. Strengthen your presentation. There are simple things you can do to make your speech go from ordinary to extraordinary. Making eye contact, pausing at certain points, and having visual aids are things that will bring your speech up a notch. Learning these things ahead of time and including them in your practice sessions will alleviate some nerves. Find one or two things to focus on the first time you speak. Very few people make the perfect speech every time so the key is to learn from each presentation to make future speeches even better.

3. Be proud of doing your best. Keep in mind that everyone who speaks gets nervous ahead of time, some more so than others. Once you consider you aren't alone in your feelings, it makes it easier to deal with them. Refrain from comparing yourself to others. There will always be someone better and someone worse than you. Just do your personal best and be happy that you've given it your all. Find a mentor, or someone who is more experienced in public speaking, to ask advice. Learn from their mistakes.

4. Practice speaking in public. If you're going to be speaking frequently, you can find ways to get more practice. Take a class on public speaking, or volunteer at a community organization. The more you practice, the better you'll get.  If you care about animals, kids, or social issues, there are many venues for you to speak, go find a local club or school and volunteer your time. Start off small. Practice speaking in a classroom full of children first. Read aloud during religious services at your place of worship. If you have a favorite hobby, volunteer to teach a class about that hobby at your local library.

Don't worry about how perfect your speech is. In six months, it won't matter. What will matter is that you've done your best, improved, and possibly inspired one person with your words. That's what it's all about, anyway.

Firstly, don’t be fooled – storytelling skills aren’t just handy when you have to put kids to sleep. Sure, if you have children, you've probably told the traditional bedtime stories – Goldilocks and the Three Bears, The Princess and the Pea, or others – hundreds of times. But there are many times throughout people’s lives that being a good storyteller comes in handy. One may very well need to be a good storyteller as a business owner, employee, writer, teacher, or in many other occupations.

As the authors Watts Wacker and Ryan Mathews tell us in their book What's Your Story, storytelling is a universal human activity through which people tell each other who they are, how they differ from other people, and what they believe. Storytelling ability gives one the primal power to move markets, audiences, people, companies and brands. Businesses, they say, tell stories all the time, but for the most part business storytellers lack the discipline trained storytellers possess. Storytelling can have a wide variety of applications in business – in today's world, consumers are faced with a multitude of stories that far too often contradict one another and do not allow them to become an active audience. It is high time, therefore, that businesspeople learn to tell stories properly.

There are two items that are absolutely necessary for being a storyteller. A storyteller needs a good story that is relevant to the audience. Be sure you know what you're trying to convey to your audience and keep their interests in mind as you unveil your story.

Be aware of how you're presenting the story, whether orally or written. What tone are you projecting? Are you trying to rush the story to completion? Your presentation will determine how well the audience is pulled into the story.

Here are some tips that will help you become a better storyteller:

1. Read, read, and read some more. You'll stand a better chance of becoming a good storyteller if you're exposed to good stories. Think back to the stories you enjoyed as a child or authors that held your imagination. Use those stories as guidelines for creating your own.

2. Write everything down. If you write down your experiences, things you've heard others say, or dreams you have had, you may be able to incorporate some of that into your stories.

3. Don't limit yourself. Maybe you're interested in storytelling to entertain your children. Start writing your stories down or record them as you tell them to your children. You may decide to create a book of stories much the way Frank Baum did with the OZ stories or C.S. Lewis did with The Chronicles of Narnia.

4. Stick with what you know. Tell stories about something you're passionate about. When you know your subject matter, it's easier to weave a story.

5. Determine what you want to communicate. If you're using a story to help you sell something, your purpose will be to elicit an emotional response, or you may simply want to teach and communicate. The reasons for each story are entirely different.

6. Think of your audience. You can increase a story’s complexity with older audiences.

7. Pay attention to the world around you. Have you noticed a need that's not being met? You could tell a story to call others to action. If you're a business owner, you might be able to use a popular trend as a basis for a story on your website.

8. Learn to stick to the important facts. Storytellers, especially new storytellers, have a tendency to take off on rabbit trails that have nothing to do with their story. By straying from the story, you'll lose your audience's attention. Try writing your story down on paper first; you'll be more likely to remain focused.

9. Consider taking acting lessons. Acting lessons will help you learn to bring your story to life. Use different voices for the characters in the story and practice your improvisational skills.

Storytelling can be an important tool to use when trying to communicate with others. With stories, you can entertain others or bring them to action depending on the story and how well you tell it. Learning how to be a good storyteller can bring you greater success in your endeavor.

Technorati tags: book summaries, business books, business productivity, self improvement, storytelling

One of the most important things anyone could ever learn is focus. We all know that despite its obvious importance, focus is not natural to us. As John Maxwell discusses in his book "Talent is Never Enough", having talent but no focus is like being an octopus and wearing rollerskates – there will be plenty of movement, to be sure, but what is not certain is the direction of said movement.

Here are Maxwell's tips on getting yourself to be focused:

1. Be Intentional – Make Every Action Count. If you are undecided about what to do or where to go, you will simply drift along with the current, so to speak.

2. Challenge Your Excuses. Everyone has a ton or two of reasons for not doing what we need to do – lack of resources, energy, assistance – but of course we should not let these things dampen or derail us!

3. Don’t Let Yesterday Hijack Your Attention. Learn from the past and let go – don't allow yourself to obsess over and get stuck in things that happened, might-have-beens, and should-have-beens.

4. Focus on the Present. So keep your focus in the one area you have control over – today, of course.

5. Stay Focused on Results. If you allow yourself to get distracted by your problems instead of aiming to achieve results, you will most certainly become discouraged and will achieve little – or nothing at all.

6. Develop and Follow Your Priorities. As Peter Drucker said, “Concentration is the key to economic results. No other principle of effectiveness is violated as constantly today as the basic principle… Our motto seems to be, ‘Let’s do a little bit of everything.’ Everyone has many things to do, many goals to achieve, but some of these goals are more important and pressing than others. Learn to prioritize.

7. Focus on Your Strengths, Not Your Weaknesses. No matter how much resources you focus on your weaknesses, they are never going to be as important or significant as your strengths. (Do learn to shore up your weak aspects, though.)

8. Delay Rewards Until the Job Is Done. Don't let yourself get sidetracked by pleasurable things – get yourself to see them as rewards that you can indulge in for a job well done, when your work is done and not before.

Technorati tags: book summaries, business books, business productivity, self improvement, focus, John Maxwell

Using a budget is one of the best ways for you to determine where you stand financially so you can plan for future expenses. A budget can help you live within your means, get out of debt, and have money available for a new car, vacation, or education.

Planning and using a budget doesn't have to be complicated. Plus, once you've put your budget into place, it makes spending decisions a snap.

Here's how to plan your budget, step-by-step:

1. Set goals. Before you begin to plan, it's important to know what your financial goals are.

Write down your company’s financial goals and post them where all those concerned can see them. This will help you all remain focused on reaching your goals rather than giving in to temptations to buy things you don't need.

2. Determine income. Figure out how much money you currently have coming into your company. It's hard to establish a budget if you don't know how much money you have at your disposal. This would include:

• Employment income
• Interest earned
• Any other form of income

3. Figure out your expenses. Listing each bill will help you determine how much money you need to earn each month to reach your financial goals.

4. Subtract expenses from income. Add together all income sources and then add together all expenses. Subtract the expenses from the income, and this will tell you what financial shape your family is in.

5. If your income is greater than your expenses… If you have money left after paying the bills, you may choose to do one of the following:

• Put additional money in savings.
• Invest the money with the help of a financial planner. *Make investments in your company – purchase necessary equipment, etc.
• Pay off debts.

6. If your expenses are greater than your income… If your expenses are more than your income, you have some decisions to make. They may not be pleasant, but if you want to get out of the avalanche of debt, changes are necessary.

Here are some changes you may want to make:

• If your office is too large for your staff, you may want to downsize.

• Do you have, and do you need, more than one vehicle? If two or more cars are necessary, by all means keep them. However, you may be able to buy vehicles that are cheaper to own and maintain. If all the cars aren't necessary, why not sell the extra ones?

• Settle your debts as soon as you can. Once you’ve settled one completely, put some or all of the money that used to be allocated to that debt into paying off other debts so you can get rid of them faster.

It's possible to create a budget your company can live with. By following these step-by-step instructions for planning a budget, you'll be taking a financial step in the right direction. Stick to your budget, and before you know it you can be out of debt for good!

Igniting creativity, problem solving, and risk-taking to score big in business is nothing more than child’s play, according to bestselling author Kevin Carroll, author of the books Rules of the Red Rubber Ball and The Red Rubber Ball at Work. This is never more apparent when he speaks about the openness to innovate and how significant innovators today became that way.

As Carroll points out, it's apparent that the people he interviews and analyzes were very playful in childhood, where they were encouraged in their youthful creative pursuits by those around them: their family, friends, and teachers. Each of their profiles reveals the significance of being allowed to “skin one's knees” in an attempt to stretch beyond the imagined boundaries of an idea – which is of course what innovation is all about!

That encouragement developed each person’s ability as an adult to take an idea, create multiple iterations of solutions, and ultimately deliver another idea that solved a business problem.

For author, speaker and entrepreneur Seth Godin, for instance, play is scenario planning. In his youth, Seth’s strategy was never to rely on one plan of attack. Instead, he anticipated multiple scenarios, used abstract thinking to envision an unknown future, and predicted how events might unfold. It was a possibility that an ally would deceive him or that an army would fail. Now, the 44 year-old Godin is a self-dubbed change agent who tells marketers and CEOs how to prepare for the unexpected, react to crisis, and alter direction when their companies and careers take unforeseen turns. His childhood days of scenario planning helped him prepare for the role he was to take in future. Fostering others’ ability to react to the unexpected is how Seth plays at work.

Or take Emily Crumpacker, renowned chef and consultant, for whom play is improvisation and imagination. She loved to cook even as a child, but one day she made an angel food cake that was inedible! But her grandmother performed an act of culinary magic and transformed the supposedly ruined cake into a delicious batch of bread pudding. Emily was mesmerized – and she never forgot her grandmother’s simple act of culinary magic. Emily today reflects that cooking requires flexibility and the ability to solve problems on the fly – chocolate sprinkles and chopped parsley can be lifesavers, she says. She is a master at creating meals from whatever is on hand in her refrigerator.

Lastly, for futurist Andrew Zolli, play is inventing without constraint. As a child Andrew quickly realized that he wasn’t just a kid who would enjoy computer games; he was a kid who would actually make them. For him, computer programming was a form of play that allowed him to control a universe of his own creation. Without even knowing it, he was learning certain principles of abstract math and multidimensional thinking that most students don’t learn in college. Now, Andrew Zolli makes his living deciphering systems on a global level. He studies the complex trends at the intersection of technology, sustainability and global society that are shaping the future.

Technorati tags: book summaries, business books, business productivity, self improvement, innovation, Kevin Carroll

Do you feel like you're so busy that you don't have time for a life? Do you feel as if you're constantly running behind?

There are ways you can learn to negotiate your work life so you become more productive.

Once you become more organized at work, you can more fully enjoy your time away from work as well. If you're not stressing about your job, you can relax when you're at home and live a more balanced life.

How can you be more productive? What can you do to improve the quality of your life?

Here are a few ideas to find work-life balance:

1. Slow Down. If you're feeling overwhelmed and it seems like you're running in circles, sometimes the best thing you can do is to slow down. Take the time to prioritize. Going faster doesn't mean you're more productive or that you accomplish more things. Doing things right the first time will save time in the long run.

2. Stop Procrastinating. There are certain things about any job that are mundane. If you take the time to do the tedious parts of your job, you can breathe a sigh of relief sooner. Schedule an afternoon to finish those pesky tasks so you can move on to more interesting (or even fun!) things.

3. Share The Work. You don't have to do everything! Recruit some help from your fellow employees or family members. Delegate responsibilities, and you'll get everything done in a timely manner. This facilitates teamwork and makes everyone feel like they've made a contribution. It also gives you some relief while your helpers gain a sense of accomplishment.

4. Simplify. Don't make things complicated. As humans, we tend to make extra work for ourselves even if it's unnecessary. Why reinvent the wheel? If something works, don't try to fix it. Always remember the KISS method: Keep It Simple Silly.

5. De-clutter. Streamlining your workspace helps you focus on your work. Arrange your desk so you can reach what you need the moment you need it. Sifting through multiple piles costs you valuable time, causes frustration, and can even prevent you from completing important tasks!

6. Learn To Say No. When your workload is maxed out, be assertive about saying no. Help your boss understand that your plate is full and you're not being insubordinate. Stay within your scheduled hours. Once you've learned to keep work from cutting into your personal time, you will become more empowered to enjoy life outside the office walls.

7. Implement Technology. Use technology to your advantage. A small time investment in entering information, such as addresses and other contact information, into a computer system can save volumes of time later. Once you've implemented a system, it's much easier to make changes to information and stay current. It also makes it easier to keep up with detailed customer information.

8. Eliminate Distractions. If your personal life interferes with your job, set some boundaries. Be firm when you have work to finish. Leave your cell phone in the car or switch it off during work hours. Discourage frequent personal calls or visits. Delay socializing with co-workers until your work is done.

Once you've learned to streamline your workday, you'll find that you no longer dread going to work and bringing it all home! Imagine knowing that you're ready to start your day instead of playing catch up from yesterday.

Be sure to start using these ideas today to enjoy a great work-life balance and a more fulfilling life!

Technorati tags: book summaries, business books, business productivity, self improvement, work-life balance

Conventional wisdom has it that you have to be prestigious, wealthy, capable or powerful in order to influence other people and sway them to your side. But there are other ways of becoming influential that have little or nothing to do with those more traditional methods of increasing one's influence.

Al Betz, author of "Outfluence", tells us that social influence can be utilized in order to bring about positive change – his method, Outfluence, after which his book is named, has to do with silent and nonverbal communication. The philosophy behind this concept is that silent communication often speaks more effectively for us than does auditory communication.

Outfluence is a constant messaging process that we engage in purposely and, frequently, silently. It’s focused on the relationship between you and a current customer, on the budding connection between you and a prospective client, or on a developing personal bond.

Outfluence, says Betz, is silently delivered – one simply does not have to say much for it to be effective. Impact is delivered silently over time by using low frequency messages such as your thoughtful actions, respectful voice, and well-crafted writings. In addition, if you can silently perform your job with a deliberate strategy that focuses on giving rather than getting, you have a better chance at having your actions interpreted as you intend them.

As provided by Betz, here are 20 communication fundamentals that are often expressed silently, and as such fit perfectly into the Outfluence framework:

BEFORE YOU MAKE CONTACT: 1. Be the solution, not the problem 2. Inspire your performance 3. Read 4. Write well

DURING CONTACT: 5. Compliment sincerely and often 6. Control emotions 7. Be courteous 8. Dress appropriately 9. Treat everyone with equal respect 10. Offer a firm handshake 11. Honor promises 12. Listen more, speak less 13. Make mistakes 14. Pick up the pace 15. Make quality eye contact 16. Smile 17. Speak with dignity 18. Take measured chances 19. Think before you speak 20. Understand the power of words

Technorati tags: book summaries, business books, business productivity, self improvement, Outfluence, Al Betz

Have you ever been working peacefully at your desk when suddenly your manager showed up to discuss an office concern? Before you knew it, your manager was walking away, leaving sparks in the air and frustration in his wake. What happened?

Most likely, it was a communication problem. Learning how to communicate effectively with your manager will not only enable you to keep your job, but also advance your career.

It's not always what you know that determines how far you can progress in a job. Very often your employment success is based upon how well you get along with other people in the office, especially your boss.

It's quite possible that the lack of communication might not be entirely your fault. Perhaps your manager needs to brush up on their communication skills, too.

However, doing whatever you can to communicate better will help you get your point across more effectively and make you an indispensable member of the team.

These ideas may prove beneficial in communicating effectively with your boss:

1. Trust. Is a lack of trust between you and your manager part of the problem?

• Build trust by working hard to do your job right the first time.
• Speak with them in a pleasant manner, and always speak well of them.
• Even when you disagree with your manager, try to do so without being defensive.

2. Criticism. If your manager feels you're not pulling your weight on a project, don't let them walk all over you.

• Be respectful as you stand up for yourself.
• Don't allow disagreements to turn into shouting matches or arguments.
• Realize they're trying to do their job just as much as you're trying to do yours.
• Instead of taking their criticism personally, listen to what they're saying and respond effectively.

3. Personality Clash. Even if the two of you simply can't get along personally, that doesn't mean all is lost.

• Start at a point of respect for the position and communicate professionally and effectively, leaving personal issues behind.

4. Simple Miscommunications. Is it possible there's merely miscommunication between the two of you? Maybe you haven't fully understood what your manager was trying to tell you or your manager completely missed what you were trying to say.

• If you both put forth the effort to try to understand each other, the communication between the two of you can only improve.

5. Nonverbal Signals. An important part of your message in communicating is not what you say, but how you say it – the intensity, inflection, and tone of voice. Your body language also conveys what's being said as much as the words.

• If your arms are crossed over your chest when speaking, it shows that your mind is made up and there's no changing it.

*  Establish and maintain eye contact to signal that you're interested in their opinion.

• Work on keeping an even tone of voice and staying in a neutral position while you're talking with your manager.

Using your nonverbal signals correctly could transform your relationship with your manager from being confrontational into a great working relationship!

Small improvements in how you speak and act toward your manager could make a big difference in the way the two of you get along. Practice these ideas to more effectively communicate with your manager, improve your working relationship, and enjoy greater success at work!

Technorati tags: book summaries, business books, business productivity, self improvement, communication

The best public speakers, among other things, are able to easily and quickly convey their vision to their audiences, and can get them fired up and mobilized by doing so.

No better example exists than Barack Obama, whose oratory power proved so instrumental in his successful campaign to become America's first African American president.

As explained by Shel Leanne in her book Say It Like Obama, leaders have a great deal to learn from the way Barack Obama conveys vision so effectively to his audiences. Firstly, if you seek to convey your vision in a compelling manner, referencing history can make ideas more understandable and digestible. Listeners can relate to ideas more readily from a prism of shared history and cherished tradition, and may relate better with references to admired historical figures.

Next, the practice of giving ideas physicality can also play a role in conveying vision effectively. Providing examples and using actual instances can help get one's vision more accurately to one's audience. “Embodiment” can help make ideas more memorable, such as letting your audience see “hope in the eyes.”

Thirdly, highly skilled communicators also employ detail effectively, calibrating the ideal amount of detail they provide as they convey their vision. Go for a happy medium regarding how much detail, avoiding either too little (insufficient) and too much (overwhelming).

Next, the use of dynamic imagery represents another useful communication technique. Similarly, backward loops can be powerful, as a speaker takes listeners back in time to imagine how it once was, comparing and contrasting the past with the present with great effect.

Lastly, effective communicators often offer anecdotes, providing brief narration and short tales to breathe life into key themes. Together, these techniques enable Obama to convey his vision to his audiences in highly compelling and exceedingly effective ways, and they may just do the same for you and your organization.

Technorati tags: book summaries, business books, business productivity, self improvement, communication, Barack Obama

We're proud to announce that Gal Borenstein, acclaimed author of the book What Really Counts for CEOs (published by Borenstein Executive University Press in 2009), is our Author of the Month for February 2009.

At the end of the day, every CEO has to be able to find out which marketing strategies and tactics are working for in his or her company. Yet, trapped by old-school marketing practices that don’t fit and perpetuate finger-pointing between sales and marketing departments, it can be hard to find out for sure which marketing practices are really effective. That’s unless a CEO is able to quickly discern What Really Counts.

It’s a brave new world for CEOs. The move from old-school print advertising to Web 2.0 social networks and the emergence of digital strategies has left many CEOs in the lurch. Far too often, many of them have no idea which part of their marketing works and which part doesn’t. And neither do many of them know what they should invest in to enhance their company’s long-term success. This confusion leads to quite a few CEOs spending more marketing budget dollars than necessary – and by doing so, squandering profit margins and resources that could be used elsewhere.

If the CEO does not understand which parts of the marketing effort are producing the best ROI, there is a strong likelihood that in seeking to increase efficiency, he or she will cut the very infrastructure required to maintain or restore the company’s vitality.

In What Really Counts for CEOs, Gal Borenstein, founder and CEO of the Washington, D.C. integrated marketing communications firm The Borenstein Group, seeks to teach CEOs to ask their marketing, sales and communication teams the right questions that will produce better answers, those which lead to meaningful metrics resulting in marketing outcomes that can be repeated and adjusted accordingly. In short, they will find out What Really Counts and make it work hard for their money.

This book will help CEOs uncover the key challenges they must face, and will give them the tools needed to treat marketing as a science.

The BusinessSummaries.com editorial staff interviewed Gal about his book and the story behind it. Key excerpts from the interview are posted on the BusinessSummaries website. The summary of What Really Counts for CEOs was released to BusinessSummaries.com’s subscribers on January 5, 2009.

Every week, subscribers enjoy business book summaries of today’s business bestsellers in PDF, PDA, Powerpoint, audio, video and mindmap formats. The latest versions of the book summaries are all available online upon subscription to BusinessSummaries.com.

Technorati tags: book summaries, business books, business productivity, self improvement, marketing, Gal Borenstein