Mentoring & Coaching, Mentoring or Coaching, Mentoring vs. Coaching

I was talking with one of my clients today about mentoring and coaching. What I know to be true is that mentoring should be a time-limited, extremely professional WORKING relationship wherein the mentor guides, advises, and introduces the mentee in the ways of their world.

Oftentimes what happens in these relationships is that the mentee starts doing work for the mentor so it is critical that this relationship is time-limited because the mentee has to be pushed out of the next before resentment sets in.

Coaches are not mentors because their working relationship isn't necessarily time limited and the focus is on the client's entire life, not simply introductions and best practices for a particular career. Of course coaches and clients don't share workloads either so there's not the challenge of resentment.
Here is a wonderful summary of the amazing benefits of coaching.
And:
Here is a wonderful summary of the amazing benefits of mentoring.
Enjoy.

Building Self-Confidence: Distinguishing between Success and Fulfillment

Building Self-Confidence: Distinguishing between Success and Fulfillment


As a professional coach, I am privileged to work with many clients from various walks of life, with differing skills and experiences.

What they all have in common is the presenting issue:

“I want a new path, new skills, new direction for my life or my career, I feel my success is slipping, I would like someone to help me sort it all out with me so I can be more fulfilled”.

This is the typical statement my clients bring to me when they begin coaching.

Sometimes this deep desire for fulfillment doesn't 'show up' at first. It is more like:

“Can you help me? I want to learn this new skill, change careers, work on my relationship with my family, make a change in my lifestyle, and move. I am seeking success so I can feel fulfilled.”

Underneath these desires is the desire to build or rebuild self-confidence so that they have the courage to find fulfillment.

What happens next is fascinating. We build a plan based on a combination of action and this deeper need for fulfillment.

Most often we start with the 'Wheel of Life' a tool that measures fulfillment in various areas of life-career, relationship, and personal growth, among other things. Once we see the results we can understand a whole life measured by degree of satisfaction in each area. It is a snapshot taken in the present moment and gives us a direction for the work. What happens next is fascinating. We build a plan based on a combination of action and values.

As we work to connect or re-connect to self-confidence, shifts take place for my clients and life moves forward toward fulfillment. Most people think fulfillment emerges from successes. What I know to be true is success emerges from fulfillment.

Here are some self-coaching questions for you to consider when you are seeking success!

• What does success mean to you?
• Do you consider yourself successful?
• How do you know you’re successful? What measures are you using?
• How about fulfilled? Have your successes fulfilled you?
• What would you uncover if you applied success & fulfillment in different categories -- family, work, career, retirement, and relationship? Does each category have a different degree of success?
• Is there something you would like to do to increase your successes and fulfillment?
• What would you need to let go of to improve?
• If you have chased successes that now seem unimportant, can you let them go?
• Overall, are you satisfied with what you discover?
• Do you have any unfulfilled dreams? Can you follow them now and see if they become successes for you?
• What if you were seeking to be fulfilled? How would the answers to these questions change for you?

If you want to explore the questions of Success & Fulfillment further. Click here and access the Confidence Connections Wheel of Life and reconnect to your most confident self.

Workplace Bullying: Hard Times Make Defending Harder

Here is a brief case study of the impact of our current economic circumstances on our perspective and therefore our confidence.

Situations:

Just this past week I received 2 'emergency' calls and 2 inquiries from people who were having trouble with office bullies. The callers were struggling because things seem different now.

They said, in the past they tolerated an office bully situation because they believed they had an escape value: taking another job. But NOW they felt totally trapped because 'there are no jobs out there'. Feeling trapped removed whatever coping mechanisms they had in place.

Action:

1. Become aware of the source of your feelings. In this case the shift from the ability to change jobs to feeling trapped.

2. Evaluate your options.

My guidance included reviewing options by using my Confidence Connections Perspective Wheel. Very quickly 8-10 viable options emerged. Everything from continuing to do nothing to quitting or retiring to filing a complaint or holding a public confrontation or doing absolutely nothing for 48 hours was on the table. This may seem obvious in retrospect but, when one feels trapped, oh boy, watch out, things get dark very quickly. Within one session more options than they had ever considered suddenly became possibilities.

Results:

Once the callers could see the plethora of options, we could get down to work to develop a uniquely crafted response to the situation using a set of questions to help focus thoughts and actions. Each caller answered the 5 important questions to using my Confidence Connections Focus Tool focus their actions. Each took action and within 48 hours and each situation showed some improvement. For some callers the path to slaying the bully is a long one of introspection and action but what I know to be true is that once a path is chosen, action happens and positive change takes place.

Summary:

What was learned? Waiting until we're trapped before we learn how to respond to a difficult situation is the hard way to live. Once we feel trapped we lose our power and have a hard time uncovering our options. Talking through the situation with a professional coach can open up more opportunities and options. Once we manage the fear and focus attention on a well-conceived action plan, it is completely possible to take charge of the situation and win the day. Likely the bullies will still behave like bullies but the targets will behave differently with their new skills.

Building a Private Practice:
How Much Should You Charge for Your Services?

All of my clients come to me with the $ question. How much should I charge?

A Recent Harvard Business Review report noted coaching fees range from around 100 bucks to over 3K for a session. That’s quite a range. How do you figure out your sweet spot-the place your clients are willing to pay for your services? Ah, this is not a simple question, nor a simply answered question. But here’s what I know:

• You can’t charge more than you can comfortably ask because your discomfort will show through and hurt your credibility
• Your mindset influences your ability to set fees, therefore, as your confidence grows, so will your fees
• You have to determine if you’re a commodity service or a professional service: we bargain for commodities, we respect professionals
• Consider Packaging your Services: Many in private practice charge by the hours per month. But that’s not the only way to make a living
• Develop different income streams to increase your revenues
• Pay attention to your ‘league’. Are you in the majors, minors or varsity league? Plan out what it will take to move up, if you want to.
• Align yourself with bigger league players and practice, practice, practice. Even if you’re on the bench for a while, you’re hanging with the home run set and that increases your credibility.
• Work your skills and talents: All you do should be based on, please, your unique abilities, not other people’s pre-written seminars or models. It’s very difficult to be credible as a trainer IF you haven’t developed your own materials.
• Develop your unique skills: Coaching and training models can and should be adapted to suit the needs of your clients and the strengths you bring to the work. Your creative adaptations will make you uniquely qualified to serve your clients and charge your worth

Focus on the Cornerstones of Confidence

Trust Yourself
Learn About Yourself
Build Emotional Support for Yourself
Focus on Your Productivity

For a complete report on the Cornerstones of Confidence click here: http://www.salterva.com/kathleen/JVGiftCornerstones.html

Job Searches: Times Change

Are you using social networks to find employment?
If not, you're missing an important tool. One of my clients was found through LinkedIn when his profile matched an employer's needs. the employer sought him out and the match was perfect.

Here are some important ways to use social networks to build your confidence connections:

• your photo
• a strong and accurate bio/resume/description of you and your background
• having others post recommendations on your LinkedIn page
• joining groups with people who would be of assistance to you
• participating in group discussions so you become known and can demonstrate your expertise
• establish connections to 'connectors' (those extroverts who get around and seem to know everyone)
• add connections to those in your industry
• don't forget connections to friends and family who will learn more about you and what you do from that bio you wrote
• sharing your connections with others

For more info on social networking and other job search tips, click on the title of this article and read a recent newspaper article on this subject.

Managing your Professional Image

Click the link in the title of this article and help yourself to some good tips on maintaining your professional image when using social networking tools. Perhaps you'll know everything in this and it will serve as a reminder. But, from what I have seen much of this isn't applied. Enjoy.

Examiner.com Social Media Marketing to build Confidence Connections

Here's a Great way to build your confidence connections to social media marketing.

The title of this blog is a link to an interesting article on using Social Medial Marketing. 

This article was posted on Examiner.com. 

Examiner.com is a hosting site for vetted professionals wishing to share their expertise with like-minded individuals. I am a contributing editor to this website and can testify to the high quality of my colleagues. I recommend a subscription because, justlike earticle.com you don't have to sign up for someone's news to access this information.

Social Networking

On June 23 I attended my first meeting of Professional Women's Network http://pwnscal.ning.com/

and enjoyed meeting some outstanding women professionals. 

Here is a follow-up note I created for the attendees. 

Greetings to all you wonderful women. I have a few ideas to pass on but first my sincere thanks to Victoria and Kym for an outstanding overview of social networking. If I wasn't convinced that this is a necessary addition to my marketing plan (and, indeed free), I would be now.

On that subject:

AN INVITATION
For those who want an in depth intro to starting/expanding/utilizing your social networking options, I'm offering a one-time training using LinkedIn as the example of how all this works. The meeting for this will be Friday morning, July 10, 7:30 AM at the Rancho Park Golf Club meeting house (at Patricia and Pico Blvd). If you are interested in joining us (the special fee for this event is 20 bucks, including breakfast), then please sign up by visiting the Network LA site on meetup la (here's the link):
http://www.meetup.com/The-Los-Angeles-Network-LA-Meetup-Group/calendar/?__force_urlname=true

If this link doesn't work, then subscribe to meetup and you can find Network LA and register for the meeting that way: http://www.meetup.com/

Below are some pearls of wisdom by category so skip what you know:

GOOGLE ALERTS & LEARNING NEW THINGS:
If you go to google alerts: http://www.google.com/alerts
you can register or log in and enter some key words and receive a daily log of articles containing those words. So, if you want more info on the whys and hows of social networking, then those are you key words. You'll find tons of free materials for your use (also a lot of sign up and buy me, which you can skip, really). Almost everything you need to know about these sites is within the sites themselves in the tutorials. It's amazing how much free material there is and how much folks are paying for the same information. The best use of your $$ is to have a tutorial in person or on a webinar so you can apply your learning immediately. Plowing through the tutorials requires some knowledge of the lingo these sites use in common and that take some time.

More on Google Alerts in another email.

CONSTANT CONTACT:
Are you sending e'zines (electronic magazines)? If not, then that needs to be added to your to-do list. Social networking alone is not enough to foster your client base and keep you on their minds.
That said, I am adding you to my ezine list. You can email me back declining, decline when you receive the first ezine or help yourself to the info I share with my readers.

CONSOLIDATING YOUR SOCIAL NETWORK EFFORTS:
Start with one (see the offer above) of the networks. Once you're familiar with one of these sites, you'll realize they are all very similar. And, if you have more than one of these networks up and running then visit: http://ping.fm/ and sign up for this free application and consolidate your messages into one easy (and free) system.

GETTING ORGANIZED:

If you don't have one already, please find an old-fashioned telephone address book for your social networking and on-line memberships. I cannot tell you the horror stories I have heard about not organizing this material. First, if you have it on your computer, and you crash your computer, you have to start over. Second, you think you'll remember but...you won't. I promise.

If you're interested in attending the training scheduled for July 10, then follow the instructions above.

Success=wisdom. Work with a coach who has both: hhttp://budurl.com/eptj

Imagine having someone to talk with who understands what it means to need to change direction! Visit: http://ping.fm/L95sk

Invited to write for Workplace50+. I will accept and I'm looking forward to it.

ARE YOU LEADING A HECTIC, STRESS-OUT, OVER-DOING LIFE? ME TOO!

The past three weeks have been flat out wild for me. Among holiday preparations, clients, and my writing, I have been working day and night, violating my own ‘laws of Be-ing and Do-ing’. My epiphany happened when I was about to spend Sunday afternoon developing yet another to-do list and yet was so exhausted I couldn’t pull myself up off the couch. My JOY quotient hit a low mark. And, knowing this life in the fast lane is a problem for many professionals, I decided to get back to basics and share my knowledge with myself and my readers.

What I know to be true is we don’t need to DO we need to BE.

So, I went to the movies & I felt like a new woman as soon as I made the decision to relax and take the evening off. When I returned to my office the next morning, I was refreshed and ready to conquer the to-do list.

So, if you’re overwhelmed by work, life, chores, or worries, try using the following ‘rules’ for taking a break and BE instead of adding more DO to your life. You’ll be glad you did.

Some research-based rules for Balancing Do-ing and Be-ing:

1. STOP: Finish reading this article and then plan to do something joyful
2. FOCUS: Decide your core business model so you don’t spin your wheels and spend your time and money on things that won’t matter.
3. ACT with AWARENESS: Increase your productivity & creativity by resting your brain for 24 hours at least once per week.
4. PLAN: Work fills the time available so reduce your available time and increase your effectiveness.
5. STRATEGIZE: Think big picture by taking a 12-month perspective and planning your vacations and down time to help set goals and strategy.
6. GROW: Network to fill your business pipeline full.
7. EXERCISE: clear the mind and stay positive.
8. HYDRATE: Drink plenty of water to keep your body strong.
9. SUPPORT: Hire a professional certified life/business coach to support you to balance your Do/Be activities.

Confidence Connections Tip: Be humble but not needy at the interview.

Changing interview strategies to deal with Gen Y mindset - fun!

Saw Ali Brown's new website: http://www.alibrown.com . Very nice.

Confidence Connections Tip: Are you working every day? Treat job hunting as a full-time job. Get up, get dressed, get to work.

Handling obstructionists managers for HR

Confidence Connections Tip: Don't delay when you see a job, apply for it!

Building your Private Practice Business: 5 Steps to a Success
(and not one is about social networking)

If you’re in private practice as a coach, therapist, or consultant, for example, then you’re dealing with potential clients and customers. And that means, like it or not, you’re…selling. And, likely you hate that word. (It has all sorts of overtones to widgets, pressure, disrespect, cold calling, etc.) All the junk we impute into the idea of selling are confidence trashers, by the way!

Okay, so let’s change the mindset to…relationship building. That way you don’t have to sell anything at all. You just have to listen and look for the match between your services and the person’s needs. Here’s what I teach my clients about ‘not-selling’.

If you goal is to build your practice and make a difference in the world, then your strategy is to get the ‘right’ clients to say something akin to: “I can’t wait to work with you.” Or, “ I hope you have room in your practice for me.” How do you implement this strategy?

1. Build trust: You do this by helping your prospective client feel safe with you by releasing them from any pressure to hire you. Then you build rapport by listening carefully to their presenting issues. If you can hear the ‘need under the need’ you can touch on that so the person feels understood. You’re building trust!

2. Make room for difference: Allow yourself and your prospective client to have differences of opinion or analysis. You can posit a different perspective, opportunities, and point of view so that it becomes obvious that you’re independent yet aligned with the person.

3. Look for commitments: NOT commitment to work together but commitment around how you work with your clients. Your strategy, for example.

4. Set accountability: How would you work with this person? In person, via telephone. How will they know you’re accountable? What do you tolerate from clients. For example, I work with many executives who cannot be sure they can make their appointments so I have a 12-hour cancellation policy instead of 24 hours. This gives us more freedom and I have designed projects I can do should I have a free slot in my day. It all works out well in the end. I do my best to be flexible where I can and yet set very high standards for completing assignments.

5. Outline goals: If the client comes to you with a presenting problem (difficult employee) but their fulfillment goal is a strong high-functioning dependable team, then invite the person to have this bigger goal.

More questions than answers? Call your Confidence Coach, Kathleen Schulweis, CPCC, PCC:
Building private practices and saving relationships for more years than she cares to admit.

Confidence Connections Tip: Get out to networking events

*Free* Special Report, “Kolbe Summary”. Discover yourself & find out your instinctive method of operation http://ping.fm/58Ry9

Free Rpt“12 VITALLY IMPORTANT AND HELPFUL NETWORKING TIPS” Strengthen ur networking strategies! http://ping.fm/vhI8G

Confidence Connections Tip: Know how you solve problems and be sure to use those words during your job interview.

If you wish u could find ur way, then u need a professional certified coach who focuses on building confidence & knowledge http://ow.ly/eF8x

Confidence Connections has a NEW Facebook Page. Pls visit-I'll share Confidence Building Info http://ping.fm/nszpj

"Cornerstones of Confidence” Insightful *Free* Rpt providing guidance for self-confidence. http://ping.fm/3Ri0j

Article, “The Office Bully - Can You Stand Up For Yourself?”
http://ping.fm/9XfOc

Free Report, "How to Hire and Keep the Best Person for the Job" http://ping.fm/QiuXB

Feeling the pain of fear? Answers here: http://ping.fm/oECI8

Confidence Connections Tip: Release the employer 'thinking of the company and their needs, not mine'

Top way to grow a biz: Public Speaking: http://budurl.com/bzf7

Wrong mental attitude? Then you're doomed: http://ping.fm/n7WZW

“Cornerstones of Confidence” Insightful *Free* Rpt providing guidance for self-confidence. http://ping.fm/8VvEx

Imagine having someone to talk with who understands what it means to need to change direction! Visit: http://ping.fm/CfUt1

Can you explain to others the work you are seeking? http://ping.fm/m5Jbx

Confidence Connections Tip: During interview, don't sell yourself - act as a consultant at the interview

Article, “The Office Bully - Can You Stand Up For Yourself?”
http://ping.fm/vIYqF

I invite u to become a Fan of my Facebook Page, where I'll share Confidence Building Info http://ping.fm/pDnUN

Beware of Scam in LA: Documentarians r calling Coaches to be on film, but it's a set up 2 provoke outrage from coach.Kind of Borat redu!

“One important key to success is self-confidence. An important key to self-confidence is preparation.” Arthur Ashe

"If you doubt yourself, then indeed you stand on shaky ground." ~Henrik Ibsen

Top way to grow a biz - Public Speaking. Visit: http://budurl.com/bzf7

Confidence Connections Tip: Interview Tip~ Be humble but not needy at the interview

All true success depends at last upon yourself: http://ping.fm/1JaRa

Ssuccess and core values: friends or foes? http://budurl.com/eptj

"It is not the mountain we conquer but ourselves." ~Edmund Hillary

*Free* Special Report, “Kolbe Summary”. Discover yourself & find out your instinctive method of operation http://ping.fm/2Te0g

“Cornerstones of Confidence” Insightful *Free* Rpt providing guidance for self-confidence. http://ping.fm/vqpxZ

Confidence Connections Tip: On your Resume - Know how you solve problems, and use those words

Free Rpt“12 VITALLY IMPORTANT AND HELPFUL NETWORKING TIPS” Strengthen ur networking strategies! http://ping.fm/jGxjo

"Without a humble but reasonable confidence in your own powers you cannot be successful or happy."~Norman Vincent Peale

Anyone can fail. do you have the confidence to take a chance?
http://budurl.com/eptj

Belief in a thing makes it happen, along with lots of hard work: http://ping.fm/nwyhP

Confidence Connections Tip: Match your resume with key words

"Don't live down to expectations. Go out there and do something remarkable."~Wendy Wasserstein

New Report: Cornerstones of Confidence: http://ping.fm/DurQZ

"If you really put a small value upon yourself, rest assured that the world will not raise your price." ~Author Unknown

Feeling the pain of fear? Answers here: http://ping.fm/4GalN

Confidence Connections Tip: Job searching is a job not an avocation. Get to work. To your success!

Confidence Connections TIp: Get out to networking events

Success and core values: friends or foes? http://budurl.com/eptj

Success=wisdom. Work with a coach who has both: http://budurl.com/eptj

Wrong mental attitude? Then you're doomed: http://ping.fm/dXHN7

All true success depends at last upon yourself: http://ping.fm/ecMlh

Feeling the pain of fear? Answers here: http://ping.fm/5VlPw

Know your instinctive problem-solving style? http://budurl.com/eptj

Anyone can fail. Do you have the confidence to take a chance?
http://budurl.com/eptj

Are u arranging informational interviews? Use ur network to meet others & arrange an informational interview. http://ping.fm/x7tCM

*Free* Special Report, “Kolbe Summary”. Discover yourself & find out your instinctive method of operation http://ping.fm/9kHPp

"Impatience never commanded success." E. H. Chapin. Visit: http://budurl.com/eptj

Free Rpt“12 VITALLY IMPORTANT AND HELPFUL NETWORKING TIPS” Strengthen ur networking strategies! http://ping.fm/fHWaq

“Cornerstones of Confidence” Insightful *Free* Rpt providing guidance for self-confidence. http://ping.fm/5C8JU

*Free*Report,“Confidence Connections--Networking Strategies”Strategies for professionals http://ping.fm/SeGYb

Article, “The Office Bully - Can You Stand Up For Yourself?”
http://ping.fm/ACkGk

Are you keeping your resume fresh? It is critical that you keep active and keep adding new actions to your resume.

"Success is the sum of small efforts, repeated day in and day out."~
Robert Collier

Belief in a thing makes it happen, along with lots of hard work: http://ping.fm/0cu4J

Article, “Are You 'Crash Dieting' Your Business?” http://ping.fm/oh08B

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"Nothing builds self-esteem and self-confidence like accomplishment." Thomas Carlyle

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Success=wisdom. Work with a coach who has both: hhttp://budurl.com/eptj

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Empowered from birth or did someone cut your cocoon? Find confidence at: http://budurl.com/eptj

DIVE IN! Help us make Parenting Dad #1 on Amazon! Ck out the gifts you get - http://ping.fm/9b7Bm Today only! Great Father's Day gift

Top way to grow a business: public speaking. Visit: http://budurl.com/bzf7

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Would you like to have self-confidence that comes from a strong belief in yourself? http://ping.fm/jOZIT

Are u ready 2 start making more money,having bigger/better sales successes, work fewer hrs/do more of what u enjoy?http://ping.fm/XQsT5

Can you explain to others the work you are seeking? Know who u are, what direction you’re heading & what u have to offer. http://ow.ly/cXlS

Free Rpt“12 VITALLY IMPORTANT AND HELPFUL NETWORKING TIPS” Strengthen ur networking strategies! http://ping.fm/eNC7r

Know your instinctive problem-solving style? http://budurl.com/eptj

"Never bend your head. Always hold it high. Look the world straight in the face." Helen Keller

"Opportunities to find deeper powers within ourselves come when life seems most challenging.” Joseph Campbell

Feeling the pain of fear? Answers here: http://ping.fm/6YGJQ

Empowered from birth or did someone cut your cocoon? Find confidence at: http://budurl.com/eptj

*Free* Special Report, “Kolbe Summary”. Discover yourself & find out your instinctive method of operation http://ping.fm/JEIbI

Success=wisdom. Work with a coach who has both: hhttp://budurl.com/eptj

"Success is the sum of small efforts, repeated day in and day out." Robert Collier

"Impatience never commanded success" E. H. Chapin. visit: http://budurl.com/eptj

Free Rpt“12 VITALLY IMPORTANT AND HELPFUL NETWORKING TIPS” Strengthen ur networking strategies! http://ping.fm/DgESu

“Cornerstones of Confidence” Insightful *Free* Rpt providing guidance for self-confidence. http://ping.fm/Olnqk

Are you working every day?Treat job hunting as a full-time job. Get up, get dressed, get to work. Clock in. Clock out. Keep notes, set goals

*Free*Report,“Confidence Connections--Networking Strategies”Strategies for professionals http://ping.fm/KZLwK

Article, “The Office Bully - Can You Stand Up For Yourself?”
http://ping.fm/n0HbU

Are observing proper etiquette when you’re networking? Always dress as if you’re going on a job interview. Arrive on time. Be courteous.

Can you explain to others the work you are seeking? Know who u are, what direction you’re heading & what u have to offer. http://ow.ly/bjH4

Article, “Are You 'Crash Dieting' Your Business?” http://ping.fm/74KHf

For tips on building Confidence, be sure to visit my blog: http://ping.fm/002vG

"The way you treat yourself sets the standard for others." ~Sonya Friedman

Free Rpt“12 VITALLY IMPORTANT AND HELPFUL NETWORKING TIPS” Strengthen ur networking strategies! http://ping.fm/HCxJT

“Cornerstones of Confidence” Insightful *Free* Rpt providing guidance for self-confidence. http://ping.fm/aks7K

Article, “Are You 'Crash Dieting' Your Business?” http://ping.fm/PLhfd

Face-to-face networking is still the answer. New Report: http://ping.fm/bYkx2

Empowered from birth or did someone cut your cocoon? Find confidence at: http://budurl.com/eptj

Ever killed by a bad introduction? Learn how to avoid a disaster: http://ping.fm/7MvSU

Avoid False Starts: Speaking of Introductions

Scheduled to Speak? Five Tips for a Great Introduction

Once upon a time, I was invited to speak to a very special group of women entrepreneurs.

The host was a well-known speaker and I assume she would introduce me with grace and power. Her introduction was flat. She depressed the audience within seconds. Not only could she not pronounce my name, she could not create cadence with the sentences of my bio. The result was that I had to re-do my introduction and plug in a lot more motivational messages and humor in order to pull the group back to me and my presentation. While I was able to recover the moment, I learned a big lesson that night. And that was: When it comes to a public presentation...Take Nothing For Granted! Here are 5 tips for managing your introduction.

1. Prepare your Own Introduction and Insist it be Used

No one should have to figure out what is most important about you. Write the introduction and tailor it to your audience. It should be short with lots of punch. Pick the salient points form your history to support your credibility and underscore why YOU are speaking on the topic of the day. This prepares the audience for your talk and sets the stage for you. After all, if great comedians have 'pumpers', why would we think we don't need the help?

2. Insist your Introduction be Used

Insisting your introduction be used requires you to know how much time is allotted for the intro and what the host's expectations might be for the introduction. Accommodate the structure but be sure you create the content.

3. Give your Prepared Introduction to your Host well in Advance of your Presentation

Everyone needs time to prepare for a presentation. The more time the host has to prepare the more likely they'll give an adequate or perhaps outstanding performance.

4. Make your Host Practice with You

This might seen awkward, as if you don't trust the host. Too bad. This is critical for your success. Watch for pronunciation, emphasis, and personality. Change things around in the moment, if it seems necessary.

5. Decide IF your Host should Introduce you

If, after hearing the host practice, you feel the host won't serve your end goals, then ask to be introduced by name only and then take it from there. Here's what I say: 'I don't want to put any pressure on you to make this introduction and I'm very comfortable introducing myself. Would you mind?' If the host agrees, and they usually do, then take over.

For more info on presenting with confidence, shoot me an email @ kschulweis@gmail.com

Kathleen Schulweis

Learning ping.fm tonight. Very cool possibilities.