The latest f:Entrepreneur breakfast was hosted by Minoti Parikh, the founder of TPL Experiences which creates bespoke experiences for private and corporate clients.
Before the lockdown, her business was 100% offline and face to face. Post lockdown, they have now set up systems and processes to build virtual training and team building sessions for all their clients. This has meant quickly developing an e-commerce platform and a coaching platform to diversify their offering.
Thank you Minoti for hosting and to all those that attended.
Minoti started the session by reminding everyone that the business owner is the main reason a business exists – they are the brand. And from this, looked at how we all can work on our communication and deliver the best possible message in a virtual world.
Feeling positive means, we feel confident, which is a huge asset in the virtual world. But how can we deliver our message in the best possible way?
Minoti started by sharing an exercise with the participants and asked them to think about:
What are my strengths?
What is it that your clients most appreciate about you?
The answers to this can set the foundations of the house of virtual presentations.
The House of Virtual Presentations:
Foundations:
The foundations are your self-confidence and they hold the pillars on how to deliver your message.
So, how to we manage our confidence levels when in that important meeting or presentation? And how do we manage nerves? A tip is to do whatever you would do to prepare for a physical meeting in the virtual world. Online is our new reality so if you prepare doing a power pose or meditation for example, adhere to these practices virtually to prepare. Make sure you use the same rituals.
Try and tell your mind not to overthink it. Often when we are isolated in our own space, we can overthink things and small things seem bigger than they are. Just be yourself.
Forgive easily – for extroverts, the online space is a challenge as they bounce off people’s physical energy and this is missing currently. So many times, people can come across as aggressive or un-interested but this can be mistaken in the virtual space.
We need to tell ourselves to forgive more and try and give people the benefit of the doubt. Give that person an extra chance to share their message in another way and keep your mind back to the self-confidence foundations.
If we do, we will always represent ourselves and our businesses in the best way.
Pillars:
There are many pillars: what our message should be? How do we add value?
Before a talk / meeting, take the time to understand your audience. What is it that they will find of value? If you can create something for that audience, it really does show that you appreciate and value them which is hugely powerful.
Think about our tone of voice and how you speak. Think about uncomfortable conversations – what has irritated you the most? If you think about it, more often than not it is how a person has said something rather than what they’ve said. It becomes slightly more complicated in a virtual space as you don’t have that body language to read, so really be mindful of your tone.
Whatever little window we have to show body language, let’s show it. Nod, smile and give the host affirmation from other side that you’re listening, agreeing and being a mindful listener.
TIPS:
- Eye contact – if you are using multiple screens, try and make sure you focus on the screen your participants are on and engage with them.
- Make sure you are eye level with screen – you will look better and act better.
- Show up fully – get dressed as you would for a face to face as it really helps uplift spirits and boosts your confidence.
- Be prepared for technical issues – it happens. If you are not confident about elements of a certain software, don’t add to the pressure. Do what feel comfortable with.
- Lots of chances it can all go wrong. Be prepared for it and have a back-up (maybe another phone / iPad) and send the host your presentation in advance.
Minoti’s next online public speaking workshop details are here.
