Persistence in your presentations, this is one secret to success. After my first presentation, I got up and did it again. Even though I was scared to death, I did it again. And that second one wasn\u2019t too good, but guess what. I did it again, and I did it again. And I worked up my courage, and I did it again. I committed to it, and I did it again. And finally, it got to be a little bit easier. I got a little more acquainted with the art of presenting. So have something good to say in your presentations. Preparation for your presentations, this is another key aspect. Here are some words to help you in preparation.<\/p>\n
To prepare to have something good to say, keep a keen interest in life and people. Don\u2019t let your senses go dull here. Guess what most people are trying to do \u2013 get THROUGH the day. Here is what I am asking this unusual audience to do \u2013 get FROM the day. Get from the day a clear picture of the drama of human life \u2013 some doing is right, some doing is wrong. Some gathering in; some throwing it away. Some building reputations; some letting it all slide.<\/p>\n
Get from the day what is happening in politics. Read the newspapers. Read the magazines. Find out what\u2019s going on. Get from the periodicals. Get from what\u2019s happening. Get from your job. Get from your career. Get from the people around you. What is happening in the community? Get from all of that. The positive side, the negative side.<\/p>\n
My parents used to say, \u201cAttend everything.\u201d Some things are so costly; they might be out of reach for a while. Andrea Bocelli came to Beverly Hills. Guess what the tickets cost? $2500.00 for a two-hour performance. That is pretty good pay. So some things might be out of reach, but whatever you can go to, get to. Save up the money and go, so that you will be more aware of what is going on around you.<\/p>\n
Keep up that interest in people. Why do they do what they do? How come things are happening today that didn\u2019t happen thirty years ago?<\/p>\n
Now the next word is fascination. Be fascinated with life and people and drama that is live and in color every day. Cinemascope. Fascination goes a little bit beyond interest. Interested people want to know does it work. Fascinated people want to know how does it work.<\/p>\n
Kids have this unique ability to learn several languages in a six, seven-year period, and the reason is because they are so fascinated. They are so interested. They are so curious. Kids have to know, and that is how the drama of their learning takes on such speed in a fairly short period of time is because of this unusual interest and fascination and curiosity. We\u2019re walking on ants, and kids are studying them. They say, \u201cDon\u2019t walk on those ants. I\u2019m studying them.\u201d How come an ant can carry something bigger than they are? That is a good question. They must be unbelievably strong if they can carry something bigger than they are.<\/p>\n
Here is something else I\u2019ve learned. To be fascinated instead of frustrated. It is just a little trick to play. The next time you\u2019re tempted to be frustrated, see if you can\u2019t turn it into fascination. Instead of a frown, it puts a smile on your face. Now sometimes you look a little weird, but so be it. He says, \u201cHow can he smile?\u201d I don\u2019t know. He must be somebody different.<\/p>\n
Babe Ruth \u2013 Home Run King \u2013 back in those days of baseball used to strike out and come back to the bench smiling. They used to say, \u201cBabe, you just struck out. How can you smile?\u201d \u201cI\u2019m just that much closer to my next home run. Just stick around. It won\u2019t be long. One will be sailing over the fence.\u201d So find things fascinating instead of frustrating. Just try it. I\u2019ve learned how to do it. Now make this note. It doesn\u2019t work every time. Nothing works every time, but every time you can get it to work, guess what? It will benefit your day. You\u2019ll get more from it. You\u2019ll be fascinated instead of frustrated.<\/p>\n
Now I\u2019ve also learned the ultimate. I\u2019m fascinated by my own frustration. How come it doesn\u2019t take me long to loose it on occasion? It must be from my father\u2019s side. My mother was a gentle soul. Just find it all fascinating. I\u2019ve talked to a lot of the Network Marketing companies over the years, and I give them that little clue. Somebody joins and you think they\u2019re going to stay forever, and they leave right away. You have to say, \u201cIsn\u2019t that interesting?\u201d And someone you thought would never make it, sure enough they become superstars. You have to say, \u201cIsn\u2019t that interesting?\u201d You say, \u201cI thought they\u2019d stay forever, they don\u2019t stay. Isn\u2019t that interesting. I didn\u2019t think they\u2019d do anything, look what they\u2019re doing. Isn\u2019t that interesting?\u201d<\/p>\n
So that is a good phrase. Find it interesting. Find it fascinating. Wow, I never thought that would happen. I had another picture in mind. Wow! Was I ever wrong. And it\u2019s good sometimes to be wrong on the positive side. I didn\u2019t think it was going to work, and it worked. Say, \u201cWhat if somebody doesn\u2019t look at your business opportunity?\u201d Say, \u201cWhat if they do?\u201d It doesn\u2019t take much to turn the question around. Say, \u201cWhat if they won\u2019t join after they look?\u201d \u201cWhat if they do? What if they join and stay.\u201d But I\u2019ve got a better question, \u201cWhat if they do stay?\u201d \u201cWhat if they quit after three months?\u201d I have a better question, \u201cWhat if they stay?\u201d<\/p>\n
So sometimes little tricks you can play to give yourself a different look because somebody could either stay or leave and wouldn\u2019t it be better to assume that they would stay and then if they leave say, \u201cIsn\u2019t that interesting?\u201d I have learned to do that with myself. \u201cWow! Look what I did. Isn\u2019t that interesting? Wow! I thought I was going to behave better. Wow! I lost it. Isn\u2019t that interesting? I thought for sure that wasn\u2019t going to bother me. Sure enough. I thought I had a handle on this. Looks like I\u2019ve got some work to do.\u201d Find yourself fascinating and interesting as you journey through life. Give yourself a chance.<\/p>\n
Now here is the next word that is very important if you want to be a good communicator, and that is sensitivity. Sensitive to someone\u2019s drama and trouble and difficulty. As you contemplate your own, now you can be sensitive to someone else. And there is no better way to be helpful than to do your best to try and understand. Here is the old phrase we\u2019ve heard it, let\u2019s jot it down this time. \u201cLearn to walk in someone\u2019s shoes for a while. Try to understand where they are.\u201d How come they\u2019re in this dilemma? Maybe it\u2019s something I don\u2019t know. I don\u2019t understand. How come this person is losing his temper when he should keep it? Who knows what might have happened the last three weeks. I don\u2019t know. Let\u2019s give somebody room by trying to understand.<\/p>\n
Be sensitive to someone lashing out and being difficult at the time. Hey! We can handle that. We don\u2019t have to retaliate and fight back. Can\u2019t we say, \u201cMaybe there\u2019s a good reason this person behaves in this way.\u201d That is an easier way. Sensitivity. Trying to understand. Trying to comprehend the full drama of human experience. One of the greatest phrases in the Bible, \u201cBlessed are the peacemakers.\u201d Guess what a peacemaker is? Someone that you hope is around when the conflict could be resolved. Someone who understands both sides and brings them together. Say, \u201cI know you\u2019ve got some animosity, but now that you\u2019ve fought and that didn\u2019t settle it\u2026couldn\u2019t we get together and reason this whole thing out.<\/p>\n
So in times of conflict, we look for a peacemaker. And the peacemaker has to understand both sides of the issue. Say, \u201cI understand your dilemma, and I can see where you\u2019re coming from, and I can understand why you said what you said then you said what you said. But hey! Isn\u2019t there a better way? Couldn\u2019t we find a better way to settle it all?\u201d And that is what we are looking for.<\/p>\n
Parents have to learn to be peacemakers when there are two sides to an issue and maybe neither one is that far wrong. But to try to settle it, we have to understand both sides. We have to understand the feelings on both sides, and that kind of sensitivity gives us a wonderful opportunity to grow, so that we can communicate and our words will be meaningful. Then the test comes, and the drama comes and the time comes to step up and speak or to sit down and speak or to be quiet and speak or to be loud and speak. Whatever that might call for, we\u2019ll be prepared if we do have a genuine understanding. So preparation in all areas of life is so vital to your success. Don\u2019t be lazy in preparing; don\u2019t be lazy in laying the groundwork that will make all of the difference in how your life turns out.<\/p>\n
To Your Success,
\nJim Rohn<\/p>\n