The day of your presentation to the team is looming.

You had intended to spend more time on it. Crafting, preparing, drilling.

You think to yourself ‘where did the time go?’

It is now the night before.

Something else comes up. You think about your topic and you know it well. You think to yourself ‘I’ll just wing it.’

Robert Charles Lee explains this term:

‘”Wing it” (to wing it) is an English idiom meaning to improvise – in other words, to invent a way on the spot (on the fly) to deal with a situation you are unprepared for. In other words, you do the best you can under the circumstances.’

An impromptu approach to preparing for an important presentation. Hmm.

OK. I’m not going to give you a lecture that you need to study before the exam, i.e. rehearse your speech endlessly and have every word memorized…

But! Preparation is necessary.

What I’m about to reveal is that you can go into this presentation with a strategy.

Aside from your charisma and charm. (Bring them along though.)

The strategy can be achieved through one key superpower that lies in you:

Intent.

Ask yourself: what is my intent for this presentation? Consider how you will connect with and create change in this audience.

Here are 3 ways to turbocharge your Intent:

1. Give value – to your team (audience). There is knowledge and insight that you have and your team do not have. Find an interesting way to deliver this. (Hint: not blah blah blah.) Imagine you are sitting in the audience listening to you. What would make you see the information presented fresh, new and unique.

2. Seek input – from your team. There is knowledge and insight that they have and you don’t. Bring your audience into the presentation through your expert facilitation skills, make them part of it. Eg, if you advise them of a new policy, discuss it, brainstorm their ideas, workshop it. Flesh out what it means both good and bad. Make it fast paced and fun. Challenge them.

3. Grow – together. Use this time as an opportunity to bring your team closer to you, your Vision. Come to a unified front. Done in the right way, they will feel like they have experienced a rush, a thrilling ride.

The trick is to grow your wings, your public speaking wings.

Have the confidence in your speaking to take charge, give and grow.

Imagine… once you have your public speaking wings, you’ll soar the skies with success.

To your excellence in speaking,

Anna

When you are swamped with debt finding the right tool to get relief isn’t always easy. Once you do find an option you feel suits your financial needs, executing it can be even more stressful. One common debt management path people choose is debt negotiation. Negotiating with creditors is no easy task and many people find the process to be frustrating. However, there are a few ways to ensure you approach debt negotiations the right way and hopefully maximize your chances of successfully obtaining a deal.

Communication

Whether negotiating with the IRS or a credit card company, it is important to remember that they hold most of the power to negotiate. After all, your debts are your responsibility and a creditor is not legally obligated to negotiate with you. This is not to say that you have little power of influence. The most important aspect of debt negotiation is open communication. You need to maintain a consistent line of communication throughout the process in order to better navigate a deal. It is best to try and work with one person directly during the process, which means that you need to get their name and direct contact phone number. You have a far better chance of success when letting only one person handle your account.

Another important aspect of communication is your tone. Never be abusive or threatening with a creditor when trying to negotiate. Even if the creditor appears stubborn or unwilling to help, it is important that you keep your cool. It isn’t uncommon for one person to write a note in your account stating the nature of a conversation for other people within the company to see. If you attempt to speak with someone higher up after you have lost your temper, you may find just as much resistance as before. Remember that staying calm and offering a pleasant tone of voice is your best ally.

When attempting to negotiate a repayment plan with your creditor it is important that you are honest about your situation. You need to paint a picture of your financial situation to demonstrate your need for assistance with your debts. There is no need for extremely personal information or explanations, but it is important to explain why you cannot meet your debt payments as expected. If you have lost your job or suffered a medical illness, offer to provide documentation to the creditor to demonstrate your unexpected circumstances.

Proposal

A great tool that many people forget about in debt negotiations is to prepare a proposal before you talk with the creditor. Organize your finances and determine how much you can realistically pay each creditor per month. Write a letter explaining your financial situation and the proposed payment plan that suits your budget. You may also find better success if you offer to have your payments automatically drafted out of your account each month. Creditors appreciate such organization and dedication to debt payments, which will win you favor in their eyes.

Gentlemen listen up! The old adage, “it’s the thought that counts” is one hundred percent true. While flowers and chocolates make nice anniversary presents, they’re hardly special. Give her a gift that truly says, “I love you” by applying these three simple gift-giving techniques: make it personal, get creative and present it properly. With these easy-to-follow steps, you’ll be sure to knock the socks off of the woman you love.

She’s not generic, so her present shouldn’t be either.
Flowers, chocolates and jewelry are so expected. Sure they’re nice to receive, but when you think about it, do they really say “I know you” and “I love you”? Didn’t think so. Take a few moments right now to think about your wife and her hobbies. What does she enjoy doing in her spare time? Does she love cooking? Taking bubble baths? Shopping? Pinpoint just one of the things she loves doing and then select a gift that correlates to that action or hobby. If she loves cooking, for example, get her a beautiful cookbook or a subscription to Food and Wine Magazine. If she’s a bather why not buy her a selection of bath salts, bubbles and lotions. This technique can be applied to nearly any hobby she might have. But don’t stop there. You can take your gift to the next level with a little bit of creativity.

Apply a little creativity.
Let’s say that you’ve purchased a new cookbook for your wife, the aspiring chef. With just a little more effort you can make the gift even more thoughtful and exciting to receive. Open up the book and select one of the recipes from its pages. Now, hop on over to William’s Sonoma and get her a few of the utensils that the recipe suggests using or go to the market and purchase a some of the spices it calls for. Need another example? Add some scented candles and a smooth jazz CD to the bathing salts and lotions you’re getting your bathing beauty. It’s simple really, but with a little extra effort and a couple more components, you’re turning an already personalized gift into an even more thoughtful one. Now, one last component: packaging.

Presentation goes a long way.
Presentation is half the fun of gift giving and receiving. There’s a reason why women love getting a present from Tiffany & Co. as opposed to any other jeweler. Receiving their signature Robin’s Egg Blue box is almost as exciting as the treasure that lies inside of it! Try individually wrapping each of the gifts you’ve selected rather than throwing them unwrapped into a gift bag. With multiple gifts to open there are multiple elements of surprise to be had. Take it one step further and number each gift in the order of which you’d like her to open them. Then present her first with a numbered card that has a clue assigned to each number as to what each gift will be. You can even pepper your clues with a little romance. For example, wrap your cookbook and number it “1″. Then put a 1 on the card and write something to the nature if “Here’s to a future of candle-lit dinners.” No need to be long winded, just have a little fun with it and she’ll have fun, too.

Now doesn’t that leave flowers and chocolates out in the dust? With a little effort and thought you can easily give a gift that truly says, “I love you”. Just remember to make it personal, be creative and don’t forget about presentation. By following these three steps you’re pretty much guaranteed a happy wife. And a happy wife makes for a very happy anniversary. Now, get shopping!