Posts Tagged ‘effective communication skills trainer’

Say This–Not That; Danger Phrases and Power Phrases for Work

Thursday, August 26th, 2010

Dan O'Connor, Expert On-Site Professional Communication Trainer, Recommends ThisAre you tarnishing your professional reputation simply by making a verbal typo? Check out this great article: http://shine.yahoo.com/channel/life/24-things-you-might-be-saying-wrong-2338028/.

For more great professional communication training tips, check out our communication blog, our professional communication tactics podcasts, and our other great free communication training resources. (more…)

 

“No Problem”–Danger Phrase for Customer Service Reps

Sunday, August 15th, 2010

Communication Keynote Speaker and On-Site Communication Training Expert, Dan O'ConnorHere’s your professional communication skills training tip for the day brought to you by expert communication trainer, Dan O’Connor:

Danger Phrase: “No problem.” Power Phrase: “You’re welcome.”

If someone thanks you for something, the correct response is, “You’re welcome.”

“No problem,” or anything similar should be purged from your verbal patterns.

While we certainly don’t mean to sound unprofessional when we say, “No problem,” to do so implies that there may have been a problem to begin with, but you’re forgiving the aggravation. Furthermore, it simply sounds unprofessional. If you listen to savvy, powerful communicators respond to people thanking them, you’ll note they simply say, “You’re welcome.”

While developing your professional communication skills, keeping a Danger Phrase and Power Phrase list will help you stay one step ahead of the competition.

For more Danger and Power phrases, check out our podcasts page and our other free communication training resources.

What would happen to your organization if everyone suddenly communicated more effectively? On-site communication training is now affordable for everyone. Click here to find out more. Are you looking for a motivational keynote speaker for your year-end event? Contact us and ask about our government discounts.

 

How to Talk Like a CEO–Part 1

Monday, August 2nd, 2010

Communication Keynote Speaker and On-Site Communication Training Expert, Dan O'ConnorIn this professional communication training series, communication expert Dan O’Connor teaches you how to polish your verbal patterns, get more out of every communication interaction, and sound like a CEO.

If you’ve engaged in any communication training, you have most likely already been taught that the word but is a danger word. But is it?

But is a perfectly acceptable word, and it’s one of the most commonly used words in our language for a reason. It sometimes negates what comes before it, but you should not be afraid of using it in the proper context.

That said, there are times where the word but is not appropriate, and should be purged and replaced with another word or phrase. Therefore, take out your Danger Phrase list and Power Phrase list, and write but on the danger side. Again–this is not to say it’s a Delete Phrase–just a Danger Phrase.

There are some phrases that should be deleted entirely from our verbal patterns: I love you but…is one of them. NEVER put a but after I love you, or anything else your truly want to emphasize.

When you are “watching your words” and trying to avoid using the word but in a phrase such as, “I value this job, but I can’t do that for you,” or “I want to help, but I simply can’t,” try using Power Phrases and begin your sentences with while or although–or you can even use a that being said phrase. (more…)

 

3 Power Phrases + 1 Theory = Communication SuperHero (YOU)

Wednesday, July 28th, 2010

Dan's Communication TipsIn today’s professional communication skills training podcast, Dan teaches you how to implement one of the most important and powerful business principles:  You are not here (at work) to teach other people lessons; you are here to learn lessons from other people. How can you implement that? Using simple Power Phrases often, and with everyone. And if you want to be a SuperHero father or mother, and SuperHero partner–practice this principle at home, as well. Today Dan helps you practice three Power Phrases that will help you implement the principle:  You are not here to teach other people lessons; you are here to learn lessons from other people.

Get all of our communication training audio podcasts instantly–for free–on our podcast page. Could your organization use professional communication skills trainer? Check out expert communication trainer Dan O’Connor’s Keynote and course schedule. Looking for a motivational keynote speaker specializing in communication or dealing with difficult people? Contact us today to see how you can get the speaking or on-site training you need while staying within your budget.

 

NEW FREE AUDIO: Don’t be a communication weakling! These Danger Phrases and Power Phrases will help.

Monday, July 26th, 2010

Dan O'Connor, professional communication trainer, onsite communication training expert, keynote speaker, energy vampire slayerNEW FREE STREAMING AUDIO: We often hear people say (and we too sometimes make the mistake of saying) “I’m sorry if…” or “I’m sorry but…”

The worst part is, people are usually apologizing for their gifts! You’ll hear things such as, “I’m sorry for being so detail oriented.” or “Well, I’m sorry that I actually care about my job.”

In today’s professional communication training podcast, Dan helps you purge these kinds of phrases and replace them with powerful ones with the use of a Danger Phrase and Power Phrase list. Click here to listen to today’s free audio podcast. It’s the first podcast album entitled, “Professional Communication Tactics” on our podcasts page. (more…)

 

10 Common Errors “Spell Check” Won’t Catch

Wednesday, July 21st, 2010

Dan O'Connor, Expert On-Site Professional Communication Trainer, Recommends ThisGreat professional writing skills training article. The following is from the Yahoo Shine article entitled 10 Common Errors “Spell Check” Won’t Catch.

While we can rely on a spell checker to catch glaring errors, a computer can’t pick up on all careless mistakes, especially if the word could be correct in a different context. Often word misuse is our mistake. The English language is full of homonyms, or words that have different meanings but sound and look similar, which makes it easy to confuse proper usage. For instance, verbally, you might not even notice the difference between “your” and “you’re.” But in print, the error can lead the reader to perceive you as less intelligent than you are. For this reason, it’s important to spell check and proofread your documents, especially for the following common misuses, which are so easy to make, you might even have to check your document a couple times to catch them. Check out this article to give your powerful writing skills a boost.

Its versus It’s (and all other apostrophes): (more…)

 

Elena Kagan and her 4-Tiered Communication Strategy That You Can Use too

Monday, July 5th, 2010

Dan O'Connor, professional communication trainer, onsite communication training expert, keynote speaker, energy vampire slayer NEW FREE STREAMING AUDIO: In our latest Professional Communication Tactics audio series, you’ll learn to use a simple but powerful professional communication strategy most recently used by Elena Kagan during her supreme court confirmation hearings.

Her strategy was a 4-pronged approach:

1-stay on message

2-use the broken record

3-don’t take the bait, and (more…)

 

Have trouble remembering people’s names?

Saturday, July 3rd, 2010

Dan O'Connor, Expert On-Site Professional Communication Trainer, Recommends ThisProfessional communication skills training always incorporates memory-enhancing tricks and techniques. This is a great short article that gives you many memory exercises, but the best one for me is the name one. I use that all the time, and it works! Check it out at here.

To find out more about techniques used by motivational keynote speaker and professional communication trainer Dan O’Connor, check out our course and keynote catalog, to find out more about our affordable on-site training, or contact us any time.

 

Professional Communication Training Tip of the Day–DANGER PHRASE: “In my opinion…”

Friday, June 18th, 2010

Communication Keynote Speaker and On-Site Communication Training Expert, Dan O'ConnorHere’s a quick and powerful professional communication skills training lesson from communication trainer and motivational keynote speaker Dan O’Connor:

DANGER PHRASE: “In my opinion…” POWER PHRASE: “I believe…”

When it comes time to give your opinion, don’t diminish the power of your message by prefacing it with something such as, “In my opinion….” Doing so tells the listener, “Well, it’s JUST my opinion, so take it or leave it….”

Sometimes, of course, this is exactly what you mean to say. For example, if you’re the boss, and your employee asks you for feedback, and you’re really not certain that your ideas are spot-on, you might say, “In my opinion,” and the effect is what you intended. However, many up-and-coming executives are uncertain and insecure, (more…)

 

Communication Training: Danger Phrase/Power Phrase

Thursday, June 17th, 2010

Communication Keynote Speaker and On-Site Communication Training Expert, Dan O'ConnorHere’s your professional communication skills training for the day delivered by motivational keynote speaker and communication trainer Dan O’Connor:

Today’s professional communication tip is simple but powerful. DANGER PHRASE: “Are you busy?” POWER PHRASE: “Do you have a moment?”

When calling a professional at work, never start the conversation with, “Are you busy?”

If someone is at work, we should assume they’re busy. To do otherwise would be insulting. Many people–whether they tell you or not–are offended when asked, “Are you busy?” Instead, try something such as, (more…)