 In one of my training workshops recently, I had the opportunity to chat with one of the participants. He was curious as to how "Creativity" can used in Business and Life. He has this mindset that "creativity" is only about being in the "Creative Industries" and doing stuff like painting, sculpturing, stage performances etc.
It was, in fact, a genuine question. He was not alone. True to what most people see, creativity is highly synonymous with the visual and performing arts. While creativity is highly required for that, however, the elements of creativity can be applied in ALL other aspects of life, not just the arts. Like creativity guru, Frederik Haren said, "...there is no such thing as creative industries". Creativity is not just about being in the "creative expression" mode (which I shared in my "Because I'm Introvert" book). We need creativity to live. It is an important skill to have. I call creativity - a form of way of life. Lets look at some of the areas in life as to why there is a need for one to be creative. 1) Creativity solves problems You see, we face with challenges and problems everyday. When face with such adversities, humans have two options - to fight (solve) or to run away. Of course, when we choose to run away, the problems / challenges will "go away" temporarily, but will surface again in future. But if we choose to fight and solve the problems, we might need to know as to how solve them. This is where creativity comes in handy. Creativity is essentially the ability to put two or more different things together to solve a problem. It is also called as Creative-Thinking or Creative Problem Solving. In creative problem solving, the main aim is to address the challenges and solve the problems through a process. Why is there a need for a process? Because that is how our brain is wired. Our brain has been designed to connect things (Will share more on this in one of the ways on how to be creative). For example, I frequently face students turning up late for classes in the polytechnic where I teach weekly . How do we then solve that problem of late-coming? Let's look at another example - you are about to make a presentation but just moments before the presentation starts, there's blackout. How to we respond? Another example; in the current trend, there's a rise in electrical bike accidents. How do we then curb this problem? These are just examples of problems that we need to solve. With creative problem solving, these problems can be easily addressed. 2) Creativity opens doors for career progression and personal development When we are able to solve challenges and problems regularly, that ability will turn into "creativity habits". Our brain will be "re-wired" to think of new ways for ourselves to be better and to move forward. When we embrace that habit, it opens up more doors for career progression and personal development. We start to think along these lines: a) How do we save more and earn more for future? b) How do we avoid repetitive works like data entry; and produce more results? c) How can we spend more quality time with the family? And when we start to think along these lines, it will pave new ways of doing things. It gives a sense of satisfaction and accomplishments. The handphone is a good example of progression. Those were the days when we used dial-up to make calls. Then It progressed into buttons. Then, our favourite "heavy brick-looking-like" handphone. The trend then moved into smaller-built handphone, then moved into smart phones. The trend continues. 3) Creativity encourages positive-thinking, optimism and initiative Creative thinking will transform you from being passive and into a more active role. You will start to feel "responsible" in whatever you are doing and enjoy taking initiatives; thus keep coming up with new ways of doing things. You will then go all out to get them being implemented. In the process, it exudes your positive energy and optimism to get the job done. Failure is not in your dictionary. Famous Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan spoke in an interview with NDTV, he shared his late father's advice. His father said, "Success in the worst teacher in the world. It makes you feel invincible but you cannot pass down success to other people....but FAILURE is a fantastic teacher. It teaches you to work harder and be better." Similar thinking went to Thomas Edision, the inventor of light bulb. He said that his light bulb idea was his 10,000th idea. But his earlier 9,999 ideas were not failures, it's just that he found 9999 different ways of NOT inventing a light bulb. In fact, he patented some of his 9,999 ideas. In soccer, there's a famous saying by the Brazilians, "England invented the soccer, but we PERFECTED it." Because the Brazilians are so passionate and optimism, they found new ways to create and perfect the art of playing soccer (think "Samba"), they are one of the successful nations in that sport. How about you? Do you find other reasons and the needs to be creative? Towards your continued success, Hazriq Idrus Author, The Stage Fright Antidote! Founder, The Speaking Factory Pte Ltd ~ Hazriq Idrus is a Business Creativity and Speaking Strategist. He is the author of "The Stage Fright Antidote and co-authored two other books. Hazriq founded The Speaking Factory Pte Ltd with a mission to empower operational leaders and line-managers in achieving professional and organisational excellence through his signature high-energy, transformational theatre-based & experiential corporate training programmes.
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 To be highly skilled in any areas that you do, you need to invest your time in learning. However, learning is not just about attending courses or reading. Based on the learning & development model and research done by Michael M. Lombardo and Robert W. Eichinger, that makes up of only 10% (or 1 of the 3 elements of the model) of the overall learning experiences to meet your true potential mark.
To obtain and maximise your learning experiences so that you can develop a mastery on a particular skill (or skills), Michael and Robert recommended the following, which I have summarised and synthesized below: 1) 2nd Element: Devote 70% learning time by applying the skills and go through the experience itself. For example, if you want to master your presentation skills, keep presenting. When things go wrong, refine and continue presenting. You'll get better each time. 2) 3rd Element: Allocate 20% learning time to obtain feedback from mentors and coaches. If you want to improve on your presentation skills, work with presentation mentors and coaches. These people have gone through the experiences earlier than you and could offer sound advice for you. You can learn from their life experiences and expedite your learning process instead of going through a steep learning curve. Why re-invent the wheel. If any of these learning elements are missing, you'll miss out on reaching your 100% true potential. Hazriq Idrus Author, The Stage Fright Antidote! Founder, The Speaking Factory Pte Ltd ~ Hazriq Idrus is a Business Creativity and Speaking Strategist. He founded The Speaking Factory Pte Ltd with a mission to empower operational and middle-management leaders in achieving professional and organisational excellence through his signature high-energy, transformational theatre-based & experiential corporate training programmes In any presentation, these 3 elements must exist.:
1) People The presence of people (audience) is an important factor before you go up and give your presentations. If there is no audience, there is no need to even put up a presentation! Having said that, it is important to know who your target audience are. You can use this checklist to help you determine your audience. a) Who are they? eg Working adults/ School kids/ Youths? b) What's in it for them listening to your speech? eg increase wellness, reduce debts c) What is the Call to Action for them after your speech? eg buy your books, enrol in your classes, join your emailing list By knowing who your audience are, it will help you prepare your content. 2) Presenter Once you know who are your target audience, you can then prepare your yourself as a presenter. You will have to decide two main factors - your message & the medium of delivery. You can use this checklist below to help you determine your message and medium: Message: a) Is your message going to inform/ educate/ persuade/ inspire the audience? Medium of delivery: b) Are you using slides/videos/ music/ or just you speaking on stage? 3) Place It is important to to know the location and type of room you are going to present. Knowing the place beforehand helps you to prepare your mind and energy. A big space requires you to exude more energy as compared to a smaller venue. You can use this checklist below to help you determine your presentation venue: - Is the presentation going to take place at the expo/workshop room/ seminar room/ on stage/ lecture hall Prior your next speaking engagements, ensure you have these primary information first. Hope these tips help. Towards a successful communications and creative confidence, Hazriq Idrus Author, The Stage Fright Antidote! Founder, The Speaking Factory Pte Ltd ~ Hazriq Idrus is a Business Creativity and Speaking Strategist. He founded The Speaking Factory Pte Ltd with a mission to empower operational and middle-management leaders in achieving professional and organisational excellence through his signature high-energy, transformational theatre-based & experiential corporate training programmes. Occasionally, there will be somebody in the audience who seems to know more than you do - or rather they think they do. This are what I called the "self-proclaimed experts". What can we do to manage these people?
I had my fair share of "self-proclaimed experts" in my workshops. Once in one of my creative problem solving workshops, as soon as I opened the door for the participants to enter, an 50plus year-old man came in. He was one of the first to enter. He went straight to an empty chair and sat down. He looked around the room and started asking me questions. He sounded like an interrogator at first; asking me on my work experiences, how long I have been conducting training and various other kinds of questions. Some tough ones. I chatted with him while providing the answers he asked for. It turned out that he had been in the company for years and would be retiring in a few years' time. That was my cue "win" him over. So here are some tips that you can do if you face audience who are "self-proclaimed experts: 1) Chat and engage small talks with him/ her 2) Find out what are their strengths/ likes etc. 3) Acknowledge and lavishly (and sincerely) praise them on those areas 4) Get them to be on your side 5) Keep the conversations positive and professional throughout More often than not, these steps helped me in managing these situations. And back to the 50plus year-old participant I mentioned earlier, we turned out to be best of buddies during the session. He was very supportive of my presentation, willingly shared his experiences in the company to value-add my points which I shared and willingly offered to volunteer when I needed assistance to do some demonstrations. How about you? Do you face something familiar? Would like to hear from you too. Towards your speaking success, Hazriq Idrus Author, The Stage Fright Antidote! Founder, The Speaking Factory Pte Ltd ~ Hazriq Idrus is a Business Creativity and Speaking Strategist. He founded The Speaking Factory Pte Ltd with a mission to empower operational and middle-management leaders in achieving professional and organisational excellence through his signature high-energy, transformational theatre-based & experiential corporate training programmes. During my coaching sessions or conversations with other people, three concerns about public speaking came up:
1) I'm not trained to be a public speaker. 2) Look above the eyes or at the forehead of the audience. 3) Stand in one place on stage However, these three things are just myths. Let's address each of those: 1. I'm not trained to be a public speaker In actual fact: We all speak in public - IT could be speaking one-on-one with another person, speaking in a meeting, or on stage in front of a large group of people. We are contantly speaking and we present all the time. The only dofference is, we contextualise our delivery to suit the setting; You don't use the mic when speaking to one person, as compared to a large of people, do you? 2. Look above the eyes or at the forehead of the audience In actual fact: We need to look directly at the audience; at least to key individuals. We connect with each other through our eyes because it shows sincerity. By being sincere, it creates a relationship between you as a speaker and the audiende. It will less scary. 3. Stand in one place on stage In actual fact: You do not need to stand in one place during your presentation. You are free to move, roam and be dynamic. In public speaking, we call this "movement with a purpose' or purposeful movement. Purposeful movement can be dynamic and increase energy in the audience; which translate you engaging presentation. Towards your speaking success, Hazriq Idrus Speaking & Creativity Strategist Founder, The Speaking Factory Pte Ltd Author, The Stage Fright Antidote! ~ Hazriq Idrus is a Business Creativity and Speaking Strategist. He founded The Speaking Factory Pte Ltd with a mission to empower operational and middle-management leaders in achieving professional and organisational excellence through his signature high-energy, transformational theatre-based & experiential corporate training programmes. One of the common conversation topics on presentation that I encounter is that employees feel that they are not having enough confident to present. Especially in a meeting where there are bosses and top management staff sitting in.
I would then ask them, "Did you rehearse your presentations?" The answer is common: No or not much. You see, whether in SEA Games, Asian Games or Olympic Games, when race starts, the 100-metre athletes take their stride, race with confidence and win that elusive medal; much to their joy. Similarly for actors doing live performances, the moment the curtains open, they put up convincing performances that delight the audience; and sometimes receiving standing ovations. So what makes them be good at their crafts? The answer is, practice. Athletes will train every day building up their muscle and in the process, build up their confidence to face other athletes in the competition. Of course, some may win, others may not, but for sure, they are so much better than when they first started training. For actors, rehearsals started 4-5 months in advance prior to their first matinee or premiere. In the process, the actors gain confidence to play the characters convincingly. Similarly, there is a need to rehearse your presentation; even if it is a mere 5-minutes! Constant rehearsals will help to make your delivery "second nature", thus making you look good presenting. Never underestimate the power of rehearsals. So how to rehearse? I would suggest 3 parts to this: Part One: Once you have your scripts or slides done, go stand up and rehearse. Don't just stand, move. Use gestures where appropriate. Do this a few times until you feel "second nature". Part Two: Gather a few of your close friends and make them your audience. Let them watch your presentation. Appoint some of them to be the devil's advocate, asking you tough questions, so that you can be prepared for such situations at the actual presentation site. Part Three: Just moments before the actual presentation, do a visualisation exercise. This is a powerful way to gain confidence. Find a corner or place, close your eyes and recall the rehearsals that you have done - mentally. Once done, take a deep breath, smile, and walk your way into the meeting room (or your presentation venue). When is your next presentation? Have you rehearsed? Towards your speaking success! Yours sincerely, Hazriq Idrus Speaking & Creativity Strategist Founder, The Speaking Factory Pte Ltd Author, The Stage Fright Antidote! ~ Hazriq Idrus is a Business Creativity and Speaking Strategist. He founded The Speaking Factory Pte Ltd with a mission to empower operational and middle-management leaders in achieving professional and organisational excellence through his signature high-energy, transformational theatre-based & experiential corporate training programmes. Not enough time to prepare for your presentations?
Remember these 3 H.O.T Tips that you must have as you prepare your presentations. 1) Hook If you start the session by saying, "Hi, I am <your name> from <your dept/ company>, it appears normal and boring. So, change the style. Engage the audience right from the start. Hook them. One way to hook them is to ask and get their response: An example: Ask them to answer this question by raising their hands: "Who believes that public speaking is an important skill to have?" We can easily get their responses and engage them at the same time. 2) Odd-numbered Topics Break your topics into three parts (or odd numbers). This is because human brains are designed to remember odd numbers easily. 3) The Call-to-Action At the end of the presentation, always include your call-to-action, so that the audience will know what to do next. It could be the next date of your meeting, deadlines for them to meet etc. Apply these three tips and your audience will appreciate you. Towards your continued success, Hazriq Idrus Business Creativity & Speaking Strategist Author of 3 books, including "The Stage Fright Antidote" Founder, The Speaking Factory Pte Ltd Hazriq Idrus is Asia's Dynamic Business Creativity and Speaking Strategist. Hazriq founded The Speaking Factory with a mission is to empower operational and middle-management leaders achieve professional and organisational growth through Theatre-based & High-Energy Transformational Expriential training. He is the author of The Stage Fright Antidote and co-authored two other books. If you would like Hazriq to speak at your organisation, or work with you in training & coaching, contact him at [email protected].  "Feedback is the Breakfast of Champions!" Have you heard this phrase before? This phrase was coined by leadership & management expert, Ken Blanchard. And it does make a lot of sense.
As an employee or a business owner, as a team player or a team leader, everyone needs to improve to move forward. One of the fastest ways to improve - whether on your skills, management or communication styles - is to seek constant feedback; and act on it accordingly. Through feedback from others, we can look into our 'blindspots' which are usually overlooked. These blindspots could make a difference in our lives. For example, if you are having an upcoming presentation at your next department meeting, seek someone's help to offer their feedback and advice on how to improve on your presentations. With that feedback, you would bring a different perspective in your presentation that could help you get promoted! Similarly, when working in a team, there is a need to constantly exchange feedback within the team members to improve the team's outcome and deliverables. One of the common questions I always receive is "What if the Leader is the one who needs to improve so he/she can lead the team better?" According to Michael Podolinksky, Singapore's Productivity Guru, whom I had the opportunity to work with some years ago, shared that, as a teamplayer, it is equally important for a staff to offer feedback to the boss. I call it a 'disservice' to ourselves and to the team if we do not offer our feedback to the leader to improve, much for the benefits of the team. A lot of people will find it difficult to convey this message to the team leader, but afterall the team leader is still a human. When you are planning to offer your feedback to your team leader, it is best if you could offer it privately, away from other colleagues. Make an appointment with your leader and have the session over coffee. Make the meeting informal. When offering the feedback, one method is to use the "Hamburger Method". There are 3 Steps to it this method: 1st Step: The Top Loaf - Extract and share positive outcomes that your leader had exuded that had helped the team in one way or another. 2nd Step: The Meat - This is where you go straight to the areas for improvement. Share 2 or 3 things that you feel your bosses are not doing right. Offer your suggestions to improve. 3rd Step: The Bottom Loaf - End the sharing with another positive outcome that you know about your leader. If he/she is a good leader, he/she would listen and improve. However, whether or not your leader will take in and respond, it is up to him/ her. But you have done your part as a team player. You will be respected for offering your honest opinions for the sake of the team. When I was working in the corporate organisation previously, I was fortunate that my bosses constantly asked for feedback to improve on their working and management styles. I used this 'Hamburger' method when I shared my feedback. It worked for me. How about you? Does this method work for you? Here's to your continued success! Hazriq Idrus Author of "The Stage Fright Antidote!" + 2 other books Founder, The Speaking Factory Pte Ltd ~ Hazriq Idrus is a Business Creativity and Speaking Strategist. He founded The Speaking Factory Pte Ltd with a mission to empower operational and middle-management leaders in achieving professional and organisational excellence through his signature high-energy, transformational theatre-based & experiential corporate training programmes. Occasionally, there will be somebody in the audience who seems to know more than you do - or rather they think they do. This are what I called the "self-proclaimed experts". What can we do to manage these people?
I had my fair share of "self-proclaimed experts" in my workshops. Once in one of my creative problem solving workshops, as soon as I opened the door for the participants to enter, an 50plus year-old man came in. He was one of the first to enter. He went straight to an empty chair and sat down. He looked around the room and started asking me questions. He sounded like an interrogator at first; asking me on my work experiences, how long I have been conducting training and various other kinds of questions. Some tough ones. I chatted with him while providing the answers he asked for. It turned out that he had been in the company for years and would be retiring in a few years' time. That was my cue "win" him over. So here are some tips that you can do if you face audience who are "self-proclaimed experts: 1) Chat and engage small talks with him/ her 2) Find out what are their strengths/ likes etc. 3) Acknowledge and lavishly (and sincerely) praise them on those areas 4) Get them to be on your side 5) Keep the conversations positive and professional throughout More often than not, these steps helped me in managing these situations. And back to the 50plus year-old participant I mentioned earlier, we turned out to be best of buddies during the session. He was very supportive of my presentation, willingly shared his experiences in the company to value-add my points which I shared and willingly offered to volunteer when I needed assistance to do some demonstrations. How about you? Do you face something familiar? Would like to hear from you too. Towards your speaking success, In any presentation, these 3 elements must exist.:
1) People The presence of people (audience) is an important factor before you go up and give your presentations. If there is no audience, there is no need to even put up a presentation! Having said that, it is important to know who your target audience are. You can use this checklist to help you determine your audience. a) Who are they? eg Working adults/ School kids/ Youths? b) What's in it for them listening to your speech? eg increase wellness, reduce debts c) What is the Call to Action for them after your speech? eg buy your books, enrol in your classes, join your emailing list By knowing who your audience are, it will help you prepare your content. 2) Presenter Once you know who are your target audience, you can then prepare your yourself as a presenter. You will have to decide two main factors - your message & the medium of delivery. You can use this checklist below to help you determine your message and medium: Message: a) Is your message going to inform/ educate/ persuade/ inspire the audience? Medium of delivery: b) Are you using slides/videos/ music/ or just you speaking on stage? 3) Place It is important to to know the location and type of room you are going to present. Knowing the place beforehand helps you to prepare your mind and energy. A big space requires you to exude more energy as compared to a smaller venue. You can use this checklist below to help you determine your presentation venue: - Is the presentation going to take place at the expo/workshop room/ seminar room/ on stage/ lecture hall Prior your next speaking engagements, ensure you have these primary information first. Hope these tips help. Towards a successful communications and creative confidence, Hazriq Idrus Author, The Stage Fright Antidote! Founder, The Speaking Factory Pte Ltd About Hazriq Idrus: Hazriq Idrus is a Business Creativity & Speaking Strategist. He founded The Speaking Factory Pte Ltd with a mission to help operational and middle-management leaders achieve professional & organisational growth through theatre-based and high-energy experiential corporate training. He is the author of "The Stage Fright Antidote!" and co-authored two other books. Visit: www.thespeakingfactory.com for more information. |
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