Say, what?

As a follow-up to the post from 7/7/10 about the narrow demographic the Athletic Equipment Managers deal with when communicating with their athletes, there are a number of words, terms, and phrases that still seem normal to you nowadays but make no sense at all to younger people. It's not that you're getting old, it's just that they might have a completely different frame of reference than you do.

For instance, try telling a 20-year-old that when he or she keeps repeating something or constantly bringing up a certain subject, he or she sounds "like a broken record". In fact, with today's MP3 players, you might not even be able to use "like a stuck CD" anymore.

Similarly, saying in frustration that "trying to talk to you is like getting a constant busy signal" is meaningless. Their lives have really only seen call-waiting and calls that go straight to voice-mail when someone is not available. A busy signal is not something they've ever had to deal with.

Picturing an actual person in your mind when composing your message can and will help you avoid these and similar pitfalls. Take the time to actually think about that person - what are they thinking, doing, feeling - what are their experiences and background - and take all of those characteristics into consideration as you compose your message.

It's an important point that's stressed in your "Break Through the Clutter" Communication Seminar because it is so critical to the success or failure of your message. It's all part of putting the focus of your message on your receiver.

Call or E-mail today to schedule your "Break Through the Clutter" Communication Seminar for your group or business, 913-631-2985, bkthrucomm@aol.com.

Audience Demographics

One thing that was fun and unique about the presentation to the Athletic Equipment Managers last month was that when we focused on communicating with their athletes, it was a very narrow "demographic" that we were talking about. "Demographic" here meaning the vital statistics, basically, involved with their audience of athletes. Nearly all Equipment Managers in the room worked in a collegiate environment. So, when they needed to communicate with their athletes, they would be talking to, primarily, 18-22 year-olds.

Most of the time you are not in a situation where the people you need to communicate with are almost all within a few years of each other. For instance, at work your receivers might have a wide age range, as well as a wide range of education, experience, background, and more. This unique situation with the Equipment Managers allowed us to get very specific in terms of the lifestyles, habits, and interests of their target group. It also allowed us to zero in on the "clutter" that affects this age range every day.

If you find yourself communicating with a group defined by such a narrow demographic trait, take advantage of that fact. As you picture an actual person in your mind while composing your message, be as specific as that narrow demographic allows. It's a great way to make your message even more effective because it is designed specifically for people who fall into that demographic.

Call or E-mail today to schedule your own "Break Through the Clutter" Communication Seminar for your group or business, 913-631-2985, bkthrucomm@aol.com.

When in doubt, leave it out

In your "Break Through the Clutter" communication seminar, you're reminded that E-mail is not necessarily private. And that your boss can get into your E-mail at work, thanks to the Electronic Communication and Privacy Act.

Now, the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that the use of employer-supplied computers, cell phones and pagers may be reviewed by employers. If the employer has a policy that clearly tells employees that the use of this equipment can and will be monitored, then the content of E-mails, text messages, pager messages and the like, is open to review.

In your seminar, you hear that the best way to think of E-mail is that it's like the back of a postcard - anyone can read it, and chances are someone, other than the person you sent it to, will. Hence, when in doubt, leave it out when it comes to sensitive material of either a business or personal nature. Especially, when using employer-supplied electronic devices.

Call or E-mail today to schedule your own "Break Through the Clutter" Communication Seminar for your group or business, 913-631-2985, bkthrucomm@aol.com.

Congratulations to the AEMA

The leaders of the Athletic Equipment Managers Association, Mike and Kelly, among others, should be proud of themselves for incorporating some new subjects into their annual convention program.

This year, for the first time, programs on Time Management and Communication (a "Break Through the Clutter" communication seminar) were offered along with all of the usual Athletic Equipment Manager programs. The leaders of the AEMA saw that their members needed to develop business and personal skills, in addition to learning the latest on fabrics, equipment, and the like.

It's not easy to convince the members of your group that programs outside of their specific profession will be a benefit to them. For instance, a couple of Equipment Managers were overheard in the hotel lobby, as they looked through the upcoming schedule, saying, "I don't need to develop my professional skills, so let's go have dinner at that one restaurant instead. I hear the food is really good." Obviously, long after that good dinner and even the memory of it are gone, the life skills they could have gained would remain.

The AEMA members who attended the "Break Through the Clutter" communication seminar seemed to get a lot out of it. Many, after the presentation, were able to refer back to specific things they had learned and were going to put into practice. None seemed to regret the great breadsticks they could have had at that restaurant, instead.

While it might not be easy, while some may resist your efforts, do the members of your group or business a favor. Call or E-mail today to schedule your own "Break Through the Clutter" communication seminar, 913-631-2985, bkthrucomm@aol.com. They'll thank you later.

What do you think?

Is this some city's (Basehor's) fancy way of saying, "City Limit", or does it have some other legal meaning that most people don't understand?

E-mail only for appropriate subjects

Soon, it will be the anniversary of one of the worst uses of E-mail ever. And that serves as a reminder to you to use E-mail only in situations where it is appropriate.

You learn in your "Break Through the Clutter" communication seminar that anger, sarcasm, and other negative emotions need to be gotten out of voice-mails and E-mails. Negative emotions like that are best left to face-to-face communication where you can see the effect you and your message are having on your receiver.

With all of today's methods of electronic communication, it's easy for people to hide when there's a potential for conflict. Things like ending a relationship by texting, breaking up through voice-mail, and the like, though, make you look shallow and callous. It's obvious that you didn't want to deal with the emotions in person, so you hid behind technology.

This was carried to another extreme nearly four years ago now, in August of 2006, when Radio Shack sent this E-mail to 400 employees - "The workforce reduction notification is currently in progress. Unfortunately your position is one that has been eliminated." Fired, by E-mail.

While it may be easier on you to hide, screen calls, and block E-mails, if you really want to communicate effectively, know when it is appropriate for electronic communication and when face-to-face is really the only option.

Call or E-mail today to schedule your own "Break Through the Clutter" communication seminar, 913-631-2985, bkthrucomm@aol.com.

E-mail, again

In your "Break Through the Clutter" communication seminar, you learn the importance of grabbing the attention of your message's receivers early and capturing their imaginations. Throughout the seminar, you're shown various ways of accomplishing this, including how this philosophy applies to both voice-mail and E-mail.

Hit your main point within the first two sentences when sending an E-mail message, for instance. That way, when your receiver opens your message, there's the important information they need right at the top. They don't have to scroll down down to find it. And every time they refer back to your E-mail, there it is again, right at the top.

Also, include a descriptive "Subject" line in your E-mails. Often you can make your point or answer a question just in the Subject line. As mentioned in the April 22 post on this blog, it takes your receiver an average of four minutes to open, read, respond to, and either delete or store each E-mail they get. If you can communicate your important information in just the Subject line of your message, you may save them those four minutes. Subject lines such as, "Meeting Thursday 10am", "Cookie money due Tuesday" and the like, communicate your message as soon as they see it in their inbox. And, the descriptive Subject line makes your message "break through the clutter" of all of the other E-mails they receive. In the text of your E-mail then you simply need to reinforce and expand upon your information since communication has already happened.

Call or E-mail today to schedule your own "Break Through the Clutter" communication seminar for your group or business, 913-631-2985, bkthrucomm@aol.com.