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If You Want To Be More Charismatic, Stop Saying This Word

If you want to be more charismatic, one of your primary tasks is to make the people listening to you feel absolutely terrific. Now ask yourself, to make the people around you feel great, "Should I talk more about myself or more about them?"

Posted by Mark Murphy on 23 February, 2023 no_cat, no_recent, sb_ad_30, sb_ad_5, sb_ad_6 | Read more →

Referent Power

Referent power is a type of social power that is obtained in a person over time because they have admirable qualities, attitudes, skills, and a solid reputation. A person with referent power has influence because they are admired, respected, or even idolized. Learn more and take the power quiz!
Posted by Mark Murphy on 14 February, 2023 no_cat, no_recent, sb_ad_30, sb_ad_5, sb_ad_6 | Read more →

Coercive Power

Coercive power is a type of threatening power.  Coercive power is, by definition, the ability of someone or some group to control or influence others through the use of threats, punishment, or physical force. Learn more and take the power quiz!
Posted by Mark Murphy on 06 February, 2023 no_cat, no_recent, sb_ad_30, sb_ad_5, sb_ad_6 | Read more →

The Peter Principle

The Peter Principle is a concept that was formulated by Dr. Laurence J. Peter and Raymond Hull in the 1969 book The Peter Principle: Why Things Always Go Wrong.  It is a principle of organizational management that basically states that employees within a hierarchical organization tend to be promoted and promoted, until they reach the point where they no longer have the skills necessary for the role that they are assigned, and are no longer competent.
Posted by Mark Murphy on 06 February, 2023 no_cat, no_recent, sb_ad_30, sb_ad_5, sb_ad_6 | Read more →

Never Bring Your Boss Only One Solution To A Problem

Whenever you're pitching your boss (or a customer or a colleague) a solution to a problem, NEVER bring them only one solution.

It sounds strange, but offering only one solution can drastically increase your frustration and stress. And it significantly damages your problem-solving and creative abilities!

Watch the video to learn how this works, and what to do instead!

 

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Posted by Mark Murphy on 13 January, 2021 no_cat, no_recent, sb_ad_30, sb_ad_5, sb_ad_9 | Read more →

3 Phrases That Great Presenters DON’T Say

 

Whenever you make a presentation, you want to use really concrete words.

Allan Paivio is the scientist who pioneered the concept of concrete words. In one of my favorite studies, Paivio analyzed peoples’ ability to remember concrete words vs. abstract words.

Concrete words have high “imagery value,” that is you can picture that to which they refer For example, words like road, bridge, clown and even picture, are all pretty concrete. But words like condition, amount, request and purpose are all pretty abstract.  

Abstract words/phrases also include "core competencies," "strategic vision," and "value added." And that's why the best presenters avoid those phrases (and others like them)!

Paivio paired concrete nouns and adjectives and tested them against paired abstract nouns and adjectives, to see which words were easier to recall.

In every case, recall was better for concrete word pairs than it was for abstract word pairs. It’s just easier to remember “happy clown” and “spittle-flecked lips” than it is “essential nutrient” or “significant result.” In fact, and this is critical, you’ll remember totally unrelated concrete word pairs way better than you’ll remember related abstract word pairs.

Across Paivio’s experiments, concrete words could be remembered as much as 2-3 times more frequently than the abstract words.

Now here’s the real kicker; almost every presenter in business suffers from abstract word disease. Let me share some of the actual abstract word pairs tested in Paivio’s study:

  • Complete set
  • Annual event
  • Useful purpose
  • Original finding
  • Critical condition
  • Reasonable request
  • Constant attention
  • Adequate amount
  • Significant result
  • Possible guess

If you’ve ever sat through a corporate presentation, I guarantee you’ve seen word pairs like this (if not these exact ones). Over and over again people deliver presentations using abstract language. Then they look around bewildered as to why nobody remembers what they said. And the reason is because they are using language that is guaranteed not to be remembered.

Think about how many times you've sat through presentations using abstract words/phrases like "core competencies," "strategic vision," and "value added." It's tough to remember what was said in those presentations because the language was so abstract!  

I’ve had the word choice conversation with a lot of CEOs. And while hundreds of them have gotten it no problem, there are thousands more that failed to achieve “significant results” on their goal-setting memos because they obtusely refused to give “constant attention” to this issue. See how easy it is to slip in that abstract language without even noticing? It’s a disease. If you want presentations that people actually remember, you had better address your abstract word disease and fast.

So the next time you’re about to give a presentation, ask yourself this question: Could the people listening to me draw a picture of what I’m saying?

 

 

Posted by Mark Murphy on 11 January, 2021 no_cat, no_recent, sb_ad_30, sb_ad_4, sb_ad_5 | Read more →

Here's How Many Hours Per Week Leaders Need To Spend With Their Employees

A study of more than 30,000 people reveals the exact amount of time that leaders need to spend with their employees in order to increase their engagement, inspiration and innovation!
Posted by Mark Murphy on 14 December, 2020 no_cat, no_recent, sb_ad_30, sb_ad_5, sb_ad_9 | Read more →

This Psychological Quirk Explains Why Many Leaders Struggle To Compliment Their Employees

There is a psychological phenomenon that helps explain why many managers don’t recognize, let alone praise, employees’ great work. And it’s called 'reason-based choice.'
Posted by Mark Murphy on 30 September, 2020 no_cat, no_recent, sb_ad_30, sb_ad_5 | Read more →

When Your Employees Are Remote, You Have To Stop The Butt-In-Seat Mentality

There's an insidious attitude permeating many companies; that when employees have their butts-in-their-seats, it means they're productive. But if you've ever seen studies on actual employee productivity, or if you've ever forced yourself to sit at your desk for eight straight hours, you know that having a butt-in-the-seat does not equal productivity.

Posted by Mark Murphy on 27 August, 2020 no_cat, sb_ad_30, sb_ad_5 | Read more →

Stop Asking Interview Questions That Candidates Are Prepared To Answer

The reason why half of new hires fail is that most interviewers ask softball questions that candidates are prepared to answer! If you really want to make great hires, you need to eliminate the questions for which candidates have scripted responses. Make sure that you're NOT asking one of those terrible questions...
Posted by Mark Murphy on 23 June, 2020 no_recent, sb_ad_30, sb_ad_5 | Read more →
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