E- Zine - March 2004

WELCOME to the PROTOCOL PLUS MONTHLY E-ZINE

IN TODAY'S ISSUE:
What can make you or break you in 7 seconds? Your first impression! How favorable an impression do you leave as your calling card? If you want to have utmost confidence you are leaving a favorable impression that fosters relationships, come to this Special Event at Meridian Technology Center. This is an excellent opportunity for you to experience Outclass the Competition, and also an opportunity for you to see if you would like to bring this Seminar into your company. Come see for yourself how Outclass the Competition can fill your toolbox with every tool you need for utmost confidence and success.

On Wednesday, March 24th, from 9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m., you have the opportunity to attend Outclass the Competition at Meridian Technology Center in Stillwater. Learn the dos and don’ts of inviting clients to lunch, choosing the restaurant, paying the bill. Learn how to introduce a customer and your CEO. Learn which fork to use, and what to do if your neighbor steals your bread plate. Learn the biggest no no when someone toasts you. Learn and practice a confident handshake, eye contact, and body language. You judge people by these things, and they judge you too. Be the one who stands out in the crowd with assurance in any dining, business or social setting. Have the etiquette edge for supreme confidence and success.

To learn more about Outclass the Competition, visit http://www.protocolplus.net/seminar/outclass.html. For enrollment information, contact Meridian Technology Center Management Services at (405) 377-3333. Act now! Enrollment is limited.

You are also invited to the Greater Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce luncheon on Thursday, March 18th, as I present “Schmooze you way to Success.” For information and to register, call 405/297-8900 or go to http://www.okcchamber.com/page.asp?atomid=241.

Tips to Outclass Your Competition – Don’t do this and you’re in trouble.

Two elderly ladies had been friends for many decades. Over the years they shared all kinds of activities and adventures. Lately, their activities had been limited to meeting a few times a week to play cards.

One day they were playing cards when one looked at the other and said “Now don’t get made at me….I know we’ve been friends for a long time….but I just can’t think of your name! I’ve thought and thought, but I can’t remember it. Please tell me what your name is.”

Her friend glared at her. For at least three minutes she just stared and glared at her. Finally she said, “How soon do you need to know?”

Dale Carnegie’s third principle of How to Win Friends and Influence People is “Remember that a person’s name is to that person the sweetest and most important sound in any language.” To test that principle, notice if someone helping you is wearing a nametag. Try thanking them using their name. I promise they will look up at you and smile. That one little word, their name, says you notice them, you acknowledge them, and you make them feel important. In fact, you probably made their day.

One of my seminar participants told me a story of a former Governor of Oklahoma, Governor George Nigh. Whenever Governor Nigh saw someone he knew, but couldn’t remember his name, he would give his wife, Donna Nigh, a signal. She would go up to that person and introduce herself. That person would tell Donna Nigh his or her name, and she would relay it to her husband. I recently ran into Governor and Mrs. Nigh, and they confirmed this story. They said they had many techniques to help each other remember names. Governor Nigh knew the importance of a name, and Governor Nigh was reelected.

There are many memory techniques for remembering names and you have to find one that works for you. For me, the best strategy is to make it a point to remember a name. I make up my mind to focus on listening to the name, and then to repeat the name. It helps me to place an alliterative adjective describing that person with the name. I recently met a woman whose name is Nancy. She was extremely nice – so I associated the words Nice Nancy. The same evening I met a man named Ted. Ted was very tall, so I remember him as Tall Ted. It seems we always remember some physical characteristic about a person, or the conversation, their appearance, or their actions. Try connecting something with their name.

If someone doesn’t remember your name, come to his or her rescue immediately. Extend your hand, smile, and say your name. If you can’t remember someone’s name, extend your hand, smile, and say your name. The other person will usually say his or her name. Use people’s names to set the magic in motion.

To have confidence you are attracting and building good relationships, and to outsell and outservice your competition, bring “Outclass the Competition” into your workplace. To avoid potentially disastrous meetings with your clients, call 405-341-3216 today.

Customer Service Techniques – What is the “Rule of 12?”

The first 12 words you speak, the first 12 steps you take, and the first 12 inches from your head and your feet, can make a lasting impression. Make it a memorable one!

The first 12 words should:
  • Include some form of thanks.
  • Include the other person’s name.
  • “Thank you for meeting me for lunch, Mr. Jones” or “I appreciate you taking the time to meet with me Ms. Hall.”
The first 12 steps should be taken:
  • With confidence.
  • With a purpose.
  • With a lively pace.
The first 12 inches from your head:
  • Should be impeccably groomed.
  • Hair should be clean and neat.
  • Be selective of your tie and other accessories.
  • Be sure your tie and collar are neat.
The last 12 inches from the floor should also be impeccable.
  • Your shoes should be polished.
  • Your socks/stockings should blend with your outfit.
Dealing with people is probably the biggest challenge you face, so follow the “Rule of 12” and people will want to do business with you and not your competition.

To learn more about my customer service programs, call 405-341-3216 today or visit me on the web at http://www.protocolplus.net/seminar/smallbus.html

The Coach’s Corner – Self-confidence can be arranged.

The late Thomas Leonard, guru of coaching, coined the phrase “Self-confidence can be arranged.” It’s one of the 15 Coaching Frameworks, or ways of expanding your thinking, to get you moving forward more quickly and with less effort. This particular framework is of particular value to my clients. Clients come to me because they want to polish their skills for a job interview or a professional school interview. Sometimes a budding young star is moving up the corporate ladder and is a diamond in the rough – just wants a little smoothing over. Clients come to me because they want to know how to walk into a room full of strangers and feel at ease. CEO’s who want to come up to speed FAST seek my training. I see it professionally and I see it socially - and it holds people back – lack of self-confidence.

You don’t have to be alone in your endeavors and you don’t need to rely on yourself to feel confident. Self-confidence is like a muscle that can be built up. It’s doable! As your Confidence Coach, we can arrange for unshakeable self-confidence so you are unstoppable in everything you do. Everything is learnable. “Self-confidence can be arranged.”

Coaching questions:
  • In what situations do you find yourself unsure of yourself?
  • How would you feel if you were more confident in these situations?
  • What does confidence mean to you?
  • What are the benefits of having confidence?
  • What is the invisible rope holding you back?
  • What one thing will you do this week to help you feel more confident?
  • How can you get there?
  • Who can help you?
To experience the power of coaching, call for your free no-obligation, collaborative interview. Yes, you get to interview me! This 25-minute confidential session will give you the experience of coaching and for you to see if you could benefit from working with a coach. To take advantage of my offer, call 405-341-3216 to schedule your collaborative interview. I am also offering an introductory three-month special discount to the first 5 callers.

Our coaching relationship is powerful, and when the going gets tough, we stay in collaboration and work through to the other side. As your coach, you have my word that I am 100% committed to you being powerful, successful and to having the life you want.

For information on my Etiquette/Coaching Package, visit http://www.protocolplus.net/schedule.html

Quotes of the Month –

“Go confidently in the direction of your dreams! Live the life you’ve imagined.”
         --- Henry David Thoreau

“Pretend everyone that you meet has an invisible sign around their neck saying, ‘Make me feel important.’”
         --- Mary Kay Ash

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