Read more about the article A simple way to make your presentation more professional
A simple way to make your presentation more professional

A simple way to make your presentation more professional

Here at Business Learning Solutions we are getting asked more and more to do presentations training and coaching in multinational companies. And I see managers and directors who have been giving presentations for years making the same mistake over and over again.

What is the common mistake most of them make? – There is no structure to their presentations. And no structure to a presentation means that the audience soon becomes bored and switches off. (more…)

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Read more about the article How to get genuine feedback
How to get genuine feedback

How to get genuine feedback

Sometimes as a manager it’s difficult to get honest, genuine feedback on how you are performing from a member of your team. We know that if we are to get the most out of our team we must listen to their view on how we can improve but many people are reluctant to tell their boss ‘the honest truth’. (more…)

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Read more about the article What are the Six Human Needs and how do they relate to motivation?
What are the Six Human Needs and how do they relate to motivation?

What are the Six Human Needs and how do they relate to motivation?

We hear a lot these days about motivation, it seems to be the buzzword of the decade, and quite rightly so, highly motivated staff lead to engaged employees lead to a happier working environment lead to higher productivity!

However, the ‘sixty thousand dollar’ question always is ‘What actually motivates someone?’ There are many motivation theories out there but the one I want to highlight in this post is related to our basic needs  as humans and what happens when they aren’t met.

In the 1950’s Maslow articulated the Hierarchy of Needs, outlining how our needs change as we evolve as a society and as an individual. A model related to this but with a somewhat different perspective is the Six Human Needs model popularized by Anthony Robbins. (more…)

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Read more about the article How to influence people in 5 simple stages
How to influence people in 5 simple stages

How to influence people in 5 simple stages

I’m busy preparing a course this week on persuasive speaking and influencing  skills. Despite framing up the course as we always do, that we’re concentrating totally on skills rather than teaching English, I suspect some of the participants expect me to wave a magic wand and present them with some set phrases in English that will make the difference between winning a contract and losing it. (more…)

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Read more about the article The new depths of motivation
The new depths of motivation - Business LEarning Solutions

The new depths of motivation

“When it comes to motivation, there’s a gap between what science knows and what business does.

Our current business operating system – which is built around external, carrot-and-stick motivators – doesn’t work and often does harm. We need an upgrade. And the science shows the way. This new approach has three essential elements:

  1. AUTONOMY – the desire to direct our own lives
  2. MASTERY the urge to get better and better at something that matters
  3. PURPOSE –  the yearning to do what we do in the service of something larger than ourselves”

That’s a summary from a great book I’ve just read about motivation called Drive by Daniel H. Pink. http://www.danpink.com/drive and it really struck a chord with me. (more…)

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