Kendra was giving a sales presentation to VIP prospects. She was explaining why her company would outperform the competition and why they were a better choice as a partner, even though they were newer and not as well-known. The message was powerful. She was saying things like, “We’re best at … We have the highest record of … No one can match our…”
Her words were well crafted and she was beautifully dressed. But her overall body language was unmistakably expressing a suppressed anxiety, a “I hope you believe me, I hope this works. Are you getting what I’m saying? Do you believe me?” It was a bit tense, with a very slight nervousness.
The prospects were sitting there listening, no expressions on their faces. Kendra became progressively deflated as she went along, and then ended weakly with, “Well that about sums it up. Those are all of our strengths as a partner and we hope to do business with you. Let me know if you have any questions.”
They chose the competitor.
When Kendra showed up for the Transforming Your Presentation Skills workshop, she explained to me that her company actually IS the best in the industry and why. It was clear she has a compelling story, and I mean really compelling.
Her delivery, on the other hand, inspired sympathy, not success.
I want to talk about intention and expectancy. When I asked Kendra, “What do you expect when you give a presentation?” She told me what she was hoping for.
I acknowledged her hopes and asked her again, “What do you expect?”
She said, “I don’t know what to expect. I only know what I’m hoping for. I’m looking at them to see what’s happening and basing my expectations on that. When I don’t see anything happening, I don’t expect anything good to come out of it.”
This method of operating is the OPPOSITE of being causative because what Kendra is saying is that, even though she is speaking, she is expecting them to cause the outcome. She is not expecting to cause the outcome.
That is called effect, not cause.
Expect means “believe will happen, have certainty that it will happen, free of any doubt”.
Your intention CREATES expectancy. When your intention is strong, your expectancy is strong.
If you want to be successful in creating the outcomes you want, if you want to be a causative communicator, the number one thing you want to intend and expect as you speak, is that they understand you.
This sounds simple. It takes real skill.
Individuals who try hard but fall flat on their faces are not intending and expecting success, they’re hoping for it.
They fall flat not realizing the real reason why.
Start by intending that they will understand you, expecting that they will understand you, free from any doubt that they will understand you. Be filled with a confident certainty that you will be understood, that they will really get it.
Then you will radiate a calm, comfortable certainty that makes others relax around you. This enables them to open their minds.
Many call this an “aura”.
There should be no strain, no effort, no force. Only intention, expectancy, certainty.
This combination commands respectful attention. This will carry your ideas across and make them really land.
Kendra practiced and mastered the skill during the workshop and she is now out there killing it with her sales presentations.
Same words, no change there. Only in how she is BEING. She is calm, friendly, almost even gentle. Her own unique style. But her intention, her expectancy, her certainty are as strong as titanium. They cause her to radiate a positive energy that fills the room with confidence. It’s a joy to see her present.
Your expectancy creates success. When you fully expect to be understood, you will be.
If you want to transform the future of your work and every area of your life, this is the skill to master.
Be the cause!