I’ve learned to place an importance on being present, rather than letting my mind wander to something or somewhere else. It hasn’t been easy, as it involves self-discipline, and lots of it. I used to wish I was anywhere else than where I was at, because I didn’t enjoy my work and I didn’t like who I had become. I thought that if I could escape my reality, then I might be able to escape my funk. I thought that if I could be somewhere else, then I could maybe find happiness. But the problem with this mentality was that I quickly found there’s never anything satisfying enough to quench the search for true happiness from the outside. This is because once you reach your idea of happiness, then something else will appear that’s more shiny and the natural response will be to just want the next new thing.
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Have Cabin Fever? You’re Not Alone.
If you’re like me, then winter seems to be the most difficult time of year to focus on the good things in life. Daylight is shorter, the weather is freezing cold, and staying inside seems like the best decision. Actually, the temperature has been below freezing every day here for the past three months. Finally, this last week we had a break from freezing temperatures, and it lessened the cabin fever I have been experiencing as of late.
Josh Klapow, a clinical psychologist with a PhD at the school of public health at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, says that cabin fever is your mind’s way of telling you that the environment you are in is less than optimal for normal functioning; It’s when you’re in a space of restricted freedom for a period of time that you can no longer tolerate.
Cabin fever isn’t just a figment of your imagination; it’s a very real thing. And for some reason this winter has been one of the worst in recent memory. The good news is that I’ve found a few ways to fight cabin fever, and here they are:
What Fruit Can Teach Us About Good Presentations
Good presentations grab the audience by the jugular and don’t let go! In the marketing book Selling the Invisible, the author sites a very interesting fruit study that can teach us a key lesson about preparing your presentations. The study found that when people are shown a series of fruit like an apple, banana, peach, pear, and pomegranate for just a few seconds, they are most likely to remember the first and the last fruit only.
The fruits in the middle get forgotten. Remember this the next time you are preparing to speak. When you structure your presentations make sure you have an opening and closing that grabs the audience. In journalism it is called, “not burying the lead”. The headline should be up front and not buried on the back of page 9b. Get the main point out there early.
As a coach to leaders, I see leaders make this mistake all the time. An example of this is when one leader needed to address his employee about his tardiness. The request to come in on time was buried somewhere between a “I don’t want you to think this is a big deal” and a “I’m not upset”. The result was that the employee continued to come in late. In accordance to the “fruit theory”, there is no wonder. The employee remembered the first “It’s not a big deal.” and the last “I’m not upset.” that his employer said to him. We reworked my client’s conversation so that he had an opening and closing that reinforced his real point. The result was that the employee stopped coming in late. Do you need to know what to say the next time you need to get your point across?
Here are five ways to open and close that are sure to grab one’s attention:
1. Be inspirational.
Opening or closing with an inspirational quote gets the audience thinking about the topic of your presentation. It lends credibility to you presentation to quote someone influential.
2. Be shocking.
Say something unexpected. You have to be careful with this one though. You have to know you audience and watch your word choice, so you don’t offend them. Carol Burnett did this well when she belted out that she was shy for a bit in her show. It was shocking because she was yelling about her shyness.
3. Be sincere.
Show some vulnerability and transparency. People like to see the presenter as human. Don’t try to be Liberace when you are more like Eeyore and vice versa. Your message will always be better received if the audience senses your sincerity.
4. Be humorous
Laughter puts people at ease. Choose humorous stories that are appropriate and relevant to your topic and audience.
5. Be controversial
Present an argument that goes against the conventional thinking. In 2008 when people were seeing gas prices reach 2.99/gallon for the first time, I started my presentation on growing together as a family with, “Here is why 3 bucks a gallon for gas is good for you.” Be careful of your audience when choosing your controversial approach.
The opening and closing of your presentation is like an after taste. Make sure when your audience burps after feasting on your presentation, it tastes good!