How to Present Yourself to One or Many

Abstract

Skill in oral and written communication is a key to leadership success. Academics often underrate the oral type. Dr. Susan Paddock, professor of governmental affairs at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, spoke on how to present your best self at the university's Women & Leadership Symposium in June. In a society that still expects women to be self-effacing and puts men in positions of power, part of making a positive impression involves how you think about yourself. “Anyone who sees herself or himself as not a person in power will act that way,” she said. Build your confidence in parallel with your skills. It's a mistake to equate oral communication with speeches to a roomful of people. That's only a small part. “When we're making an impression with our speaking skills, it's usually in much smaller settings, even one-on-one,” she told WIHE. Suppose you're unexpectedly in an elevator with someone who could do wonders for your career. She asks you about yourself. How will you respond in the brief time until the elevators doors open again and everyone gets out? It's trite but true: First impressions are awfully important. So don't leave them to chance; plan and practice your elevator speech. In half a minute or less, it should tell: Besides the content, verbal skills and enthusiasm count for a lot in that first impression. So does the nonverbal: appearance, body language, eye contact and handshake. “Too often intelligent people think it's the words they say that make a difference. Words are only 7% of your message,” Paddock said. Here's the breakdown: Think of all the ways your boss or department chair can send a message without words. What do her smile and gestures tell you (kinesics or body language)? His arm on your shoulder could communicate positive support or unwanted sexual interest (haptics or touch). Keeping you waiting sends one message, punctuality another (chronemics or timing). Women send unintended nonverbal messages based on gender. They tend to be smaller than men, taking up less physical space (objectics or appearance, also including clothing and hairstyle). Being aware of this can start you thinking about how to offset it. “Our higher, lighter voices often don't carry as much authority as men's,” she said (paralanguage or sounds). They don't travel as far; if you're lost in the woods, use a low voice to call for help. High pitches are the first to go in hearing loss, perhaps a reason male partners stop listening to females. How far apart people prefer to stand when they talk (proxemics) varies by culture, as does whether eye contact (oculesics) signals honesty or insolence. Learn the cultural cues for the people you deal with. At least half of oral communication is listening, which goes beyond waiting your turn to speak. Stay quiet and focused. Maintain eye contact unless the culture forbids it. Keep an open mind; don't jump to conclusions. Listen to understand and let your response show that you do. Regardless of your position on campus, it involves attending meetings. How you present yourself there will depend on the meeting's purpose and your role in it. If you're the meeting leader, establish the purpose before you begin. Is it to convey information, discuss an area of concern, solve a problem or reach a decision? Plan the agenda accordingly and manage the space, time, process and atmosphere to achieve that goal. Wrap up and summarize. Most failed meetings result from poor planning, lack of leadership, lack of clear results or poor group process. If you're a meeting participant, support the leader to reach the goal. Individuals can take on any number of roles in the group such as timekeeper, initiator, questioner, summarizer, clarifier, gate keeper, compromiser, consensus seeker, encourager, energizer, harmonizer and reliever of tensions. Both leaders and participants can help keep the meeting on track by putting limits on nonfunctional behavior like competition, domination, withdrawal or horsing around. Giving speeches is another chance to make an impression on campus, though perhaps the least important. “You can really screw up a formal presentation without hurting how people think of you if you come across well one-on-one or in small groups,” Paddock told WIHE. She offered many practical tips, including: Higher education gives you lots of opportunities to make an impression, for better or worse. “Learning to present yourself is a lifelong process,” she said. Use it to position yourself as a leader on campus. Contact Dr. Paddock at spaddock@wisc.edu