Improve Communications, Improve Influence

Source: freetrainingfilms
Note: Earphones needed.

Some key points from the video:

1. improve your influence with others using language, whether you are a business leader or just someone who wants to improve communications with colleages
2. improve communication in business and professional life, give more thought on the desired outcome of your communication
3. sarcastic comments can cause embarrassment
4. what is important is what the receiver gets, his interpretation of the message
   
5. for verbal language, it is 7 % word, 38 % emotional tone and 55 % body language, including facial expression, that is the power of body language
   
6. check your posture and gestures
7. think of someone who is decisive, get a clear image of his nodding, tilting of head, hand pointing, etc.
8. adopt your own style through mirroring of an effective communicator

Factors for a Successful Project

A project must have the following to be successful:

1. Agreement among the project stakeholders – the team, customer, and management – on the goals of the project.
2. A plan that demonstrates what is possible, shows an overall path and clear responsibilities, contains the details for estimating the people, money, time, equipment, and materials necessary to get the job done, and will be used to measure progress during the project and act as an early warning system.
3. Constant, effective communication among everyone involved in the project in order to coordinate action, recognize and solve problems, and react to changes.
4. A controlled scope, or "stakeholder expectations management", to ensure that everyone involved understands exactly what can be accomplished within a given time frame and budget; a systematic method for establishing realistic goals for deliverables, cost, schedule, and quality, as well as techniques for keeping the goals consistent throughout the project.
5. Upper management support, "managing upward", guiding the upper managers toward timely decisions that keep the project moving – to supply people and other resources, make policy decisions, or remove organizational obstacles.

Source: Eric Verzuh