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Tool 3
A STORY WITH A
DIFFERENCE
Several years ago I learned a valuable
lesson about how people can be different. As part of a media awareness training
course I had devised an hour long session about the power of the voice in
communication. (A topic close to my heart). There were eight clients around a
board-room table and I enthusiastically engaged their attention with amazing
facts and demonstrations. Everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves, except one
gentleman who continually looked at the floor with his head slightly turned
away. He made no response at all. I thought he must have been bored to the
point of drowsiness. This one member of the group overpowered my own focus and
by the end of the session I was convinced that my presentation was awful and I
wasn't worth listening to. (I had almost lost interest in everyone else in the
room, so impressed was I by the one person's behaviour). At last I came to the
end and tentatively asked each client what they had gained of value from the
session. I left the dozing client until last. Imagine my amazement when he
looked up slowly and said "That was really, really interesting Kate" He then
went on to repeat what had particularly affected him.
Learning point:
We all
use our senses differently and some people have a very strong preference in one
sense. My 'dozing' gentleman had an extraordinarily strong preference for
listening and internalising his thoughts. This hadn't occurred to me. I was too
concerned about myself and the 'feedback' I thought he was giving me. As a
trainer I am now much more relaxed (though still observant) about other
people's behaviour.
"Some students are very visual; they
have to see everything. Others don't want to see something written down;
they're more auditory types: others are kinaesthetic: they have to stand and
move; they learn even abstract things by moving their bodies."
Charles
Schmid, founder of the LIND Institute.
Because members of an audience will be made
up of people with different preferences we must always consider how to help
everyone by varying the presentation style of our material. On our presentation
and communication courses we will give you ideas of how to do this.
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