How to BE UNDERSTOOD in presentations - Business English communication lesson

If you need to give presentations at work, in English, and it's not your first language then speaking and communicating with your English speaking colleagues can be difficult. Today we're talking about how to make sure that you're understood, some vocabulary that we can use to check that our colleagues have listened carefully to what we've said, and some tips to ensure that you have communicated your ideas and key points successfully in the most natural and native sounding way possible. Giving presentations in English can be challenging, but hopefully today's podcast can help you to make your next English language presentation a success!

Don’t forget that my full time job is helping international professionals who use English at work to improve their communication skills. So, if you need English to do your job but don’t speak it natively then maybe we can work together to help you to achieve your language goals. If you’d like to book some time to meet with me through one to one video calls, then you can go to:

https://www.breakoutbusinessenglish.com/start

Transcript

Welcome back to the Breakout Business English podcast, where I help you to communicate better at work in English. Hi everyone, my name is Chris and I'm a Business English coach and tutor. Thank you so much for listening as always. And today's topic is how to be understood when presenting, how to make sure that you are communicating successfully when giving presentations. Imagine for a moment that you've been asked to present your work to a meeting of around 40 or 50 of your colleagues. It's a great opportunity to raise your profile in the company and of course, to impress the management team. What are your first thoughts? Do you feel excited and ready to take full advantage of the opportunity? Or does this idea make you nervous and worried about all the ways that this could go wrong? Out of all the communication skills that I am asked to discuss when I'm coaching professionals from around the world, public speaking and presentation skills are definitely the things that people ask my advice on most often. Today, we're going to focus on some tips and strategies to make sure that you are understood.Some great professional vocabulary that you can use to communicate your ideas and some tools that can help you to check that your listeners are taking everything in and really taking this information on board. Okay, let's start strong today and I'm going to give you three big ideas at the same time. These are to make no more than three important points, to say important things three times, and to say important things in three different ways. I often find that people I work with want to make lots of important points, six, seven, eight, maybe nine or 10 key points. However, whereas you may be very familiar with everything that you're presenting, your audience are likely not.That's why you're presenting to them. So I challenge you to decide what's truly essential and focus on those, preferably three or fewer points. Besides, if some points really are more important than others, by including a large number of equally important ideas, you are in danger of your audience not noticing the importance of your most central points. Then we have the two techniques of saying important things three times and in three different ways. The good news is that you can put both of these together. By following these two tips together, you're spending a lot more time focusing on your key ideas. This gives your listeners more time focusing on these key ideas and more words and phrases to help them to understand the information. Both of these are especially helpful if you're presenting to other non -native English speakers. Who you've given more opportunities to understand what you're saying. But if you're worried about being understood, then you're giving yourself three opportunities to successfully communicate your content and information. Let's hear some examples of these ideas and how we might apply them in a real presentation. The most important factor affecting our work is time. The limited time we've been given is having a real effect on the quality of our work. And because each deadline arrives so quickly, we just don't have enough time to work to the high standards that we know we can. The most important factor affecting our work is time. The limited time we've been given is having a real effect on the quality of our work. And because each deadline arrives so quickly, we just don't have enough time to work to the high standards that we know we can. This project will have ramifications for the whole company. Everyone who works here will feel the consequences of the decisions made by this team. And the opportunity for your work to have a tangible impact on the lives of your colleagues cannot be overstated. This project will have ramifications for the whole company. Everyone who works here will feel the consequences of the decisions made by this team. And the opportunity for your work to have a tangible impact on the lives of your colleagues cannot be overstated. I think the biggest hurdle for me now is that I don't have the skills to use this new software. I just haven't had any training.So I'm not sure what I'm doing. And because I have this skill gap, everything is taking a little longer. I think the biggest hurdle for me now is that I don't have the skills to use this new software. I just haven't had any training.So I'm not sure what I'm doing. And because I have this skill gap, everything is taking a little longer.So hopefully you could hear how each of those was actually one idea presented in three different ways. Come to think of it, I'm pretty sure that I've discussed this technique on an earlier podcast, but it's definitely worth repeating. And I should say, I think those are the longest examples that I've ever given in a podcast.So I hope you found them interesting or useful there. Let's start our vocabulary discussion today with an adjective from that second example. And that is tangible. We heard the opportunity for your work to have a tangible impact, the opportunity for your work to have a tangible impact. The first definition, the main definition of tangible in any dictionary is that it means able to be touched, to be able to be touched, something you can touch. We often talk about this in terms of products. If I buy a computer, for instance, then this is tangible. The software that I use on it, however, is not tangible. It's intangible. I can't touch the software. Or perhaps we could say that my car is tangible, but my car insurance is intangible. I might pay a lot for my insurance, but I can't touch it. It's not something I can hold in my hands. Another use of tangible, however, is to show that something had a significant impact on something else. For instance, if I change the route I take when walking to work, then it might save me three minutes every morning. We probably wouldn't call that a tangible difference. However, if I took the bus every morning and reduced the time that journey takes by half, then we could definitely say that this was a tangible change. It's a change that it's almost such a big change that I can feel it. I get the feeling that I could touch this change. How about the word ramifications? From the second example. This project will have ramifications for the whole company. I really like the word ramifications. It's another fun word to say. Ramifications are the results and consequences of an action or decision, especially those that are not obvious at first. Moving house for a new job might include ramifications like paying more for rent or a slightly shorter drive to work. It could have the ramification of meeting your really cool new neighbors, something that you hadn't known about or expected when you moved. Let's discuss a word from that third example, hurdle. Hurdle, as in the biggest hurdle for me now is that I don't have the skills to use this software. The biggest hurdle for me now is that I don't have the skills to use this new software. This is a piece of vocabulary that every time it appears in a coaching session with a client, it's new vocabulary for them.So hopefully it will be new and useful for you too. The first definition of a hurdle is a piece of equipment that some runners jump over while running down a track. Maybe you've seen this running event on television during the Olympic games, for instance. When we apply this word to a workplace context, however, it's used to mean a problem that must be fixed or a challenge that must be overcome. If you want to work for Apple as a software engineer, then maybe your first hurdle is learning the right skills. Your second hurdle is getting a job interview. And your third hurdle is knowing what to say in that job interview to get the job. And that last hurdle is something I can definitely help you with.So my full -time job is helping international professionals who use English at work to improve their communication skills. If you need English to do your job, but you don't speak it natively, then maybe we can work together to help you to achieve your language and communication goals. If you'd like to book some time to meet with me through one -to -one video calls, just you and me, then you can go to BreakoutBusinessEnglish .com. That's the title of the podcast, BreakoutBusinessEnglish .com, and find out more. I sometimes have offers and discounts on class packages. And entering your email address on the website is the best way to be the first to find out when those limited -time deals are available. I've worked with over 1 ,000 non -native English -speaking professionals from new graduates up to CEOs and government leaders in startups and fang and mang companies, some really established companies, to help them achieve their goals. And I look forward to meeting you. Our second tip today, or fourth, depending on how you're counting, is to announce important information. One thing that can cause a lack of understanding is that your listeners simply don't notice that what you've said is particularly important. Or maybe they get the impression that your most important points are of equal value and equal importance to everything else. One solution is to announce your most important points, to let people know that what they're about to hear, or maybe what they have just heard, is particularly important, and that this is something they should pay attention to. Let's hear some real -world examples of what this might sound like. I think that this next statistic really is the most important point that I need to tell you. It's definitely the crux of my presentation. I think that this next statistic really is the most important point that I need to tell you. It's definitely the crux of my presentation. What I'm about to tell you is paramount, and if you have a pen, then I encourage you to take notes for the next couple of minutes. What I'm about to tell you is paramount, and if you have a pen, then I encourage you to take notes for the next couple of minutes. I think that if there's one thing that I want you to understand from my presentation, it's this. This is definitely the key takeaway that I want you to take back to your teams.Technique is something that I personally really like using with questions. Have you ever asked a question and had no one offer you a reply? Perhaps that's because they can't or they don't know or don't want to answer. Or perhaps it's because they didn't notice that you had asked a question. This is especially common if you're speaking to other people who use English as a second language. Therefore, I sometimes say something like, I'm going to ask you a question now, and I want to ask you this question because I think the answer really gets to the crux of this issue. I'm going to ask you a question now, and I want to ask you this question because I think the answer really gets to the crux of this issue. Let's do some vocabulary then. And in a couple of these examples, you've heard the word crux, C -R -U -X, crux, as in it's definitely the crux of my presentation. It's definitely the crux of my presentation. This is a really simple word to define and therefore use. It simply means the most important or difficult part of something. If you're trying to solve a problem at work, for instance, then you might say that the crux of this is that we need to find a solution by the end of the week. The crux of this is that we need to find a solution by the end of the week. Or perhaps you're planning a project.Someone might say that coming in under budget really is the crux of this whole process. Coming in under budget really is the crux of this whole process. Crux is a noun, therefore we talk usually about the crux of a matter or the crux of an issue. However, we heard paramount, which is an adjective with essentially the same meaning. We can use this word on its own as we did in our second example, as in what I'm about to tell you is paramount. What I'm about to tell you is paramount. However, by far the most common way to use this word is to follow it with the noun importance. For instance, this is of paramount importance. This is of paramount importance. Okay, one more big idea that I want to give you to ensure that your listeners have understood what you're saying is to ask for someone in the meeting to explain important points back to you. Now there are a couple of ways to do this. One that I particularly like is to start with a compliment.So this could sound like, David, I know that this is really your wheelhouse. You've been doing this for years and you know a lot about this topic. I wonder if you could explain back to me the point that I've just made just to make sure that everyone is clear on it. I wonder if you could explain back to me the point that I've just made just to make sure that everyone is clear on it. Now, a lot of people talk to me about saying, can anyone explain this to me? Just addressing this question to everyone in the meeting. Could anyone jump in, raise their hand and volunteer to explain this back to me? The problem is there that people often find they get no responses.So by being really specific and asking a specific person to respond, you're far more likely to get an answer, to get a response. And by starting with a compliment, as in this is really in your wheelhouse, then again, you're making it more likely that you're going to get a good response. I use there the word wheelhouse. If something is in your wheelhouse, this means that you have a lot of experience in it.You know a lot about it. A wheelhouse is the part of a ship or a boat where the wheel is, where you store, well, where the wheel lives, just like the wheel in a car that you use to change direction, we have a wheel on a boat. The idea here is that the captain of a ship knows everything in the wheelhouse. They know what all of the buttons do, what all of the gauges do, all of the switches. They know all of this. It's their wheelhouse. They need to know all of this.So if you describe something at work as being in your wheelhouse, then it means that you know everything about that particular topic. One thing that people have asked me with this tip is, what if even when I give someone a compliment and I know they are familiar with a topic, what if they still cannot give me a good answer? If you're worried about that, I'd suggest that you prearrange this. Before your meeting, have a brief five -minute meeting, maybe a day or two before the bigger meeting with this one person and say, hey, I'm going to explain a really important point, and I'd like you to explain it back to me in your own words so that I know that you have understood, but that the whole team has understood. And by giving them this heads up, this notice, this warning that this is going to happen, you give them an opportunity to prepare, and you guarantee that they are going to have a good response. And if you want to take this a lot further, you can then ask someone a third person. First is yourself, then is your colleague whose wheelhouse this topic is, then a third person who does not know about this. Maybe you have someone from HR or accounting who you want to ask to explain back an IT concept, and I don't know, an information security concept or something like that. If you really want to take this a level further, have someone who does not understand the idea or the topic generally, have them try to explain it back.So three levels there of explanation that you might find helpful. And the word wheelhouse, which is a really nice professional English word which describes something you are an expert in.So one more time, don't forget that my full -time job is helping international professionals who use English at work to improve their communication skills. If you need English to do your job, but you don't speak it natively, then maybe we can work together to help you achieve your language and communication goals. If you'd like to book some time to meet with me through one -to -one video calls, just you and me, then you can go to BreakoutBusinessEnglish .com. That's BreakoutBusinessEnglish .com and find out more. I sometimes have offers and discounts on cost packages and entering your email address on the website is the best way to be the first to find out when those limited time deals are available. I've worked with over 1 ,000 non -native English speaking professionals from new graduates up to CEOs and government leaders to help them achieve their goals. And I look forward to meeting you and helping you to achieve yours. If you are listening on Apple Podcasts or maybe Spotify, then I invite you to leave a review. Every review helps me out and helps push this podcast to new listeners and to grow the show. If you found this podcast useful and you think there are valuable things in here, then I encourage you to write a couple of kind words and I thank you in advance for your support. Don't forget that between episodes of the podcast, you can get videos every couple of days on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube. Just search for Breakout Business English. If there's a topic that you'd like to hear me talk about on the podcast, then I'd be excited to hear your ideas. Leave me a message or a comment on one of these platforms and I look forward to hearing from you. Although I should say that leaving a comment on a YouTube video is the best way to get my attention since I spend a lot more time on that platform.So that is it for today. Thank you as always so much for your time and thank you so much for listening. And I'll talk to you again next time on the Breakout Business English podcast.