• Do you need to adjust your energy level based on the energy in the room and your listeners’ communication style?
• Are you talking nonstop, or are you pausing to give your listeners a chance to hear and understand your message?
• Are you typing an email to one client while you’re having a conversation with someone else?

2. Pay attention.Pay close attention to the verbal and nonverbal signals your listeners are sending that indicate you need to adapt your message or delivery.

• Are they interacting with you or their technical gadgets?
• Do they need additional information, or do they have a blank stare that indicates you’ve given them too much?
• Do they truly understand what you are telling them, or are they shaking their heads “yes” in the hopes you will wrap it up soon?

3. Interact to understand. Check in with your listeners and seek feedback by asking open-ended questions that will guide you to know what adjustments you need to make for them.

• “What are your thoughts on …?”
• “What has been your experience with …?”
• “What was your takeaway from our conversation?”

4. Focus outward rather than inward. Too often our focus is on ourselves and what we want to communicate rather than on our listeners and readers and what they need. Your listeners can tell it’s all about you and what you want to accomplish. Take the focus off yourself, and put your energy into how you can help your listener solve a problem or make a change.

Influential leaders never focus on what they can get. They focus on what they can give. Make it easy for your listeners to want to listen to you. Put all of your focus on them, what is important to them and what is the best solution for them.

 Drop me a note to share how you used the above four steps this week to adapt your message on the fly. Tag me on my Facebook page.

If you missed one of Stacey’s previous blogs or tips, visit her online.

Click Here to Receive our 5 Steps to Raise your Influence

What Achievers Read

Get Better: 15 Proven Practices to Build Effective Relationships at Work

by Todd Davis

The post 4 Steps for Adapting Your Message on the Fly first appeared on Stacey Hanke, Inc..

The discomfort of silence convinces you to do all of the talking just to “get it over with.” Without listener interaction, you have no idea what your listeners’ needs are, what questions they have, and if they understand and agree. Communicating a message that focuses only on you, your objectives and your expectations is not likely to influence others. Your natural response to this situation might be to:

1. Continue talking without pauses to avoid interruptions, questions or awkward silences;
2. Talk faster to get through the meeting or call as quickly as possible;
3. Make the assumption that your listeners are following and understanding your message.

For Influence Monday to Monday^®:

1. Set up the session. At the beginning of the meeting, tell your listeners that you will be moving through the material quickly to honor their time. Then explain that you will ask questions throughout the session to ensure they are receiving the value they expect.
2. Speak in short, clear and concise sentences. Fewer things are harder to follow than a leader who is vague in defining goals, decisions and direction. Communicating clearly and concisely may seem obvious, but it is far easier said than done.
3. Pause at key intervals to check for understanding. When you complete a key point, take a “pulse check” by asking, “What questions do you have about . . . ?”
4. Invite interaction by asking open-ended questions. For example: “What are your thoughts on . . . ?” “What experiences have you had with . . . ?” Then make certain you pause to give listeners time to respond.
5. Make a connection. Only speak when you see your listeners’ eyes. This will also allow you to continuously read your listeners so you can adapt your message on the fly to meet their expectations.

Drop me a note to share the action steps you will commit to this month to build your influence during meetings.  Tag me on my Facebook page.

This week’s blog is an excerpt from my new book, Influence Redefined…Be the Leader You Were Meant to Be, Monday to Monday®, available TODAY!

If you missed one of Stacey’s previous blogs or tips, visit her online.

Click here to receive our “10 Lies Business People believe about Their Influence”

 What Achievers Read:

Peak Performance:  Elevate Your Game, Avoid Burnout, and Thrive With the New Science of Success by Brad Stulberg and Steve Magness

https://www.amazon.com/Peak-Performance-Elevate-Burnout-Science/dp/162336793X/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1495204328&sr=1-1&keywords=peak+performance

The post YOU MAY NOT BE AS INFLUENTIAL AS YOU THINK YOU ARE IF…You are the only one talking during a meeting. first appeared on Stacey Hanke, Inc..