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Are you listening?

IN TODAY’S allegedly sophisticated information age, the need to communicate clearly has never been greater.  Information is valuable only when shared.  And to be shared, it has to be delivered consistently, in a manner which is readily identifiable and easily understood.

 By and large, all of us can speak.  But it is not necessarily shouters who make the most telling contribution.  Voices should not merely be heard, but listened to as well.  Complex issues must be delivered in simple, clear language.  The overriding challenge is to minimise communication breakdowns.

 The requisite proficiency does not always come naturally, but when executed well it will be a key factor in corporate success.  Skilled public relations specialists have a pivotal part to play in this process.

 Business managers take on wide-ranging responsibilities for communications, starting with internal requirements.  Their actions are also scrutinised by people outside the organisation – customers, suppliers, investors, regulators, competitors, commentators and other opinion formers.

 Tasks include improving understanding, widening acceptance and enhancing reputations.  By speaking clearly and consistently, from a united and uniform base, business aims and objectives will be so much easier to achieve. 

 Notwithstanding that different audiences will need differing styles of presentation and degrees of selectivity in content, corporate messages must never be fragmented nor massaged for the sake of effect.  Say it as it is and the identity will register positively and constructively.

 At the heart of all this is the quality of the public relations effort, keeping the cogs of business lubricated.  The primary purposes of professionally-led PR are to drive behaviour, add value and strengthen results.

Talk to Changeworks Communications about how to add value to your PR efforts, we listen!

Tiger Woods' mental toughness gets success

Mental toughness, or resilience, is the key to peformance, behaviour and wellbeing. It is defined as a state (which can be learnt), rather than a trait (inherent in personality) and is embodied by people who seek challenges,create change, dislike routine, and like problem solving. It is key to instigating and managing change.

Mental sensitivity is the opposite of mental toughness: it means you let things get to you. Mentally tough people DON’T: adversity happens and they remain calm: instead of getting stirred up they are inspired to achieve despite setbacks.

When it comes to mental toughness, men and women are equally tough. And it can be learnt. You can develop mental toughness: NLP is a powerful tool, as is YogaNidra.

Mental toughness when combined with emotional intelligence leads to wise resilience – which I think is essential for every leader. If you want to get to the top, get mentally tough: one common thing is top people are all mentally tough. The higher position they hold the more mentally tough they are.

The components of mental toughness are commitment, control, challenge, confidence.

Commitment refers to being energised by goals and challenges and ‘staying power’.

Then there is control over one’s emotions and one’s life (self efficacy).

People who seek challenges create change, dislike routine, and like problem solving. They actually seek out difficult challenges because it energises them.

Finally confidence has an external and internsl dimension: self belief and interpersonal confidence.

Mental toughness can be developed through the following six aspects

1. Thinking skills
2. Visualisation and mental rehearsal
3. Control of anxiety – fretting can tax the body and promote cardiovascular problems.worry elevates heart rate and lowers HRV. Learn to let go
4. Attention control – my friends tell me that my 30 min YogaNidra sessions give them-stamina, energy and focused performance.
6. Biofeedback – for example, heart waves entrain brain waves; physiologically the heart is a regulator of the ‘bodymind’ system, it entrains the system to coherence.