One of my great professional joys is communication coaching. I find it incredibly rewarding when I have a breakthrough with a client or student who gains empowering self confidence when they feel positively about how they deliver a presentation or succeed in an interview.

Public speaking can be terrifying for many. In addition to learning the particulars of good diction, effective posture, supported breathing, and owning your stage presence, a strong presentation depends on how well you connect with your audience. Whether you are leading a small meeting in the company board room or presenting to the masses in a large auditorium, your success hinges on how well your spectators absorb your message.

Individuals respond to different stimuli when viewing a presentation.

• Print learners are book lovers and appreciate and respond to words and text.
• Auditory learners are music lovers and are engaged by what they hear.
• Visual learners are art lovers and are stimulated by images, colors, and pictures.
• Kinesthetic learners like activity and need to physically interact with the material.

When you present, make sure that you honor all of these learning styles and engage your audience with unique and customized approaches that cover all the bases.

For the Print learners, in addition to your Power Point slides, provide take-away materials or hand-outs for post presentation reflection. For the Visual learners, mix it up a little and add images or video to your text slides. The Auditory learners will respond to your vocal inflections. Remember the power of the pause – silence can be just as effective as sound. Add music or sound effects to really energize this group.

With Kinesthetic learners you need to incorporate them into the action. Provide interactive opportunities to engage the group or mix Q&A into the presentation instead of waiting until the end. These learners like to feel, so if appropriate, pass around a sample of your product or a relevant prop. You can also encourage them to take notes and provide them with note pads or pens.

Next time you are listening to someone else present, be aware of how your absorb information. This will help you engage your audience and will make you more cognizant of engaging all four learning styles the next time you are up at bat.

I had the great pleasure of hearing Kathleen Oliver, COO of Oliver Winery speak at a professional development workshop recently. In her position at the winery, Kathleen manages the retail operation of the business, oversees the activities of the tasting room, special events, and human resources so she communicates with a very large staff daily.

Kathleen offered these five tips for effective communication that I believe are universal to us all.

1. Get to the point.

Communicating your point effectively and efficiently is essential in a professional setting. In a business where time is money, getting to the point can make or break a deal. Be sure to stay on track and avoid tangents and rambling. Stay focused, and relay your message with clarity and confidence.

2. Get to know others.

With a large staff it’s easy to lose faces in the crowd and not address people by name. Make a point to get to know people within your department and beyond in your organization. Try and address people personally and learn about others so you can have meaningful interactions. Develop a system to remember names. Kathleen uses photos of her employees on a bulletin board in her office so she can call each of them by name.

3. Get along.

Follow the Golden Rule and treat others as you wish to be treated. It’s that simple and applies to everybody at all levels within an organization.

4. Get off the computer and get on the phone.

In this technology driven era it’s easy to rely on email as the only way to communicate. Especially in a client driven business, pick up the phone and make a personal connection. You may remember the old AT&T slogan “Reach out and touch someone.” It’s important to make that call when you can and whenever possible, an in-person meeting is best.

5. Get out of the office.

Be involved in your community and become an ambassador for your organization. Kathleen encourages her staff to volunteer and build their personal and professional relationships beyond the workplace. It’s good for the individuals and ultimately, it’s good for the company.