Page 284 - ConvinceThemFlip

convince them in 90 seconds or less
small boardroom. The tape was painful to watch because
Teresa showed every symptom of panic. She made no
eye contact, wore a frozen, pained smile, gulped and
Practice, Practice, Practice
The catch-22 of connecting with groups is that
the more you do it, the easier it becomes—the
problem is that most of us don’t have much chance
to gain that experience. Sure, naturally outgoing
persuaders and controllers are generally more
comfortable than the more introspective analysts
and dreamers, but there’s no substitute for
experience.
There are a lot of ways that you can get that
experience. When our children were in their early
teens, my wife and I made a deal with them. On
the first Tuesday of each month, at supper time, we
would “visit” a foreign country. Our five children
decided which country they wanted to visit each
month, and Wendy and I would research the menu
and prepare a typical three-course meal from
the chosen destination. During dinner each child
agreed to give a short, informal presentation about
predetermined aspects of the country—climate,
tourism, industry, politics, exports.
We all had a month to prepare. I remember
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