Don’t drop the ball

Everyone is juggling a lot these days.  If you still have a job, you’re probably doing the work of two or three people.  Home and family add to the balls in the air and it can all be overwhelming.

There is a way you can have fun while trying to juggle - get invited on stage at a comedy show!  Recently, on a PR/PR office outing, I was called on stage by comedic juggler Jeff Civillico.  Besides being a very talented juggler and very funny, Jeff is a featured entertainer and Master of Ceremonies at corporate events.  His program, “Comedy in Action,” blends comedy, juggling and audience participation and he explores themes of communication, goal setting and teamwork during his workshops.

Our agency manager, Patricia, took this video of Jeff trying to get me to juggle.  In case you can’t quite make it out, I was distracted by a toddler that started to climb the stairs to get on stage.

Trust me, I do a much better job juggling work and life when I’m not on stage.

Audience Insights

Watch and read the same TV shows and magazines your audience enjoys. This gives you insight on what is important to them.

Solve Your Audience’s Problems

When pitching yourself to the media, think about the audience. What problems do they have and how can you solve them? – www.prpr.net

Understand your audience

Tip: Don’t make assumptions about your audience. Seek to understand them and what appeals to them. – www.prpr.net

Ask (the right way) and ye shall receive

“It’s A Wonderful Life” is one of my favorite movies.  It’s a great one to watch, and not just at the holidays, when you want to feel warm and fuzzy.  And these days, we need something to make us feel warm and fuzzy.  A great scene in the movie is when there is a run on the Bailey Bros. Building and Loan.  With minimal funds, George asks his customers, “What do you really need?  What will it take to tide you over?”

The Federal stimulus package is a real-world modern example of minimal funds with the government asking businesses, “What do you really need?  What will it take to tide you over?”  Responding the right way will make or break a request for funding.  According to speech coach Chris Witt, the best ideas and the greatest needs only win out when they are presented clearly, credibly and compellingly.

Witt advises, “When making a pitch for funding, you have to make your audience feel a sense of urgency and believe in the ability of your organization, project or proposal to solve the problems they face.”

Leaders of business, government or non-profits can make the best case for their proposal by following Witt’s recommendations:

1.  Be credible
2.  Sound the alarm without sounding like an alarmist
3.  Substantiate every claim
4.  Put a human face on the problem
5.  Advocate a solution that mitigates risk

By making presentations more convincing than ever before, every time a bell rings … it can be your cash register.

Bundle up – it’s the first day of spring

While some areas of the country are still experiencing winter weather, other parts are enjoying balmy breezes. Regardless of where you live, we all should wear the same thing.

Thursday, March 20, 2008 would have been Fred Rogers’ 80^th birthday; in celebration, National Sweater Day was created.

For those of you born later than 2001 – when the show left the air after 33 years – Fred Rogers hosted “Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood,” a PBS children’s show. He opened every show with the removal of his loafers and jacket, replacing them with sneakers and a cardigan. At the conclusion of the show, when Mr. Rogers assured us we were all very special, he would reverse the process before leaving his house.

Born in Latrobe, PA, Rogers attended Rollins College right here in PR/PR’s home town of Orlando, FL. Following graduation and a marrige to his sweetheart, they moved back to Pittsburgh and began his public career. If he hadn’t gone into television, Rogers still would have still had a presentation platform in his future, being an ordained minister in the Presbyterian Church.

Fred Rogers got into television as soon as he saw his first broadcast from his parents house. He was quoted as saying, “I went into television because I hated it so, and I thought there was some way of using this fabulous instrument to be of nurture to those who would watch and listen.” Mr. Rogers early on recognized the power of the broadcast medium. He proved that no matter who you are and where you’re from, you can harness the power of (then TV, now Internet) electronic mediums.

You can make a lot of noise in this world with a soft, yet steady, voice to a wide audience.