Ep 103 - Edited
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[00:00:00] Hi everyone, and welcome back to the Style and Strategy podcast. this episode here is a little bit different. It's actually from a teaching session I ran with a small group last year. And so I've cut it down to really the most important parts, uh, that will make sense to you. You know, when I think about communication, it's so complex.
Uh, there's so much in it, and when, I speak with clients around them wanting to say things that land or have the confidence when they walk into a room to really demonstrate their, point, you know, there's all these elements of presence that come into it to really get to the point to have that level of confidence.
Um, but this one here I think will help give a little bit more structure and thinking and perhaps a different perspective than you may have heard before. 'cause we know that when you've actually ticked the box on, you've done the work, you're feeling confident walking into that room, and [00:01:00] you've got the look right, and so you're feeling really empowered and your frequency's right where it needs to be, but then you start speaking and then something doesn't quite land the way you intend, there's this gap that kind of exists.
And, uh, this session here is gonna take you, uh, through really understanding the gap on both sides. And so you'll hear me reference my 3D Impact Model, and for those of you who don't know, that's really my teaching philosophy, and it's all about, identity, expression, and impact. Because when you put all those three things together, that's when you really can step into owning your own presence.
and, that's all you really need to, to follow along.
Speaker 2: When you think about you've walked into that room, you've got that impression, you're feeling really good about yourself, and you start to present whatever that might be. You're sharing your [00:02:00] insights, and even though you know you are bringing value, there's those occasions where you feel like something doesn't land.
And it's not because you've said something incorrectly, and it's not because you don't know your stuff, because you do. But there's actually something which I like to call this translation gap between how you're designed to communicate and how your audience is wired to receive that information. So today is all about decoding both sides of that equation.
So when you think about, your leadership presence, as I like to call it, it requires both a visual communication, how you show up, and a verbal communication, how your message lands. So that way you've got this beautiful blend when you walk into any room So a key thing to note is that there's actually four key processing channels on how [00:03:00] your audience receives information.
And a lot of the time we are so busy putting together our presentations, trying to figure out what are we going to say about the topic that's really important to us, and we're not considering our audience as much. We might think about it a little bit, but we're not considering how do they actually receive informations.
So if you've got a board meeting, executive presentation, strategy sessions, you're presenting ... If you're a business owner, you're presenting out to your clients, your audience is typically favoring one of four processing channels. And if you are not speaking to those channels and being a lot more conscious around the fact that there are multiple channels in the way, and you will naturally also [00:04:00] have a preference, then your insight can actually get dismissed or won't actually land in the way that you intend it to.
So you're probably wondering, what are these four channels? And if anyone's studied NLP or anything like that, you might be familiar with these. But I really feel like this, these two elements play critical roles in when we're talking about communication. So the first channel is something called visual processor.
So someone who is very visual, so they need to see things. They are constructing mental images as you speak. They're responding to, um, structure, clear frameworks, maybe visual metaphors as an example. And then if you're using language like, "Picture this," "Here's what it looks like," "Imagine the landscape," they are.
They're actually picturing those, and they do that very easily. [00:05:00] Versus someone who might be an auditory processor, so they respond to how it sounds. So it might be that they're tuned into tone, pacing, rhythm. They'll pick up on the misalignment immediately if there's something that feels off. So, language that refers to, "This really resonates," "I hear what you're saying," or things that sound right Then they will pick up on that.
The third one is something called a kinesthetic processors. So they need to feel it and they will do that through tangible examples, such as action-orientated language. So they've gotta really connect physically or emotionally before it makes sense. So language in your presentation might be, "When you implement this, here's what you'll notice."
"When you [00:06:00] get a handle on this," a gut feeling, that type of thing, they will start to feel it. It means you're engaging that part of the audience. And then there is the auditory digital processor. They need to make sense of things logically. So, they are really building mental frameworks in their mind.
Um, they're looking for a logical sequence in, the process that you might be talking about. They really want that step-by-step reasoning. and language such as, "How this adds up," uh, "Let me break it down systematically," that type of thing will really resonate with them.
So a critical insight here is that people will dynamically shift between these channels, but they'll likely have a preference for one or two.
Over time, especially if you're practicing this, even if you do have a preference, you can train yourself to [00:07:00] become quite familiar with all four. But it's really great to be aware of this, because this is how something may not land. And when you're structuring your presentations and so forth, you may wanna make sure that you're ticking off on each of one of these boxes.
And, you know, where you're not, that's can be a situation where something really, a brilliant strategy, et cetera, gets labeled as too in the weeds or really not practical enough.
So what I want you to do right now is just consider those four channels and see, does one, start to resonate with you more than another?
Is there a time that you can think of actually, "Yeah, I've been given that piece of feedback," or, you know, yourself when you've listened to something, where have you felt that perhaps there was a gap in the, alternative as well? So when you have a [00:08:00] handle on those four key processes, what that means, like I said, is you will be structuring your presentations to make sure that you're touching on that.
And I normally have a bit of a structure around that, and I like to think of things very much. There's a process called the 4MAT, M-A-T, so 4 as in the number. Four process, when you're building a presentation, to make sure that you're ticking off each one of those, uh, key areas, to really ensure that you're picking up people all the way through.
Um, and with that 4MAT process, think of it like you might be doing something engaging, like storytelling upfront. And so storytelling is likely to create visual imagery. Uh, you might bring in data and facts into it. So the data and facts are gonna pick up the AD people. Um, you ... In order to get the kinesthetic, it might [00:09:00] be the way in which you're communicating.
You're quite passionate around it. You're, you're going up and down. You're creating that interest in the way that you're communicating. And then, um, finally, the auditory people, it's about how are you using your pauses. How are you, um, structuring the communication in that way?
So here's where standard communication training can get it wrong, because they teach you to communicate like someone else.
Have you ever been to one of those sessions where they teach you, and you just feel completely out of sorts? Um, everything requires, you know, double thinking. It just doesn't feel natural and authentic. It might be, be more concise. you know, just get to the point. Lead to the bottom line. And yes, while elements of this will be important, what you need to realize, that each one of us has a natural design.
And so, the way in which you're [00:10:00] really authentically wired to communicate, may it be through precision, story, emotional resonance, will make a difference as to how things will land and whether they will land authentically or not. Really interesting.
So when you step away from your natural design, these are three things, um, specifically that can happen.
So as I said before, you'll feel inauthentic. Um, two, you're actually, for the audience, potentially exhausting or boring to listen to, and they feel that there's some sort of disconnect. You're not igniting your audience with any level of conviction. And then you get feedback that doesn't actually help.
When you know your natural communication, style, you don't need to change who you are, and you don't need to do this [00:11:00] code switching. What you need to understand is if you're a natural communication design, what those four processing channels are, and then how to strategically translate between them without completely losing yourself.
Because that is the point. We don't wanna be in a situation where we feel inauthentic because we will lose our audience. So here's a bit of an example for you. But if you're presenting to kinesthetic processors who need felt experience, then you're not gonna be abandoning your precision or dumbing it down or anything like that.
What you wanna do is maintain your insight while translating it into their particular channel. So instead of, for example, "The data shows a 23% variance," you might say, "When you implement this, here's what you'll notice, a gap between what we expected and what's happening [00:12:00] in quarter three. That gap tells us we need to adjust."
So there's the same precision, but it's giving them a different kind of picture. So I would love for you to actually think of maybe one high-stakes conversation that's coming up this month, uh, maybe a presentation you've got or anything like that, and then think about the four processing charts for your audience and how you would try to engage them through your actual presentation.
So it's constantly having that hat on around being aware of what is your natural communication and really leaning into that, but then thinking about, "What do I need to add into that natural communication in order for this to land?"
Okay, so back to where we actually started. So you [00:13:00] now know your visual side, your leadership identity, style strategy, and this is, uh, really as part of the embodied component and owning your personal power for your 3D impact framework. It's that first impression, et cetera. So now it's around that verbal side.
the four processing channels, your audience uses, and then how to really strategically translate these without putting on a mask. Because when both are aligned, then everything is working together for your leadership presence. So that's when you, stop blending in and start becoming impossible to ignore.
So what you need to remember is that gap between, who you are, how you're experienced, it's not just about confidence. It's not even just solely about, presence in terms of [00:14:00] the way that you've been taught. Communication design, it's both kind of sides of it, and now you have that full picture through here Okay, so your key takeaways for today.
Leadership presence is your visual communication, how you show up, as well as your verbal communication, so how your message lands. Those four processing channels of visual, auditory, kinesthetic, and auditory digital. And then how do I actually bring these together? Because the whole objective is, staying authentic while meeting, your audience where and how they actually process information.
Okay
So I hope you enjoy it and, uh, I'll speak to you soon.
