How to Raise Money For Your Company

It should be pointed out up front that this article is not a list of funding sources and their contact information. If raising funds were as easy as a telephone call or e-mail to a funding source all companies would be successful in raising money. Instead, this article will assist companies in what they need to do to be as successful as possible in raising money.

My law firm represents several financing sources and investors and based on that representation the purpose of this article is to assist companies in preparing for financing and being able to accept funding when it is offered.

1) Hire an Experienced Attorney. The purpose of your attorney is to properly advise your company and prepare it for the potential financing - not just as a source of connections to financing sources. Unfortunately, more times than not hiring an attorney merely for alleged connections to funding sources will leave you overpaying for substandard legal services and none of the promised funding to pay your bill.

This doesn't mean an attorney can't introduce you to potential financing sources, but make sure your primary purpose of hiring your attorney is their knowledge of corporate securities law and ability to give you quality advice in a way you understand; and not only for their alleged financing sources. Hiring an attorney experienced in corporate securities law will lead to your company being advised as to its different financing options, as well as ensuring any financing transaction is properly documented, which is just as important as locating financing in the first place.

2) Look the Part. This is a multi-faceted step. First, looking the part means making sure your corporate documents and capital structure look like a company ready to take the next step.

For instance, a company with 100 shares authorized and 100 shares outstanding with no bylaws, no organizational minutes, no annual shareholder and director meeting minutes, etc., makes a different impression than a company with 10,000,000 shares authorized, maybe 5,000,000 shares outstanding, with correct and up-to-date corporate documents and meeting minutes. None of these corporate formalities are make-or-break determinations when it comes to obtaining financing, and they can be easily remedied, but you only get one chance to make a first impression and sometimes a negative first impression is too difficult to overcome.

The second, "looking the part" step is more important than the first and that relates to your company's financial statements. As opposed to corporate documentation deficiencies, which can be overcome, having non-professional financial statements is almost always the end of the road for potential financing sources. Preparing accurate, GAAP-compliant financial statements is vital to obtaining funding. Not only do accurate, GAAP-compliant financial statements instill confidence in funding sources, having them should prove beneficial to your company regardless of obtaining financing.

The reason that non-professional financial statements can be difficult to overcome is that many times the later-prepared GAAP-compliant financial statements differ significantly from the financial statements originally prepared by the company and given to the potential financing source. Typically this is enough to make a potential investor look in a different direction for a potential investment candidate. An investor's confidence in a company's financial statements is paramount to an investor moving forward with a potential investment and lack of confidence in the financial statements is a death knell to a potential investment. This one is make-or-break.

3) Have a Plan. This advice goes beyond a business plan, but that is a great start. Having a professional looking business plan or executive summary is where most funding sources will start their review of your company. Your business plan or executive summary should be short, succinct, and, most importantly, accurate. Providing a brief company overview, financial overview, future plans, and financial projections in one location that can be reviewed in a short amount of time is essential to obtaining financing.

However, as important as your business plan is, it should not be used as your investment materials. Business plans have too much "fluff" to be used as investment disclosure. That disclosure is the exclusive purview of stock purchase agreements and private placement memorandums. Having an experienced securities law attorney is essential to keeping these two objectives and documents separate.

Additionally, having a plan extends beyond a good business plan. Having a company story and pitch for investors, preferably in the form of a Power Point presentation is also important. Having a vision and informing investors how their funding is important to your company's success is important to investors. Most importantly, your vision should include how an investor's money will help your company and expand and proceed to profitability. If your vision for investment money includes paying off old debts and existing obligations your "vision" will not be impressive to investors.

4) Be Realistic. In conjunction with your plan you need to be realistic about your company's needs and your expectations as to potential investments. You should only be requesting funding at a level that you can justify using to grow operations or expand. Take an objective look at your company, its products and services, your financial results to date, etc., view those factors from the prospective of a potential investor.

If you can't justify the amounts you are requesting, or clearly articulate the needs for those funds, then an investor will also not be able to justify funding you that amount. Requesting a $10,000,000 investment when only $2,500,000 is needed to complete your planned expansion does not look good in the eyes of potential investors and may call into questions how you actually plan on using any funding you receive.

5) Know Your Potential Funding Source. Funding sources are as varied as the companies they are looking to invest in. Not only due funding sources vary in terms of their target investment amounts, many vary in their investment protocol. In terms of investment amounts, some smaller (in terms of investment amount, not number of investors) angel investor groups or funds are looking to invest as little as $250,000 to $500,000 while many larger investment banks and funds are in the $10 million to $25 million range.

In terms of investment protocol, some financing sources are more akin to lenders and may offer straight loans, convertible loans, factoring, receivable financing, secured financing, while other financing sources are only interested in equity financing and taking an ownership stake in your company, and some offer a variety of financing options. Knowing what is right for your company in terms of amount of financing offered by a particular source, and knowing what types of financing options are available from certain funding sources, can go a long way in saving you time and expense by targeting your efforts where they are likely to be most successful.

6) Develop Exit Strategies. As good as your business may be most investors are not looking to be 10 year investors in your company. This tip primarily applies to private companies. Public companies have a built in exit strategy - a public market for their stock. However, for a private company, with no real market for its shares, an investor is going to want to know how it will have an opportunity to not only make back the investment, but also a decent return on the investment.

These strategies may include repayment of investment amount with a set return (normally structured as a loan with interest), dividends on preferred stock, the company or its assets being acquired, or the company going public. Although you may not have thought about your company in terms of an exit strategy, potential investors will have, and they will want to hear your plan. All investments have risks and investors understand this better than most, and what mitigates this risk is investing in companies that have thought about a plan as to how investors will get a return on their investment when the company is in a position to do so.

Craig V. Butler, Esq. is an attorney with The Lebrecht Group, APLC located in Irvine, California (http://www.thelebrechtgroup.com). He can be reached at (949) 635-1240 or via e-mail at cbutler@thelebrechtgroup.com.

Seven Steps You Can Take to Prevent Your Employees from Wasting Time and Resources on the Internet

The color drained from Ben's face when he was handed the report. His hand shook when he picked it up and scanned the contents.

It was a log of everything he had done on the Internet since the beginning of the year -- every website he had visited, every IM conversation he had had, every email he had sent out and received -- not only by the company mail but those sent from his Yahoo and Hotmail accounts.

Everything he had said and done on the Internet during the last year lay before him, and it wasn't a pretty picture.

His boss' face was expressionless. The HR woman sitting beside him looked grim.

"I'm afraid we are going to have to let you go, Ben," Mr. Donaldson said at length. "You've been wasting company time and resources, and the websites you've accessed and the mail you've sent and received are, well..."

Ben's hand shook as he dropped the report on the desk top. He nodded spastically, and for a minute he thought his head might fall off his shoulders.

As if it had been severed by a guillotine.

After they escorted Ben out of the building, Sam Donaldson sighed and looked at the HR Person, Mary Tyler.

"I didn't like that," he said. "Ben Morgan was basically a good employee. He was creative and put out a lot of good work."

Mary shrugged and tapped the edge of Ben's file on the desktop. "We can't have that kind of thing going on here. He was accessing gambling sites and his email messages were questionable."

She left the office, making her way through the line of cubicles in which employees now worked more feverishly than ever. Sam Johnson watched her go, and decided he didn't like the way the atmosphere of the workplace had changed. He didn't like what this kind of employee surveillance had done to morale.

The uneasiness he felt was almost palpable.

We're watching you

It's no secret that the days of worker privacy have long since passed. With the serious potential of harassment lawsuits and security breaches that involve the release of company private information, most companies large and small have implemented Internet monitoring spy ware.

A recent Electronic Monitoring & Surveillance Survey report has revealed that companies are "increasingly putting teeth in technology policies." Workers have been fired from 26% of the companies surveyed for misuse of the Internet, and 25% have terminated employees for misusing e-mail.

As of 2005, fully 76% are monitoring employees' website connections and are blocking inappropriate web URL's. Employers track content, keystrokes, and time spent at the keyboards. e-Mail is under scrutiny with 55% of those surveyed storing and reviewing messages.

Morale and Big Brother

But the question becomes, is high surveillance really counterproductive? What happens to employee productivity when management decides to tightly monitor Internet use and computer resources?

The answer to that question appears to be: tight Internet monitoring as well as punitive use of the results may have severely deleterious results.

In an April 2003 article on Medzilla.com, a leading recruiter for the Medical Profession, Dr. Frank Heasley, was quoted as saying "Excessive monitoring of employees' Internet activities is damaging for morale. It signals that the employer doesn't trust its staff, and it sends the message that the employer thinks that any activity that cannot be directly attributed to 'work' is simply goofing off."

He goes on to say it is seriously "demotivating and ultimately will stifle creativity and damage productivity."

Toward Internet Enlightenment...

Today, employers find themselves caught between two extreme and opposing points of view. Both are fraught with peril.

The first viewpoint involves defining strict policies of Internet and email use, close monitoring, and exacting punitive measures when the policy is violated. The second is to allow virtually unrestricted use of Internet and email resources; a "laid back" approach that might encourage dangerous employee abuse.

If Dr. Heasley is to be believed, the first is damaging to morale, and could ultimately result in a serious loss of resources (as employees leave the company in protest) and a diminishment of productivity as work slows down because of lack of motivation and unrest.

The second can produce a "free for all" situation in which company privacy can be seriously violated.

Somewhere between these two extremes lies an approach that protects company assets but at the same time allows enough freedom for the employee to feel she is not placed on some sort of "short -- and intellectually strangling -- leash".

One needs a policy that protects the company and creates an intellectually free atmosphere of company loyalty, creativity, and high productivity.

"I kind of feel like, someone is watching me..."

Although 80% of all employers surveyed say they notify employees that they are being monitored, it is not clear how much of a deterrent to private Internet and email use and abuse this truly is.

The fact that an employee "intellectually" knows the company is surveying its staff translates into, "Yeah, but there are so many employees they'll never notice me, and besides what I'm doing isn't that big a deal."

The employee will go on personally using the Internet until the day she suddenly finds herself in her boss' office discovering that her web and email use has been tracked, and she is about to be escorted off the premises.

In addition, unfair and inconsistent application of policies and discipline leads to morale problems. While one employee, known to be a productive worker and highly valued for her skills, is allowed to go shopping on line, another worker is disciplined for it.

If you think that policies applied unfairly or inconsistently are not noticed (and resented) by the workforce, think again.

Practices like these translate into low morale, low productivity, and in extreme cases...lawsuits.

Toward an Alternate Internet Policy

How, then, can an Alternate Internet Policy be developed, one that boosts morale, encourages productivity and still protects the company from time and resource waste, compromise, and exposure to lawsuits?

To develop such a policy, Company Executives need to consider and do the following:

1) Implement a consistent surveillance program that uses software capable of recording and logging email messages, sites and chat rooms visited, time spent on sites, and Internet message and chat room conversations.

2) Define what "reasonable use" is and what can and can not be tolerated. Are 10 - 15 minutes spent checking company and private email, shopping online, or paying bills ok? Is this to be distinguished from a five hour online video game session which may use up considerable bandwidth during times when the client is uploading data?

3) Determine whether email conversations between friends, or even between clandestine lovers, are as serious and worthy of attention as email sent out to encourage revolt against the boss, disparage a fellow coworker or divulge private company information.

4) Establish a written policy of Internet, email and phone usage. Define disciplinary steps and measures which will modify employee behavior, rather than punish it.

5) Inform employees of the policy and state plainly that they are under surveillance. State clearly that Company Management is not looking for occasional violators, but serious abusers and define what serious abuse is.

6) Be prepared for the Internet addict. The Internet is a seriously addicting environment. For some it is like placing an alcoholic in front of a cabinet of booze. Before firing a productive employee, try to work with that individual to overcome his/her addiction. Perhaps removing the Internet from their computer altogether is the solution.

7) For a very small company with a tight budget, perhaps having one computer with Internet access and installed surveillance software is the solution. The computer can be clearly marked with a warning sign that Internet usage is monitored. Abuse of the Internet is less likely to occur when its usage is public, and not private at the employee's desk.

You are probably already saying, "We've already done this." I would, however, like to take this one step further -- make Internet and email use part of the employees' Performance Review.

The Internet Usage Review

A Performance Review usually covers many different aspects of the employee's performance throughout the year and grades her on whether or not she "met or exceeded expectations."

There are certain expectations of how an employee makes use of his or her time, and that usage includes that of the Internet and email. A report in hard copy routinely presented to the employee at Review Time along with a performance grade of the time spent on the Internet can be effective.

Most modern surveillance programs not only log the sites visited but the time spent on those sites. An employee can be shown in black and white how much time she is spending on sites unrelated to her job. Inappropriate sites visited by the employee will be clearly - and glaringly -- displayed.

To the employee's surprise, a "meets expectations" can be granted to a certain amount of personal Internet use with little comment by the supervisor. The Review can proceed to recognizing actual contributions and productivity.

Such an approach is a way to remind the employee that Management is indeed monitoring Internet activity, but is displaying a certain degree of tolerance of its use. If handled correctly, the Internet can come to be regarded as a "perk" or "gift" from Management. An approach such as this can actually boost morale.

Employees found to be wasting a great deal of time on unauthorized, band-width sapping activity, visiting inappropriate sites, or giving out company information in IM messages or emails should be confronted long before the year-end review -- within the first day or two that the activity is noticed. This sort of activity would not be tolerated long enough to reach review time.

A consistent, fair, and generous Internet policy will boost morale and productivity.

A Management that is fair, even-handed, and generous (within reason) of company resources in the long run will out-compete its competitors. This attitude will translate into lower turn-over and higher productivity.

A relatively generous and enlightened Internet and e-mail policy, applied fairly but with caution, will signal the work force that Management is watching but is still a benevolent and somewhat tolerant "Big Brother", or maybe a "Big Uncle".

Clear definition of policies, fair application, and generosity will in the short term improve company morale and productivity. Monitoring that is open and above board will create an expectation in the work force that will in and of itself help to prevent abuse and protect the company from litigious situations and intellectual property loss.

In the long term, this policy will go a long way toward establishing your company in a top position with its competitors because of low employee turnover, high morale, and top notch productivity.

John Young has over thirty years industrial experience. As a writer with a scientific and Information Technology background and a software engineer and programmer, he has had several years experience with Internet and Information Systems and software. He is recommending an excellent internet surveillance program, PC Pandora

Title Companies - Their Relevance in Home Selling and Buying Transactions

Real estate is an extremely salient industry that holds an important role in the economy of a country or state. Its impact on the personal status of an individual is likewise very crucial that every home selling and home buying transaction is not a piece of cake to start with. There are innumerable requirements and needed qualifications in order to acquire your eligibility in selling or buying a house in real estate. One of the most important components in this industry is seeking title insurance from verified and credible title companies.

Home acquisition is considered one of the most valuable financial investments to embark on thus it is dealt with utmost tediousness and detail. For instance, if you are into buying house, you need to primarily deal with the most fundamental steps and methods in making sure that you have a legitimate and authorized transaction. Before going further into taking possession of a particular piece of property, you need to initially make sure that the home seller has all legal rights and authority to sell the property you intend to buy. There are many real estate scams in the contemporary vast market on real property hence be certain that you do not fall prey to one of these predators.

This is the very reason why you definitely need to contact a title company to facilitate in your home buying investment. The most fundamental and primary duty of title companies is to conduct or do an abstract on the property title. The abstract of title is a very significant endeavor performed by legal and certified title companies. You can get more information regarding qualified title companies through the help of your real estate agent or legal attorneys who basically know the ins and outs of the business.

The abstract of title that the company initially conducts means to search for varied and verified real estate and public records in the state or country where the prospective property is contemporarily located. These records must contain specific information regarding the property especially ones that attest to its marketability and eligibility for sale. Hence, an abstract basically determines the legal ownership of the seller and his authority over the property for resale purpose. It also reveals any liens, judgments, mortgages or related unpaid taxes that the home seller must first comply with before the property is finally sold. Furthermore, the title search that the company conducts must give detailed existing restrictions, easements and leases that eventually affect the property.

After the title search and all the information in place, the company then issues the title opinion letter or the title insurance policy when required. The documents are needed to set all things that needed to be dealt with and completed before the home buyer receives what is referred to as good title. Once everything is in proper order and duly complied with, the parties involved in the transaction can then proceed to the closing of the deal to the finalization of the home purchase and new ownership.

Making the right choice through hiring a title company to ensure the legitimacy of your investment is of utmost importance in making sure that you are in the right track for a profitability venture in real estate.

The Real estate market can be an enjoyable, satisfying and lucrative experience for you. Whether you are a homeowner, a buyer, a landlord or simply a real estate enthusiast, get to know more about the latest in the real estate market now. Read more about it here: Arizona Real Estate Guide and The San Diego Home Blog.

The PR Advantage

McGraw Hill did a study and found those businesses that boosted their public relations, marketing and advertising during a recession grew 275% over the 5 years proceeding. However, those businesses that cut back, if they were still in business, only grew 19%. That's pretty striking. It doesn't take a genius to see that the worst business decision you can make, particularly in tough times, is to cut back your marketing efforts.

The beauty of PR is that any media coverage you land, is media you can then promote. Let's say you never receive one call as a result of a magazine article. It's still valuable. You just need to work it. Become the story's distributor - and I mean distributor in the most basic sense- circulate your story, spread the word, mention the story in your biography and fact sheet, use it when pitching other stories, let other media outlets know that you were featured in the article. Duplicate it and use it as a press sample. Use quotes from the story in your mailers, newsletters, ads, and marketing to help you cement your existing client base. If you have employees, distribute it through your company as a form of internal publicity. If used correctly, you can turn this article into a most powerful marketing tool.

That article can be used to pitch a producer land you your next TV interview. There is a wide range of ways that your media can be utilized to help build and grow your business. PR offers unique advantages; you become the trusted expert, your product or service becomes the news. But none of these advantages will serves you if you don't start the process. Remember the McGraw Hill study. A business is never going to stand still it's either going to grow or shrink. The choice is yours.

Beware of Opportunists Taking Advantage of Job Seekers

Recently, a colleague passed along yet another new job seeker Web site... so what's new, right? Well, the site forwarded to me appeared to cater specifically to good-looking people, claiming that people who have good looks tend to do better in job interviews and get jobs more often.

Oh dear. Is anyone REALLY going to buy that load of baloney?

I certainly hope not.

Most legitimate human resource people would steer completely clear of this high-risk recruiting approach. There's just too much potential for lawsuits these days... Exactly how does one define good-looking, anyway?

Oftentimes, these appealing ego-centric sites are actually veiled attempts to get you to part with your money or just to drive publicity to their service, rather than actually focusing on the business of helping out job seekers.

Yes, there ARE many helpful career sites out there... and then there are just as many that exploit job seeker insecurities, false assumptions, egos, idealistic career aspirations, and anything else that might sound completely APPEALING to get people flocking in to sign up.

In my mind, this makes the entire career service industry look bad, because most of the genuine professionals I know really are there to try and help out their clients, and are invested in their success. Sure, we do make a living, but not to the disadvantage of the customer. It's definitely not a "love 'em and leave 'em" kind of relationship - we are personally invested in the long haul of a client's career success so they are happy, and then refer people back to us... That's how reputable businesses grow.

But not these exploitative websites and resources. They want your money and will do almost anything to get it.

Love 'em and leave 'em indeed.

Without naming these purveyors, my suggestion to job seekers is to do your due diligence, and don't fall into any traps that sound too good to be true... usually, they ARE too good to be true.

Unfortunately, in today's competitive job market place and corresponding diminutive list of actual openings, some job seekers throw themselves at these 'opportunities' like a floating castaway throws themselves onto a lush tropical beach. It may look good from the distance, but you'll likely find yourself completely marooned with no support coming to rescue you.

If you find yourself in the throes of a desperate job search, remain vigilant. Don't be so frantic that you forget to protect yourself from exposure to harmful risk. There are plenty of bad people out there who are preying on your desperation, and hoping that you'll slip.

A perfect recent example of this kind of exploitation of job seekers happened here in Portland, Oregon. Back in December 2009, a job advertisement appeared on the local edition of Craigslist for 'American Airlines.' American Airlines had nothing to do with the ad; this was purely a(n) person(s) acting on their own using the desperation of job seekers to their advantage.

Hopeful applicants responded to the ad with their career credentials then were contacted for an 'interview.'

While the person was out trying to find the interview location, the scam artist behind the 'ad' took the applicant's personal information, and used the opportunity of the person being gone to rob their residence.

[For an account of the scam, here's the link to the article on an online version of The Oregonian newspaper: http://www.oregonlive.com/news/index.ssf/2009/12/portland_police_are_investigat.html ]

You should always be cautious when disclosing your personal information. Many of the job boards out there let applicants post their résumé online. But you should know that there aren't a whole lot of security protocols in place that can qualify who exactly is or isn't an employer, which means that some undesirable folks might be peeping at your résumé.

Think about it. A person 'creates' a company, poses as an employer, pays the fee to access the job board as an employer, then can leisurely troll applicant information that has everything... your name, address, work history, educational background... the only thing missing is a social security number... and eventually, you'll leave the house, right?

Oh dear is right.

These tips are not meant to frighten you, but to instead, think first, act second. Does the job ad that you are responding to provide any identifying information on the company advertising it? Proceed with caution. Get a return response asking for more information, but you still don't know which company you are dealing with yet? Red flag. Getting posts inviting you to a new site advertising jobs only for high-paying positions? Or appealing to something that just sounds so incredibly fabulous? Turn on your radar and check them out. See if they want something out of you first before you get the help you want / need.

Keeping some risk management strategies in place will help you keep your job search on track while also protecting your wallet and your identity.

Dawn Rasmussen - CTP, CMP
President
Pathfinder Writing and Career Services
PO Box 20536
Portland OR 97294
503-539-3954 phone
503-408-4894 fax

Perception - Your Reality

Perception is a compilation

Of your past history

Through which you see

Erroneously or correctly

Your present reality

Perception affects your identity

Positively or negatively

Based on what you think

People believe you to be

Perception leads to projection

The good, bad, and ugly

As that which is within

Comes forth in expression

Whether it be embracing love

Or walls of rejection

Before you can proceed

Your inner self first must precede

To frame its image

And settle within

To be transparent and befriend

Or be reclusive and center in

To unconditionally accept humanity

Or prejudge and condemn individuality

Projection evolves into conception

Where thoughts, words and actions give birth

To what you've already contextualized within

Resulting in an outward manifestation

An invitation to all of creation

To coexist with you

Help make your dream come true

Or confirm your nightmare too

To walk along with you

From conception to maturation

From coincidence to confirmation

From self-awareness to personal revelation

To give you a sneak preview

Of what your perception can do

How it can brighten or cloud you

Right or wrong

You carry it all day long

Projecting it in word and song

Continually conceiving from night to dawn

Not knowing why people respond

Some distant, others fond

Of you the perceiving one

Whose world within and without

Have come and gone

Sometimes in the company of friends

Other times with nobody to lean on

So judge nothing before the time

Though there be no reason or rhyme

For God is sublime

Knowing man must first discover himself

Before he can find

The presumptuous perception

That misleads him much of the time

A prison or paradise

You can have through perception

It's all up to you

Your illumination

Your imagination

Your stimulation

Your inner sensation

If it's going to be

It's up to me!

As a man thinks in his heart

So he is

This is no pop quiz

Come out therefore

From behind the bars

Take rest in paradise

And reach for the stars!

by Paul Davis

Paul Davis is author of Breakthrough for a Broken Heart a book telling us "How to overcome disappointments and blossom into your dreams!" He is a minister, life coach (relational & professional), dating expert, popular worldwide keynote speaker, creative consultant, humor being, adventurer, explorer, mediator, liberator and dream-maker.

Paul's compassion for people & passion to travel has taken him to over 50 countries of the world where he has had a tremendous impact. Paul has also brought revival to many in war-torn, impoverished and tsunami stricken regions of the earth. His nonprofit organization Dream-Maker Ministries is building dreams and breaking limitations.

Paul's Breakthrough Seminars inspire, revive, awaken, impregnate with purpose, impart the fire of desire, catapult people into a new level of self-awareness, facilitate destiny discovery and dream fulfillment.

Paul can be contacted at: RevivingNations@yahoo.com - 407-967-7553 or 407-282-1745.

For additional info: [http://www.CreativeCommunications.TV] [http://www.BreakthroughSeminars.org] http://www.DreamMakerMinistries.com

Three Mind-Tickling Techniques to Make Your Presentation Content More Memorable and Motivating

Raw information tickles the logical mind and bores the rest of the mind to sleep. The result of an overly logical presentation: bored, sleepy listeners who remember nothing and do nothing. Great presenters start with raw information, add their opinions, color it with imagery, and give it personality. The more of the mind you tickle, the more retention and motivation you reap. Additional parts of the mind you can tickle include: long term memory, imagination, and emotion.

Long Term Memory

Adults know a lot. Unlike children who come to us with clean slates, adults harbor vast reservoirs of knowledge and experience. Great presenters do not fear this knowledge and experience. They use it to their advantage.

The fastest way to create learning is to link the unknown with the known. Since adults know so many things, opportunity for linking abounds. Simile and metaphor provide the means. A simile uses the words "like" or "as" to bridge the unknown with the known. Example: It tastes like chicken. I don't care what food I'm discussing. You now know how it tastes. Metaphors link without the words "like" or "as". Example: That business is a three-ring circus. You can probably think of multiple businesses that fit a three-ring circus description.

One year, the city that hosted the Super Bowl was vying to host an upcoming Summer Olympics. A reporter interviewed the mayor of that city and asked about his confidence level in hosting an Olympics after the recent success with the Super Bowl. The mayor responded by acknowledging the recent success, but then cautioned, "Hosting the Olympics is like hosting 15 Super Bowls per day."

A COO of a healthcare organization used a wonderful bridge to lead into a brainstorming session on marketing ideas. He mused, "Suppose we were in the business of attracting squirrels. How would we attract them? We would climb up a tree and act like a nut. Now, what kind of nuts do our squirrels like?" Employees laughed and joined in enthusiastically to offer new "nuts".

Imagination

The mind loves pictures. We dream in pictures. We daydream in pictures. We remember faces and forget names. We forget street names and remember landmarks. Have you ever given someone directions like these? "Go about one mile. Then you'll see a big white church and a nursery across the street. Take a left. When you come to the fire station..."

I participated in a research study in college that still fascinates me. To earn extra credit in a psychology course, I agreed to be a guinea pig for the graduate students' research project. The graduate students sat me down and told me they were going to read 20 sentences to me. My job, visualize or imagine each sentence as vividly as possible for 30 seconds. Then we would proceed to the next sentence. Based on only that information we began.

Being the good student, I visualized intently, practically crinkling my nose to see the images. After 20 sentences, the graduate students blindfolded me and walked me down a hallway to a water fountain. They told me to take a drink of water. They blindfolded me again and escorted me back to the original room. They took my blindfold off, handed me a blank piece of paper, and instructed me to write as many of the 20 sentences as I could remember in 60 seconds. Despite my unnerving walk down the hall, I wrote down 18 sentences exactly as they had read them to me within 60 seconds. I had no idea a test was coming.

Visual aids provide a perfect opportunity to incorporate pictures into a presentation. Yet, most presenters squander the opportunity by using bulleted lists of words and numbers as their visual aids. Challenge your bullet points. Clipart programs abound. Dress up boring graphs. For high profile presentations seek the assistance of a graphic artist or employ internal talent.

If real pictures elude you, paint word pictures on your listeners' minds. Similes and metaphors, by their nature, paint vivid pictures like the 15 Super Bowls or the squirrels and the nuts. Take conceptual or technical ideas and create pictures for them. In a former life I used to be an actuary in the insurance industry. I recruited from colleges and gave presentations about the actuarial profession. To educate students about actuarial science and motivate them to pursue the career, I defined an actuary as a mathematical fortuneteller. Reaction from students, "Hey, that sounds pretty cool." (Now do you believe word pictures are powerful?)

Emotion

People take action for emotional reasons not logical ones. Most people logically understand the hazards of cigarette smoking, yet they continue to smoke. Most people logically know that healthy diet and exercise keep them vibrant, yet they eat chocolate cake and watch TV instead. Sales professionals claim that people buy for emotional reasons then justify with logic. Have you ever purchased something you couldn't really afford? Enough said.

In general, people are motivated emotionally by "moving towards" happiness or "moving away" from pain. When your alarm clock sounds in the morning, why do you get out of bed? If you answer, "Because I love life and I can't wait to start another spectacular day. Carpe Diem!" You would be motivated by "moving towards". If you answer, "Because if I don't get up now I'll be late for work and get fired." You would be motivated by "moving away".

Add an emotional element to your presentations by explaining to listeners the rewards of action (moving towards) and the consequences of inaction (moving away). Be sure to address both ends of the spectrum. If you only dangle rewards, the "moving away" listeners tune out. If you only threaten doom, the "moving towards" listeners sour.

A recent prospect wanted presentation skills coaching for their software experts because for the first time their Users Group conference included other companies. I advised that if they went forward with the coaching, the improved presentations would create a buzz that would drive some of the increased traffic into their sessions. Then I warned that if they didn't pursue coaching, lackluster presentations might cause an exodus of once guaranteed audience members to other companies.

Summary

Raw information tickles the logical mind, but bores the rest. To increase motivation and retention, tickle more of the mind by appealing not only to logic, but long-term memory, imagination, and emotion. Use similes, word pictures, "moving towards", and "moving away" to join the ranks of great presenters.

About the Author
Mary Sandro is President and founder of ProEdge Skills, Inc., a presentation skills and customer service training company. Mary has been helping companies and professionals deliver exceptional customer service and effective presentations since 1994. For information about engaging, personalized training solutions visit http://www.ProEdgeSkills.com or call 800-731-0601.