Presenting Finance with Alexandra Bond Burnett

We have news! 

The time has come to say goodbye to Presenting Finance, after a fantastic two years the show was voted No.8 in the Top 15 Presentation Podcasts on the Internet!  and a great place to say goodbye as we start the next new exciting podcast: Ambition to Impact 

Is there anything funny about finance? Robin Kiziak, Finance manager of Hotel Chocolat joins the show this week to share his experience of embracing his natural humour in a corporate world. 

Discussed in the show:

• What does humour add to the finance function?
• How does storytelling increase connection to data? 
• How to bring your natural self to the table and still be professional 

Links:

This week I'm going to share with you my method to help you start off strong when you speak. 

One of the biggest issues that affects professional confidence, in meetings, presentations or just on a call... is that the energy is all wrong when starting. If you don't start the right way you end up losing energy, engagement and it's really difficult to recover. Starting out strongly (not loudly, not fast or slow, strongly) will set you up for success, alleviate mind blank and solve a great many problems for you when communicating. 

In this episode, I cover my POW method; to get you to PAUSE. OWN. WELCOME. 

Using this you will feel, calm, in control and ready to win the conversation.

This week I'm following up on the popular public speaking episode, this week I talk about the three extra things you need to do (yes, even virtually) to take your speaking and influence from ok to outstanding. 

1) How are you using you space to impact?

2) How do you make people feel?

3) How honest are you really being?

Fear of public speaking is one of the top 5 phobias in the western world, and a huge barrier for accountants needing to step up and speak out for their role . Commonly known as glossophobia, this fear can manifest in a variety of ways from sweating, to shakes and extreme sickness.  I share my own experiences as well, it happens to everyone, even the best public speakers.

In this episode I explain why this happens, how the brain and body react and teach you the three steps to help you tackle your nerves when presenting or speaking in public. 

Measure your communication skills with the communication skills scorecard for accountants:  

This week I'm talking about public speaking, in fact, the THREE powerful tools of public speaking that help you share your insights in a way that make people want to take action and influence business performance.  

WHY now? When most stages are closed? Public speaking skills (or BIG stage confidence as I call it) are not about getting up on stage at Wembley... If you can learn how to use your voice, body language and the space effectively, then you can present anywhere - from zoom to boardroom. 

In this episode I walk you through:

• The common public speaking mistakes I see in accountants
• How to resonate with your audience 
• How to clearly connect and express actions and emotion to your financial insights

Want to check your speaking skills? Take the communication Scorecard for accountants

One of the biggest barriers for accountants is being able to share their financial insights in a way that really makes an impact. 

This week I share the method to help you find a narrative that connects to people, and inspires them to take action from your reports. 

• Learn the types of stories that numbers can tell, and how to identify the results you want them to generate
• How to adapt your presentation perspective to champion the stakeholder
• How to find the hero and the villain in the data

Links

This week I'm sharing the two questions you MUST ask before you even start creating your presentation. As long as you have these questions in your head - you can lose the script, and guides you and the audience to a successful and memorable presentation. 

Whether you are presenting in a large TEDx stage, whether you're in a conference room, whether you're just sat in front of your laptop, these questions are the first and foremost thing that you should do to gain clarity in your communication and your messaging.

In this episode I cover:

• How steer your audience from what they want - to what you know they need, and how to feed the audience's brain with information that sticks. 
• How to guide your own memory throughout a presentation to stay on track 
• How to identify the data and analytics that your audience really care about 
• How to know your audience, regardless of size
• Ask one question to change your voice and body language to capture attention

Call this your foundation class in successful persuasion skills, because once you've helped your audience gain clarity and you also have clarity, the result is an audience that trusts the information you are presenting. 

Quotes: 

"You could be the smartest person in the planet but unless you actually communicate what it means and and turn into action points and get other people involved, then it's just gonna stay there and locked up."

"What is another word for want? It's desire.  Desire is part of our ego, our sense of self.  It's what they really really need for you know what they really are trying to get out of this communication"

"We as the human race, are driven by two things throughout your entire day, from when you wake up, and when you go to sleep, and sometimes even during your sleep! 

We're driven by two things and that is what can cause us pleasure and what can cause us pain.  Turn that around think about finance, how do we know what the pleasure and pain points are, and how do we actually boil that down for our audience? Very simply; the pleasure and pain suddenly turns into cost, and reward."

"if you're dealing with data, the more that you drive into that desire, the more effective you will be." 

Links

How do we sell accounting?  

Sales skills can often have a bit of a sticky feel about it. In fact these days we call it business development. Tackling that sales patter to build your client base can be daunting, but it gives you the opportunity to connect with your perfect client. 

If I was going to cost you £1500.. you might say no. That's a chunk off your bottom line. BUT... 

What if I focussed on the profit my time and expertise gave you? 

What if using me means you make another £30k profit? 

In this episode we discover that the pivotal conversation, the sale, is the qualifier for the rest of your client relationship. 

Speaking with the delightful Phil Sayers from Proten Sales Development, we discuss 5 things you should be doing to have better profitable conversations, with nothing salesy about them.   

This week I am seeking out the ultimate guide for investment pitches. What do Investors really look for? How do they judge you? What should happen in the pitching room? 

To find out I spoke to Bill Morrow, founder of Angel's Den, Europe and Asia's largest Investment network. 

In the episode: 

• We find out the 3 elements all pitches should have
• Why do Angel's invest anyway?
• How your frailties will be your strength in the room

Show Links: 

Bill Morrow 

“That’s two good traits of a leader – to listen to what other people are saying and to ask questions and to challenge them.” – Alastair Barlow

This week I am catching up with Alastair Barlow, Chief Dreamer at Flinder.  Alastair shares his insights on taking big four strategic thinking when starting a practice, and how he and business partner Luke made the move from PWC to making on their own... Alastair shares the DNA running through Flinder, building a team fast and tells us about his rebellious side...

What You Will Learn:

- How Alistair Barlow took what he learnt at PwC into his own business, Flinder

- How Flinder was conceptualized

- How to nurture and build a team around your values

- The qualities of a good leader

- Questions a good leader should ask

Thought for this episode – Questions to ask when it comes to leadership

If you have a process in place, start to ask why. “Why do we do that? Is it necessary?” Start to ask, “What next? How can we make this better?”

What questions could you be asking? If you’re running your own business, if you’re freelancing, if you’re working for yourself, start asking questions. See how you can push boundaries.

Resources mentioned in episode

 Trent joined us for this week's episode ahead of the London Accountex conference 2019. Trent shares his rocket-fulled rise to from shelf stacker to global accounting thought leader,  and how he uses bold authentic conversations to manage a remote team and connect to clients with a shared vision. 

We also learn why Trent always replies to messages, and how he builds to drive business forward. 

Trent Mclaren is Australia's thought leader of the year in the Accounting Industry for 2017.

He is also ranked and maintains a position in the Avalara top 100 social media influencers for the accounting industry. Holding a spot in the top 15.

In such a short amount of time Trent has been nominated for Thought leader of the year 5 times in the last 3 years, and has created millions of impressions and impact with accounting professionals all over the world.