My years of doing training and coaching in presentation skills has demonstrated to me that it’s not just about “stand up skills.” The remarkable thing about having powerful presentation skills is that they “trickle down” to all of your interpersonal communications, whether in meetings, interviews, or even phone calls. So mastering the tough skills of standing up and standing out in front of a crowd also means you’ll have the ability to stand out in all your interactions.

Over the years, I’ve been able to identify a handful of qualities that consistently do give you stand out status. Doesn’t matter how smart you are or talented or attractive — universally, these attributes can make you the kind of person that other people want to know, work with and do business with.

Here are my Top Ten Stand Out Tips:

1. LOOK ‘EM IN THE EYE.

In our culture, eye communication is correlated with trust and credibility. The ability to look someone in the eye — whether you’re talking or listening — conveys an interest in the other party, which makes that person feel appreciated and listened to. Remember, “eye communication” insures you’re not having “I communication.”

2. ASK, DON’T TELL.

Keep this amazing irony in mind. People will like you more, think you’re smarter, savvier, nicer and more interesting if you show interest in them. The ability to show interest — a sort of wide-eyed wonder in others — is the kind of skill that will make people think positively about you.

3. LISTEN ACTIVELY.

Active listening is a very intentional, strategic skill where you’re able to fulfill two very basic human needs — to be heard and to be understood. It involves three steps, which I like to capture with the acronym EAR:

Engage the speaker – look like you’re listening. 

Actually hear the message – pay attention.

Respond appropriately – let your speaker know you really heard and understood. Responding can take three forms:

   -Paraphrase: repeat the gist of the message. 

   -Probe: instead of launching into your rebuttal, probe further with questions.

   -Reflect back feelings: let the speaker know you understand his/her feelings.

4. PROJECT, UM, VOCAL POWER

Ironically, this is one of those strategies that’s not so “stand out” in and of itself as it is glaringly detracting if you don’t practice it. The most glaring vocal detractors are:

- Use of fillers – words like uh, um, like, really…

- Speaking in a monotone

- Mumbling

5. ATTITUDE = ALTITUDE

The better your attitude the higher you’ll soar. Positive people are better liked, more listened to, more appreciated, and more successful influencers and persuaders. Think positive, find the good, behave as if you love life, and people will be drawn to you like magnets.

6. WATCH YOUR POSTURE

How you sit and stand conveys volumes about you. And the rules are different for each posture. When you’re standing, balanced, symmetrical posture conveys more presence than slouched, leaning (on one leg) posture. But when you’re seated, recognize that asymmetrical posture, such as with legs crossed or hands somewhat off-balance, projects more confidence and poise.  

7. SHOW ENTHUSIASM

Ancient indigenous people believed that you exhibit presence by “choosing to be present and visible, showing up energetically.” Energy, or enthusiasm, is a powerful stand out attribute. By conveying a conviction and passion for what you do, your presence is powerful – it adds value.

8. BE PURPOSEFUL

This is a particularly powerful presentation strategy. When you’re purposeful — when you have something deliberate and intentional to do, such as using a prop or referring to a visual or walking deliberately across the stage, even having a logical organization to your thoughts — then this focus is going to help you be less attuned to yourself and your anxiety. And it gives you a put-together air of confidence and ease.

9. SMILE.

A smile is one of the simplest nonverbal expressions we can make, yet it can pay enormous dividends. A pleasant facial expression is like a magnet — it draws people to you and makes them feel positively about you. It’s such an important first impression because it sets the tone for your interactions.

10. SWEAT THE SMALL STUFF.

Okay, I’m not talking about the little irritations and minor vexations of life. Rephrased, consider that “little things mean a lot.” Whether it’s writing a note or remembering someone’s birthday or doing what you say you’re going to do, these little acts of kindness and courtesy can make a big impression — and will make you stand out.

Debt relief advice is very necessary for all those who are thinking of solving their liability issues through one of the debt relief options. Debt relief advice can be obtained free through different channels including: blogs, articles, government websites, online forums and private website.

One of the most viable and the most appropriate solution to all debt issues is debt settlement. Only those people can exercise this option that have owed more than $10,000 and have not yet paid it back. According to the rules of this method; the debtor has to negotiate with the lender on his own or he can hire a negotiation company. The debtor bargains and persuades the creditor to provide him with a huge percentage of discounts on the total money he has to pay back. Once the debtor gets the discount he can repay the remainder amount through easy loan installments which include minimum interest rate and maximum repayment time schedule.

As stated above that the debtor can use his own skills to negotiate; he should have the appropriate skills to do so. This is because it is not very easy to tackle a creditor. In older days negotiation was a huge issue because creditors never wanted to give a huge discount; now day’s creditors are themselves giving huge discounts because they get the remaining part of the amount from the government. So negotiating should not be a huge problem and it is not necessary to hire a settlement agency.

Hiring a negotiation agency has become very easy because the fraud companies have left the industry due to the new rules and regulations made by the government. As fraud companies have left; the amount of competition in the industry has even fallen and settlement companies have charging higher rates so sometimes it does not sound feasible to hire a settlement firm. So you can save money by negotiating on your own.

To negotiate on your own you need to be determined and you should be convicted towards attaining the goal. You need to acquire proper negotiation skills your negotiation skills should be equivalent to the negotiation skills of a lawyer. You should be persuasive and should be able to tackle the creditors. The creditors will not be very hard to persuade as they themselves are willing to allow you to settle the liability amount. This is because of the benefits that creditors experience if they allow their clients to settle the owed amount.