Today, we’re going to dig into one of the exchanges I discuss in 8 Essential Exchanges: What You Have to Give Up to Go Up, but before I begin, I want to reintroduce the concept of exchanges to you.

Exchanges are the toughest choices we face in life. They are trade-offs between two equally good things or between something good and something better. To pursue the better, we have to give up something, often a source of security or something we really enjoy.

Today, I want to focus on exchanging being the master of none for being the master of one—or giving up being good at everything for being great at a few things, but that doesn’t sound nearly as catchy. Let’s discuss the benefits of honing in and focusing on your strengths.

First and foremost, this exchange is not an excuse for us to neglect the things we don’t like to do. Millennials are often accused of only doing what they like, and that’s not what I’m promoting. Instead, I want to encourage you to find the best way to allocate your time and energy toward the things that allow you exercise your talents.

In order to do this, you have to be open and willing to identify your weaknesses and partner with other people who can help you accomplish your goals. Most people never make this exchange because of pride. They aren’t willing to work with others and ask for help when they need it. It took me some time to admit my weaknesses and ask for help, but I am so glad that I did.

For example, I enjoy speaking to audiences and feel confident in my ability to do this well. However, to communicate and elicit change in an audience requires more than just an ability to write a speech, stand on a stage, and deliver a message. There are written and visual components of a speaking publicly that I struggle to produce, but I need them in order to drive home my messages. I don’t want to be embarrassed or ashamed to ask for help in areas that are not my core strength, and I want to encourage you feel the same freedom. So, I’m going to pull back the curtain on my work and share with you a few people that sharpen my work and my message and help make me successful.

In order to put out a new blog every week, I work with Marjorie—she’s a freelance writer and editor. Once a week, we hop on a phone call and unpack one or two potential blog concepts. I bring my ideas to the table, and we work together to refine my thoughts, sharpen them, and communicate them effectively in a short blog post. When I write books, I work with Pat Springle from Baxter Press.

Pat edits my work and helps bring my content from rough ideas to publishable material. He takes away stress from the book-writing process and helps me communicate my points clearly and effectively. When I try to communicate a concept visually, I work with the designers and digital team at Whiteboard. They create stunning digital content. Whiteboard worked to identify and promote my personal brand and ADDO’s and created the website content we needed to engage our customers, clients, and audiences.

I want to continue to find people to work with who have strengths in areas where I am weak. It’s only when we lock arms with people and work together that will we be able to initiate real change in the world around us.

It’s only when we lock arms with people and work together that will we be able to initiate real change in the world around us.

This week, consider your weaknesses and identify some different people you can seek out to help you in these areas. Begin working collaboratively and reap the benefits of more efficient and effective ways to impact the world.

A few years ago, I went to Cuba for the first time and had an incredible experience. It’s tough to put into words how fascinating it was—it's only 90 miles from the United States, but in many ways it feels 50 years apart. I loved the experience and was eager to take others back to Cuba with me. After working through the licensing process to take people legally into Cuba, we decided to create an “ADDO Ambassador trip.” We took our first group of people in 2011, and surprisingly... most of them were disillusioned and disappointed.

Don’t get me wrong, they thought Cuba was interesting, but they were unimpressed with the hotel because it was old. Communication with friends and family back home was nearly impossible because access to wifi was limited—it was unbelievably expensive and worked at the speed of dial-up internet. Our schedule was constantly changing and required flexibility as the itinerary shifted from day to day. We quickly learned that participants enjoyed the culture and experience, and most of the dissatisfaction was the result of unmet expectations. As an organization, we had simply not taken the time to lay out clear expectations for the trip.

Rather than give up hope that we could make this work, we devised a plan. The next time we took a group to Cuba, we created a flyer appropriately named “Is Cuba Right for You? Maybe.” In this brochure we explained that Cuba is a unique cultural experience, and that it is not going to be your typical Caribbean vacation. We made it clear that they would not be staying at an all-inclusive island resort, but they would instead be immersed in the culture of the Cuban people, experiencing a slower pace of life and encouraged to be flexible. We explained that Cuba is an adventure, full of fascinating, unexpected, and often challenging experiences. In a tongue-in-cheek way, we suggested if someone were looking for an easy trip that they should try Europe.The result? Amazing! After laying out these clear expectations, our next group loved the trip. The hotel was still un-updated. There was still no easy access to wifi. Our communication problems were the same. Our schedule shifted and changed. But the expectations had been set, people were prepared, and they loved it.

Satisfaction with an experience is largely dependent on expectations being met or exceeded. Don’t we find the same to be true in other areas of our personal and professional lives?

Satisfaction with an experience is largely dependent on expectations being met or exceeded.

If we expect to wait ten minutes when we call a customer service line, we are excited when a person answers in less than two minutes. However, when our significant other doesn’t answer the phone as soon as we call, we are frustrated. The all-inclusive resort you booked for your honeymoon is way nicer than you thought you could afford on your tiny budget, so you and your new spouse are thrilled with the mediocre accommodations.

However, the hotel you booked for your ten-year anniversary is not nearly as nice as it looked in the pictures, so you find yourself disappointed and feeling ripped off.

One of your clients emails you late at night and is frustrated that you wait to answer until the next morning.

However, a different client is pleased by how quickly you respond to the emails that they send during the work day.

Your new website received mixed reviews from your customers. Customers looking for a cleaner interface felt the site was perfect. However, other customers could not find all of the tabs on the homepage that they were accustomed to and consequently were unsatisfied.

If you want people to be satisfied, you have to set proper expectations. Discuss expectations in communication with the people closest to you. Read honest reviews before booking your next vacation. Establish and explain your timeline for responding to emails in the workplace. Clearly explain the function (and goal) of your products or services to your customers.

Can you think of an experience where unmet expectations caused you to be frustrated or to frustrate someone else?

Are you setting proper expectations in your personal and professional worlds?

Make clarity a goal. Take some time today to think of ways you can establish proper expectations in your personal relationships and work responsibilities.

For years, one of the biggest metrics of success for the U.S. economy has been homeownership. There are government programs and incentives that encourage homeownership, and the economy looks strongest when there is an increase in the number of people applying for mortgages and seeking to buy homes for the first time.

One of the reasons homeownership boosts the U.S. economy is the endowment effect. The endowment effect—originally named by economist Richard Thaler—is the belief that people attribute more value to the things they own.

Think about it. If you are renting an apartment temporarily, you feel differently about it than you would a place of your own that’s a long-term investment. Wouldn’t these feelings affect the way you treat your rented apartment? It would probably be different from the way you treat your own home.

Consider a different scenario. How many people have ever washed a rental car? Probably not many, unless they have some major accident or spill inside the vehicle. On the other hand, people who own cars wash them (how frequently depends on their personality) to keep them looking nice.

When we own things, we treat them differently. Let’s apply this fact beyond personal possessions to work and mission.

If you can help your employees think about your business as an owner would, they will be more bought into the vision and mission.

If you can help customers feel the heartbeat behind your concept, they will value your products and even feel ownership of your brand.

If you can help donors grasp their vital role in furthering the mission of your non-profit, they will take ownership of the mission and work harder to touch lives.

If you can help your students take ownership of their education, they will be more eager to learn and will place a higher value on their time in class.

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The endowment effect is a strong strategy to cultivate passion and drive in the people around us. However, as we consider this ownership mentality, we must understand the risk involved.

Ownership is valuable until the point it makes us overvalue something.

In other words, ownership is only dangerous when we harbor too much pride in the things that we own. This includes our skills, our position, and our work.

For example, when a peer offers you feedback on a project, are you reluctant or unwilling to hear what they have to say? If so, you’re letting your pride in your work keep you from making it the best it could be. This happens frequently in established organizations that have been in operation for a long time. It may come in the form of a teacher who is unwilling to incorporate technology in the classroom because he has been successful without it for the last twenty-five years. It might also be the church members who are upset with the new service programs. The programs might be more helpful for guests, but it’s not the same as the ones they have grown up following.

This prideful ownership makes us resistant to input and blinds us from new opportunities to grow personally, professionally, and collectively.

Ultimately, an ownership mentality is something we should cultivate in our employees, clients, customers, volunteers, and church members. We are more passionate and eager to protect the things we own. But, we should all take heed of the pride that could come with overvaluing something.

This week, consider how you can cultivate an ownership mentality in the people that surround you.

At the same time, ask yourself if there is anything in your personal or professional life that you are overvaluing?

Balancing both is tough, but when we cultivate an ownership mentality and retain the humility to improve, grow, and develop, we place things in the proper perspective.

A lot of times when I speak to groups, we talk about the importance of people and the value of relationships in the workplace. In the midst of these conversations, the discussion inevitably leads to this question: What system can I put in place to help me with my people? It’s not a bad question, but it’s not the right question. Instead, let me ask you this. How do you find the right people in the first place?

Rather than being reactive once we have people in place, let’s be proactive to get the best person in a position to thrive in their work and on your team. Selecting correctly from the start is crucial to organizational success. The people that we choose are more important than the processes we use.

This is a simple concept, but it’s not easy to put into practice. Below, I’ve described three things we have to do in order to select the right people for our teams.

1. Find the right person.

I was speaking to a manager recently who told me, “If someone can put a sentence together and tie their shoelaces, I will hire them.” His low expectations surprised me. When you set the bar that low, what does that say to the people already on your team? On the other hand, an owner of a fast food establishment explained the approach he takes when finding new employees.

Before an interview, he always meets them at the door and picks a seat to conduct the interview as far away from the entrance as possible. He then walks briskly to the interview location and looks behind him to see if the interviewee is keeping up. Next, he sits down and tells the interviewee that what he is about to say is important. He has a notepad and pen sitting on the table, and he watches to see if they write anything down while he is talking. The last thing he’ll do during the interview is intentionally knock something off the table to see if they will pick it up for him. The gentleman explained that he looks for three things when selecting a new team member.

1. A Strong Sense of Initiative

If the interviewee keeps up with him on the way to the interview location, the individual exhibits initiative before they even begin talking, and they pass the first test.

2. A Desire to Learn

If the interviewee takes notes and pays close attention to what the manager says is important, they pass the second test. That individual has shown humility, teachability, and a desire to learn.

3. A Servant’s Heart

If the interviewee reaches to pick up the object that the manager “knocks” off the table, they pass the third test. This response reveals a servant’s heart and a willingness to help. This manager explained that finding the right person is more about their character than their specific competencies. He understands that skills can be taught, but character needs to be developed in your people prior to you placing them on your team.

2. Put the right person in the right position.

We have too many systems in the workplace that reward people for simply being there the longest. Often times established structure inhibits us from getting the right people in the right positions. We’ve all heard this before: “I’d really like to promote her, but I can’t because she hasn’t been here long enough.” Those comments are frustrating and are evidence that we are rewarding people for the wrong reasons.

We have to be willing to do whatever it takes to get the right people in the right positions. For example, if a lower-level employee could add value to a conversation and provide insight for a project, invite them to a meeting even if it’s typically reserved only for higher-level managers. Give the right person in the right position the ability to solve the right problem.

3. Give the right person in the right position the ability to solve the right problem.

So often, we lose the right person in the right position because we fail to release them to solve the right problem. Maybe we have not clearly identified the objective and what we need them to do. Maybe their purpose or function is not what it needs to be, so they are working to win the wrong game. Whatever the case may be, we have the right person in the right position, but they are frustrated and unfulfilled by their work because they have been pigeonholed into solving the wrong problem. If you’ve got the right person and you’ve put them in the right position, give them the autonomy and authority to make changes, or at least suggestions, that can take your organization to the next level.

Do you have a system in place to find the right people? If so, are you putting those people in the best position for success?

Remember, selecting the right people for the right positions to solve the right problems is far more effective than trying to correct poor hiring decisions down the road.

Mark Miller is a friend and mentor of mine. He is the best-selling author of 6 books, an in-demand speaker, and an executive at Chick-fil-A. Since his latest book, Leaders Made Here, launches this week, I wanted him to share some of his leadership expertise on my blog. I hope you enjoy. You can learn more about his new book below the post.

Can You Hear Me Now?

Are you a good listener? My fear is that most leaders, including myself, think we are. However, the truth may be far different. I believe without constant effort a leader’s natural tendency is to not listen – or at least not listen well.

Why would our listening skills drift without focused attention? I think there are at least five reasons:

•   Leaders are busy
•   We’re not taught how to listen
•   Many leaders are easily distracted
•   There’s so much to listen to, it’s hard to focus
•   Great listening is not modeled for us

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So, how do we respond? Here are five ideas that may help us be better listeners…Try to find a way to add value to the person you’re listening to. Often, we listen with an ear to what we want or need. That will always be part of the conversation; but to add value, we must discern a need or an opportunity. This type of needs analysis is usually not possible without a listening ear.

‍Try to focus on the person – not the crowd. If you are in a meeting and someone is speaking, don’t focus on everyone in the room, just the individual. Don’t try to read the reaction of the others. Just listen to one person. Make eye contact and focus on them alone.

Don’t try to read the reaction of the others. Just listen to one person. - Mark Miller

‍Repeat what you think the person is trying to communicate. This is not a new idea – but it is still powerful. When you repeat what you’ve heard, the person can clarify as needed, just in case you’ve missed something. Also, if you’re able to replay what’s been said, the person will most likely feel affirmed – they’ll know you were listening. It’s a win-win!

‍Don’t try to formulate your response to the other person while they are talking. After someone finishes speaking, repeat what you heard if it’s appropriate, then pause to consider your response. If it takes a moment, that’s fine. This may even signal to the other person that you were actually listening to them.

‍Eliminate as many distractions as possible. We’ll always have distractions, but do all you can to eliminate as many as possible. Turn off your phone, meet off-site, close your door, meet in a conference room – do what you can to eliminate noise, literally and figuratively.

The rewards of good listening are many – people feel valued, mistakes can be avoided, execution can improve, fellowship can be strengthened and a culture of honor, dignity and respect can be nurtured.

If you haven’t focused on your listening skills for a while, give it a try. You might be surprised what you’ll hear.

‍Mark Miller’s latest book, Leaders Made Here, describes how to nurture leaders throughout the organization, from the front lines to the executive ranks and outlines a clear and replicable approach to creating the leadership bench every organization needs.

Check it out and pick up a copy today!

Over the past couple of weeks, I’ve had the pleasure of encountering numerous great organizations. After each visit, I’ve reflected on the things that set these organizations apart and drive their success beyond that of the average company, nonprofit, or ministry. There are many things that great organizations do well, but I thought about three in particular and shared them with our ADDO team recently. I want to pass these practices along to you, as well.

1. Great organizations remember where they came from and don’t run from it.

A few weeks ago, I was at the Chick-fil-A corporate office with a colleague who had never visited their headquarters. After our meeting finished, I walked with him to their museum, a place dedicated to remembering and celebrating their growth as a company. In the museum, there is a replica of the very first Dwarf Grill. In 1946, Truett Cathy opened the Dwarf Grill (later called the Dwarf House), and it was his first step into the fast food industry. Fifteen years later, Cathy discovered the fried chicken recipe that would launch his famous chicken sandwiches and eventually, Chick-fil-A.

In an age so focused on the future, on growth, and on change, it’s easy to forget where we started. Often, we choose to forget it and even go to great lengths to run away from it. However, Chick-fil-A makes it a priority to remember and reflect on their history and origin. This practice reaffirms their identity as a company and provides an opportunity for them to reflect on their journey and celebrate their growth.

2. Great organizations draw their passion from a greater purpose, not individual projects.

At ADDO, our mission is this: Inspire today; impact tomorrow. This purpose infuses every business unit and each project we tackle. However, it seems easy for us to get off track. As a young organization, we can be overwhelmed by specific projects, On smaller teams, we can get so caught up in our specific project and our effort to perfect it that we could easily forget our purpose and overall goal as an organization.

Great organizations draw their passion from their purpose. Projects may change, but purpose does not. If an organization rallies more around individual projects instead of overarching purpose, it will become fractured. Separate colleagues will work toward separate goals and pull the organization in different directions. I want ADDO to be a great organization, so we are doing our best to learn from great companies who work hard to remain focused on the greater purpose.

3. Great organizations celebrate, and it’s central to what they do.

When you are at a football game, and your team scores a touchdown, it is a natural overflow of celebration to high-five a stranger cheering for the same team. There is no message on the jumbotron that says, “Now, it’s time to celebrate! High-five the people close to you!” You are excited and naturally share your excitement with the people around you.

Recently, a church in our area, NorthStar Church, celebrated it's 20th anniversary. It was fun to watch the genuine excitement of not only church members, but also the entire community, as they came together to celebrate the impact this church has made throughout the last two decades. At ADDO, we are also working to make celebration central to what we do. I remember the very first time we got a check from one of our clients. We were so excited! In fact, we took a picture with it, deposited the check at the bank, and went and got ice cream to celebrate. The celebration wasn’t contrived. We were genuinely excited about what we had the opportunity to do. We were passionate about our purpose to impact the world around us, and this felt like a first step toward success.

Now, it’s easy to brush off achievement as an expected part of everyday business, but we must continue to put celebration at the center of our organization. When new schools sign up for our programs, we should celebrate. When new clients come on board, we should be excited. Not because of some cheesy motivation tactic, but because the growth provides more opportunities to inspire more people to make an impact. That’s our goal in all of this, and it should be something we get excited about!

As an organization, we need to check our level of commitment to our purpose when we aren’t celebrating success.

Churches should celebrate when people experience a change of heart and a fresh faith encounter.

Charities should celebrate when new donors come on board because it provides them the opportunity to impact more lives.

Businesses should celebrate company growth because it provides more jobs for families, allows the business to interact with more customers, and gives them an opportunity to have a positive impact on the people they come in contact with.

When celebration is central, it fuels the great work of great organizations that can change the world.

Are you a part of a great organization? Consider the qualities I mentioned above. Could your church, charity, or business improve in any of the three areas described? Take some time to jot down some ways your organization can practically acknowledge its past, remember its purpose, and celebrate its success.

General George Smith Patton Jr. served as a senior officer in the United States Army in World War II and helped lead the Allied invasion of Normandy in June 1944. Known for his courage and candor, Patton taught young platoon leaders strategies for empowering and directing their men. Rather than painting the picture of a military mastermind plotting formations in a tent, Patton charged his platoon leaders to lead from the front. He encouraged them to stand before their men in the face of danger as a means to motivate them to move. On one of these occasions, Patton said, “You young lieutenants have to realize that your platoon is like a piece of spaghetti. You can’t push it. You have to get out in front of it and pull it.”

Can you imagine the weight of this call and responsibility? When bullets are flying, when explosions are shaking the earth, when men are falling to the ground around you, you are asked to move out front. The general tells you to step forward, into the line of fire, in front of lower-ranking reports.

When leaders are willing to stand up and step out front, it’s more than just their physical presence that makes a difference. The physical position creates a mental and emotional motivation that inspires others to follow. A leader who is willing to step out front not only shows others what to do, but they are actually helping others find the will do it.

Isn’t this what the world is looking for? So many people are looking for leaders who will show us what needs to be done and inspire us to move.

Individuals who lead from the front inspire people to follow them. These leaders don’t just coax others or conjure up emotion to get them to stand behind the cause, rather they help people believe in the cause by showing that they are personally passionate about it.

Although General Patton’s charge is focused on leadership in war, leading out front is important to all aspects of our personal and professional lives.

The business executive that leads out front goes the extra mile at work. Her passion is apparent, and she inspires her colleagues to follow her leadership. The dad that leads out front models integrity and humility. His actions encourage his children to do the same.

The football player that leads out front shows up first to practice and hustles the entire time. His team is motivated and performs better because of his example. The church member that leads out front is the one that is the first to talk to the new family sitting in the back row of the sanctuary. Other church members are reminded not by what someone tells them to do, but by what they see.

It’s easy to wish someone else would step up and show the way. Instead of looking to others to lead, look in the mirror.

What if you’re the leader that others have been waiting on? Your willingness to get out front might just inspire others around you to do something great. Are you willing to lead out front in your professional and personal life? Think of one simple but strong way you can lead out front this week. Once you’ve thought of it, take a step out. The world is waiting for you.

This morning, I’m waking up in Nairobi, Kenya. This is my third trip to Kenya, and my second time serving with CARE for AIDS.

In preparation for this trip,  I reread When Helping Hurts and was reminded of the reasons why I am so passionate about working with CARE for AIDS. They have a clear mission and understand what needs to be done to accomplish their goal and incite real, lasting change.

Unfortunately, not every missions organization, nonprofit, or church group understands that there are wrong ways to help communities in poverty, and though their intentions are pure, the consequences are negative and significant.

In When Helping Hurts, Steve Corbett and Brian Fikkert give many examples of harmful philanthropy, but two specific problems stick out to me: economic hurt and creating a dependence.

1. Economic Hurt.

It is easy to assume that fulfilling the material needs of a poor community will be helpful to them. Unfortunately, this assumption often hurts a community in the long-run because it fails to stimulate their economy. For example, if you decide that you are going to bring enough blankets for every family in a village, the woman who weaves blankets for a living may never get business again. She will stop making money and will become even more in need than she was before you came to help.

2. Creating a Dependence.

You can give a man to fish, or you can teach a man to fish. Which do you think will be more helpful long term? That’s right—teaching a man to fish will allow him to be self-sufficient when you’re gone. The problem with many organizations is that they want to fill an immediate need, rather than take the time to prevent a future need. If more time was spent educating and equipping people in need, they would be less dependent on government systems and philanthropic organizations and more able to be active members of society.

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CARE for AIDS works to prevent both of these problems in their ministry and is one of the most impressive nonprofits impacting the world today. I believe that what they are doing has a lasting impact for three reasons.

1. They have identified a clear problem.

In East Africa, a large percentage of the population struggles with the impact of AIDS. Although many people have access to the right medicine, they do not have the education, emotional capacity, or spiritual drive to use these resources appropriately. Because of this lack of care, parents fighting AIDS often die prematurely, leaving their children to grow up as orphans.CARE for AIDS has a clear goal: orphan prevention.

2. They help for a defined period of time.

CARE for AIDS works through local churches to take parents with AIDS through a nine-month program designed to educate, support, and empower them to live long, self-sufficient lives with this disease. They educate these parents on how to use the medicine they need and on why it is important. They provide the emotional and psychological support necessary to prepare to live life with this disease. They also share the gospel with these parents, giving them a hope beyond this life on earth.

3. They are solving a need that a lot of people don’t see.

After graduating from the CARE for AIDS program, clients will live an extra 20-25 years. This means, despite their HIV status, they will live to raise their children and even see their grandchildren. Instead of ministering directly to orphans, their goal is to prevent orphans altogether, and the work they do is helping maintain healthy family units throughout East Africa.

When you’re choosing to give your time and resources, it’s important that the cause is worthy and the solution is sustainable.

Are you giving to causes and charities who do this well? Consider working with an organization like CARE for AIDS and be a part of making a lasting impact on the world around you.

Typically when I wrap up a speaking engagement, people will come up and ask questions about the content of the talk. In fact, one of my favorite things is talking one-on-one with people about subjects I am passionate about.However, somebody this past week had a different type of question. They simply asked, “How do you speak like that? I’m less interested in what you said and more interested in how you said it and how you have the courage to do that?” While I was flattered by the compliment, I was more frustrated that I didn’t have a good answer for him. I stumbled over some generic advice about public speaking, but honestly, I didn’t give him the kind of answer I wanted. I came home that evening and thought about the most valuable lessons I’ve learned about public speaking.My mind eventually went to a cassette tape (yes, this makes me feel old) that I listened to when I first became interested in public speaking. The tape was titled “The Language of Leadership,” and on it, James Humes, presidential speech writer and historian, discussed Winston Churchill’s approach to speaking. He called it “The Sir Winston Method” and differentiated this approach from many others. Humes said the goal of some speeches are to inform, others to educate, some may elicit emotion, but he noticed that Churchill’s goal was always to move people to action.Thus, “The Sir Winston Method” is ultimately about leading people to do something with the information they’ve just received. Humes lays out five practices, and these guide me each time I prepare to speak. I’ve shared them with you below. Hopefully, they’ll benefit you the next time you are asked to speak before a group.1. Start StrongToo many people get up to speak and start by thanking the audience. This is a kind gesture, but you can quickly lose your audience with this predictability. As a public speaker, you must capture your audience’s attention immediately in order to keep them engaged throughout your talk. Tell a surprising story. Share a startling statistic. Do something to make the audience listen.2. One ThemeYou need a consistent theme to ground your message. It is alright to have multiple points, but you need one theme. An overarching and consistent message helps the audience better remember what you said and actually apply it. You don’t want to lose them at the beginning, and you certainly don’t want to confuse them in the middle.3. Vivid ImageryJames Humes says, “To be concrete, use sensory language.” Paint word pictures for your audience that help them engage with your content. President Kennedy didn’t say, “We want to advance space exploration for scientific progress.” Instead, he famously said, “Our goal is to put a man on the moon.” This concrete image of a man on the moon is easier to get excited about than simply the concept of space exploration. Another example is when Steve Jobs first unveiled an iPod, he asked, “How do you fit a thousand songs in your pocket?” Rather than talk about how much data could be stored in such a small space, Jobs painted a picture of what the product could do. Use similar images to engage your audience.4. Simple LanguageSimplicity isn’t about dumbing down; it’s about prioritizing. Consider what’s most important about your message and communicate it simply and clearly. It’s interesting that when we speak in front of a group, sometimes our inclination is to use more advanced vocabulary so that people will think we are smarter. In fact, it's often through simpler terminology that we communicate more clearly. Consider the core of your message. Ask yourself if you can communicate it with an anecdote, an analogy, or a simple phrase that can carry your message.[ctt template="2" link="wtR63" via="yes" ]Simplicity isn’t about dumbing down; it’s about prioritizing. @KevinPaulScott[/ctt]5. End on EmotionPeople care about people, not numbers. How does what you are talking about affect your audience and the important people in their lives? Use excitement, sadness, happiness, fear, or another emotion to drive home your final call to action. Make it clear exactly what you want people to do with the information that you have given them, and provide a tangible example of how they can fulfill this call to action.Every communicator is different. There is no “one size fits all” approach, but if you want to speak and inspire people to act, I’d suggest that following Winston Churchill is a good place to start!