body language Archives - Page 2 of 2 - Business Pitches

At a time when we have just seen the astonishing Obama deliver yet another mesmeric speech, this one in Cairo, it is depressing to compare it with what we are seeing from politicians in the UK. It is a comparison that flatters few of them.

Obama, in an unbelievably sensitive environment, gets the words right, as we have come to expect, but, even more important, the delivery. His calm, measured tone, his authority and confidence as he says things never contemplated or dared by previous Presidents.

And, since most of his audience will be getting his words via interpreters, it his body language and tone that creates the impact, that in effect is the message. What a message.

Compare this with the fevered response of most of our politicians in an unbelievably sensitive environment of their own making. Few, ‘guilty or not’ have handled their expense explanations with dignity. Searching so hard for the right words, they have protested too much.

Defending the indefensible, as far as your audience is concerned, or in a pitch responding to the unanswerable question, calls for few words -assume they will be mangled by an interpreter-and an Obama- like manner. And rehearsal..

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The Presidential election in the USA is boiling up nicely to be one of the political pitches of all time, certainly as a media spectator sport. Obama versus Clinton was a cliffhanger, with style, just, winning out over substance. The, seemingly last minute, addition of Palin to the McCain ticket is already overshadowing that earlier battle.

Until quite recently it seemed the Obama style and charisma would carry the day. He, seemingly without effort, puts into practice the concepts illustrated here. But so does Sarah Palin!

As this ”baked Alaska“ (!) pie chart shows, the way we respond to communication is such that only 8% is purely down to the verbal content. The rest of our response is formed by the non-verbal, tone and visual. It’s not what you say, it’s the way you say it.

For this argument’s sake, let’s ignore the political content, and think of the contest only in the terms of this chart. Then, it seems to me that the combined ‘body language count’ of McCain, calmly heroic and Palin, feisty, fearless plus female, outscores that of Obama, the orator and Biden, recycling Kinnock.

Until, of course , the next dramatic revelation.

Business Pitches – Winning Lessons from Pitchcoach

Tag Archives: body language

When body language tells all.

Sarah Palin, the body language counts