Meet Bill Whitley

Bill Whitley has been facilitating courses along side the coaches at Ty Boyd for years. His latest collaboration will be co-facilitating Ty Boyd's newest course, Sell With a Story: Powerful Sales Presentations that Captivate, Connect and Create Action. An accomplished sales and marketing expert, Bill has a gift of making complex topics simple, visual and easy to understand. Using a blend of humor and insightful stories, he teaches how to fully engage clients by developing long-term, high value relationships.

Whitley will tell you that it all begins with a story - a customer attraction story. It's one of the most elusive business skills, and yet, one of the most important. Being able to communicate your worth and persuade your clients and colleagues is one of the most sought after traits in the business world. In a typical organization, a lot of time and money is spent on marketing, branding and generating leads with the intent to open dialogue with prospects. And yet, not nearly as much is invested in teaching people how to communicate and engage in business relationships. If you understand the steps involved in a compelling customer attraction story, the rest will fall into place.

Here is an example of a customer attraction story told in Bill's own words....

I'll never forget my interview with Mike a top insurance agent who had been with a major carrier for over 25 years. I asked a simple, but difficult question, "Can you give me an example of a client that had a problem, where you were able to help with a brilliant solution and they got great results?"

Mike paused for a moment and then said, "Well, yes, one of my clients is a college professor. He's a nice guy. He's a smart guy. He was driving home from work one day and it started to rain. He pulled up to a stop light to make a right on red, looked left and saw that there was no oncoming traffic, and started making his right turn. At that time, a guy was running across the street to get out of the rain - my client didn't see him and hit him with his car." 

Then Mike paused and said, "$900,000 later, the last medical bill was paid. Fortunately, one year before the accident, my client bought a million dollar personal umbrella policy from me. Now every time I see this client, he stops to thank me for selling him that policy."

"Wow, that's a great example," I said. Then Mike added, "If he hadn't bought that personal umbrella policy, here's what would have happened. First, he would have exhausted all of his savings trying to pay off that guy's medical bills. I know how much he's got, and he doesn't have $900,000. Once he had exhausted all of his savings, he would have gone into debt, and then finally, when the debt burden became too great, he would have had to declare bankruptcy. But because he had that one policy, there was no financial impact at all."

Perfect example of a customer attraction story. In fact, Mike's story was so vivid that it moved me to action. My agent works for the same carrier as Mike. He has insured my home and cars for the last twenty years, but for the first time I realized the value of having a personal umbrella policy. The next day, I called him and bought a five million dollar personal umbrella policy.

Prior to the start of Sell With a Story, Bill will schedule a conference call to discuss your personal relevant story. Over the two day course, you will and master your story so that you can easily insert it into a conversation and use it to your benefit for those rare unplanned opportunities that could change the course of your career. 

The goal of an effective communicator is to make a meaningful contribution to an audience. Sell With a Story will help you achieve that goal.

Surviving and Thriving in Your Career

In today's workplace you are expected to stay on top of your game while working positively and productively with all types of personalities and communication styles. If you aren't learning new skills and acquiring new knowledge, you risk the chance of falling behind your peers. That's why you owe it to yourself to take charge of your professional development.


It's easy to be complacent about professional development when you are gainfully employed, especially if it isn't required by your company. But, making an effort to grow professionally not only helps you in your current role, it will help you in the future. Don't do it for your boss, do it for you.

Here are 5 ways to grow professionally - either with or without the help of your current employer:

• Take a course. Concentrate on developing soft skills that are relevant across a variety of industries and positions - they have the biggest bang for your buck. Today's economy puts a new premium on people skills and relationship building. Are you both verbally articulate and a good listener? Can you deliver your message and express yourself in a way that builds bridges with colleagues and clients? If you need help in this department, consider attending one of the courses at Ty Boyd. 

• Find a mentor or coach. Identify somebody who is willing to give you guidance and advice. An on-going relationship with a professional coach who can give honest feedback can be an invaluable investment.

•  Read. There are hundreds of books and blogs and articles on the Internet that can shine a new light on your industry. The more you know, the easier it is to position yourself as someone who is knowledgeable in your group - an industry expert. It also helps to read things outside of your realm of experience as you may be able to apply something to your business. Consider reading Ty Boyd's The Million Dollar Toolbox and let it be a blueprint for transforming your life and career with powerful communication skills.

• Get involved with an industry organization. And don't just attend - join a committee. And commit to commenting and speaking at the meetings. Challenge yourself to bring more awareness to your public speaking in every day interactions.

• Get LinkedIn with Ty Boyd. Update your profile, get in touch with people in your industry as well as old colleagues. Who knows - a great opportunity may be out there for the taking.

Why You Fear Public Speaking

For over 30 years we have worked with clients who have a fear of public speaking. In our experience, eliminating the fear is not possible. And, believe it or not, it isn't even desirable. What we give our clients is a way to change the way they think about, and therefore the way they react to fear. We help eliminate the voice in their head that says they can't do it, by coaching them to identify and develop the skills they already have to become master communicators. Our clients learn not to let fear control them, but rather how to control the fear. The process transforms people, their careers and their sense of self.

Along the way, the coaches at Ty Boyd Executive Communications & Coaching have become experts in identifying what it is that contributes to the anxiety associated with public speaking. Here is our list:

• The need to be perfect: If your benchmark is to be perfect, you'll probably fail every time. Doing your best is an attainable goal, being perfect is not. The goal of your presentation should be to connect with your audience, not the perfection of your speech. Being perfect is the number one contributor to emotionally crippling fear.

• Forgetting your speech: Your goal is to remember the key points of your presentation, not to memorize it word for word. You are the only one who knows what you are going to say and chances are the audience will not notice if you forget something. Practice. Practice in front of a mirror, practice in front of a friend, practice until you are confident that you know your material and then stop worrying about forgetting something.
• The need to be the smartest person in the room : Your goal as the presenter is to create a powerful presentation that captivates, connects and creates action with your audience. There may be people in the audience that may be more knowledgeable about the topic, but they will not have your perspective.
• Appearing nervous: You may feel your heart beating out of your chest, but if you don't tell your audience, they can't see it. Our perceptions about ourselves are not always accurate. We feel nervous, so we think we look it, but the truth is, most of us don't show our nerves. And confidence and nervousness are not mutually exclusive: you can feel nervous on the inside but still have confidence.
• Not knowing the answer to a question:You are not expected to know every answer to every question. Admitting that you don't know an answer is not a sign of failure. Practice by thinking of all the questions that you might be asked, but during your rehearsals also practice saying, "I don't know, but I will research the question and get back to you."

If you want to be the most effective communicator that you can be, you need to put your fear to work for you. A lot of energy is generated from fear and fear can actually become your ally. At Ty Boyd, we help you manage fear and turn it into your most powerful speaking tool.

The Yoga of Public Speaking

In a previous post, I wrote about what yoga and public speaking have in common. It turns out that some of my favorite public speakers are yoga instructors. The best of the best not only guide their class through a physical workout, they impart ideas and words of wisdom to their students. They are communicators in the truest sense of the word. Some use metaphors, others incorporate personal stories, some add humor and others communicate with silence - until the silence is broken with a meaningful take on life. A great yoga instructor, like a great public speaker, doesn't talk for the sake of talking, they make every word count.

When we coach our clients at Ty Boyd, we make sure they understand that speaking isn't about the speaker, it's about the audience. And when we say it's about the audience, we don't mean impressing the audience with polished communication skills, we mean providing a meaningful message that benefits the audience and inspires them to act. Effective communication is creating an experience and connecting with people. And of course, the best yoga instructors know this to be true.

In our Excellence in Speaking course we refer to filler words as non-words and blogged about their lack of effectiveness here. A compelling yoga instructor understands the importance of clear communication when giving cues on how to flow from one pose to the next. Phrases like, "now begin to," and "now go ahead and" are fillers that offer no help to yogis who are listening to their instructor for guidance and instruction. To be effective, yoga teachers concentrate on the tone and the tempo of their voice. They speak loud and clear and are aware that an energetic voice can inspire a student to release further into a pose. These same tools are what great public speakers rely on when addressing an audience.

Each instructor has a unique teaching style that draws on personal experiences and preferences and emphasizes different aspects of yoga. But there is one commonality that you will find in every great yoga instructor and that is the ability to communicate well. 

Why Develop Your Public Speaking Skills?

Employment experts agree that while technical skills may get you an interview, soft skills will get you the job and will help you keep it. Employers look for people who can effectively work as part of a team. That means an employee who can express himself well during a presentation and has the ability to listen to and persuade others in a conversation.

One of the biggest career mistakes you can make is focusing on the development of your hard skills without being aware of how critical building confidence while developing effective public speaking skills are to your profession life. Of course academics, technical skills and experience are vital to your success, but if you think that public speaking is important only in an obscure or abstract way, it's time to think again. Learning to be an effective speaker can be the difference between success and failure.

The truth of the matter is, when people have similar talents and are competing for the same position or the same opportunity, the real differentiator is one's ability to communicate. This skill enables you to quickly connect and build rapport, earn respect, gain influence and become more likable and accepted. This is just as important in your personal life as it is in your professional life. 

There are many reasons to develop your public speaking skills. Here are just a few:

• Learning to speak well in public increases your self confidence and prepares you to meet future challenges

• The skills you will develop by learning to be an effective speaker will boost your performance in the office and at home

• Practicing your public speaking on a regular basis makes you more comfortable around other people

• By sharing information with others through public speaking, you will be better able to increase the impact of your goals 

• Mastering your public speaking skills will help you fine-tune your everyday verbal and non-verbal skills

• Public speaking is a true career booster and extremely relevant to overall job success

The good news is, like any skill, communication skills can be learned. But they are not something that you can study in a book and get better. Improvement takes practice. Practice, practice, practice. It's about changing yourself, your perception and your approach. Once you do that, people's reaction of you will change, as well. Let the folks at Ty Boyd help you improve your public speaking skills. 

Communication Skills That Will Get You Promoted

Having the right technical skills, a stellar job performance, and the ability to influence key people in your organization will help get you recognized and promoted. But according to a year-long study by the Center for Talent Innovation, these qualities aren't a guarantee. Leadership roles are often given to employees who look and act the part. And looking and acting the part is conveyed through one's communication skills.

These six communication skills were deemed to be the most important by director-level executives:

No. 1: Public Speaking Skills:

The ability to speak in public was identified as the most important communication skill. Leaders must have the confidence and the capacity to speak to large groups as well as to speak one-on-one. 

No. 2: The Ability to Take Command of a Room:

The person who walks into a room and owns it is others-focused. You do not have to be born with the ability to charismatically command a room, it is a skill that can be learned.

No. 3: Assertiveness:

A person who can speak up with confidence without being confrontational is looked at as a leader and somebody worthy of promotion.

No. 4: Emotional Intelligence:

Good listening skills, empathy, eye contact and the ability to make others feels valued and understood go a long way in both the business world and in your personal life.

No. 5: Sense of Humor:
Employers aren't looking for somebody who can tell a good joke, but evidence of light-heartedness and the ability to lighten up a tough situation and excel at casual conversation is valued.

No. 6: Good Posture and Body Language:
Your words alone do not do the job. The way you stand and position yourself also speak volumes. 

Leaders need to be able to get their visions and goals across to people. Words are just words if they're not effectively communicated. Let the coaches at Ty Boyd help you advance both your career and your life by becoming a more effective communicator.

Ty Boyd's Top 10 Communication Goals

Anne Boyd-Moore, CEO of Ty Boyd, Inc.

Whether you're speaking at a sales conference, giving a wedding toast, talking to a colleague, or having a discussion with your teenage son, there will be a time this week when you will address an audience. It doesn't matter if you are speaking to one person or one hundred people, there is nothing more exhilarating than to feel that you are in command when speaking. Being able to communicate your worth and persuade your clients, colleagues and kids is one of the most sought after traits.

At Ty Boyd, we offer an array of courses and coaching opportunities that go beyond simple mechanical instruction; we provide a personal empowerment experience. Our coaches help the novice speaker with the basics of effective communication and help the experienced communicator to become that much more effective.

Nothing gets done in business or in your personal life without communication. If you want your relationships to improve, make it your goal to hone your communication skills.

Anne Boyd-Moore, CEO of Ty Boyd Executive Communications & Coaching, provides this list of communication goals:

1. Listen: Give people your undivided attention. Listening shows that you respect the person and what the person has to say.
2. Speak up: What you think matters and communication is a two way street. 
3. Inspire and Motivate: There are countless, informal ways to convey your passion to those around you. This should be done everyday, not just at a sales meeting or a performance review.
4. Follow up: Stay connected with phone calls, emails and face to face conversations.
   
5. Be Genuine: Discover your own communication style, the style that comes most naturally to you, the one that taps into your strengths and that you can then build on.
6. Address a concern before it becomes an issue: Address it head on - offer a solution, be open to alternatives, and stay positive.
7. Learn to tell a good story: Research shows that people are 20 times more likely to remember a fact when it's part of a story. Practice telling positive stories using simple, direct language.
8. Focus on the audience, not on yourself:  A good communicator discovers what the audience needs and serves that purpose. Think of each talk that you give as a dialogue, not a monologue.
9. Don't confuse excellence with perfection: Doing your best is an attainable goal, being perfect, is not. One assures failure, the other, with lots of effort, creates success.
10. Practice, hone, and always improve: Preparation is a habit of excellence. If you practice, you will be ready. You will be effective. You will succeed as a communicator.

Communication is a powerful tool that gives you the ability to inspire and energize those around you. Make it your goal to always look for ways to sharpen your communication skills.