KNOWLEDGE, EXPERIENCE AND SKILL

Often read and heard it myself when fresh graduates or young executives had some difficulties to land a job or when competing in the job market.

"Employers are looking for experienced candidates.How can we have experiences when we are fresh?"

"They should give more chances to fresh graduates to gain experiences by hiring them.If not, they will stand no chance at all"

" I have about about 1  year plus of working experiences but they offered the job to the fresh graduates.How could they do that?"

"My results are great but still they can't consider that!"

" I answered well during the interview but still did not offered the job"

"Sometime they asked me about something I did not study.That's unfair!"

I heard the first two remarks from fresh graduates and parents.

I do not have hundreds or thousands employees but as an employer and has gone through the same process to get my jobs from the start, I would like to share this.

What fresh graduates or young executives often often failed to realize is when we called after we have shortlisted  them for interview sessions, we always looking at something different from what they always thought.

To me it's no longer how good or great they feel about themselves but it's about how they show it to us based on how they performed during the interview session.

I am looking more on what kind of attitude that can transpire from the moment I look at the CV and later when I ask my assistant to call candidates about the interview.I will ask how all candidates responded to the phone call and how they confirm the come or not to come for the interview.

Everything will explain or tell something about each candidate

1. The Application and CV

• How the application (now mostly via e-mail) and CV was written and format presented

• Type of photo attached

Then how they do the follow ups on their application via email or phone calls

2. For the interview...

• Time they arrived
• How they dressed
•  

3.Then the interview itself...

I am more looking at characters,values and skills that transpired throughout the session

• How prepared the candidate is
• Their confidence level
• How they explain and share they experiences in studying or working before
• How good are they in certain basic skills especially in communications
• How knowledgeable they are in topics related to the job that they applied

Now let us  discuss about the title.

From all the 3 stages, generally I can make my decision based on attitude and skills  shown by each  candidate.All that will also show how confident of each candidate when they performed during the interview sessions.

Candidates with high level of confidence often stand above others especially during the interview.The best time to impress!

Sometime when I saw them nervous or shaky, I did asked them why.

Most answers are common,they said these...

1. No or lack of experiences- well understood for fresh graduates
2. Knew little about the industry-they don't dig or  read enough to know more
3. Could not communicate/deliberate answers to my questions properly in English mostly and in Bahasa Melayu as well-confirming they are poor in  language and communication skills

...and they also admitted that all of the above made them feel not so confident to come and to go through the interview process.

So, I believe the main issue is not anything particular of the above three items or lacking or experiences  that will deny their chances to get a job. 

It's an issue of the LACK OF CONFIDENCE or QUALITIES that employers are looking among fresh graduates or young executives.Unfortunately in most cases, all that could not be seen in the class of their degree or some experiences that they may had.

They must express and communicate  all that CONFIDENTLY with all experiences,knowledge and skills that they have during the 20-30 minutes interview session to impress me and other interview panelists.

Confidence is not just a requirement to secure a job but it is needed throughout the entire life of your career unless you have no intention to move up the ladder in your career.

Confidence will make us more convincing and with that, it will open open us to more opportunities in whatever field that we are in.

So, the focus is to put all efforts to build or increase the level of confidence in you if you are really serious to improve it.

 Confidence is the result of three key elements and they are KNOWLEDGE, EXPERIENCE AND SKILL.

Ideally we have it all when we are about to start to jump into our first job but unfortunately it is not the case all the time for fresh graduates and your executives.

For these groups of job seekers, the lack of experiences must be the one that seen as the most important element.At a young or certain age, employers have some expectations on what level and types of the three elements that candidates should possess.

Bear in mind that once you have been called for the interview, it means you have met all the basic requirements for you to be considered for the job.Take the interview session as a level playing  field where all candidates stand the same chance.All have to convince the interview panelists. It's more about how much you can show your true values and qualities that other may not have or have less.

Little or no experience is common for fresh graduates or young executives.You will gain be more and more experiences as you continue to work. Do not make it as the main reason to keep you feeling less confident all then time. 

Use and ride on  other key elements to convince the prospective employer that you are confident enough with  the knowledge and skills you already have.That overcome the barrier of  the lack or absence of  working experiences to be considered for the job. There are many ways you can gain knowledge related to the  industry that you are interested in. 

You also have plenty of time from your days at the campus and methods available out there  that can be tried and practiced to develop the skills needed that will enable you to present or explain the knowledge that you have a more convincing way. 

Knowledge is very much easier to gain today.Clicks using your fingers at this IT and internet age  will open doors to all sorts of knowledge that you need to know about the nature of job and industry that you are keen to explore in your career.It is totally hard to believe or unacceptable to claim that you cannot find enough information or knowledge on almost everything today.Try impress with how deep of your knowledge on the field or industry that will amaze them.

If you a a fresh graduate, you should not worry too much on skills to perform the actual job that you are applying.Focus on skills that you must possess that will help you to perform the job better.For example, if you are looking for a job in a research industry, you must show how good the analytical and data processing skills that you have  and techniques that your know well.If you want to enter the marketing related jobs, you must have strong communication skills and current knowledge on the market trends.

Do not just find excuses or play the blaming game if you do not get  the attention because sometimes that is  the attitude which will close your opportunities or to advance  draw people's attention or for you to move forward. It could be has nothing to do with the lack of your experiences that is not give you the CONFIDENCE that you need but because of your UNCONVINCING attitude.

Stay calm and build your confidence from now because no one can do it for you.

PUBLIC SPEAKING TIPS:SHARING THE EXPERIENCE PRESENTING ON THE STAGE

Here I would like to share some tips at each step of making presentation in front of the audience from the stage. All photos in this post were taking in sequence to clearly indicate how I applied tips that I  have been shared to participants for all my programs related to tips on effective presentations skills or public speaking. 

Some of the skills that I have been applying are based on what I was taught from programs that I attended as a participant, my readings and my own experiences in presenting many types of topics related to my field in local and international events.

Event: YaHIJAU Youth Summit 2014

Topic: 

Audience: 

Secondary and Pre-U programs students from Malaysia, Japan and Thailand

Venue: 

UNITEN, Bangi

Date: 16 October 2014

Full Presentation Materials:

http://www.slideshare.net/ZAINIABDULWAHAB/tips-for-on-stage-presentation-for-executives-and-professionals

BEFORE WE TAKE  THE STAGE

The officer in-charge initially requested me to come straight to the front seating of the auditorium but I requested to see the audience from the back while another  was still presenting.

Why? Because I was assessing the venue, the crowd positioning and spaces available  and arrangement on the stage. 

To me me this important for me to start to plan on 

...how I should greet the audience to start my talk 

...how to make  eye contacts and movements from the stage.

Then I saw the speaker was using wired microphone. I politely requested to the organizer to get met a cordless microphone if available because it will give more freedom while delivering my presentation.

They managed to get me one.Great!

Once I felt more ready, I agreed to sit a the designated seat for me in the front rows.

I was fortune because the organizer arranged one person to be with all the time to attend my needs to present. We walked slowly and quietly to avoid distracting the talk by the other speaker.

While seating, I managed to get more information  from the officer in-charge about the audience and more on the expectation from my presentation. I was told that there were students from Japan and Thailand as well.

The main goals of my session  was to share some tips to them on how to present effectively because they were representing their schools and institutions to present before the judges on the following day in a competition that they were participating. 

I kept all those information in my mind with the intention to incorporate them into my presentation. This will make my presentation  more tailored to the expectations of the audience.

Key points before taking the stage:

• assess the venue, the audience and facilities provided to suit our presentation
• try to create "connection" with the audience based on  the information that you acquired about them through out the session
• prepare ourselves and use whatever information available to have a firm mindset to start

Then I was invited to the stage and I walked gently to the space designated for the speaker. 

BEFORE  WE START TALKING

Put on and check you presentation tools/microphone  to ensure  they are working well.Test your slides transition and sound level of the microphone is necessary.
 Ask for assistance from the organizer.

Then you show the audience that you are ready. 

then start to get into position, look at them and start to make  eye contacts!

Greet the MC and fellow speakers.

Then ask the audience how they are doing.

Gauge their mood from how they respond to you and quickly assess their body languages.Use what you can gauge to think quickly how to start and what kind of words to say.

Get into position, stand firm and introduce yourself properly and in a friendly manner.

Take the right spot to start - ask “permission” from the audience and walk gently if you need to leave the rostrum.

Then try to find the spot where I would be the most comfortable to start by moving around slowly while talking to the audience for "ice breaking".

When you have found the spot, then you can get started.

In this session, I greeted all participants from Malaysia in a normal way of greetings 
"Assalamualaikum and good afternoon"
I  asked who were from Japan and they raised their hand, I bowed a little bit to participants   and they responded the same way.

Then I did the same way with participants from Thailand and showed  the typical hand gesture for Thais greeting others and they also responded the same way.

Key points:

• "break the ice" to create a connection with the audience  to "be" with you  from the start
• use information that you gathered before and your quick views from the stage.

Then I knew that they were ready to  "join" me on the stage and I introduced to them who am I.

I prefer to show who am I together with some visual and photos in 2-3 slides while talking to them.

Then I introduce the topic and outlne of my presentation by referring  to my  presentation aids(Power points)

 Key points:

• You are the speaker and not the presentation slides. 
• The focus should be on you and the audience will refer the slides whenever you want them to see the slides.
• It is important for the speaker to remember the sequence and key contents in each slide to ensure smooth presentation without the speaker  has to look at the slides too often. 
• If that happen, that will give an impression that your don't really familiar with your own  contents of presentation(this may be different compare to technical presentations which normally involved plenty of numbers).

Stress the importance of the topic and its key points!

Appreciate their presence that making you excited to be there and share something with them.

You are there not to tell or teach but to share some knowledge and experiences

The message is you need their  attention/opinions and not their acceptance.

 “Invite” the audience to be “with” you throughout the  session.

Show your  openness and intention to have a friendly session with the audience.

 Continuously show some inviting gestures with you hands and face expressions.

Create two-way communications or tell them a story and not expecting the audience  to just listening to you.


POSITIONING ON THE STAGE

Use the space available  for some movements  to connect the audience with you thru some hand gestures and  presentation aids.

Be at the spots  where all eyes can focus on you.

This will require some movements to maintain eye contacts with the audience.

Be dynamic and synchronized with presentation aids used at the screen. Avoid blocking the screen.

FACE EXPRESSIONS, HAND GESTURES AND BODY MOVEMENTS

Show some face expressions and gestures that will keep their eyes on you at suitable key points.

Throw  some emotion in your face when you want to stress or your feeling about something that you’re  sharing with the audience.

       

It's more about “telling a story” with body movements together with face expressions and hand gestures to keep the connection with the audience.

Try to synchronize the intentions, face expressions and hand gestures to make your points clear and taken.

Show some expressions  and body language that  indicate you meant your words and this is real! (in a calm way)

Summarize your session and make a short and concise conclusion!

Say thank you to the audience...

I always telling  them how much you appreciate their presence and responses throughout the session.

In this event, I wished them all the best in the competition on the next day.

Say your final personal message and leave it to the audience to ponder. In this session, my message was "Being professional is all about  having the right attitude that will be transpired in the way we look & behave!"

Give a good smile while receiving the token of appreciation from the organizer.
It's a good way to end and good for the photo album too!

I normally requested to take a photos with the key people from the organizer and later send to them via phone or email. It's good to remember each other that may also open for future communications.

Hope the tips here would help you to  start and try  your own style of presentation.

My final messages to readers of  this post.

• Presenting is the skills that can be developed and everyone is able to be a good presenter but the first step must be taken.
• Start to try each skill and tip that you have learned whenever you have the chance to present or to speak in public in small group of people or in big events.
• More you try it out, you can only become better.
• GIVE A SHOT AND GOOD LUCK!

Sincerely,
zainiabdulwahab@yahoo.com