Face Off

Brushing through an acting book made me realize they are the best people to teach us how to play with your face expressions. The speed of how you can display them effectively, is a direct indication of your talent.

Back in the olden days when films used to be silent, actors relied solely on their facial expressions and bodily movements to convey their feelings. With the advent of sound, there is little need for such hysterics, but the idea of being able to convey a story with just your face has not changed.

 How does your face look when you make certain emotions? Are your facial expressions “normal” looking or a bit odd? How do you look when you laugh? What about when you cry? Most people probably don’t go rushing to a mirror when they are experiencing heightened emotions.

I wonder how much time you take to think about where you sit in relation to the client, the tone of your voice, your dress, the length of pause when asking and receiving questions, your ability to contextually touch clients and so on?

Discern which reactions cause your face to look “weird”, that way you can work on avoiding & adjusting how your face responds. Have you ever watched an actor’s face on television or film and thought to yourself, “Wow, he does not look pretty when he cries”? Those are the kinds of faces you need be wary of…

We form impressions of the people we encounter. We take in their posture, their gait, their gestures, and we see their facial expressions. All contribute to conveying their energy levels and their feelings. Body language gives away the emotions we are experiencing. When we are weighing other people quietly looking at them, the same others are doing it on you.

Manhandle your face expressions before they start handling you….

Say It Right The First Time & Every Time

Before starting it & making it sound like one of them as many. In-Fact always want to make it sound like one out of many. The aim is to hit at the root as whenever an effort starts from there stays with us forever....

Everyone has a distinct voice, different from all others; almost like a fingerprint, one's voice is unique and can act as an identifier. The human voice is composed of a multitude of different components, making each voice different; namely, pitch, tone, and rate. The pitch of our voices is created through vibrations of the vocal folds. The rate at which these folds vibrate changes the way our voices sound, with faster rates equating higher pitches. 

How we sound when we speak does influence others, the tone, clarity, passion & enthusiasm. Think about how you talk to someone who is ill? Gentle, Compassion & Understanding. Pause & reflect how you greet an old friend? How you sound when you are angry?

If you talk in monotone you will sound dull & uninteresting, you will also lack credibility. The more credible you are the more persuasive you will be. Try varying your pitch & pace of your voice. Try injecting more passion. A good way to practice this is read aloud to young children because then you have to put all the different voices to keep them glued or You can listen to yourself attentively as you speak in front of a mirror, you can record your voice on the device & play it back. 

Breathing deeply and projecting from your diaphragm is key to having a full, rich, strong voice. When you're breathing deeply, your stomach move in and out with each breath, rather than your chest rising and falling. Practice projecting from your diaphragm you'll notice that your voice rings out loud and clear.

Believe you are worth listening to convey that belief to others. The more passionate you are about your subject the more persuasive you sound. A good pitch makes your heart race. Show the fire in the belly and your passion to succeed. Avoid sounding like a solution in search of a problem. Explain how your unique solution fills a “must have” need. If you aren't solving a problem or filling a need, you're in for a tough sell. 

Break Brain Storming

Even those of us not in explicitly creative fields must come up with new ideas and insights in order to move ahead. How can we shake up our thinking patterns?

What happens during a brainstorming session the key players on the team speak up and express their ideas. While others may not speak up because they're shy, or are afraid that their suggestions may be rejected

An idea-generating process that enables everyone in the group to participate in a nonthreatening way. This approach can often generate more potential solutions than traditional brainstorming. Traditional brainstorming sessions allow only one person to speak at a time. By the time each individual has spoken, most participants have edited, discarded, or simply forgotten their own ideas. This is called ‘blocking' & it can reduce creativity and productivity in these sessions. 

When you brainstorm on your own, you don't have to worry about other people's egos or opinions, and you can be freer and more creative. However may not develop ideas as fully, because you don't have the wider experience of other group members to draw on.

Once everyone has shared their ideas, start a group discussion to develop other people's ideas, and use them to create new ideas. Building on others ideas is one of the most valuable aspects of group brainstorming. Encourage everyone to contribute including the quietest & discourage anyone from criticizing ideas.

Don't follow one train of thought for too long. Make sure that you generate a good number of different ideas. If a team member needs to "tune out" to explore an idea alone, allow them the freedom to do this.

Welcome creativity, and encourage your team to come up with as many ideas as possible, regardless of whether they're practical or impractical…