"Whom can we believe?" This is the question that has been plaguing big business since the collapse of Enron due to accounting misconduct. This question is often aimed at the senior executives of the organization, who have been entrusted to maintain financial integrity and to communicate about financial conditions with integrity. Today you'd be hard-pressed to find a majority anywhere who would agree that has been what's been going on. How can upper management win back the trust that has been lost?
Following the presentation suggestions outlined below will help CEOs and other top executives communicate to an audience in a meaningful manner that will help restore shaky credibility.
Begin with the truth
It may not always be best to present the whole truth when it either would extend a presentation unnecessarily with insignificant details or cause an uninformed audience to question the most significant points you are trying to make. It is, however, always in your best interest to present the truth and nothing but the truth, especially if you have bad news to deliver.
Audiences tend to remember what you say first and what you say last, and they interpret what comes in between based on your opening and closing statements. So plan to begin by framing what you're going to say in relation to what you intend to do about it. Then, present the worst of the bad news first and finish with how you will be able to improve the situation by doing what you intend to do, regardless of how bad it looks today.
Believe in yourself
To make what you're saying believable, you have to be believable. There is a direct relationship to how believable you will be to others and how much you believe in what you're saying and doing yourself. We've all heard stories of leaders who could turn around the worst kinds of situations when they confronted the situation head on and with a positive attitude. This doesn't mean ignoring the realities, but it does mean looking past them to where you need and want to be going as you are acknowledging the reality of the present.
It may be old fashioned or corny, but most people still want to believe in heroes. Heroes always tell the truth and believe in themselves and others enough to see beyond the limitations to the possibilities. When you dig in, find, and exemplify the qualities of realism, pragmatism, and positive expectation within yourself, you will be believable and perceived as a leader who can be trusted by others.
Identify your message
It's important to distinguish between the content of the message and the response you want to generate with your message. This is the difference between information and emotion. People respond to information by trying to make sense of it, by comparing it to what they already know, and then deciding if they believe it. When you communicate on an emotional level you are not just speaking to people's heads and minds, you are speaking to their hearts and guts. They will feel what you are saying immediately and intimately.
When you know not just what you want to say but also how you want to say it, you can reach your audience emotionally. Tell them a story that will resonate with the experience you want them to have. If you have one that is personal and related to the situation at hand, or a story from the history of the organization or about its founders, so much the better. These kinds of stories are essentially emotional; these stories reach down to the human element and give the information meaning that is unmistakable.
The best way to do this is to consider how you'd want to present your information and tell your story to your own child. Take the audience into your confidence; ask them to understand that it's important for you that they listen to what you have to say precisely because it's important for them. Then ask them to act on what you've told them, trusting them to do their best in order to make the situation better for everyone. It's irresistible and compelling for people to be in front of this type of presenter.
When you treat your audience in this way -- telling the truth to the very best of your knowledge, coming from a place inside yourself that is positive, and asking them to move with you -- they will believe you and they will trust you.