Technical Presentations #2 - Habits

Now that you have an insight into what kind of a presenter you are, let's look at the kinds of presentation habits you should develop that will help in any situation and style. The 3 basic categories are:

1. Self awareness
Knowing what you are doing is critical when delivering a presentation, every aspect of you is being scrutinized. You ARE in the spotlight. Pay attention to:

• General appearance
• Facial expressions
• Hand gestures
• Voice (pauses, tone, rhythm, volume, speed)
• Space (where you are standing, how you are moving)

Day to day, develop the habit of paying attention to these things. These will be used to increase the impact of your technical presentations.

2. Process orientation
Every time you have a presentation, follow a strict process so you consider everything for the highest impact. Depending on the level of the presentation, you can shorten or speed up this process.

• Preparation
• Goals
• Audience analysis
• Storyline and flow
• Content
• Rehearsals (iterate on 3&4)
• Logistics
• Delivery
• Follow up

As you can plainly see, most of the work is in preparation and rightfully so! If you follow a strict process, you make sure your audience will benefit the most from your presentation.

3. Reflection
A strong habit is to reflect on how you have done through informal or even formal feedback/ metrics. This will help you to continuously improve on your style.

We will go through the process step by step next to see how it can all come together.

Technical Presentations #0

I believe that a technical audience is somewhat different from a general one. The last technical conference I attended reminded me of how visual aids are perceived. If it is accepted that terrible visual aids are the norm, what would a polished one say about you? Did you spend too much time on the presentation and not on the scientific rigor behind it? Does this slick show make you seem like a used car sales man? Would you lose credibility as a scientist if you deliver a presentation like a TED speaker?

I belive there may be some truth in it, but I also believe that there are steps you can take to improve your presentation while maintaining credibility as an honored member of the scientific community. TED speaker crossed with an MD PhD.

I will share some learnings from gurus like Nancy Duarte, Garr Reynolds, Guy Kawasaki and the many classes I've taken from presentation consultants to stage actors.

Enjoy!

A journey ends and a new one begins

Last Friday was our graduation and we had a blast. I had an absolutely fantastic time delivering our graduation speech on behalf of the class and the party at the Beau Rivage was such a good time. It ended at about 5.30 in the morning. Alison and I ducked out at about 3.45am, thinking it was over as the lights came on.

In the last month, we had our electives and a last week that consisted of learning about the first 90 days in our next job, painting and learning about team work from a string quartet. It was a perfect way to end the year as we reflected and start to process the intense experience of the year. Good byes were said over the next few days during dinners and getting together at the White Horse for some pints. There were lots of hugs and lots of kisses as we part and move to different regions to start a new chapter in our lives.

I will miss the camaraderie with my class. We were really close and the intense experience really brought us closer together as a group, which is evident by the tears after it hit us that the year is over. For me, I look forward to the visits and laughing about the hard and fun times throughout the year. It is the thought of reminiscing that will help us all move on. Alison and I also look forward to building a home together, this time hopefully in a better living space!

As I start to catch up on the pictures, emails and closing out the year, I will post more pictures and videos.

Graduation Ball at the Beau Rivage Hotel, Lausanne, Switzerland

Cheers,
Howie Chan, IMD MBA Graduate

Sowing the seeds...

... of a career! It is an apt metaphor as I continue to navigate the world of jobs and find one that fits. I must say it continues to be an amazing experience of connecting and talking to people. It IS true when Forrest Gump says, "you never know what you are going to get"!

So in line with building an online presence, here are qualities that exemplify me:

- Marketing excellence
- Customer focused
- Leadership & influence
- Innovative drive
- Curiosity & learning agility
- Breadth in communication
- Global awareness
- Adaptability

There you have it, a little teaser about me and find me on LinkedIn!

International Consulting Project Final Presentation

In the alps - Rochers De Naye

One of my wishes is to be in the mountains more often and so Alison will always hear me suggest - "how about going to the mountains?" So while we were planning for this sunday, we tried to figure out where the closest mountain adventure would be and we ended up with Rochers De Naye. It is a really short trip from Lausanne; short train ride to Montreux and then a 45min cog wheel train up the mountains. I must say, the train ride was magnificent and well worth the money. We went all the way to the top, above the clouds.

We then proceeded to hike down... this was the tougher part. It was really steep and not exactly a leisure hike like we planned. Kudos to my in-laws for toughing it out! Nonetheless an excellent adventure we walked away with some wonderful memories, pictures, a great story and some sore quads.

Cog wheel train (Toby & Dorothy)

Less than 2 hours later, we are above the clouds

Signs?

The great steep descent

Reminiscing the journey

There and back again...

I have been nominated for Best of Blogging by ClearAdmit! Vote for my blog here.

In the past few weeks, there has been a frenzy of activities in the program. We completed our first round of exams at the beginning of April and had a real weekend! It ended all too quickly and when we came back to class, we had the innovation bag challenge, in which the MBAs and EMBAs were pit against each other to come up with the best bag for students/executives. I must say, the innovation class was great; I thoroughly enjoyed myself and am pretty confident to lead an innovation exercise wherever I may end up. Next, we also had to pick our International Consulting Projects in one hour. That was a tough exercise, as we struggled to find the “right” project that will define the rest of the program. And in the midst of all these activities, we find ourselves having to finish the strategy mid-term, in which most of the class stayed up through the night to complete it and then go to class… class attendance was at its lowest at ~70 the day after! Following this intense week, we raced into the Easter break.

A few of us escaped to the vineyards for a picnic that Thursday. It was beautiful and we had a fantastic time. Alison and I then fled to Lugano and Como to enjoy the rest of the long weekend. All I have to say is: Wine, Pizza, Pasta, Sunshine and Gelato…

Next up, integrative exercise number two, finishing up our startup projects and never ending accounting and finance!

Lugano, Switzerland

what it's like in Gelato heaven

Goodbye Economy

Our last economy class... the whirlwind tour of economics has ended, and we are now facing a test to wrap it all up. The last class culminated last Friday, where all 11 groups presented their work. Class lasted 7 hours, but I have never had so much fun in class before. It was filled with wit, charm, intensity, passion, conflict and even alcohol!

Each group presented on the micro and macroeconomics of a country or region and introduced challenges and potential solutions. It was extremely interesting to hear the issues of economic growth and if it is the only solution and how might change come about. In the end, for every single country or region, it came down to changing the mindset of the people, which means it will take years and would require strong leaders. A coincidence that IMD focuses on leadership? Maybe not.

I will miss Prof. Boscheck and I will miss this class. Cheers to economy!

We discussed gender discrimination and this created some tension in class

The India group came with costumes and all!

Prof. Boscheck in all his glory

A beer in class - priceless!

No people, no business

This week has been "different" to say the least. Each group was introduced to a consultant (psychology background) who will be working with us till May. The focus for the past few days was to really dive deep into our group and understand how we feel and interact, both among group members and among other groups. A full day of outdoor exercises and competitions ended in some heavy debriefing and reviewing at night till about 1.20am, then followed by a sharing of learnings the next morning.

Watching our own behavior, sharing very personal thoughts and putting everything on the table made me feel a sense of relief, but also made me feel uncomfortable, especially in the larger group setting. We could all feel the tense atmosphere and the "rawness" in the auditorium. Every group is in different stages of evolution, and we will continue to grow. There were tears and there were intense emotions throughout the day, and I can say it was a truly real learning experience. My senses to emotions were sharpened during the past few days and I promise to continue using them and sharpening them throughout my life. I believe this to be important, as without relationships, not only is there no business, we are also denying the most basic of human needs.

Team Gruyere

As part of the MBA program, we work extensively in groups. Since we will be exercising leadership all our lives in small groups throughout any organization, we put a lot of time in our groups. The great part about IMD MBA group work is that in addition to case discussions and completing assignments, we also study our own behavior in these groups. We use video, group observation techniques and various psychological assessments to really dig deep into who each of us really are and how we can view the world from another person's perspective, at the same time taking note of what our initial reactions were.

This may sound very "touchy feely"... well it is! But it is so important! Effective leaders must understand themselves, both the dark and light side, the conscious and the subconscious. Throughout our short time together, I came to realize the power of active listening and self reflection as well as how better decisions can result from the conflict and differences in the team. Cheers team, our roller coaster ride is just beginning!

Team Gruyere - From left: Ayman, Hannes, Constanza, Elisa, Nicole, Sanjar

GEM #6

Anyone who knows Seth Godin should already have read Linchpin. I am somehow late to the party! Seth gives amazing insights about your career and how to be indispensable in this age where workers are minimal-ized by processes and systems. Seth uses the term "emotional labor", which is the key to being indispensable. His advice also leads us to be the artist and creative beings that we all are!

GEM #6 - Linchpin
My top 3 book quotes:
1. "Work is nothing but a platform for art and the emotional labor that goes with it"
2. "Passion isn't project specific, it's people specific"
3. "Transferring your passion to your job is far easier than finding a job that happens to match your passion"

Linchpin is a must read for anyone who wants to be free of the "work" and perform art on a daily basis in any career. It will motivate you to face your fears and dare to be successful! Will you commit to being indispensable today?

2nd installment on BW

"Completing the MBA checklist" by Howie Chan

My second article on Bloomberg BusinessWeek is posted! As a follow up, I'm glad to say that my loan was approved and will be disbursed on my birthday. We are still waiting on my wife's visa... so that is still somewhat concerning.

Enjoy!

Pleasant surprise, great company!

Last Friday, my wife and I met with a future classmate right here in Minneapolis! It turns out that in order to meet up in the Twin Cities, we had to both be planning a life changing trip to Lausanne, Switzerland. We also found out that they lived within minutes from us. We were anxious to meet them and wondered if they would be good company. We were optimistic and this was yet another step that moved us closer psychologically to Lausanne. It was great fun! We chatted about our interview process, other future classmates, plans and our hopes for next year. It was a fun double date and it helps to have a familiar face when we jump-in in January. I'm becoming more confident that my classmates will be great and our intereactions will form lifelong bonds. 14 working days to go!

Sneaking up on you

It's been a flurry of activities trying to get ready for the move, and the weeks are just flying by at this moment. There are a couple of big rocks to move before the trail gets smoother. The 2 big things are the Condo and Financing. Other little ones include insurance, visa and storage.

The trick is to keep our focus on the big rocks and still enjoy the anticipation and excitement of it all. It's never easy, but constantly stepping back and looking at the big picture always helps to bring us back to the ground. Little distractions will continue to pop up and try to steer us away from our main items! IMD activities have slowly started to gain momentum. Enthusiastic MBA candidates are planning a ski trip in January and perhaps a new year party. Pre-program courses have been suggested by IMD on Finance and Finance Accounting. I anticipate more TO-DOs will pop up shortly.

In the mean time, reading about current students continue to prepare me for the next year. The second half of the year seems to be more dynamic and less structured. No more big lectures, traveling to different countries for the International Consulting Projects, just a more flexible schedule in general. I have a feeling the second half of the year zooms by pretty fast and that is the part most students will miss.

On a different note, but related, our big dog meeting has been moved again! Alright, time to buck up and flyer the town this weekend. I have 80 flyers waiting to be posted and I know there is a potential renter out there waiting to be found.