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Women, It’s Not Enough to Know What You Know …

Guest post by: Lillian D. Bjorseth

Article Overview: It’s time to “stand up” and take credit for your contributions. It means being more assertive and possibly even unlearning some of the things your mother taught you in good faith.

Women, It’s Not Enough to Know What You Know …

... you have to sound as if you know what you know. Ever been in a meeting and made a really good point, and people keep right on talking? Shortly thereafter, a man makes the same point and he is lauded for his great contribution. And you think to yourself, "That was my point!"

It's time to "stand up" and take credit for your contributions. It means being more assertive and possibly even unlearning some of the things your mother taught you in good faith.

Sounding as if you know means being heard. While it may be nice to keep your voice down in your office, you may need to kick your volume up a notch or two in a meeting, especially when people may be speaking simultaneously or another starts the second someone has finished.

Lower your pitch. While society equates authority with a lower pitch, most women are born with a higher-pitched voice. You can practice lowering whenever you are alone. A good tip before answering the phone is to say, "low, low" and then "hello" into the receiver. It avoids that higher-pitched "hi" or "hello" that often happens when it is the first word said. Your first words leave a lasting impression.

Vary your tone. Add interest by emphasizing different words to get your meaning across. Just as you can make numbers say different things by how you arrange them so can you make words say different things through emphasis. One of my favorite exercises when teaching presentation skills is to take a sentence and give it different meanings simply by emphasizing different words. This is also an important skill to acquire if you spend a lot of time on conference calls.

Watch your inflection, which is where you vary your pitch and tone to achieve your purpose. It's often common to raise your pitch on the last word when you are asking a question. "Are you going home?" Keep your pitch the same or even lower it when asking questions. Higher pitches than normal indicate nervousness or fear. That's not what you want to convey in a meeting. Someone may even take advantage you if he thinks you are already nervous and verbally try to push you into a corner.

Keep your rate at an even keel. Speaking too quickly again can indicate nervousness and make it more difficult for others to follow your logic. Speaking too slowly can indicate a lack of knowledge, concern about being inaccurate ... and is guaranteed to make type As want to finish your sentences.

Get used to interrupting and interruptions. As women, you may have been taught it is impolite to interrupt and to wait until someone is finished speaking. While that's generally true, it is not always the way the business world works. Choose your situations wisely. If two of you start speaking simultaneously, it's okay to crank up the volume and keep speaking. Men usually think they will get the stage because they speak louder.

Be well prepared, professional and get credit for what you know!

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Article Tags: good faith, professional women, women leaders, women speakers



Related Forum Posts
Re: History of Women in Business in the United States - Yes. Women have increasingly made positive economic contributions to society and their position is being recognized more and more as seen on the Forbes List of Executive Women. In general, women can be a bit more practical in their approach as entrepreneurs too.
A ton of Great Women - You might want to profile Teresa Cascioli of LakePort Brewery. She has an amazing story! I met her at at the celebratory luncheon for the Profit/Chatelaine Top 100 Women Business Owners. The Top 100 list is also a great resource for inspirational stories of Women Entrepreneurs.
Re: Are entrepreneur women more organized than men? - Women are generally more organised than men. They have good instincts more than men. Women are generally aggressive when it come to business. You don't want to mess up with them.
Re: Are entrepreneur women more organized than men? - The issue of women being more organized than men is true, start from you home, just see how messy the boys are. Women are also very cautious, unlike men who take any risk, a woman will analyze the risk first. Women are also go getter when it comes to business, once they make their mind, then they go for it.
Re: Why aren't there more women entrepreneurs? - My opinion on this (being a women, and being disabled), is; Women in general like security. Women are the caretakers, in general. In the work environment we are the one to have children. We are the ones who leave work to do this. We deal with a stigma that we are bad mothers if we work, but we are a bad mother if we do not work. I feel there is no way a man could ever understand this. Sure they can try, and some do a good job of it, however they truly do not understand. How could they?? Being a entrepreneur is throwing cation to the wind. It takes believing in yourself. It takes a women who can have someone say no, put us down or just plan old negativity and for us to turn it around. Women who can do this are called names, while men in the business world are just expected to have a thick skin. Studies show in the work environment that women are more apt to be bullies. Women are more apt to turn on each other. We expect more out of each other. Many women also use the work environment to socialize and to find a mate. Men and women are not created equal. Once we understand this and take what we are and "run" with it; the better all of us will be. Women business owners, women entrepreneurs are still considered a minority. Since there are more women then men in this world, some day this will turn around. This too is why men need to protect themselves and keep us under some kind of control. What bothers me to no end is when women give in to the mans world using sex as a selling tool. We need strong women leaders, not those who use their bodies as a step up. This is just my opinion on this subject.


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