As we may have experienced, anxiety is often our first response to public speaking. Standing up and delivering a talk is the number two fear for many people. The first is death, in case you were wondering.

One of the chief ways to overcome some of that fear is to really focus on the audience. Put yourself in their shoes and answer these two questions: 1) why should they care? And 2) what’s in it for them?

With a clear understanding of the needs of those sitting in front of you, you are well on your way to success.

Robert Cialdini, a social psychologist has delved deeper into what really influences people’s decisions to agree, buy or commit to an idea or a product.

These methods have been studied and found to be effective.

Reciprocity
In every culture there is a tradition of gift giving. Once someone has given you a gift you are much more likely to return in kind. For instance, waiters who left a candy on the bill tray were more likely to receive higher tips. Those who left two candies upped their tip. However those servers who came back to the table and complimented their guests with an additional candy received 25% more.

Gift giving or even a compliment is particularly effective when it is special to the person receiving it, regardless of the amount of money spent and unexpected.

Liking
We are more likely to be persuaded by someone who we like – not surprising. We tend to believe people who are similar to us, have the same interests or hobbies or share views of the world. When people go to home shopping parties, like Tupperware, their opinion of the host totally influences the amount they buy at the event. We’re also more likely to be influenced by eating together with people. The act of dining together promotes a sense of solidarity.

Commitment
Once we publicly declare our intentions, it is much more likely that we will buy or vote or volunteer. Asking people the question such as are you willing to support an initiative and wait for a yes in response yields greater support. Saying ‘yes’ signals a commitment. Their commitment then becomes voluntary, active and publicly declared to others. Writing a commitment down increases the commitment even more.

1.    What do I want to stop doing?
2.    What do I want to do less of?
3.    What do I want to do more of?

Those seem like a saner way to live the next year than making resolutions that I’ll forget in the next couple of weeks and feel defeated.

A year seems overwhelming – 365 days to accomplish a goal. It is easy to lose sight of what you want to accomplish.

My solution is the 30 day resolution. What do you want to do in the next 30 days? Change comes in small bite size pieces to get you to your goal.

Thirty days give you an opportunity to try it out. See if that resolution works for you. So start exercising for half an hour for 30 days, or talk to someone new every day or keep your desk organized for only 30 days.

It takes 21 days to create a habit or break a habit, so with 30 days, you’ve had success and results. One person I know decided that she would drink eight glasses of water a day. Although she found it difficult at first she now has the habit of drinking more water – she doesn’t necessarily drink eight every day, but certainly she drinks more than she did before her 30 day trial.

The 30 day challenge is easy to mark off the days. Another person I know decided to give up wine for 30 days. He found that he was doing a count down – only 3 more days to go before he could have wine. That glass at the end of the 30 days tasted delicious! He enjoyed it like no other glass he’d tasted.

The 30 day trial gives you:

1.    The time to establish a new habit
2.    An opportunity to break an addiction
3.    Success to draw on
4.    Definite results of your efforts for the past 30 days.

What do you want to do for your trial 30 days?

The company’s mission is to promote Canadian films and ensure they receive the audiences they deserve.  Here’s her guest post on what she’s learned in the process of doing this.

Joy’s Three Truths

Tapping into my love of promoting and programming, earlier this year I launched a new company – Exposure Film – which provides marketing and promotion services to independent filmmakers and arranges exhibitions of Canadian films.

I’ve enjoyed the two-fold benefit of endorsing the work of talented filmmakers while sharing a variety of short and feature films to audiences across Canada as well as in faraway places like Ghana, Malaysia, Tanzania and the Ukraine.

I’ve discovered a few simple truths in my new career path.

Truth #1 – Surround Yourself With Good People.

Filmmakers do this during production so it makes sense to also surround yourself with professionals during the marketing and exhibition phase. In his book, Think Outside the Box Office, filmmaker and marketing visionary, Jon Reiss encourages filmmakers to hire a Producer of Marketing and Distribution (a PMD).

In November 2010, producer Polly Washburn hired me as the PMD for Shelagh Carter’s first feature film, Passionflower.  I started working with the Passionflower team at the rough cut stage by coordinating test screenings, developing marketing materials, and strategizing a plan for festival screenings and exhibitions. I’m proud to say the experience has been a good one for us all.

Having a dedicated person with fresh eyes and new energy manage this final phase in the life of your film is as important as making a good film. Filmmaking is a team sport.

Truth #2 – Shine Your Light!

Quebec actor, film director & writer, Claude Jutra, states “not making the films you want to make is awful, but making them and not having them shown is worse”. Once production is complete and a film has been mastered it’s understandable filmmakers will feel drained and exhausted.

A considerable amount of time, energy & financial resources has already been invested and, combined with a few festival rejections or slumping box office numbers, it’s simply easier to move onto other projects before fully exploring and realizing the exhibition opportunities.

This reality combined with the typical Canadian modesty of quietly waiting for success to find us is a devastating combination. I can’t help but hear my island relatives saying, “you can’t hide under a bush!”  Your work needs to shine and the best way to do that is under the bright lights of a projection screen. As Reiss writes in his book, “film is about connection. Connecting with an audience and having that interaction feed your soul.”  Films must been be seen on screens in order for people to know how good they are.

Truth #3 – Audiences Are Hungry To See Great Canadian Films.

As a patriotic Canadian, nothing brings me more satisfaction than seeing our stories and people presented on screens to appreciative audiences. During my festival travels earlier this year, I marvelled at theatres filled with people eager to see the newest Canadian indie films.

Both screenings of the VIFF ”Water” shorts program (which included NSI Drama Prize film, Wait For Rain) were sold out.  At the VIFF world premiere screening of Passionflower the audience stayed in their seats an additional 45 minutes for the Q&A discussion.  The thoughtful questions and comments was evidence the audience connected with and appreciated the work of this talented director.

After two decades working in the Canadian film & TV industry it’s no surprise to me that audiences are enjoying Canadian film. They simply have to see them and that’s why filmmakers must be supported and encouraged to seek exhibition opportunities.   Between festivals, public screenings and online platforms there a many opportunities to connect your film to an appreciative audience.

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1. Film financing: Iron Sky

So many of my clients feel nervous about putting themselves forward. They associate selling yourself with bragging, having a too large an ego or just being plain uninterested in anyone else.

First of all, we are all participating in self promotion whether we are conscious of it or not.  The way we dress, talk and engage with people is selling ourselves in situations. We want to be liked and accepted.

Secondly, if you tap into the reason you are doing what you are doing, your natural energy comes forward.

As soon as one of my clients begins to describe what they do or want to do, they are immediately infused with excitement. They are totally passionate about what they love. People they are talking to are always very interested to hear that kind of energy.

That’s self promotion – coming from the undeniable place of your enthusiasm. Just you talking about what you love to do and sharing it with people who may need you, your product or your services .

Some truths are emerging from the discussions with the participants. I believe that everyone’s goal is to work as a team – getting the job done, using our skills and having fun in the process.

However, bullies on set cast such a pall over any enjoyment derived from our work.

Certainly, some of their on-set behaviour can be attributed to the long hours. After a couple of weeks of 12-hour days, most people are sleep-deprived and can easily blow their fuses.

Sometimes there’s tension about the budget – enough to have people tearing out their hair looking for ways around the lack of dollars. But does that really justify the people who yell, scream, intimidate and generally make life unpleasant for everyone they come in to contact with?

The challenge in our industry (and this maybe true for others) is that the bullies get away with this kind of behaviour. They go from set to set tyrannizing everyone they encounter because they are highly skilled or save the producer money, or no-one else is available. No one confronts them. In fact, we sometimes reward people who act in totally unacceptable ways with awards like producer of the year.

So how to handle this very tricky challenge? For those who encounter it, it’s a minefield, especially if the bully is the boss.

First, acknowledge that you are not alone

Nearly 40% of people experience bullying at work. More men are bullies, but women tend to pick on other women. Bosses are the worst offenders. More than 70% of bullies are in charge. The underlying motivation for the bully is power and, as awful as it may feel, it really has nothing to do with you. Hard to swallow when the rage is being directed at you.

If you are the target, take care of yourself

Look for support from your friends and family. It’s important the bully’s intimidation doesn’t erode your sense of yourself. Often people who are bullied experience stress like anxiety, depression and panic attacks. Protect yourself against taking the attacks personally.

Begin to document the incidents that occur

Be observant of the times and the people the bully targets. Look for possible support from others who maybe experiencing the same intimidation you are. Talk with them and strategize what the best approach might be.

Bullies only continue when they get away with such behaviour. If they’re called on it by a number of people, they may change their ways. Ideally, when people in authority find out, they won’t tolerate harmful behaviour on their set. That could really hurt the bully where it hurts the most – in the pocketbook.

If you are the target of bullying on set, talk to your union rep or check out this website. It has a number of resources that could help in dealing with the bully. Or you can contact me to help develop some healthy strategies for coping with the bully.

1. Set daily goals. If your goal is to increase your business, decide how many clients or customers you need to contact in the day. Or if you need to write 10 pages a day, don’t push away from your desk until you’ve reached that objective.

2. Tackle the hard stuff first. Although it is easier to organize your desk, or read the newspaper, get the toughest task out of the way first thing in the morning. It maybe a delicate conversation with a writer, or producer, but doing it first thing sets your day on its course. It will inspire you for the rest of the day.

3.Decide the best times of the day to work. We all have different rhythms and productive times. Be clear on when your peak times are. For those other times, do minor tasks or take a walk or go to the gym something to re-charge your batteries.

4. Set a deadline for yourself to stay on track for a project and keep to it.

5. Reward yourself for your accomplishments. Make sure that you give yourself a treat when you’ve reached a deadline, or had a tough conversation or made contact with a valuable lead for your business.

6. Make public commitments. Tell your friends what you are going to do and ask them to hold you accountable. That’s what i do for my clients. You are much more likely to do something if you’ve told people, or else they’ll be bugging you about it all the time. Most uncomfortable.

7. Create blocks of silent times. Those are the periods where you don’t answer the phone, respond to e-mails or check your facebook page. Just keep your head down and concentrate.

8. Forget multi-tasking – just do one thing at a time. Finish what you start, rather than switching between projects.

9. Don’t go to any meeting that doesn’t have clear agenda. Meetings can take a lot of time, so make sure you know what the outcome will be.

10. Visualize your dream. See yourself holding your published book in your hands, or accepting the award for your film or winning a major client.

It was such a timely session given the headlines all around us of the Penn State cover-up by the coach, Joe Paterno, allegations of sexual harassment for presidential candidate Herman Cain, and Cpl.Catherine Gailliford, a high ranking RCMP officer outlining the harassment she underwent in doing her job.  All of these revelations point to two things -  harassment won’t be tolerated. And if you witness the abuse, you can no longer be an observer.

These revelations make it easier hopefully for people to come forward to voice their objections to ensure the perpetrator is exposed. Because there are so many barriers to speaking up. In the film and television industry, you can be labelled  not a team player, a troublemaker, or worse yet, be blacklisted.

In one example during the course, a young actor was repeatedly harassed by a crew member old enough to be her father. She and a couple of other young women who were also being harassed banded together to talk to the production manager. Their aim wasn’t to have the man fired, just to have him stop so they could do their work without being hassled.

That’s what all people want – the ability to do their jobs in a respectful place. That’s not that much to ask, is it?

Making a difference.

I love working with clients to achieve their goals. It heartens me to see them overcoming obstacles. Sometimes the hardest ones to overcome are their own belief systems of thinking they are not smart enough or they don’t have enough support or money to accomplish their dreams. Coaching them through their own mirage is an incredibly satisfying experience.

Being in beauty.

I am fortunate to live overlooking the ocean. It’s a really nurturing and inspiring place to be. I walk every morning around a bird sanctuary where the herons grace the sandbars. The ducks are getting ready to fly south. It seems like they are practicing their flying formation on the water – each duck following one behind the other.

What makes you happy?

So my mission is to do things that make me happy for this next month. Here are my top 5 to-day. What excites you?

1. De-cluttering. That has to be one of the most pleasurable tasks, once you get down to it. That’s the challenge isn’t it? Making the time and the space to recycle old things, papers, and clothes that have outlasted their usefulness. There’s space on my desk and room on my bookshelves for new thoughts, ideas, and inspiration.

2. Creating and remembering happy memories. I don’t know about you but sometimes I can re-play unhappy events in my mind- from years ago. With my sister, I’m collecting all the memories of happy times in our family’s history, all the strengths and attributes that we received from growing up. What a difference that makes!

3. Facilitating workshops and doing presentations. I had such a good time doing the pitching workshop in St. John’s. I’m just going to do more of that this month for students at Centennial College and UBC and the Directors’ Guild and ACTRA on respectful workplaces.

4. Dancing. For the past month, I’ve turned up the music full blast and had a dance party in my living room almost every night. Since I’ve started to do that, I’ve found more opportunities to unleashed my wild style. More to come.

5. Meeting stimulating people with fresh ideas. I love conversations, lectures, films or pitches where I learn new things, take a fresh perspective or am totally inspired. I loved hearing about the social entrepreneur, Zita Cobb and the dreams she has for Fogo Island.

What makes you happy?

I took the opportunity to do a short interview with Linda on her process of reading scripts.

What are you looking for when you read a script?

Focus. I’m reading to see what this story is really about. At times, writers feel a need to fill their scripts with too many issues, characters and themes and it is difficult to grasp the essence of the script. When that happens, I look to the climax of the script. The focus should be there.

I also am looking for the best scenes of the script. That gives me a very clear idea of what the writer is capable of. There’s no sense using an Academy Award winner as a model if the writer hasn’t got the chops at this time. I use the best scenes as the way to encourage a writer.

I have had situations where the writer disagrees about the best scenes. One time I read the first three pages of a script and they were some of the best comedy writing I had ever come across. However, the writer veered away from that wonderful humour and went to some dark places which is where she wanted to focus. I found that part of the script less original, but that’s what she wanted, so my job was to focus on her desire.

I am also of course looking for structure-making sure that there are arcs, acts and scenes that make sense to the overall theme of the script.

I’ve read that if a script doesn’t sing in the first 15 pages, it is in trouble.

That is certainly true in a finished film. But as a script consultant, I’m looking for wherever the script works. If it doesn’t work until the last 10 pages, then I’ll try and pull everything up to that level. Sometimes writers don’t really start soaring until well into the script. Often the beginning, in early drafts, is filled with a very long set up and so we have to address that.

Certainly,the context of the world needs to be clear from the outset of the piece. For instance, in Romero about the Latin American priest, the producer presumed we knew about the priest and what he had accomplished. Some of my work included using the first 5-10 pages to establish the character and place him in a context so there wouldn’t be confusion for the rest of the film.

What is the one lesson writers can learn?

Probably that script writing is both a craft and an art. There’s a mistaken belief that if you take one script writing class, you are ready to write a script. Writing is a very complex process – like dancing or any art form that has technique you need to master. Learning all about the craft – structure, images, and integrating scenes is the most crucial part of being a script writer. However, you need to move on from craft to art and that requires going deeper into the character, the themes and images. You have to keep writing to find your individual voice.

How do you suggest people go deeper into character?

Observe people. Have a journal where you jot down characteristics of people you see anywhere, your family members, or outrageous characters that you meet in your daily life. Real people provide you with the material for the many details that make characters in scripts fascinating.

What are your favourite films?

I think of Amadeus and Shindler’s List as the big gems and Stand by Me as the little gem. I’m always looking for films which go deeper both in theme and character. I also admire Witness since I have a personal connection to the people who wrote it. As well, my husband sort of proposed to me in the barn-raising scene, so it is very special to me.

Linda Seger is the author of 12 books, 9 on screenwriting, and has given seminars in 32 countries around the world and consulted on over 2000 scripts.