Confident Communication for Women in Technology
In the UK, women are paving the way in technology to create an impact and redress the gender imbalance, but they still only make up 19% of the industry’s workforce and only 22% of leaders and decision makers. It can sometimes be difficult for women to exert influence and communicate with confident credibility: skills which are exceedingly in demand as women define and develop their professional roles and career paths within the technical sector.
This interactive, one-day course has been designed specifically for women in technology. It offers a highly effective toolkit of transformative, performance-based techniques, involving body, breath and voice. These will be practised and then applied to different communication settings and a number of role-play scenarios specific to the industry. These will enable you to develop greater flexibility and choice in how you react, respond and communicate in a sector dominated by male leaders.
Explore interchanging between different communication styles and language choices to assist you in communicating assertively, from a position of personal power, knowledge and confidence.
This toolkit can be practised repeatedly to enable you to increase your sense of personal power, credibility and nascent leadership capacities.
Learning Outcomes
- Network with like-minded women in technology
- Discover powerful performance techniques for building status and credibility
- Learn innovative voice and speech techniques to maximise your presence
- Understand how your choice of language can create new and varied outcomes
- Develop the ability to be assertive and dynamic
- Practise different communication styles to deliver maximum impact
- Leave with the confidence to create a positive attitude towards change
Agenda
Registration and Light Breakfast
Introduction - What is Confidence for Women in the Technology Sector?
- Discuss personal experiences and what confidence means to you and your organisation
- Equality and inclusivity: Inspiring confidence in tomorrow’s leaders
- Generating Presence – Power Poses
- Exercise: Breath is the key to relaxed, posed credibility
- Be present to have presence!
- Exercise: Creating confidence and credibility through optimal centred alignment
Developing the Toolkit
- Body, Breath, Voice equals personal power – Vocal and Physical preparation
- Breath powers speech
- Voice and Vocal performance skills – Pitch, Pause and Pace for maximising credibility
- Vocal and physical Resonance
- Acting as If: Performance skills for high-status and credibility
- Role Play: Archetypal High-Status
- Rhetoric: The Language of High-Status
Morning Break
Exercise: Finding Your Feet to Speak Up in Meetings
- Role Play: Speaking confidently with clarity of intention and impact in meetings
Seated Lunch
Flexing between different communication styles: flexibility is the key
- Exercise: Persuasive Language
- Exercise: Naming your strengths – Partner Pitch
- Exercise: Owning and voicing your strengths
- Asking for what you want
- Role Play: Pay and Reward Discussion
Afternoon Break
Confident Communication
- Exercise: Overcoming blocking and holding your ground
- Role play: Interview/Meeting with a potential new employer/in-house promotion
Action Planning
- Recognising and naming your strengths and weaknesses with objectivity
- Identify areas where we are stuck and consciously welcoming change
- Building a practical plan going forward
- Select realisable, achievable goals and objectives stemming from your learning on the course