Your present moment – this moment – the one you are in right now – is the intersection between your past and your future. If you let them, your time choices come alive in this moment.

At once profound and mysterious, your present moment is a place of stillness. As you allow yourself to settle in and fully experience the stillness, your moment reveals itself as both an opening and a turning point.

Always, your present moment offers you the potential for deep insight and transformation. But the paradox is that it doesn’t work to aggressively mine your moments for meaning.

No, it’s with openness and stillness that you need to start. I’m not talking about developing a time management skill or implementing a productivity tool but rather about letting yourself experience an encounter.

That is where you need to start, to truly live the power of your present moment. As Marianne Williamson has written:

The present moment, if you think about it, is the only time there is. No matter what time it is, it is always now.

The past is gone and the future has not yet arrived. You are alone with yourself and a wealth of powerful choices as you pause and let yourself just BE in the present moment.

Last week I wrote about living mindfully in your present moment, and one of the things I noted is that:

Living in your moments, breathing in what they have to offer, you get to know yourself. Your wants, needs, and interests are constantly evolving, and they emerge from your moments if you let them.

I’d like to continue and build on that idea today by picking up on an article from zenhabits titled Savor Discipline: Merge the Interests of Your Future & Present Selves. Here Leo Babauta explores the challenge that being disciplined presents us with in our moments. What do we do – how do we choose – when, essentially, our present and future interests aren’t in sync?

The first thing that he does – and I love this – is to frame this as a relational issue. We have our present and our future self in dialogue about whatever choice we’re wrestling with.

Next, he removes the self-critical component that so often trips us up and keeps us stuck by suggesting that we treat this conversation as an exchange between two friends.

Imagine you were going to lunch with your friend, and you had to decide where to eat. You each have different preferences. Choosing one over the other – going to Japanese food (your friend’s preference) instead vegan Mexican (yours) – isn’t fair. So maybe you pick a third choice that you both like (a place that serves sushi burritos, perhaps). Or maybe you choose this time, and your friend chooses the next time. Either way, both are happy.

You pause, in your present moment, and your present and future self work out a compromise. As soon as you pause, you are introducing an element of mindfulness. This, in and of itself is transformative, no matter what you decide.

And of the options available, Savor Discipline is a path that opens new doors that your present and future self hadn’t even known existed. I’ll explore this exciting option further in my next post, so stay tuned.

And in the meantime, here’s to your time success!

When it comes to perfecting your business materials, first impressions are vital, and nothing is truer when preparing presentation folders for meetings with customers or clients. Taking a creative look at how you present yourself in the boardroom could propel companies of all sizes to new heights and we have a few tips to ensure you and your brand stand out, even in very crowded marketplaces and sectors.

There are so many ways that you can make your business materials memorable and many printing and packaging companies provide laser cutting, embossing, foil stamping and other services to give you the edge you need to get ahead. Laser cutting is an excellent way to put a creative stamp on materials around the office and can often provide an exciting extra to give to prospective clients. Laser cutting machines are a complex piece of machinery, these can be used to cut creative shapes in a variety of materials as well as improve edge quality.

Thermography is another service provided by printers and packaging specialists, this method adds texture to printed designs and works in unison with embossing and lithography. Foil embossing is a popular technique used to jazz up presentation folders and customised ring binders. Utilising a specialist printing method, the material is raised creating a three dimensional effect that is simple yet unique.

Foil stamping is another favourable method and tends to stick in the mind of potential clients, making it a highly recommended addition to business materials. Stamping adds a powerful, creative touch to presentation folders, business cards and other materials and tends to command the attention businesses of all sizes are looking for. Die cutting can also be used to create a customised and unique shape or design, and is an affordable but impressive option.

As well applying different textures and effects to your presentation materials, why not consider making the folder itself an unusual shape or size? Generally folders are made to a standard size to accommodate standard sizes of paper but going a little larger or smaller can really make yours stand above the rest. The contents of folder is also important, many companies don’t really go into much depth when it comes to demonstrating their assets to their target audience so make your folder more than just a logo and slogan – go into great detail and describe your business ethos, introduce your team, provide customer testimonials and more to present a well-designed product with undeniable substance.

A presentation is more than simply standing at a podium and running through a series of PowerPoint slides. It is about engaging the audience and presenting your ideas in a clear, concise and persuasive manner.

A persuasive presentation should change the emotional state of the audience so they believe and feel a decision must be made… right now. Your role as presenter is to motivate and incite the audience to act, think and feel differently as a result of what you’ve said so they will take some form of action.

To do this, we need to understand the different elements of effective communication. There are three components of the message you deliver; your words, your tone of voice and your body language.

When you are designing your presentation, the words you choose convey only 7% of the message. It is important that what you say to your audience be conveyed in the proper sequence. Your content may be brilliant, but can be boring if your message falls flat. Therefore words alone are not enough.

Tone is the second component, 38% of a message is contained in the speaker’s tonality and emphasis on various words. By deliberately changing your tone of voice, you can transform the entire message and how you affect your audience. This is where practicing both soft and harsh tones can have an impact on the outcome of your presentation.

The last component of your message is body language. 55% of your message is contained in your non-verbal communication. Visual impressions are very powerful – posture and non-verbal communication such as eye contact, facial expressions, appearance, movement, body language and gestures play a major role in your ability to communicate.

Here eight things you can do today to put you on the path to becoming a better presenter.

1. Put yourself in the audience’s place. If your presentation is boring to you, it will be boring to them. Most people ask themselves, “What do I want to say to these people?” The questions you should be asking are, “What decisions do these people need to make?” and “What information do I need to provide so they can make an informed decision?” By starting with these questions, you’ll be in a better position to create content which engages your audience.

2. Match your presentation style to the size of your audience. Successful presenters match their style to the presentation situation.

Ballroom style presentations are for larger audiences and the main objective of such presentations are to entertain. They are appropriate for imparting information to a large crowd such as that gathered in a hotel ballroom.

Conference style presentations are for smaller audiences and the objectives of these presentations are, by contrast, to inform and usually have a focused goal. The objective is to try to get the audience to take a specific action: buy the product, approve the proposal, implement the recommendations or make the investment.

3. Know your audience. Ask yourself the following questions: Who is likely to take action? How much does my audience already know? What would their likely response be? Is what I’m proposing in their best interest?

4. Use an attention grabbing opening. Some of the ways you can open the presentation include using a quote, give a statistic, ask the audience a question or cite a current news story or topical publication. A great opener will set the tone for what follows.

5. Use visuals to enhance your presentation and support your message. Visuals help your presentation make things happen. Clear pictures multiply the audience’s level of understanding and help the listeners’ recall days after the presentation. Visual aids add impact and interest to a presentation.

6. Prepare slides that are clear and readable. Use a minimum font size of 20 – 24pts. Use pictures, graphs, tables and props whenever you can. Limit the number of words and use large, bold letters Stick with commonly used fonts such as Arial, Helvetica, or Tahoma.

7. Close the presentation well. As you come to the end of the presentation, summarize the main points. Leave the audience with something to think about. If specific action is needed, get them started right away.

8. End with a statement of purpose. What you say last is what is remembered most. The purpose statement provides one to three key points you want your audience to remember. Use opportunity to drive home your key points one final time.

Apply these simple tips and you’ll be well on your way to becoming a great presenter.