Trainer tales

All trainers have a story about how we got here

All trainers have a story about how we got here.

I started by giving informal training talks to colleagues, then helping out a trainer on a one day event, then occasionally travelling abroad to train airline staff – all while mostly doing the day job, where I was seen as a subject matter expert.

Realising it was the training that had captured my interest, I seized the chance to join a newly expanding full time training unit, inducting, training and developing new and established colleagues.

My employer funded my CIPD training, which led to a professional training qualification and a new way of thinking and talking about myself and my work as a trainer ‘brand’.

And then came the unthinkable – redundancy. But with it came a new beginning, the chance to reinvent and grow. That redundancy was the best thing that could have happened. Today, I’m an actor, voice artist and learning and development consultant. My business, Speaking Well In Public, trains confident public speaking, leadership, train the trainer and employability essentials.

I offer short L&D contracts, 1-1 coaching to private clients and corporate development programmes.

Each new step happened because I said ‘yes’ to a new chance. So what’s your story?

Philippa Hammond

Confident Public Speaking for leadership, management and business

Corporate workshops and online 1-1 coaching

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Public speaking quick tips

Five easy tips for those who have to stand up and speak at short notice

Five easy tips for those who have to stand up and speak at short notice:

1 – Think audience – what do these people need from you right now? What do you want them to take away / to do as a result of having heard you?

2 – Think aim and objectives – what are you intending to achieve here? Do you want to inform, inspire, entertain them? What will they be able to do differently after you speak?

3 – Think body language – stand up straight, make eye contact round the room and smile.

4 – Think voice – Breathe out, then breathe in half way from your diaphragm, not your chest, and speak a little more slowly than nerves may want you to.

5 – And always … Keep it short and simple!

Philippa Hammond

Confident Public Speaking for leadership, management and business

Corporate workshops and online 1-1 coaching

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Testimonials: Nigel Bowcock

‘You have taught me more in 3 hours than I have learnt in the last 2 years’

‘After trying and attending evening after evening and session after session of public speaking training courses I found the perfect one for me.

Thankyou!

For the first time I have the right tools and the right mind-set for me to deliver my messages, clearly, calmly and professionally.

You have taught me more in 3 hours than I have learnt in the last 2 years.

Nigel Bowcock MSc, Director, Acre Landscapes Ltd

Training matters

Why do organisations need to train their people?

Thinking about ‘train the trainer’ skills and competency-based training today, as I adapt a programme for a client proposal.

We train for many reasons:

It could be because a new role requires new skills.

Or the law requires you to do something different now.

Or something’s wrong – standards are slipping, competencies aren’t being achieved, your brand is under threat.

All training comes down to one question:

What permanent change in behaviour do you want to see?

It’s all about performance needs analysis, setting clear aim and objectives and knowing what this particular group of people needs to hear from you right now.

More about my Train the Trainer programmes

Philippa Hammond

Confident Public Speaking for leadership, management and business

Corporate workshops and online 1-1 coaching

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Interview questions: what’s your greatest weakness?

How to answer the ‘what’s your weakness’ interview question

Blog: The ‘what are your weaknesses’ interview question?

I’ve been having a conversation on Twitter after reading a call to interviewers to ditch the ‘what’s your greatest weakness?’ question, and just talk about the job itself, instead.

I got to wondering about the thinking behind telling us to ditch these questions. Yes, everyone ends up turning their weaknesses into a strength, and few candidates will reveal a significant weakness.

So does the question serve any purpose?

I always advise candidates to avoid the wrong answer [‘I don’t have any’], comedy answers (‘chocolate’) and disguised boasts (‘I’m a shocking perfectionist, just can’t rest til it’s perfect – terrible, I know, but that’s just the way I’m made!’).

It’s a great way to highlight your attitude to self development – what you’re actively doing to deal with something that could become an issue – and helps you feel more confident about acknowledging that nobody’s perfect and we can all learn.

Preparing to answer those questions, even if they’re never asked, helps boost a candidate’s confidence in their own abilities and self worth, and the interviewer can benefit from seeing that in action.

Underneath, it’s really not about a weakness list!

Philippa Hammond

Confident Public Speaking for leadership, management and business

Corporate workshops and online 1-1 coaching

Contact

Employability Power Hour

From uncertain and nervous to better informed and prepared in just one hour

Confident Public Speaking, Presentation Skills, Reading Aloud, Employability and LinkedIn training and coaching in person and online

With Philippa Hammond

Brighton, Sussex, UK and beyond

Employability Power Hour

From uncertain and nervous to better informed and prepared in just one hour

We’re living in interesting times.

So many of us found those so-called jobs for life … weren’t.

And many are now seeking a new role or a change of career.

It’s hard.

Looking for work’s a full time job, one you want to leave behind as quickly as possible.

But if you’ve been working for a long time, or maybe finding you’re having to go into the workplace for the first time in ages …

Knowing what to do, how to do it and feeling confident about it all is a BIG ask.

I can help.

I offer a three step £99 Employability package that will kick start your jobseeking, polish up your presence and give you some insider essentials on how to improve your chances of getting your next role.

Step 1 – we work out where you are now, where you need to be and what we’ll do to get you there

Step 2 – a Zoom power hour where we’ll tackle your CV, LinkedIn presence and personal presentation for interviews

Step 3 – written follow up notes plus my bonus PDF download

If you’d like to find out more, let me know.

Fees

£99

Philippa Hammond

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LinkedIn Power Hour

Learn to love LinkedIn in just one hour

Confident Public Speaking, Presentation Skills, Reading Aloud, Employability and LinkedIn training and coaching in person and online

With Philippa Hammond

Brighton, Sussex, UK and beyond

LinkedIn’s a business essential for jobseekers, short term contracts, client attraction.

If you’d like to polish your LinkedIn presence, I offer my three step 1-1 Zoom Power Hour

For

Complete beginners

Anyone who’s started LinkedIn but never really did much with it

Anyone who feels their LinkedIn is a bit stale and old fashioned and would like to polish it up

Step 1 – we work out where you are now, where you need to be and what we’ll do to get you there

Step 2 – a Zoom power hour where I’ll share everything you need to start up, step up, speed up, depending on where you are now

Step 3 – I’ll send you a write up of our session plus my bonus PDF download for further reading and development

£99

Philippa Hammond

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