Why Self-Correction is Better than Perfection

Continual improvement is the aim of the game

In my job as a public speaking coach and presentation skills coach I often tell my clients: “It’s not about perfection but self-correction.” Striving for perfection can be daunting. Continual improvement is a much better idea, and that’s why I encourage my clients to adopt this philosophy.

I had the pleasure of working for Toyota Motor Europe for over six months on a bespoke training programme. They were masters of continual improvement. The 5-day training course I wrote was pre-tested so it could be improved upon. And by pre-tested, I mean a representative panel sat through the whole thing! How great is that? Each improvement was relatively small and wouldn’t necessarily be noticeable on its own. But when added up across the topics and days, it led to significant improvements.

The Compound Effect

Darren Hardy wrote a great book on this subject called The Compound Effect. I use this principal in my working and personal life, and with my clients. Small seemingly insignificant changes made consistently over time make a massive impact.

Perhaps you’re not natural planner, for example. If you commit to spending just a few minutes preparing for every single meeting, it will make a huge difference over time. I recommend you use the 4MAT structure to cover all angles. Also, it’ll become so familiar that when it comes to planning a formal presentation it will come easily. When you begin to develop your presentation style, you can use this approach to improve one small thing each time. Perhaps you’ll think about improving interactivity and practice that daily for a week in all your communications.

Try it! You’ll be amazed at the results.

Simply Amazing Training offers professional presentation skills coaching and public speaking coaching for individuals and companies in Bournemouth, and across Dorset, Hampshire, Herts and London. Have a look around the website, or call me today on 0330 223 4392  for an informal chat to discuss your requirements.