The Articulate CEO

The Lie Behind The Lie Detector

The dirty little secret behind the polygraph is that the "test" depends on trickery, not science. The person being "tested" is not supposed to know that while the polygraph operator declares that all questions must be answered truthfully, warning that the slightest hint of deception will be detected, he secretly assumes that denials in response to certain questions -- called "control" questions -- will be less than truthful. An example of a commonly used control question is, "Did you ever lie to get out of trouble?" The polygrapher steers the examinee into a denial by warning, for example, that anyone who would do so is the same kind of person who would commit the kind of behavior that is under investigation and then lie about it. But secretly, it is assumed that everyone has lied to get out of trouble.

The polygraph pens don't do a special dance when a person lies. The polygrapher scores the test by comparing physiological responses (breathing, blood pressure, heart, and perspiration rates) to these probable-lie control questions with reactions to relevant questions such as, "Did you ever commit an act of espionage against the United States?" (commonly asked in security screening). If the former reactions are greater, the examinee passes; if the latter are greater, he fails. If responses to both "control" and relevant questions are about the same, the result is deemed inconclusive.

The test also includes irrelevant questions such as, "Are the lights on in this room?" The polygrapher falsely explains that such questions provide a "baseline for truth," because the true answer is obvious. But in reality, they are not scored at all! They merely serve as buffers between pairs of relevant and "control" questions.

The simplistic methodology used in polygraph testing has no grounding in the scientific method: it is no more scientific than astrology or tarot cards. Government agencies value it because people who don't realize it's a fraud sometimes make damaging admissions. But as a result of reliance on this voodoo science, the truthful are often falsely branded as liars while the deceptive pass through.

Perversely, the "test" is inherently biased against the truthful, because the more honestly one answers the "control" questions, and as a consequence feels less stress when answering them, the more likely one is to fail. Conversely, liars can beat the test by covertly augmenting their physiological reactions to the "control" questions. This can be done, for example, by doing mental arithmetic, thinking exciting thoughts, altering one's breathing pattern, or simply biting the side of the tongue. Truthful persons can also use these techniques to protect themselves against the risk of a false positive outcome. Although polygraphers frequently claim they can detect such countermeasures, no polygrapher has ever demonstrated any ability to do so, and peer-reviewed research suggests that they can't.

Lie detectors don't work - and that is the truth!

2012's Worst Corporate Twitter Blunders

Ryan Holmes, CEO at HootSuite has come up with his list of 5 of the year's biggest corporate Twitter blunders and some thoughts on how the right technology and some basic training could've helped. 2012 may have been the year big businesses finally took the big leap toward embracing social media but it’s also produced some of the most disastrous tweets in corporate Twitter history.

Here then, is Ryan's top 5:

1. Insensitive employee tweets a presidential low-blow

On Oct. 3, in the course of the first US presidential debate, President Barack Obama mentioned his grandmother, who died just days before he took office. Moments later, this tweet went out to KitchenAid's 24,000 plus followers. As outrage flooded in, KitchenAid went into apology mode, explaining that an employee mistakenly sent the offensive remark from the corporate handle, rather than his or her personal account.

Sadly, this kind of account mix-up happens all the time. Heavy Twitter users often post to multiple accounts, switching back and forth on the fly. Mistakes are inevitable. That’s why leading social media management systems like HootSuite now prompt users with a special window before they publish to designated, high-profile accounts. Setting up these so-called secure profiles is often all it takes to avert a Twitter meltdown. 

2. Major supermarket chain tries to cash in on Hurricane Sandy

There were an appalling number of  insensitive tweets surrounding deadly Hurricane Sandy. Gap, for instance, encouraged followers to weather the storm by staying inside and shopping on the store's website. But the most spectacularly inappropriate tweet comes from Canadian supermarket chain President’s Choice. The above message linked to a Halloween recipe for marshmallow bloodshot eyeballs, made by slicing marshmallows in half and placing a grape in the middle.

This comes down more to a lack of common sense than a lack of Twitter savvy. Joking about death and tragedy - or using it as part of a sales pitch - isn’t acceptable in normal conversation. It’s certainly not acceptable on Twitter.

3. Fashion retailer riffs on Batman shooting

Hours after the deadly theater shooting in Aurora, Colo., during a Batman movie, UK-based CelebBoutique sent the above tweet. It was left up for an hour before being hastily deleted in a hail of angry comments. According to CelebBoutique, their PR people were totally unaware of the shooting when they sent the tweet. The Twitterverse, however, was not sympathetic.  

When delegating tweets to outside agencies, contractors or even junior employees, assign them limited permissions. Drafts can be fed into an approval queue to be vetted by senior management before publishing, avoiding this kind of PR disaster. 

4. A CFO tweets too much, too soon

Francesca’s, a clothing retailer with stores in 44 states, started the year on the wrong foot when its CFO sent out this tweet after a confidential meeting on March 7. The problem is that Francesca’s is a publicly traded company. The CFO disclosed company info to his followers before it went public, thus sharing inside information - a violation of long-held SEC regulations. He was promptly fired.

Regulated industries - finance, healthcare, insurance and many others - face strict rules governing what they can and cannot communicate to the public. Social media is not exempt. Every firm should have a social media compliance policy and a social media management system that can archive all messages in the event of an audit.  

5. A fashion model posts racist photo, then follows up with ignorant tweet

While in Korea on business to celebrate a new store opening there, a male model for Abercrombie & Fitch clothing label Hollister tweeted a picture of himself smiling, squinting his eyes and giving the peace sign. To top it off, when followers called him out on the offensive gesture, he responded with, “Hahahaha they ruhhvvvv ittt!'.” Korean media picked up the story and furious locals initiated a campaign to boycott the store.  

We must all accept the reality that social media is a public forum. Nearly everything posted on Twitter and Facebook becomes part of your digital footprint - potentially viewable not just by friends but by employers and the public at large. In this case, it’s crucial that companies have a social media policy and share it with employees. First and foremost, emphasize that tweets are public by default and messages sent over Twitter - even on private accounts - may ultimately reflect on the company.  Many social media management systems for businesses include online tutorials that hammer this point home.  

The tragedy is that all of these embarrassing and damaging tweets could have been avoided with a little social media 101 and the right social media management system. Some simple preventative measures would have spared a lot of apologizing, not to mention angry customers and possible lost revenue.

The Ins & Outs of Lying

Lying is endemic in human society and from a purely evolutionary point of view the ability to lie is actually quite impressive. That is, of course, as long as you are not considering moral and ethical points of view. Not all lies are bad and many are told with a pretty good motive in mind but given how often it happens we all benefit from knowing why it happens and who is more likely to do it.

Some of the reasons that lies are told include:

• To conceal misdeeds and stay out of trouble. Wrongdoings often can't be undone, and it's rare that owning up to a misdeed will result in a positive outcome (at least in the short term). ­These lies are told to avoid responsibility and repercussions.

• To preserve reputation. A recovering drug addict may lie about time spent in a treatment facility, especially to a potential employer or romantic prospect. A lie like this is told to avoid shame or embarrassment.

• To avoid hurting someone's feelings. Children learn early on to be polite, not to point out physical flaws, and to say "thank you" even after they receive something they don't like. These "white lies" are distinguished from other types because they carry no ill will or bad intentions.

• To increase stature and reputation. Some lies are told without any obvious external stimulus, such as a demand for an answer to a specific question. This type of lie is often narcissistic in nature, told to make the liar seem more accomplished, skilled or gifted as a means of gaining favor in the eyes of others.

• To manipulate. These lies aren't evasive or defensive, but rather aggressive and malicious in nature. Such lies are told to gain wealth, love, favor or other assets by damaging another's reputation or spreading harmful untruths.

• To control information. As opposed to airing a falsehood, indirect lying is withholding or concealing important facts. This is often seen as a more acceptable form of lying, since a person doesn't actively construct lies, but only sits tightly on the truth. A missing piece of information can completely alter the understanding of an event, leading American courts to demand not only the truth, but "the whole truth."

Lies are told -- in some form or fashion -- by just about everybody. Some personality types, however, are more likely to lie than others:

• Pathological liars are generally sociopathic, lack a clear sense of right and wrong and show an absence of remorse when harming others. Sociopaths tell some of the best lies, since they don't feel bad about doing so and don't show signs of guilt or worry. Sociopaths lie for self-gain, and their lies veer heavily toward manipulation.

• Compulsive liars lie as the first option, even when there's no reason or advantage for doing so. Childhood experiences, such as living in an abusive environment where lying might be necessary for survival or emotional well-being, are often responsible for compulsive lying.

• Narcissists lie to gain undeserved glory and esteem in the eyes of others.

• Borderline personalities experience wild mood swings and out-of-control behaviors, like drug abuse, gambling or promiscuous sex. This type may tell lies in an effort to deal with the fallout from these behaviors.

• Histrionic personalities desperately crave love and attention and will tell lies that, though not accurate, may reflect the emotional truth of the situation. "I'm so sick I could die," and "If you leave me, I'll kill myself," are two examples of lies told by this type.

The more you understand the motives for lying and the people behind them the better equipped you are to deal with both the lie and the liar. After all, it is a basic truth of the human condition that everybody lies.

 

The Only Newspaper You Will Ever Need!

If you watch enough television shows and movies, you might start to notice that a bunch of the same props are used over and over again. Among the more famous is a newspaper that has been passed around from show to show and has, in fact, been reused for more than 30 years.

I don’t know the story behind this prop newspaper, but I assume it was created as a royalty free prop for television shows and movies. Somewhere along the line, the prop became a recurring gag between propmasters or maybe they are just lazy. Don't believe me? Well, here is the proof - try and spot it the next tme you are watching TV.

Neil Armstrong... R.I.P.

“Honor his example of service, accomplishment and modesty, and the next time you walk outside on a clear night and see the moon smiling down at you, think of Neil Armstrong and give him a wink.”

With these words the family of Neil Armstrong acknowledged his passing and cemented his legacy.

Neil Armstrong was a soft-spoken engineer who became a global hero when as a steely-nerved pilot he made “one giant leap for mankind” with a small step onto the moon. The modest man, who had people on Earth entranced and awed from almost a quarter-million miles away, but credited others for the feat, died Saturday. He was 82.

Armstrong commanded the Apollo 11 spacecraft that landed on the moon July 20, 1969, capping the most daring of the 20th century’s scientific expeditions. His first words after becoming the first person to set foot on the surface are etched in history books and the memories of those who heard them in a live broadcast.

“That’s one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind,” Armstrong said.

An estimated 600 million people — a fifth of the world’s population — watched and listened to the landing, the largest audience for any single event in history.

Parents huddled with their children in front of the family television, mesmerized by what they were witnessing. Farmers abandoned their nightly milking duties, and motorists pulled off the highway and checked into motels just to see the moonwalk.

Afterward, people walked out of their homes and gazed at the moon, in awe of what they had just seen. Others peeked through telescopes in hopes of spotting the astronauts.

“I am, and ever will be, a white socks, pocket protector, nerdy engineer,” he said in February 2000 in one of his rare public appearances. “And I take a substantial amount of pride in the accomplishments of my profession.”

Armstrong’s modesty and self-effacing manner never faded, nor will his memory.

The Golden Rules of the 'Elevator Pitch'

Elevator pitches remain as critical as they have ever been - perhaps even more so given the increasingly short attention span we all seem to have. Here then is some good advice on how to create your own elevator pitch from Toby Marshall at Lead Creation.

1. A great ‘Elevator’ provides just enough information to hook the listener in and spark a conversation. It is just the beginning, not the close; think lead generation not sales.

2. It should be short—10 to 20 seconds. Our attention spans have become shorter due to fast-paced city living and Social Media.

3. Practice it by speaking out loud and standing up—never just write it and read it to yourself. Say it again and again in front of a mirror; then with colleagues or friends. Say it 20 times and you’ll then know it enough to improvise and vary it so it comes alive and doesn’t sound stale.

4. An ‘Elevator’ is not just for sales people or business owners. It’s also for people who have jobs and want better ones—that’s most of the population!

5. A great rule of thumb is to only use your ‘Elevator’ when asked the question. If you walk up to someone and start talking about yourself it’s usually a big turn off; most people would say something like “so tell me about you.”

6. Sell yourself, not your product or business. The other person needs to be interested in you before they will buy anything from you. The old adage that ‘People buy from people they like’ still rings true for B2B marketing

7. Elevators are never about closing a sale, despite the name ‘pitching’. In this Social Networking age, blatantly selling is less and less acceptable. Even at Chamber of Commerce meetings—a pure business setting—I run a mile from people who are all about themselves. Life’s too short!

8. It’s NOT your cold calling script (if you are still foolish enough to be doing cold and not ‘very warm’ calling!)

9. Use pauses to emphasize; it is not a race to get the words out. Vary your tone as speaking in a monotone bores people—it’s very common though, possibly because they themselves know the words are boring!

10. If you are in a business setting, think about how you can help the prospect achieve their goals. That may be the breakthrough you are looking for with your lead generation—thinking about the implications for them?

Note that there is nothing in the above about providing a case study. In my experience they will ask me if they are interested, once they have heard my ‘Elevator’. Also, including studies that are meaningful makes it too long, and you are likely to see their eyes start to glaze over! Just have a couple ready to go in case they ask, though.

The above rules will help you see much better results with your lead generation in all types of social and business settings; learning to change the pitch depending on who you are speaking to, and where you are speaking to them, is a huge advantage to you and your business.

The Dying Art of Conversation

It is often said that the art of conversation is being lost and that we are the poorer for it. Many would blame the advent of technology and social media but the truth is far more disturbing and goes right to the heart of who we are as people and as a society.

Like many skills the ability to talk well can be cultivated but at its core the ability to be a good conversationalist is dependent on how interested we are in others.

Interest is the primary ingredient in good conversation - either in the subject or the person, but interest in the person is the more critical.

Sure it helps to know stuff. It's a good idea to conscientiously stock your mind with facts and information and then form opinions on the basis of that knowledge but a monologue is not a conversation. Masters of the art of conversation rarely give advice, and then, usually, only when requested. Even then it is given tentatively and without seeming to impose their wishes. Conversation is not an opportunity to prove your superiority or to wax lyrical on the subject of the day.

In fact, the real aim of one-on-one conversation is to:

            a) get to know the other person and

            b) reveal a bit about yourself

Those are not things we aim to do directly but they do hint at what is required to be a good conversationalist. If we are to get to know someone then we need to have an interest in them and an interest in the subject. If we are to reveal a little of ourselves at the same time then we need to be friendly, sincere, candid and helpful.

If conversation is a dying art then perhaps it is an indication that we are becoming more insular in our daily lives. Increasingly, we seem to see people who are less inclined to enrich their own knowledge and less interested in learning about others. We seem happy to tell everyone what we are doing and what we think (no matter how trivial) but not so happy to hear what others are doing or think. When we do come across others whose opinions and experiences may differ from our own there appears to be a tendency to ridicule those people rather than explore their ideas.

And what is the common element to all of these conversation killers? Put simply, it is tact or rather the lack of tact.  No quality is so conducive to pleasure in conversation as tact. The product of alertness, sympathy and resourcefulness, tact has become society's rarest commodity. Without tact a person, however witty, learned or sincere, is a menace to themselves and others whenever they engage in conversation. Without tact, conversation itself has become endangered.

 

 

 

Spelling Really Does Matter

Communication blogger David Wise sent me the following link and asked me to comment. It is an article citing the work of CQUniversity researcher Dr. Michael Cowling who states that "Spelling is overrated. As long as the meaning of something is clear, why does it matter how we spell the words?"

For the benefit of Michael, David and everyone else, this is why it matters.

How you say what you say has a huge impact on its meaning. As readers, we don’t set out to be judgmental. In many cases, however, the only knowledge we have of an author is through what we are reading—and, consequently, how that text is written greatly affects our opinion of both the writer and the message. If all you can see are misspelled words, you might start questioning the credibility of the writer. You might wonder about the author's age, education or intellect and just how seriously you should be taking that person. Forget 'might'... you will!

That is the reality of the situation. However, we live in an era where those who point out errors in grammar or spelling are quickly marginalized as "Grammar Nazis". Ignorance rules the day, and the social pressure encouraging good spelling and grammar has dramatically declined. Consequently, people are making the mistake of thinking they can get away with poor spelling and grammar.

Now, English may well be a very difficult language, with a tremendous array of conflicting influences, and a host of specialized rules and conditions. It is fair to say that it is very difficult to conform to all norms of grammar given that many of them are subjective and conflicting (and many self-appointed gurus have themselves made embarrassing errors). I have absolutely no doubt that this entry, for example, has over a dozen real or subjective grammar problems: From the incorrect placement of a comma, to the overzealous use of a compound adjective, to the use of a colon where a dash would suffice.

I am not making a claim of perfection nor am I requiring that of others. Mistakes of grammar are common and, given the complexity, understandable. However, spelling is standardized (with minor regional variations), so unless you are intentionally trying to extend or adapt the language, some effort should be exerted to check it. To do otherwise is simply being lazy.

How we write is a direct reflection of our intelligence, knowledge, education, experience, and personality. Even if you are not intending your writing to be such a reflection it is how you are judged. So does proper spelling really matter? Of course it does! It helps make your voice more powerful and, in some respects at least, more meaningful.

Formality Stifles Clear Communication

The business world has an unfortunate habit of confusing hierarchy with formality. In other words we teach people that the higher the status of someone within an organisation the more formal our language should be in dealing with them. Yes, of course there will be differing levels of respect depending on who you’re talking to – whether the CEO or the colleague you share a cubicle with – but formality leads to rigid communication channels that are inflexible and inefficient.

For example, if I disagree with a colleague, I’m likely to let him know directly and unambiguously. But the higher up the chain you go, the less people ‘give it to you straight’; fine if you have a fragile ego, but not useful if you want honest feedback about yourself and the business in general. Also, as employees feel they must communicate formally with superiors, leaders feel compelled to talk back to them in the same way – which leads to the scourge of homogenised and bland internal communication.

Leaders should encourage people to express their disagreement the same way regardless of the level at which that disagreement is occurring. That is, not through arguing, but by registering their protest through sensible discussion. This should happen at all levels of the organisation – which, of course, is best achieved by starting at the top. That means we should all simply talk to people as we would want to be spoken to – which for a true ‘leader’ should be in an open, honest and respectful manner.

 

Not A Hero - Lest We Forget

 

The ANZAC Day march was over - the old Digger had done his best.
His body ached from marching - it was time to sit and rest. 
He made his way to a park bench and sat with lowered head.
A young boy passing saw him - approached and politely said,
"Please sir do you mind if I ask you what the medals you wear are for?
Did you get them for being a hero, when fighting in a war?"

Startled, the old Digger moved over and beckoned the boy to sit.
Eagerly the lad accepted - he had not expected this!
"First of all I was not a hero," said the old Digger in solemn tone,
"But I served with many heroes, the ones that never came home.
So when you talk of heroes, it's important to understand,
The greatest of all heroes gave their lives defending this land.

"The medals are worn in their honour, as a symbol of respect.
All diggers wear them on ANZAC Day - it shows they don't forget."
The old digger then climbed to his feet and asked the boy to stand.
Carefully he removed the medals and placed them in his hand.
He told him he could keep them - to treasure throughout his life,
A legacy of a kind - left behind - paid for in sacrifice.

Overwhelmed the young boy was speechless - he couldn’t find words to say.
It was there the old Digger left him - going quietly on his way.
In the distance the young boy glimpsed him - saw him turn and wave goodbye.
Saddened he sat alone on the bench - tears welled in his eyes.
He never again saw him ever - but still remembers with pride,
When the old Digger told him of Heroes and a young boy sat and cried.

 

Clyde Hamilton