Lorena Paglia, Lvp Consulting
Lorena Paglia is Director of LVP Consulting, an executive management consultancy specialising in sustainability, strategy, growth and business improvement.
She engaged Margo Halbert to prepare for a presentation at an international sustainable development conference in Jakarta.
Lorena talks here about the speech coaching experience and what was achieved.
What are the key outcomes you were seeking when you engaged Margo’s services?
I was due to speak at an international conference for the first time. I’m familiar with facilitation work and I do a lot of speaking to more intimate groups with my clients. However this was definitely the first time I was going to speak in a major international public forum. I approached Margo to help me prepare for that new situation. I wanted Margo’s help to be clear in getting my message across and to be an engaging presenter. I was nervous and I didn’t want those nerves to undermine the impact of my presentation. I wanted to be confident on the day I had to speak.
What do you think is Margo’s point of difference?
What I found really impressive, first and foremost, Margo is very professional and high calibre in what she does, but she’s also incredibly engaging and personable. In the past I’ve been in environments where I’ve felt that I have to demonstrate a certain mask professionally. What I feel is lacking, is high level professional development, where you can actually bring your own personality to the table. The reality is your personality is what makes you good at what you do, and defines what you do well. Margo’s approach makes it easy to use your own style at the same time she provided high calibre coaching and advice.
What other sorts of dimensions does Margo work on?
Working with Margo made me realise I needed help in clarifying the message that I was trying to get across. Margo was great working with me to achieve that, including how to present visually and clarify meaning. She helped me understand how to stay calm when I was nervous and how to prepare myself to speak on the day. Everything that she taught me through the process of her public speaking coaching techniques, I can honestly say, I now apply to everything that I do with clients also. Her coaching has changed the way that I might approach a meeting or a presentation to a client. So she’s given me a lot of things to add to my own professional tool kit that I will take forward with me.
What else did you find as a result of the engaging Margo?
Well I won the top practitioner award for sustainability strategy at the conference. That was a great achievement because there were academics and practitioners from over 20 countries presenting. I see the award win as a credit to Margo in how she coached me through clarifying the message and preparing to deliver my presentation. I was presenting to an international community from Asia, India, Europe, America and Australia and I’m thrilled that my presentation resonated with a diverse audience.
“The reality is your personality is what makes you good at what you do, and defines what you do well. Margo’s approach makes it easy to use your own style at the same time she provided high calibre coaching and advice.”
What did you like most about working with her?
Margo is good fun to work with. She is also very direct in saying this is what you need to do. She just cuts through and is honest about where I had gaps, what I needed to do going forward and where I had to improve. I value her direct approach. I think it’s very important in the coaching relationship. As a result, she helped me clarify my message, and be a strong presenter.
What were some of the main areas you feel you’ve grown during the coaching process?
I’ve definitely grown my confidence in public speaking. I think I’ve also developed confidence in presenting my expertise to the market. I’ve developed a body of research, business experience and project experience and now I’m clear about how to present that.
What do you feel are the major benefits about engaging Margo as a communication coach?
Confidence.
She’s a very good coach and mentor. I can see I’ve improved in style and confidence from her executive coaching. Not just from a public speaking perspective but also in overall approach to communication. When you think about it communication is core to everything that you do as professional and Margo is an excellent executive advisor and coach. Margo also helped me understand my audience needs better when delivering my presentation. Being so close to the content, I sometimes became lost in my message. Margo helped bring the message back to centre and then also advised different ways to present the material in an engaging visual way. That was very important.
Would you recommend her services?
Absolutely. I would recommend her services because first and foremost, the benefit I personally got out of working with Margo was fantastic. I will keep engaging her as I move through my professional career, even though she’s given me a lot to work with already. It was so helpful having such high calibre and professional executive coaching available when I needed it the most. I feel there is a huge gap for Margo’s style of executive coaching here in the Perth market or in the Australian market in general. I highly recommend Margo.
In the very short time that I’ve known Margo she’s been instrumental in what I was able to achieve, as a speaker in Jakarta. I wouldn’t have been able to do it without her. I’m aware of some of the companies that Margo works with and I think it’s impressive to see companies are engaging the kind of services that Margo offers. I think it’s an absolute testimony to the company that they are willing to invest in executive coaching for their teams and staff. I see it as a testament to both Margo and the companies that engage her.