Booher BanterBusiness Communication Consultant

I fully intended to stay out of the Blagosphere—those discussions about Illinois Governor Blagojevich and his dare to investigators to tap his phone to verify his integrity.  But I can’t.  I can’t for the same reason so many reporters, colleagues, and voters gasp at replays of his arrogance as he swaggered before the cameras just two days before his arrest on corruption charges and egged on his challengers to dig deeper for dirt.

Of course, we’re disgusted about the corruption. That goes without saying.  But there’s something more at work here.  I’ve just finished reading hundreds of blog comments about the governor’s arrest—most from citizens of Illinois.  The majority have labeled him “arrogant” (along with many other adjectives I’ll not repeat here), yet my guess is that most don’t know him personally.

Why that label?  After all, they could have called him “corrupt yet quiet.”  Or why didn’t they refer to him as “corrupt and coy”?  Or “corrupt and a smooth-talker”?  Or “corrupt and a savvy negotiator”?  Or “corrupt and Machiavellian in his tactics”?

Americans hate arrogance.  Do you recall Gary Hart’s arrogant challenge to those who suspected his then-unsubstantiated illicit affair during his presidential run?  “So follow me around if you want to!  You’re going to be in for a pretty boring life.”  Follow him around those reporters did—and discovered his tryst with Donna Rice.

Then there was Richard Nixon’s arrogant attitude and statements that a president’s actions were above the law and therefore could not be considered illegal.  The list goes on.  Even among our current crop of presidential contenders, the labels of arrogance and its opposite, humility, have been bandied about with fervor.

So if you want to avoid that label yourself, consider the characteristics of an arrogant communication style:

• acting as if regulations, procedures, or rules don’t apply to you
• swaggering walk
• posture that accents a puffed out chest
• gestures such as pointing or steepling fingers or hands
• uplifted chin
• devil-may-care shrugs when replying to others’ words, ideas, or suggestions
• facial expressions such as smirks or raised eyebrows
• flamboyant dress or appearance that calls attention to itself

Blagojevich has the full force of his own Democratic party coming down on him either to force his resignation or to impeach him.  Only his arrogance has kept him mouthing off about running for president in 2016.  Or is it his stupidity?  Sometimes the two characteristics go hand in hand.

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Posted at 12:15pm in Communication—Interpersonal, General Communication | Permalink | Add Comment » |

Once a year, I host a 3-day publishing event for both seasoned and first-time authors. Of all my workshops, coaching sessions, and keynotes throughout the year, I just might look forward to this one the most. Lives change, careers blossom, and relationships develop during each intense workshop.

Almost every time someone discovers that I’m an author, they tell me that they’ve always wanted to write a book. Most of them just dream about it, but few go for it, and even fewer actually get a book deal. Why? They never take the first action step.

I love coaching my workshop attendees because they are past the stage of daydreaming and are ready to work. Some come with just an idea, some come with a “finished” piece, but they all come ready to roll up their sleeves and get their book sold to a major publisher.  

Before each event, I like to touch base with Get Your Book Published grads and check their progress.  I’m excited about the success of each one, but want to brag on a few here: 

Roxanne Emmerich, CEO of The Emmerich Group, attended a couple of years ago, and in May of 2009, she’ll be the proud published author of Thank God it’s Monday: Creating a Workplace Employees and Customers Love (published by Pearson Publishing). Way to go, Roxanne! 

Although my workshop has a slant toward writing a book to promote your business, service, or product, the concepts apply to all types of writing. Kaci Hill, a young novelist, just co-wrote Elyon (published by Thomas Nelson) with New York Times best-selling author Ted Dekker.  It’s scheduled to be in stores in June 2009. 

Laura Stack, The Productivity Pro®, was already published prior to attending in March 2006, but she has published two more books since then.  Stack says the “contract-pitfalls” section gave her the tools to negotiate a much better deal on her third and fourth books.

The Exhaustion Cure: Up Your Energy from Low to Go in 21 Days (Broadway Books, 2008)

 Find More Time: How to Get Things Done at Home, Organize Your Life, and Feel Great About It (Broadway Books, 2006)

A 2008 grad, Roy Saunderson, is working on book number two after publishing Giving: The Real Recognition™ Way, a perfect compliment and promotional tool for his company the Recognition Management Institute.

Giving:  The Real Recognition™ Way (Mass Market Paperback)

When I  asked one of this year’s attendees, Mary Adams, president of Trek Consulting LLC, about her progress, she said I’d have to check back in a few months.  She has two publishers looking at her book!

Betty Garrett says that Get Your Book Published helped her formulate her dream.  I just received my personal autographed copy of her book.  Written by someone who has been a cancer caregiver, it fills a gap that has not been addressed enough in the cancer community.  Betty has turned her difficult experience into a purposeful ministry through writing this book.

From Hiccups to Hospice (Lightning Source)

For more success stories, testimonials, and information about the workshop visit www.GetYourBookPublished2009.com. 

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Posted at 3:14pm in Books, Publishing Keys | Permalink | Add Comment » |

I’m often asked for tips on creating—and maintaining—executive presence. And while holiday office parties offer great opportunities for networking and image boosting, a verbal blunder can be an image-breaker.

Researchers at Oxford University agree on the importance of language. With their Oxford University Corpus database of the most commonly used phrases in books, papers, magazines, broadcast, the Internet, and other sources, they monitor the most obnoxious. Jeremy Butterfield used this Oxford research to write Damp Squid: The English Language Laid Bare, which includes a list of the top ten most irritating phrases.

Here’s a checklist of common offenders. Consider removing these phrases from your holiday party conversations.

The Top Ten Most Irritating Phrases:

1. At the end of the day
2. Fairly unique
3. I personally
4. At this moment in time
5. With all due respect
6. Absolutely
7. It’s a nightmare
8. Shouldn’t of
9. 24/7
10. It’s not rocket science

Number eight also made my list of top ten grammar gaffes from my latest book, Booher’s Rules of Business Grammar: 101 Fast and Easy Ways to Correct the Most Common Errors.

(Read the full list here.)

Whether you’re making grammatical errors or simply annoying others with clichés and redundancies, such clutter can cost you a contract, cut you from the global competition, or mar an otherwise stellar impression.

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Posted at 5:25pm in Communication—Interpersonal, Potpourri | Permalink | 1 Comment |