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Present a Photo on Canvas at Your Next Award Ceremony

If you belong to the Rotary Club, your local Chamber of Commerce, or other service clubs or organizations, you probably have seen hundreds of service awards presented to deserving citizens who have contributed to their communities. You have no doubt received such awards yourself in the form of framed certificates, plaques, trophies, ribbons, books or watches and have duly displayed them in your den or office.

Why don’t you suggest at the next meeting of your organization that for your next award ceremony you present the people you are honoring with something unique: a framed photo on canvas painting. You’ll find that for very little effort – and for much less cost than you’d ever suspect – your group can present photos on canvas paintings that are personal and meaningful.

All you need are digital photographs of your members; something many groups already have on file for use in their newsletters and brochures. If your group doesn’t keep such photos it is easy enough to take digital photographs or obtain one from the award recipient or a family member. Then you need to contact a reliable on line photos on canvas art gallery to create your paintings.

Some characteristics to look for in choosing a photos on canvas art gallery are:

a)a wide variety of painting media and style choices;
b)a large selection of sample paintings showing also the original photos;
c)positive customer endorsements that appear natural and genuine;
d)the opportunity to approve, reject or change your photo on canvas painting before shipping; and
e)their guarantee of customer satisfaction or return for refund.

Often a photo on canvas gallery will have more than one website and offer services that range from printing black and white and color digital (or print) photos on canvas either framed or unframed, as well as genuine paintings on canvas in many media (oil, watercolor, acrylics, pastels and other). Such an art gallery may also offer a library of artworks of master painters that can be ordered in a variety of sizes and frames. An experienced staff of photo editors and talented and experienced artists is also a must. The quality of their websites is often an indication of the quality you can expect from their finished work.

Dealing on a regular basis with one art gallery will guarantee you satisfaction both in quality and prompt shipping in time for your next awards ceremony.

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Photo Beer Mugs Can Make a Great Present

Maybe you’re like me and always thought photo beer mugs were a bit tacky. It’s the kind of thing you might pick up after you’ve been on some crazy theme park ride in Florida. You know the ones I’m talking about. Where you look like you’re having the time of your life. Or in some cases a heart attack! Recently my opinion has changed quite a bit as I’ve realized just how cool a present they can make for someone. You can get it custom made and tailored in anyway that you want.

The fact that we’re talking about beer mugs has its up and down side. Firstly, if you like a beer you’ll know that the best way to drink is by using a fantastic beer mug. It just seems to make the beer taste that little bit better. If you’re not a beer drinker then don’t worry. It doesn’t have to be filled with beer. It can hold soda just as well. So you can see that a photo beer mug would actually make quite a cool present for your kids. I’m sure they’d love to have a mug with their favorite superhero or sport star on the side. Not only would it have the picture but you can have a little text in there too to totally customize the experience for your child.

The best way to get your customized photo beer mug is undoubtedly online. It’s by far the cheapest and quickest way to get it done. There a numerous sites online now which specialize in creating custom mugs to suit your needs and desires. All you need to do is get a picture you want to see on the mug and upload it to the site. If you won’t want a picture you can simply choose some text such as “Happy Birthday Dad”. Although I’m sure you could be much more imaginative! Then you have to pick the type of mug you want to use as they come in all different shapes and sizes. Typically you’ll have the choice of either a 10-ounce or 16-ounce mug which should suit all your requirements. You can also customize the look of the mug. You can pick either the classic frosted mug look or go for a more unique stein if you want to be just that little bit different.

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Presentation Skills Master Class

Recently I participated in a workshop organized by the Suisse Romande chapter of the International Coaching Federation. The workshop entitled ‘The Coach as secure base: the foundation for building trust’ was presented by Professor George Kohlrieser of IMD in Lausanne. My initial intention in writing about this was to summarize and communicate the learning I took away from the workshop. However, I have also chosen to write about communication and presentation skills, both of which are development areas for many of my clients.

George Kohlrieser is the consummate professional when engaging an audience and getting his message across. Due to factors beyond his control he was a little late for the event. After a day’s work which finished with him giving a presentation to 500 senior executives (a last minute request) one could forgive him (and us) for being a little jaded. However he launched into his presentation with a few self-deprecatory and funny remarks which had the workshop participants laughing uproariously and soon we were almost eating out of his hand.

The enthusiasm and passion George has for his subject were palpable. He has a background in clinical psychology and, in addition to his work on leadership development at IMD, he is frequently involved in hostage negotiations around the world. One might of thought that this was the first time he had given this particular presentation given the energy and freshness he brought to his delivery, but I am guessing he has given the core of the content many times.

This leads to a key requirement that many presenters forget. What will interest the audience in what I have to say, and/or how can the audience use the information imparted practically? Frequently, presenters try to deliver exactly the same message to many different audiences and consequently there is a discrepancy between the message delivered and the message received. George remained faithful to the context and the professional interests of the majority of his audience, i.e. professional coaches. I would bet that every participant in this event could take some learning away and use it the next day in his or her work.

To call it a presentation would be misleading. It was a highly interactive experience with frequent demands on the participants to respond to challenging questions thrown at them, or to interact with fellow participants to try out some technique, and/or engage in a role play.

Throughout, George gave the impression that he could learn at least as much from us as we could learn from him. He listened actively to all questions and comments, asking clarifying questions or recapping what he had understood when necessary to ensure he could respond accurately. In this way he built rapport and trust with every participant.

His discourse included a mix of professional and personal anecdotes which always adds to the interest and understanding of participants. I certainly felt that I was gaining an insight into the man, both professionally and personally. His description of his first involvement in a hostage taking, during which a man held a pair of scissors to George’s throat, threatening to kill him, had me on the edge of my seat. Happily he was able to bring the situation to a satisfactory conclusion with the man deciding to give himself up to the waiting policemen, and thanking George for helping him see a better way out of the situation.

George did have a PowerPoint presentation but I only remember seeing a few slides which he used when he felt they could add value to the learning, and he certainly did not need the slides as a prop. He used several quotations to highlight points or to stimulate thinking. What was helpful about the slides was that each participant received a hardcopy at the end.

Finally, ever available and gracious although by now it was after 10 p.m., George took questions, signed copies of his latest book Hostage at the Table and wrote a personal and individual message for each person.

If you get the opportunity to participate in a workshop animated by Professor George Kohlrieser TAKE IT. If you have a personal or professional interest in coaching, I recommend that you attend a monthly meeting of the ICF.

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