Presentation, Assertiveness & Communication Workplace Ceilings

Ceilings in the Workplace

Having bought an old house in Greece recently, my head is often turned up looking at the lovely old ceilings, many of which now have to be repaired (see: My Big Fat Greek Odyssey).

So ceilings have been on my mind and that in turn got me thinking about invisible ceilings, especially in the workplace.

Glass Ceilings in the Workplace

Now it's a fact that in some organisations and even some industries there really is such a thing as a 'glass ceiling' where a woman's gender will prevent her from ever rising up in said organisations to the highest ranks. On occasion some women do break through, but for the most part, in those companies where gender bias is fixed there's not a whole lot women can do to change the status quo.

But this got me thinking about other, less obvious ceilings; things in people's behaviour, communication or skills that get in the way of them progressing through the ranks in their organisations. Things that will keep them covertly stuck until they accept their fate or move on in the hopes that a change of venue will mean a change in their fate. Unlikely.

So what are these invisible ceilings then?

The Presentation Ceiling in the Workplace

There's the Presentation Ceiling. Most people across the board will have a knot in their stomachs as soon as they know they have to give a talk, presentation, prize-giving, best man speech, seminar, lecture, etc. Whether it's to the Board of Directors, a client, work colleagues or the Parent-Teachers Association, at some point those nerves will whoosh in and how people deal with them can make or break their credibility in those situations.

People who simply can't overcome their nerves (terror, actually), will inevitably hit the Presentation Ceiling. Either they forge ahead and give awful presentations that people wince at and pray won't last too long or they find ways of avoiding giving them at all. Whatever their 'strategy' is eventually they will be overlooked and ignored when it comes to the crucial stuff: the important client meeting, the motivating speech to rally the troops, the assured, authentic talk that gets across a difficult message and calms tricky situations down.

We've head the comments: "Jones is great at his job, but we just can't trust him in front of a crowd. He ums and ers, reads from his notes and frankly bores people to death." Or "Smith gets on with all her colleagues and the Board loves her, but shes a dire presenter and we rarely send her on client meetings because she freezes and relies on so much PowerPoint that her presentations just go on and on."

We're not exaggerating; if you're someone who doesn't present well, you too may very well hit a Presentation Ceiling in your career that will get in the way.

The Assertiveness Ceiling in the Workplace

Having The Assertiveness Ceiling. Here's another one on whose heads people bump. Talk about a liability! Unassertive people really do get either taken advantage of and walked all over or disregarded as being lightweight.

Other people get impatient with the unassertive; they are annoying; they are pitied, they are frustrating; they aren't respected. If people aren't able to stand up for themselves and their ideas, make a forceful point, argue effectively with their colleagues, give as good as they get, tell the truth when the truth needs telling, initiate confrontation when necessary, then eventually, they will be seen as a liability.

We've written the book on assertiveness (yes, we have, it's called The Nice Factor, the Art of Saying No) and we know from personal experience just how much a liability niceness can be. Unassertive people do get overlooked for promotion, they are somehow not invited to critical meetings, they aren't seen as key players. They may have skills required for their actual job, but if they aren't making the right impact, the Assertiveness Ceiling will surely hamper their getting ahead.

The Communicaiton Ceiling in the Workplace

The Communication Ceiling. Communication is a pretty broad topic and covers a lot of ground so understanding just how you may be hitting your head on this ceiling may not be so straightforward.

So here are some questions to ask yourself:

How good am I at delivering difficult messages?
Am I able to influence others outside my immediate circle?
What about inside my immediate circle?
Do colleagues regard me as a responsive listener?
Am I able to see situations from other people's points of view?
Am I aware of the impact I make?
Do colleagues consider me a valuable member of the team?
Am I able to ask for support when needed?
Do I make myself clear when I express my opinions?
Am I good at making decisions and bringing others on board?

We could go on and on with loads more questions, but you get the idea. These are all key issues when talking about how well you communicate. All you need is to fall down on one or two key areas and that ceiling will be firmly fixed in place.

The old fashioned manager who screams and alienates his way to the top is fortunately becoming a thing of the past (though we still do know organisations who have bully-boys or girls in situ and it still comes as a surprise when we meet them!).

So those are just three of the ceilings I've been thinking about and how important it is to have more than just the technical skill you need for your job.

The wonderful thing about these ceilings, unlike the glass ones, is that there's easy stuff you can do to transport yourself above them without having to transform your very being.

Presentation, Assertiveness & Communication Workplace Ceilings