Northwest Institute for Social Change: The Blog

Portland: ummm, we kind of err like met with uhhh Dave Yewman

According to Dave Yewman, Americans use something on average every 4.4 seconds—what is it?
Ummm…
Yes! A disfluency. Um. Er. Ahhhh.

Dave Yewman is a ‘Presentation Coach’ and works mostly with company executives teaching them how to not to say ‘um,’ because apparently so many of us do it all the time. He teaches a whole bunch of other smart, savvy communication skills, which he touched upon during our seminar with him on Friday. Dave explained to us how people like Steve Jobs and Barack Obama, while they may seem casual, are incredibly calibrated when they make media appearances. While Jobs looks like he is talking to an old friend when he’s on stage, there are hours, days, and months of practice behind each and every speech and presentation. He knows the importance of Practice, Practice, Practice. No one is a great public speaker by accident or natural talent, Dave reassured us; it’s all in the nitty-gritty commitment to practicing again and again and knowing your material to the max.

Figuring out what your audience actually cares about is the key to making an impact, which is of course what we are working on with our documentary narratives. Dave also gave us advice for our presentations to City Council and for other presentations we will have to do in the future. Some lessons learned—eyes will always be ears, so pay attention to your physical appearance. Nixonian eye shifting and sweaty, wringing hands are a straightaway to losing your audience’s trust. And when you say “I’m really excited to be here,” make sure that the audience actually cares—most likely they would rather see and feel your excitement viscerally than hear you say it. Dave told us that when a speech is longer than 8 minutes, recall does down 92%, which is perhaps why I have always gotten so much out of TED Talks compared to two hours lectures on early colonial literature. And then there’s the golden rule: To make people care, they need meaning before details.

- Katherine

Portland: Film Shoots, Scores.

Last night was the BBQ, generously hosted by Erika and Richard George. It was great to see everyone involved in the NWISC all together, sharing delicious food and interesting conversation. Christopher, our instructor at PCM, brought an exquisite lemon buttercream pie that left Phil’s peach cream pies looking amateur in comparison. Ashly made a beautiful fruit salad and our host and hostess served an impressive array of toss salad and the classic bbq burger fare. There are only about three weeks left to the NWISC, and my head is swirling with everything that is flying toward us.

Like our film shoots. With only a few days of instruction, our team is about to start filming our documentary about CHAP, the Children’s Art Healing Project. I am sure I will learn more technical skills in the next twelve hours than I have in the past week, as we’ve been running simulations in the classroom. There’s nothing like field experience and jumping in with two feet to rocket you to an understanding of the equipment. While I won’t be pursuing hardcore filmmaking projects after the NWISC, these skills are opening up a whole other realm of possibility. They are one more tool in my multi-media toolkit. It’s great that I will be able to seize opportunities I come across in the future with at least some background in the technicalities of production. Who knows, maybe my flight back to NY in August will be the next serendipitous filming of ‘81-Year Old Sweethearts.’

-Katherine

MC Northwest

Three women from Bhutan are growing vegetables in SE Portland through a partnership with Mercy Corps Northwest. Photo credit: Juan Carlos-Delgado

Out here in Portland, we are in full-swing with our radio documentaries. I am still orienting myself to the city, both to the outlay of the streets and to the general sensibilities afloat in this progressive hub. In ways, it reminds me of Vermont, my home-state, and yet, with the population of Portland the same as the entire state of Vermont, there is more power, resources, and momentum behind initiatives here, whether it be the light-rail trains or Project Clean Slate, which gives people a chance to clear minor crimes off their records through community service.

Speaking of power and resources for social change, yesterday Colin and I met up with John Haines, the executive director of Mercy Corps Northwest. Mercy Corps works all across the world, but at MC Northwest, the focus is on micro-financing and education efforts to support small business owners in the community. I wish I had the time to cover everything they do—like their New American Agricultural Project, which helps recent immigrants establish sustainable farm businesses, and their LIFE Project, where they support incarcerated individuals with the tools and education they need in order to make a successful transition back into society. These programs are particularly impressive as I think about their similarity to the programs I witnessed last summer in Bangladesh while working for BRAC (Building Resources Across Communities), the world-renowned NGO that takes a systematic, holistic approach poverty alleviation. The mission of BRAC and MC Northwest is strikingly parallel, and it’s so exciting to see trace the similarities of their action. At the same time, it’s also exciting to examine how the execution of their vision is shaped to their respective communities.

Most memorable quote of our time with John: “What applies in Gaza and Pakistan right now is not what might apply directly here, but the foundation is the same, and that is to build just, productive and secure communities.” Yeah, I feel that.
-Katherine