Deborah Khan -- Creative Inspiration: No Seth no...

What my clients say about me

John Birch - BA
“I was really impressed with the way Deborah Khan delivered training on the subject of communication skills to us at BA Pensions. She took time to fully research and understand how we worked and what our specific concerns were. She designed a programme that matched not only our collective requirements but was also flexible enough to cover individual development needs. Her methods, being performance based, ensured that even the most introverted of us participated in the programme and our subsequent delivery in formal presentations has improved significantly"
Tom Powell - DLKW
"I participated in a one-day session with Deb Khan last year and would strongly recommend it for both novice speakers and those looking to hone their skills. She (gently) picked apart our strengths and weaknesses and by the end of the day, the results were tremendous. Everyone left with a range of practical skills and it's been a huge benefit for presentations"
Kai Vacher - Specialist Schools Trust
"Deb has incredible foresight, emotional intelligence and a razor sharp focus on specific outcomes to plan programmes/workshops of outstanding quality. Her ability to work with a group of people so that very quickly they feel at ease with each other is unsurpassed in my experience. Deb uses a varied range of interactive strategies to provide the prefect balance of challenge and support for workshop participants. Post event, course participants often contact me to express their overwhelming sense of achievement having worked with Deb, and want more; for themselves and colleagues.”
David Mikhail - RHM
Deborah is fantastic. I’m afraid she had to suffer both of our last pitches – but after her input we just flew, winning really important work from both of them. She is practically our fourth partner now. In spite of all our training (7 years at architecture school) I realise now we were taught nothing about presenting. Deborah helped us to communicate successfully, but she is about much more than communication skills. She goes straight to the heart of what we are trying to say, what are our best ideas, and feels her way into the audience. She works us hard but she’s great fun and our business is booming thanks to her.
Simon Beckett - Five TV
"..this morning was most useful – so often in my experience creative workshops are all enthusiasm and no substance but yours was a refreshing change and I actually had to work at thinking about what you were saying and what I was thinking (I love metacognition)"

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Love him. Read him daily. Try and animate what he says regularly. Yet let's just look at a few flaws in this great post from Seth Godin

Most of us do struggle to separate the wheat from the chaff on the spewing shelves of the business section
Lots of people do read. That does not imply they have learned anything. How do we know what has been absorbed? Or will be acted upon?
At least two thirds of us need more than words to change our behaviours, skills, values, thinking...
These people struggle with books as the sole source of their development. They need to experience, see, question and explore concepts.

Of course I would say that cos that's what I do. The practical bit. And I read avidly. And buy Seth's books. And subscribe to the view that we all need to rejuvenate, keep up to date with, understand and embrace what is happening in our area.

I have written a 96 Page pack for one of my courses. It took me forever. The participants are academics. I have yet to meet one of over 200 people who did the course who has read it all.

Comments

Thanks, Deb

to be more clear: if a biz book is good enough to sell 250,000 copies, why doesn't it sell 25 million?

Posted by: seth godin | May 04, 2007 at 07:34 PM

My first comment from the consummate blogger. And a hero of mine. Thank you Seth- I feel I have arrived. Somewhere.

On reflection, we are agreeing. Calling your post flawed was, of course, flawed in the extreme and I apologise.

Millions of us do buy self-help style books on dieting, child care, property, cookery, fashion… All of these concentrate on personal development.

The issue is why don’t more of us carry this attitude into our professional life. Does it look too keen? Or nakedly geeky?

What we need is an Oprah or a Richard and Judy to promote these books. We need an authentic voice who can say yes, lots are snake oil but some are gold.

Posted by: Deborah | May 07, 2007 at 09:40 PM

It's so funny that Seth posted a reply. Blogging reminds me of the woody allen movie where they are talking about what McLuhan said in a queue outside a cinema and then Marshall McLuhan, also standing in the queue interrupts them and says "that's not what I said"

FWIW I write biz books to reach and influence a few like-minded souls and mostly as spaces to develop my own thinking, understanding, research. I have had emails from people who say they've changed their careers but I imagine what they mean is they were a catalyst. Blogging reaches a lot more people a lot more quickly but it doesnt force you to think very hard.

As you are an avid reader, most of my blogging these days is at http://greenormal.blogspot.com btw & it's an kind of an overflow from working on the latest book

Keep up the good blogging resolutions :J

Posted by: John Grant | May 13, 2007 at 05:12 PM

Thanks John and I am glad we agree that blogging can be a highly acessible catalyst. I always say it should try to capture the conversations you would have with smart colleagues. Or rather the sort of conversation people imagine you have.

As one client said, you may as well close the blog down now as its all downhill after a comment from Seth. Not that this implies Seth is ahead of you by any measure...

I am very flattered he chose to respond. I had misinterpreted his comments but still think the issue about the implementation/applicaton of reading is essential. I know that learning is complex and dynamic. The transiton from auditory into experiential is often difficult.It is always the "so what" question that intrigues me.

Seth always impresses me with his pragmatism.

I agree that books are an opportunity for the writer to often explore and extend their thinking.

Clearing some books today (appears to be a painting the 4th bridge type chore in our house) and realised we have one of your books here. Now has pride of place on our newly built reference section.

I know you are extemely influential with your thinking. Take credit where you can. Even if you think life changing is a little extreme it's still a lovely thing for someone to say.

Thanks for the link- I look forward to reading it.

Posted by: Deborah | May 13, 2007 at 07:21 PM

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