Sue Thompson
Resident expert Exceptionality LLC
- Wilmington DE
Engaging, intelligent coach speaker helping people project a knockout professional presence!
Social
Biography
She speaks on dealing with difficult people and putting the personalities at work in perspective; on the difficulties manager have with that "awkward conversation" about hygiene, appearance, and behavior, and how to do it effectively; on the ways a workplace of civility and respect saves a company money; how supervisors can create a culture of good character; how to survive a tormenting work environment; how to spot talent and hire well; and of building that very important professional presence--among other topics. She's a business etiquette trainer (and this includes dining manners), a personality expert, and an image advisor.
Industry Expertise
Areas of Expertise
Education
Antioch University Los Angeles
M.A.
Clinical Psychology
1996
Affiliations
- International Facility Management Association
- International Positive Psychology Association
Event Appearances
Building Your Professional Presence
Int'l Facility Mgmt Association 2012 Facility Fusion Chicago, IL
2012-04-11
The Self We Want Others to See: Understanding Client Personalities
Assoc of Image Consultants Int'l Southern California Chapter Los Angeles
2012-03-31
Sample Talks
The Awkward Conversation: Counseling Employees about Hygiene, Appearance, and Behavior
So you've got an employee who doesn't bathe, or who routinely clips his nails at his desk, or who eats nauseatingly pungent foods at her desk. People are complaining about the clothing the receptionist wears (or isn't wearing) or the bizarre habits of a coworker. You have to talk to the person--but what do you say?
It's the talk no manager wants to have. Because it's so sensitive, many managers attempt to drop hints to the person. Notes are written and left on desk chairs. Friends are asked to talk to the employee. Ultimately, most supervisors avoid the topic altogether, and this is a shame, because the inability to deal with this indicates a breakdown in good management. Find out *what* you can say and *how* to say it. Get some backbone on the matter, and then just do it. The truth is that 99% of employees respond well, so your fears are most likely groundless!
Building Your Professional Presence
So you've gotten a stellar education or received training that makes you ready to run. You're looking to stand out among job applicants, or you're ready for promotion. You bring experience and expertise of value to a company—but do you know how to communicate it? You’ve got the *inner* requirements for success, so now it’s time to put on the outward qualities that tell your interviewers, your colleagues, or your superiors there’s something important on the inside! The crucial factors that behavior, image, and personality announce regarding what you’ve got to offer are often ignored. Who’s going to blow your horn? You’ve got to do it, and the way you present yourself in is what makes you noticeable. Begin building an exceptional professional presence!
Topic features:
• Dressing like you belong in the executive suite
• Conversing as though you’re comfortable with people who are smart and interesting
• Showing a command of written and spoken language that befits the board room
• Developing and maintaining relationships with near-psychic insight
• Exhibiting manners worthy of dining with diplomats
• Indicating character that does what is right simply because it is right
Sheer Living Hell: Surviving a Tormenting Work Environment
“I can’t leave this job right now. What if I don’t find another one? I have to stay here, even though it’s killing me.” Every day we hear of a bleak economy. Books and articles on job searching and entrepreneurship abound to help job seekers, but what of those who, fearful of the state of the job market, stay in toxic jobs? So many men and women feel they must remain in positions where they suffer daily.
You see, it’s one thing to maintain an attitude of confidence and capability when everyone thinks we’re wonderful. It’s quite another thing to maintain a perspective of strength in a climate that is antagonizing, frustrating, lonely, even abusive. In such an environment the true test of character is made, and it’s the hardest work we will ever do. You cannot get through such a trial on a wing and prayer--you must have strategies for survival. Discover seven powerful principles for getting to the finish line with your sanity intact. You *can* survive sheer living hell!
Conduct Unbecoming
In organizations that deal regularly with clients, customers, or investors, no leader would tolerate rudeness, obscenity, or disrespect directed at the people who are the reason for their existence. Bad behavior toward customers ends up in phone calls or letters to management. In this day and age, it can be broadcast to vast numbers of people through a blog posting or a Tweet. Some issues even end up on the evening news and, as we know, can be picked up by national news outlets, damaging brands and destroying the reputation of particular locations. Offenders and their managers can lose their jobs.
So why is incivility *within* the company tolerated? Incivility at work is a productivity destroyer, costing companies insane amounts of money. When the workplace is a source of disrespect, backbiting, sabotage, and subterfuge, that organization might as well throw buckets of $100 bills out the window, because that's the effect of such an environment. Discover how incivility is like a parastic infection on the bottom line and what can be done about it.
Personalities in Perspective
Have you noticed yet that you work with people who are different than you? Do you sometimes struggle to understand what makes them so challenging? The employee who likes to talk and looks for ways to have fun has a different internal structure than the methodical plodder. The team player on the go is fired by something the slow and easy coworker doesn’t understand. What’s the most effective way to communicate with and relate to those who don’t see things as we do?
Learn a simple way of identifying personalities and gain a view of how to communicate so they can hear you! This is not a complex system that requires an understanding of psychology, but a tool that is easy, fun, and practical, because you already possess the necessary equipment: your eyes! You will leave seeing yourself and others in a whole new light! You'll have new strategies to implement immediately in creating strong teams, being a more effective manager, and "speed-reading" clients for great relationship-building.
Style
Availability
- Keynote
- Moderator
- Panelist
- Workshop Leader
- Host/MC
- Author Appearance
