Steve Dion

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Here's how to improve your productivity and decision-making skills in 2024. Leading a successful corporation in the business sector or a nonprofit that is making an incredible impact on the local and greater community it serves sounds impressive and rewarding; however, it takes plenty of tenacity to maintain industry relevance and a different mindset to make smart business decisions. As the marketplace continues to transform itself in the new normal, managers may be feeling overwhelmed and burned out by all of the tasks piled on their plates to keep up with the changing consumer demands in an uncertain economic climate. To prevent them from high-stress levels, feelings of anxiousness, or seconding-guessing themselves when it comes to decision making, 16 experts from Fast Company Executive Board each offer one tip that could help company leaders get the support they need, which will change the course of their organization for the better.

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Here's how to elevate company culture in a digital office environment. If you are new to leading a remote or hybrid company, you may find yourself struggling to bridge the gap between management and staff members who work from home to create trust and transparency. By the same token, if you're new to working for a remote employer, you may be feeling isolated if you're unable to connect with your new co-workers and management the way you initially envisioned when you were onboarded for your "dream job opportunity."  To help leaders and their remote teams communicate more effectively and improve their working relationships in no time, 19 Fast Company Executive Board members each share one new idea for building a better company culture in 2024.

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Implement these strategies to build stronger team morale and loyalty in 2024. In today's marketplace, when it comes to attracting and retaining staff members who want to invest their time and services for the long term, trust and transparency are required every step of the way. In addition, it's even more important to ensure that potential employees and employers are in alignment during the hiring process to begin with. Fostering a workplace culture that encourages regular team communication empowers staff members to voice any concerns as needed and feel recognized when they make a valuable contribution to help their department or company move forward. Below, experts fromFast Company Executive Board share 16 strategies to help employers improve employee retention rates in the coming new year.

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Five observations and key takeaways for leaders working with Gen Z.

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16 ways to find a happy medium in reaching your personal and professional life goals. Working a nine-to-five career can be overwhelming depending on the types of responsibilities you have on your daily plate. Add to the mix, the pursuit of a certification or degree through continued education after work—while building on personal friendships or raising a new family—and it's understandable for anyone to feel burned out from a lack of work-life balance if they're struggling. Below, Fast Company Executive Board members each offer one tip for maintaining a healthy lifestyle while juggling work duties and attending evening classes.

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Apply these tips to foster improvement in your business products and services. It's important to keep your eye on the prize when you're running a business you want to see survive. But, it's not always easy to outdo your company's biggest achievements, or implement needed improvements, year after year—especially in a tight economy.  Despite reality, however, whether your company was able to move the needle forward by an inch or a mile to reach its bottom line this past year, it's essential to highlight each moment. By doing so, you'll be able to boost employee morale and heighten productivity among your loyal team members. Here, 15 members of Fast Company Executive Board share one new thing they've already implemented or are excited about doing in the coming year to enhance their business image, company core values, and work culture!

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Keep your eyes on the prize by applying these 18 tips. While success is attainable at various levels in a person's career, it doesn't just happen overnight—you have to work for it. You may even hit some bumps in the road along your journey, but any thought leader who has been in the game for a long time knows that business challenges and even failures are simply a part of the learning process.  Here, 18 Fast Company Executive Board members offer their advice to other professionals who are trying to reach their short-term goals of the moment—both professional and personal.

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Don't let your physical or mental health go by the wayside. Landing a remote career opportunity with a great company may seem like the ideal solution to help busy employees navigate their current circumstances, especially for those in need of additional resources to balance a job that they truly love with caregiving responsibilities or other challenges they may be facing at home. However,  it's more than essential to make the most of what a true work-life balance should look like when the lines begin to blur. Based on their own remote work experiences, 18 Fast Company Executive Board members offer their top suggestions for promoting the best physical and mental health possible while working remotely. To keep moving and stay engaged with others, try the following.

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Do your team members possess these key characteristics?   The key to maintaining longevity in business is to hire the right people who can best represent your company and its core values. Whether it's someone who is excellent at forecasting what leadership should be focusing on for the future or an employee who does a great job keeping the team morale elevated with their high energy and daily motivation, staff members can make or break the company's long-term success.  Here, 13 Fast Company Executive Board members explore the type of talent and characteristics that are essential for leaders to bring on board to manage their company's operations and achieve growth objectives effectively.

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Changing your mindset will enable you to achieve more success. In the workplace (and in life), it's perfectly human to sometimes obsess over the three Cs—competing, comparing, and complaining—when it comes to dealing with others and reviewing how our own accomplishments or failures stack up. It becomes a much bigger problem when an individual chooses to stay stuck in that mindset because it can hinder them from moving forward in their career and personal life. Below, 19 members from Fast Company Executive Board share what lessons they've learned from their ability to overcome patterns of previous self-doubt, and how they were able to forge ahead to a better path of success. 

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These three items together create the recipe required to propel a founder’s business to the next level.

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Implement these tips to attract new clients and customers to your business.  In a competitive, fast-paced, uncertain economy with evolving digital marketing strategies, sometimes it takes time to accurately gauge the pulse of your industry network and social subscribers. If your content isn't refreshing and well-researched, then you could potentially lose readers or viewers who are looking for content leaders who can solve their problems and answer their most challenging questions on a regular basis in a more efficient manner.  To help other business leaders and teams promote brand awareness through content successfully, Fast Company Executive Board members sound off on 19 highly recommended best practices.

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Business leaders weigh in on 15 steps to take before introducing your brand to new and growing markets. As the new economy and digital marketplace continue to evolve, some business leaders may feel like they are under pressure to upgrade their brand's image in an effort to remain relevant to the next generation of potential clients and customers. However, oftentimes, you may need to simply assess which areas of your business need some minor adjustments rather than trying to reinvent the wheel. So before you consider the redesign process, members from Fast Company Executive Board are here to discuss some steps that they recommend when contemplating a rebranding idea for your company's logo and image. 

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If you're on the edge of burnout, apply these tips. In the business world, it's important for managers and their employees to self-reflect and gauge when it's necessary to ramp up their performance during a busy time of the year or pull back to take a short break when needed.  In addition to work stress, employees may also be juggling personal responsibilities at home. While it's understandable to not always be 100% energized or inspired to get through your workload every day, Fast Company Executive Board members have nine tips that can help leaders and teams manage their energy levels to stay in optimal peak performance mode throughout the entire year.

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What difference-makers should you look for in a coach or a coaching program? What makes for a truly transformative executive coaching experience?

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Get over yourself and trust your team. When you're a first-time entrepreneur who is trying to establish your company in the marketplace, there are plenty of responsibilities that will fall on your plate—anticipated or unexpected. You'll also need to maintain credible brand awareness, develop the right community of advocates to move your company ahead, and ensure repeat customers.  These challenges can be overwhelming if you don't have the right team in place. It's essential to build the strongest foundation of team leaders who can stand confidently and remain trustworthy in your absence. But your professional success also depends on your own ability to change old behavior patterns at work. To help guide your strategic action plan to improve workflow and remove distractions, Fast Company Executive Board members share advice on the 13 bad habits every start-up business owner may be guilty of at times and should eliminate from their daily routine hereafter.

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Be calm and professional in the workplace, so you can lead your employees by example. When you are dealing with team dynamics and diverse perspectives in the workplace environment, there are bound to be occasions when team leaders or co-workers disagree over the projected plans on an assignment or a decision that was made. In these cases, it's best for everyone involved to put the conversation on pause so they can take time to reflect on what's happening and refrain themselves from overreacting on the spot. Here are 13 suggestions from Fast Company Executive Board members to help agitated colleagues focus on the business at hand without losing their cool.

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Business leaders school job candidates on how to show off their soft skills. When the market is down and you're out of a job, it's all about the presentation and how to sell your soft skills, so you can land your next opportunity. Review each job description carefully and then write a list of how your practical, hands-on experience matches up.  On the day of the interview, lean in to understand the company's needs. Then, let your personality shine through, so you can demonstrate your qualifications to take on the role.  Below, eight Fast Company Executive Board members teach interviewees how to convey their soft skills on their resumes and during the interview.

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Leading business professionals offer tips to engage team members all year round. When the holiday season is over and the company is entering a slow business period, it's common for employees to become easily distracted or disengaged if there is no action plan and nothing to look forward to at work. It can also cause some staff members to feel uninspired until the next big project comes along and the business is back up and running at a normal pace. No matter what time of year it is some employees may be feeling stuck, creatively, or in a siloed state of mind. Below, 16 Fast Company Executive Board members discuss their ideas to start conversations and spark creativity and collaboration among your employees, all 12 months.

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Apply these tips if you're serious about developing as an individual so you can help your company grow. If you're trying to wrap your head around a difficult subject in business (or personal life) it is essential to become an avid reader, study from the masters, and ask plenty of questions that will help you in the learning process. Then you need to apply it. To give business leaders the right tools and tips to grasp a variety of topics they may be struggling with and not feeling confident about, 15 Fast Company Executive Board members are here to share their best practices to overcome any fears and doubts to help them move ahead and be able to share the information with others.

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Top business leaders discuss the most effective approaches they've utilized to increase their customer reach. Coming up with a winning strategy to build a better brand and increase your company's prospects for steady growth may be a hit or missed opportunity if you're not being intentional about how to attract and retain your ideal customer.  Conducting A/B testing on a regular basis is one of the best ways to sample various marketing strategies until your marketing and sales team can pinpoint what actually sticks with your target audience members the most and why it stands out. Below, 13 Fast Company Executive Board members explain their methods to gaining more traction in today's competing business industries and how your organization can do the same.

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Reassuring your customer base that you value their business and want them to succeed—whether they're up or down—is what really matters and builds better partnerships.  When the economy is low and the marketplace is uncertain, it's imperative for business teams to stay as connected to their clients and customers as possible, so they can continue to understand how to meet their current needs. And knowing that your company is still in their corner and wants to see them succeed is everything. Customer success teams play a major role in retaining existing loyal customers if they remain proactive and offer an empathetic ear in their outreach efforts to find relevant solutions to help clients weather the storm. By focusing on personalized messaging campaigns and affordable offers that go beyond expectations, target audiences will be more likely to stick around for the long haul knowing who truly had their back from day one. If you are looking for other methods to boost your clients' business potential—through the good times and bad, here are 13 tips from Fast Company Executive Board members that every leader and team should apply.

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Build a better business blueprint for higher-performance ratings and greater reach. If you're finding it difficult to keep your company growing at a steady rate, then it's time to rethink your current strategy to optimize business influence in the marketplace. Humanizing your brand, through content that relates to where your target clients and consumers are, is a great way to build and secure better relations for the long term.  However, you'll also want to take a closer look at the data to analyze which tools need to be put into place to help the company produce the best outcomes. Below, 13 Fast Company Executive Board members share their advice to help leaders achieve their goals faster.

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Here's how department leaders are breaking the conversation barriers to improve their team relationships. To encourage ongoing dialogue, and inspire an employee's enthusiasm about their contribution to the job, a leader must be relatable, humble, and willing to show up to support their team on a daily basis.  Revealing a sense of humanity and their commitment to staff in the workplace also demonstrates their openness to receive feedback. This, in turn, empowers employees to stay engaged when given a voice—to brainstorm collective solutions that make the organization even better. Below, 13 Fast Company Executive Board members share their best practices to spark some safe, transparent, and meaningful discussions in the office.

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When a personality trait is jeopardizing the establishment: 11 leaders weigh in on how to strike a balance that keeps your colleagues and company on track. If you do a quick Google search, one of the top 10 job interview questions is: "What are your biggest strengths?" It's an age-old question recruiters have been asking to help them determine whether to seal the deal with a potential candidate.  Making the offer to onboard a highly-qualified employee who is unafraid to take on new challenges, willing to pitch in when needed, give their all to the workplace, and demonstrates natural leadership skills, sounds like a no-brainer. But what happens when a strength suddenly turns into weakness—a major liability on the job? If colleagues are spreading themselves thinly and the company is complacent about setting up a sustainable system to enable daily workflow operations and processes to run smoothly, this is not atypical, especially when a company is thriving too quickly. Below, 11 Fast Company Executive Board members are sharing their best recommendations to ensure that the following strengths don't overwhelm your business.

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Don’t let the Great Resignation take your culture and your people. With focused attention, the new people you hire, the new working relationships you have created, and the new focus on well-being can help you distinguish yourself as the ideal post-pandemic employer.

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Here's how to build brand ambassadors, no matter what you're selling. Getting your clients to stay on board while trying to attract a few more good ones, is never an easy task—whether you're trying to push an item that is older, dull, and irrelevant in the changing marketplace or promoting something you just launched. However, before you entertain the thought of removing a low-performing product or service from your company's portfolio altogether, experts from Fast Company Executive Board are here to advise leaders on their best strategies to put a fresh spin on your offerings that are sure to re-engage and excite a growing customer base. This promotes brand loyalty centered on your company's  mission statement and purpose.

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Taking a creative approach to maintaining personable business relationships is just as important. If you want to instill an inviting corporate culture for everyone at your company, then it's necessary to not only model the ideal behavior but to get employees involved so they have a higher stake in the changes they want to see taking place. Enabling your staff members to help make real business decisions that impact the company's bottom line and the way people view themselves as individual and collaborative contributors will elevate morale and set a positive example for future employees to come. Below, experts from Fast Company Executive Board share 16 practical ideas that continue to foster inclusiveness and team building at work. 

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Act now to ensure these new managers don’t crash and burn.

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Implement these workflow strategies when deadlines are quickly approaching. When you are stretched thin with plenty on your to-do list, believe it or not, the best thing you can do is to relax (mentally and physically) periodically throughout the work day. By doing so, you'll refuel your energy level, be more focused and productive as you push past the finish line to reach your short- and long-term goals. Below, experts from Fast Company Executive Board describe their most effective productivity hacks during crunch time and how useful they are when you are trying to get the most done.

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15 leaders weigh in on meeting consumers where they live. Despite the thriving and evolving digital economy, leaders still need to strike a healthy balance between their company's online and offline presence if they want their business to remain relevant to current and prospective customers. To enhance your daily presence in their personal or professional lives, it's also essential to listen so you'll understand their needs because that will help you come up with some of the best solutions that are well timed and informative. Below are 15 additional tips, from members of Fast Company Executive Board to equip you with the essential tools to stay authentic and active in your targeted communities.

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Cultivate a culture of unity, understanding, and company success. Some of the best company initiatives or creative campaigns may have started out in a room full of disagreement. So, if you find yourself in a similar situation with colleagues about how to move forward on a collaborative project, it's best to put it on pause, humanize each contributor's voice, and remind yourselves why you began working together in the first place. Finding your way back to the true value incentives is a best practice to align with the company's mission and goals. Here are 15 ways, from Fast Company Executive Board members, to help team members put the good of their company (or project) first.

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10 tips to ensure a smooth department transition from a subordinate—and friend—to a leadership role.  When an employee is elevated (and moves from one department to another), how and when the executive team chooses to make the big announcement about changes in the department, can make or break their staff's motivation, productivity, and continued loyalty if there is no plan in place to enable a smooth and organized transition.  Below, 10 Fast Company Executive Board experts share tips on how to effectively communicate with everyone involved and provide the right training and resources so that no one is feeling left behind or unable to move forward successfully.

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Seven points to ponder—whether you are ready to focus on other parts of the business or want to distance yourself completely from the company. After years of building a career and maintaining a successful brand in the business, it may be a difficult choice to walk away from your role as CEO—even though you've outgrown the position and are seeking new challenges away from the day-to-day tasks.  Before you determine how to repurpose your passion for business, you must assess the state of your organization, its current systems, and processes to help your team continue to prosper once you've made a graceful exit. To assist you with tips and next steps for planning a smooth leadership transition, seven Fast Company Executive Board members weigh in on some key factors to consider on your way out the door. 

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Leaders and managers are being asked to adapt and evolve like never before.

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Here are 12 tactics to help you remain level-headed in the heat of the moment. If you're worried about losing a client over an agreement gone wrong or miscommunication, before you go into a meeting reacting impulsively out of fear or frustration, remember to stop, rethink your approach to addressing the misunderstanding, and check your emotions at the door.  At the end of the day, it will strengthen your ability to handle conflict, you'll salvage a key client relationship that may have been in jeopardy, and be appreciated for your professionalism, empathy and willingness to represent your stakeholders in a positive light. A panel of experts from Fast Company Executive Board shares their advice on how to turn a bad situation into a good one and move forward in business.

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Negativity on the job leads to critical issues for leadership and their staff members. Enabling a toxic environment in the workplace may result in the tarnishing of the professional reputations of the parties involved or the company's downfall. Still, many managers choose to turn a blind eye, and subordinates are too intimidated to bring the office drama to their leader's attention. To help supervisors and their direct reports nip their concerns in the bud, 16 Fast Company Executive Board panelists provide key signs of a toxic environment and share some practical advice for management to consider as they try to clean up the workplace.

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Give the right leaders a creative space to help move your organization forward in the new year. As business heads contemplate on industry trends and begin to look at what's in store in their industry for 2022, now is the time to get executive leadership members on the calendar for some exciting brainstorming sessions that will keep the company ahead and move it in the right direction.  Some simple and out-of-the-box thinking may spark more productive conversations, support smarter strategic planning, and get fellow colleagues excited about the collaborative process in the year to come. That's why 15 expert panelists from Fast Company Executive Board are sharing creative ideas to make a memorable impression at your forthcoming meetings that will provide the most value for all.

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If a team member exhibits low performance but high potential, it may be time to pivot them toward a different position. Sometimes when a team member isn't performing well, it’s not because of their work ethic or skills. Rather, the team member may simply be in the wrong position. A good leader understands that a hard-working employee is valuable and worth keeping, and if that's the case, it’s important to find the right fit for them. To help you do this, a panel of Fast Company Executive Board members share some key things a leader can do to find the right fit for such an employee.

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Being a leader can be mentally and emotionally taxing, so it's important to prioritize wellness and self-care as a manager. The COVID-19 pandemic ushered in a new era of thinking about mental health and wellness in the workplace. Business leaders have begun advocating for the wellbeing of their employees in growing numbers, transforming mental health support from a perk to a workplace imperative.  Even as leaders across industries strive to improve support for their teams, many face their own mental health challenges. To help fellow leaders cope, a panel of Fast Company Executive Board members offered their best advice for managing the unique pressures of leadership and prioritizing mental health and wellness as a manager.

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Remote and hybrid workplace environments are here to stay. Prior to the COVID-19 global pandemic, most executive leaders were accustomed to managing their employees in-office on a daily basis. Now, in the new and ever-changing virtual work world, some leaders are struggling to maintain culture and team growth like they once did.  In a candidate-driven market and with the “Great Resignation” still looming, many company heads understand that offering more job flexibility, real work-life balance, and substantial growth opportunities are key to staying ahead of the competition and attracting the best talent.  To help supervisors and staff gain confidence as they continue to navigate a growing remote or hybrid business environment, 16 Fast Company Executive Board members share strategies remote managers can use to help their virtual talent develop a thriving career and stay connected with one another.

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The cumulative effect of the past two years is taking its toll.

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Clear expectations are essential for managers to get the results they want while empowering employees to do their best work. As a business leader, you're not only responsible for completing your own work but also for ensuring that your employees are clear on what they need to do and have the resources and leeway to accomplish the goals you’ve set. Your team members want and need to know what you're expecting of them, but if you don't establish and present this information clearly and carefully, it can lead to confusion and anxiety. It's critical to check in with your employees and ensure that they understand what needs to be done to meet (and hopefully exceed) your expectations. Below, the members of Fast Company Executive Board share 15 smart strategies for setting expectations with your employees the right way.

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Don't let a limited budget stop you from promoting your new business. When budgets are tight, one of the first things many entrepreneurs strike from their list of financial priorities is marketing. However, marketing doesn't have to take a backseat when resources are limited. In fact, there are plenty of ways to continue promoting your company while keeping costs low. DIY public relations can be an inexpensive way to gain attention for your business—if you follow the right strategies and best practices. Below, 14 members of Fast Company Executive Board share some creative, inexpensive ways a new business can drum up good publicity or press mentions.

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Your business isn’t wholly powerless to stop the impact of “The Big Quit.” “The Great Resignation,” also known as “The Big Quit,” is making headlines as millions of Americans quit their current jobs to find “something better.” While it’s true that workers are rethinking their priorities and desires in the workplace, it doesn’t necessarily mean your company is doomed to lose its top talent: There’s still hope for leaders who value their employees and are willing to do what it takes to retain their workforce. If you want to keep your team intact through this period of mass workforce turnover, it’s important to be proactive and take steps toward employee retention. Below, 16 members of Fast Company Executive Board each share one thing a business owner can do to make staying on the most attractive option for their workers.

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Many people are intimidated by public speaking, but by following a few simple tips, you can calm your nerves and engage your audience. Presentations, whether virtual or in-person, are a part of the day-to-day work of many professionals. This is especially true for entrepreneurs and company leaders, who frequently have to present to employees, clients, board members, the media, and other stakeholders. However, if you're new to public speaking, you may not be sure how to prepare your remarks, structure your presentation, or—most importantly—settle your nerves. Getting tips from a seasoned speaker can help you get ready to effectively engage and educate your audience. No strangers to giving presentations themselves, the members of Fast Company Executive Board have learned ways to prepare and give presentations that make a lasting impression. Below, 15 of them share their best tips to help novice speakers successfully find their voices and hone their skills as presenters.