Speaking

Horizon Point Inc provides concrete, business-focused tools for professionals to be resilient, highly productive, and not emotionally reactive under stressful working conditions.  Our work is available in many formats:

Workshops by Dr. Sharon Melnick

1. Chaos to Control:  How to Be Resilient to Stress at Work

Some people are finding it harder than ever to deal with the stresses at work, while others are sailing through with ease.
The #1 factor that determines how well you perform under stress is your ability to cope with it—not specific job conditions or the amount of work you face.

Stop being drained by people who are difficult or ‘dramatic’, and inoculate yourself from the stresses of work overload!   Take away skills include:

  • Get the same calm and focus you get from a 90 minute yoga class, yet get it in 3 minutes or less while sitting at your desk
  • Take control of “office politics” that cause worry about how you are perceived
  • Insulate yourself and your team from overwork and the chaos of shifting priorities
  • Turn politics in your favor by taking the emotion out of situations and responding with poise
  • Sleep well through the night and get back to sleep soon if you awaken with this 3 minute trick
  • Keep your internal messaging motivated and positive (and bypass others’ fear and negativity)
  • Calm yourself when frustrated or when other people are getting ‘emotional’  (bonus:  you can use this technique to get OTHER people to calm down as well – I’ve used this one to stop fights on the NY Subways and it works with children too!)
  • Instantly energize yourself when tired, without caffeine or sugar
  • Focus when overwhelmed with racing thoughts
  • Reverse or greatly diminish physical symptoms related to stress

Your presentation was excellent, it exceeded our expectations.  It had more meat on it than you usually hear.   Learning how to separate from the emotional, that alone reduces the stress -  it was useful both at work as well as in your personal life.  All of us got A LOT out of it -John Pringle Training Facilitator, JOM Pharmaceutical Services, Inc.

The strategies you shared on the webinar were really valuable, our office LOVED it!  It has been so helpful for how to handle stress and approach people effectively.  Of course, everyone is still using the breathing techniques. -Crystal Gardner, Office of Communications and Marketing, Daniels College of Business | University of Denver

“I’ve been absolutely stunned by the results of Sharon’s talk.  Productivity, morale, and team performance are at all-time high levels.   Her understanding of the human mind and behavior is remarkable.  If you’re looking for a ’silver bullet’ to help high-potential employees at all levels expand beyond their current success level to performance beyond belief, look no further.” -Clare Dolan,   Vice President,  Oracle Corp.

“The breathing techniques you taught have lowered my blood pressure!” -Eileen Rudy, ETS

2. Friction Free Relationships

No matter what your position in the organization, you have to work with and for other people to get things done.  Many bosses/colleagues/direct reports are overwhelmed: they are prone to react emotionally and they may prioritize their own agendas instead of what you need from them. These behaviors cause you friction in the form of distraction, frustration, and work delays.  How can you work with others to accomplish your personal objectives and progress the mission of the organization?  How can you gain others’ cooperation even if their behavior challenges you?

Friction Free Relationships provides the concrete strategies for how to remove the friction in relationships.    Customize your presentation to choose from the following skills:

  • Strategies to take the emotionality out of situations and not get reactive
  • How to ‘not take things personally’
  • Stay poised and objective when other people are being emotional
  • Get the information and deliverables you need from boss/colleague/direct report who is doesn’t come through for you (and how to not go home bothered by the person every day)
  • Use word-for-word scripts to get someone else to want to change their behavior
  • Build greater trust among team members; Respect others and feel respected no matter what kind of stress everyone is under
  • Finesse ‘office politics’ so you no longer worry about how you are perceived
  • Shift from having assumptions about others to quickly understanding them
  • Speak up and ask questions without fear of being judged and accept help without feeling weak
  • Communicate effectively to prevent ‘re-work’ and prevent inefficiencies
  • The first thing to say in every meeting to make sure that the meeting will end quickly and to ensure you get and give the information you need
  • How to work with people you don’t like
  • Eliminate ever losing sleep worrying about ‘what people thought’ about what you said in a meeting or how you will do in an upcoming presentation
  • Approach awkward conversations (so you don’t have to avoid them)
  • Influence others to get them to follow your requests

It makes it so much easier at work when you know exactly how to deal with people and how to not get upset over situations. I am so much more in control and I don’t have to spend any time worrying about how to talk to people about situations or replaying what I said and wondering if it was wrong. I am in control of my 50% and it’s great. The tools really worked, Everybody should take this workshop!- Annette Cutrino, Visiting Nurses Service, NY

3. Drive Change and Be Highly Productive…Without Depleting Yourself

“Do more with less” and support everyone else, but also maintain your desired work-life balance.   Here’s how to feel more accomplished from your work time and more rejuvenated from your personal time.   You will be able to:

  • Maintain your energy and engagement throughout the day so stress doesn’t accumulate until the end of the week.
  • Prevent stress effects such as weight gain, burn out,  not sleeping well, “keeping it all inside”
  • Care a lot about your work, yet keep a healthy detachment
  • Influence business partners who are change resistant
  • Use empowered ‘pushback’ approaches to manage your workload
  • Cultivate a new approach to work life balance that is sustainable

“Sharon shared business focused solutions combined with techniques to personally de-stress, which I was able to put to use immediately!”  -Sandra Haddad, General Mills

4.  7 Pillars of Personal Productivity for Demanding Times

  • Move past procrastination and get started even when overwhelmed
  • Remain focused even when facing interruptions and distractions
  • Get more done with fewer people
  • Have more control over your workload and prevent overwhelm
  • Create a cooperative culture where each person delivers on their work

In the American Management Association’s recent evaluation of this presentation, 90% of attendees reported it was “very useful”.

5.   Navigating Office Politics for Emerging Leaders

Hard work and talent alone won’t help women and multicultural leaders rise to greater leadership within an organization.   Learning the system and how to work within it, developing powerful relationships, and cultivating a strong personal reputation are the keys to getting others to advocate your advancement.  How can you stay ‘in your power’?  How can you deal with difficult office politics?  How can you take risks without fear of failure?

  • Be authentic and stay in your integrity – and still ‘fit in’äTake charge – and not wait – for other people to advocate for you
  • Understand personal agendas, develop a trusted network of information sources
  • Deal with people who are difficult and handle awkward conversations
  • Respond with poise no matter how frustrating the situation
  • Be in command of your own self talk
  • Not be afraid of failure if you take risks

Prescriptions for Personal Productivity - Corporate Audio Trainings

Commissioned by a Fortune 100 company to package Dr. Melnick’s techniques gained over 10 years of working with executives and employees, these podcasts introduce hidden drains on time and focus, and outline business solutions and self-management strategies to gain an edge on effectiveness.

You will recognize the everyday challenges discussed, such as interruptions, work overload, difficult relationships, or lack of confidence – and how they divert from delivering value.  Employees throughout the organization will learn practical tools to perform more quickly and thoughtfully, get reactive, stay calm and focused even under stress, eliminate poor communication, and influence others to get needed results.Each 10-15 minute podcast ends with a series of questions to facilitate implementation of strategies provided, both individually and as a team.

Laser-targeted and energetic, these Intranet-based audio trainings are being used by organizations as ‘real time’ talent development and productivity trainings Uses include:

  • Individual employee wants to improve interpersonal effectiveness and the value of his/her contribution
  • Managers can offer direct reports specific skill training without time and expense of generic, multi-day courses
  • Teams want thoughtful stimulus to examine and improve communication and reduce workflow

    • Existing Podcasts Include:

    Work At Your Highest Capacity In Demanding Environments

    Work with focus, calm yourself when stressed, energize when tired (e.g., Get the same calm and focus you get from a 90 minute yoga class, yet get it in 3 minutes or less while sitting in a team meeting.)

    Be Impeccable for Your 50%

    Expand your concept of ‘control what you can control’ to always pull your weight and be unflappable under pressure (e.g, Instead of trying to change other people, accept others’ level of evolution and work on yours!)

    Friction-Free Relationships Part 1: How to Take the Emotionality out of Situations

    How to understand others’ points of view and not react or take things personally when challenged by ‘office politics’.

    Friction-Free Relationships Part 2: Turnaround an underperforming employee

    Equip yourself with a step-by-step conversation approach to turnaround someone who is not getting you the work you need or is underperforming (e.g., Strengthen your leverage over them by transferring the “ownership of the problem’ from you to them)

    Be the DJ of your own Mental iPod

    Take command of your 60,000 thoughts a day to stay positive, focused, and motivated. (e.g., Change the tone of your internal soundtrack so you inspire yourself and others to action)

    Control Your Day Instead of Your Day Controlling You

    Be intentional about the way you allocate your time and get others to respect it (e.g., how to prevent interruptions)

    Be More Valuable with Less Effort: Execute for the Long Term

    Execute for the long term instead of short term to prevent future crises. Learn the one key behavioral shift that will enable you to be confident instead of worrying what other people think or holding yourself back.  (This skill is the catalyst behind all my clients’ gain of promotion and greater responsibility.)

    Process Before Content: Communicate for Efficiency Among Team members

    Communicate up front to gain others’ cooperation (e.g., Prevent inefficiency and rework via the first thing you say in a meeting or the way you delegate assignments.)

    Soon to be released trainings:

  • Are you Blunt? How Drivers Can Get Results Without Leaving Dead Bodies
  • From Procrastination to Productivity
  • Be Concise!
  • How Boomers, Gen X and Gen Y can all ‘be in the same page’


    • Feedback about Dr. Melnick’s Podcasts:

    Fantastic! Any time I listened I always found something extremely useful and memorable. The segments are energetic, and very ‘listenable.’ A worthwhile use of time.”