Mairi Mallon In Bermuda managers often complain that getting good staff is difficult, and getting existing employees motivated even harder.

With nearly 100 percent employment, the supply and demand for jobs means that employees are in a very strong position to move around.

The limited pool of Bermudians available to work means that simply not having the right attitude is not enough to get a member of staff fired and on top of that, good staff are often poached by rival companies offering more tempting packages.

But help is at hand. Bermuda Employers' Council offers a myriad of training schemes which employers can use to improve the skills of existing staff and motivate them.

And one regular favourite of employers is Leil Lowndes, who offers courses on communication to staff of all levels, from CEOs down.

Ms Lowndes, who has worked with companies such as Walt Disney, Kodak and the US Peace Corps, is no-nonsense about her work, and is not afraid to speak plainly about the problems in the Bermuda workforce.

"People don't really have an incentive, there is so much employment on the Island, but I explain that it makes life easier and work more enjoyable. If you are pleasant to people, people are pleasant to you,'' she said.

"Another thing I tell my Bermudian clients to incentivate them, is that if you are good at your job, you will get noticed and will be head-hunted to a better job.'' But Ms Lowndes said that it is not just the fault of staff who are not motivated, often it comes from mis-management of staff which could be easily solved with the improvement of office systems.

Ms Lowndes, who has written several self-improvement books, travels to Bermuda from her offices in the United States several times a year to offer courses through the Employers' Council and to take on private clients during her stay.

She said: "Bermudians have many opportunities here. They can rise to the level of their expectations or expertise -- and training can help get there.'' Ms Lowndes courses coach vital communications skills that many people assume are learnt at an early age.

She says that 80 percent of first impression come from the way you look and the way you sound, and only 20 percent is what you are talking about.

And she claims she can help people talk to anyone about anything after her training.

One of her first things is to teach how to give a good hand shake. She bans wet fish handshakes and coaches people how to walk into a room, stride across in a confident manner, meeting the other person's eyes and have a firm confident grip when they shake hands, smile and basic small talk.

"Many people are shy -- and come across badly because of this. All we are doing here is emulating the actions of somebody who is naturally confident, that is all.

"These skills can be taught. And once you act confident, you start to feel confident. It is always hard walking into a crowded room full of people you do not know. I am just teaching techniques to get the most out of the situation and come across the best you can.'' She claims she herself learned the hard way, suffering excruciating shyness as a child, so much so that her hands were constantly damp with perspiration.

Today she is a confident, striding woman.

"I suffered shyness for so many years, but you fake it until you make it,'' she said. "We learn how to become more charismatic, and sparkle to our full potential.'' She claims that 80 percent of a person's success in life is due to their communication skills, 20 percent to what we actually know.

"It doesn't matter how much you know, or how clever you are if you cannot communicate it to others.'' She said that people are always concerned about their opening gambit in a conversation. But she says it does not matter, as people will judge you by the way you look to start with.

"There is no such thing as the perfect opening phrase. It is up to how you look and how you sound. When you meet someone it is the light in their eyes you notice. Some people have energy oozing out of them and other people have dead eyes ,'' she said.

And she shows her pupils how to animate themselves, to "kick it up a notch'' and add sparkle to themselves. "You can make yourself "up'' on every level,'' she says.

Next she moves on to handshakes and bans the wet-fish limp handshake, and does practical demonstrations with the class.

And she says that if someone gives you a weak handshake, the chances are they are not an unpleasant person but just shy.

"By acting confident you will feel confident,'' she says.

Do you suffer from a lack of confidence? "The things we do and how we do them have an effect on the way we feel. If you emulate somebody who is naturally confident, you will feel end up feeling that way. It is how the body works.'' Another trick of the formerly shy Ms Lowndes is "hang by your teeth''. Just before entering a room, pretend to be one of the circus acts that hang from the roof of the big-top by their teeth. She claims this will align your posture, and give you the attitude of a confident person.

But she warns against smiling too much with men, as they see it as unprofessional and see women who smile too much as lacking in credibility.

"Say hello as if you are saying hello to an old friend. You will look more lively and warmth will naturally ooze out of you,'' she says.

Ms Lowndes breaks down barriers in the classroom, and pushes past the aggressiveness and the shyness of some of the members to get them to participate.

"I will be tough on you. That is why we are here,'' she said. But she believes that everyone can be taught to put a better side of themselves forward, and enjoys the challenges working on a small island poses for her and the people she coaches.

"Bermuda is a wonderful place and I fell in love with it when I was a young girl. I have been coming back ever since. The people here are wonderful, and I enjoy every visit I make.''