You’ve given your presentation a number of times. You’ve got it down pat. You can show up and be ready to fly in 15 minutes. So what’s all this stuff about arriving an hour early? Oh yeah, that’s right—to allow time for unexpected traffic and for finding the restroom once you arrive. In the world […]
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Month: August 2011
Reality Show Lessons (?)
Reality shows. Reality shows with a lesson. I inadvertently found one. Just one show. There are public speaking lessons if you look. No, I’m not a Donald Trump fan, but I do watch The Apprentice. Trump creates a business situation with a goal in mind. Two teams create a product then sell it – all […]
Cheap Research Trick
You get a request for a presentation on a topic similar to yours. You figure that with your background, education and a little research, you could put together a great talk. So you say, “Yes.” You start by going online to research the topic. To find out what others have written about your new topic, […]
THE PAUSE
I believe the pause is the MOST underused tool in the speaker’s tool box. Speakers seem to think they have such great information and SO much of it, that they don’t have time to pause. Heck, they think, they’re wasting valuable data-dump time! Or, like most people, they are uncomfortable with the silence. The opposite […]
Drive Your Audience to a Better Takeaway
Do you know where your audience is throughout your speech? I know, they are out in front of you – at least they’re supposed to be. (few speakers actually have to bar the exits.) No, I mean where are they on the journey through your presentation or your story? Where are they emotionally? At what […]
Somebody did it to me first. Darn it! ...
I was in line at the grocery store, having just gotten back from a trip to New Orleans. I ate well there but not necessarily healthy. So I was replenishing my fruits and vegetables. And low fat milk and non-fat yogurt. I even had a package from the meat department. I heard a louder than […]
Public Speaking 301
A public speaker has to know a little about everything Psychology: why people are the way they are, Persuasion: things that motivate people to listen, change, buy, Sociology: group response, group needs, social interaction, Current events: anything that connects, even remotely, to your topic, Advertising: Know what the major advertisers are currently using to […]
Add Storytelling to Perfect Your Speech
I was listening to NPR radio the other day. They were talking about the outcome of one of the Merck (drug company) trials to the benefit of a plaintiff. The interviewer asked about the outcome and the interviewee said that a lot of the credit went to the attorney. She said, “He’s a good story […]
How to add Humor to Your Speech
I remember the first laugh I ever got while holding a hand-held mike and telling a joke. I felt like a stand up comic. It was great! I also remember the longest laugh I ever got. It was from a saver line to a tough question and the laughter went so long I ran out […]
If only you knew… only 7% of words contr
You’ve written and rewritten your speech. It sounds great. The wording is just what you want. Cool adjectives, action verbs, a little rhyme thrown in. You’ve read it through several times. Now it’s time to deliver it. And you know how to deliver a speech – you stand up front, looking confident and deliver your […]