Fearless & Persuasive Speaking

Interview: Rachna Srivastava – Geek Woman Speaker

Ian — Wed, 16 May 2012 05:08:25 +0000

Rachna Srivastava is a passionate speaker. Her goal is to inspire and empower girls, women and other underrepresented groups in science, technology, engineering and math. Her vision is of a global program that nurtures and encourages technical and mathematical skills in women and other minority groups. Rachna is a software developer with 15 years experience [...]

Relevant Resources: To conquor your creative block

Ian — Tue, 08 May 2012 18:22:50 +0000

I help edit SPEAKER Magazine for the National Speakers Association (NSA). Each month I curate the Relevant Resources column – a list of time-saving tools and technologies. The May 2012 edition suggests resources to stimulate your creative juices. Creativity and fresh ideas are essential to the success of any professional speaker, and even naturally creative [...]

Presentation Skills Checklist

Doug Staneart — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 02:34:01 +0000

When folks go through our presentation skills classes, they are often surprised at how simple we make designing and delivering fairly complex presentations. In fact, one of the things that we cover in the Fearless Presentations class is how to design an entire presentation, from start to finish, complete with a slide deck in fifteen minutes or less. Class members are often shocked at how fast they can design presentations that would have typically taken hours (or weeks) to complete. Below is a simple checklist that you can use when you design PowerPoint presentations in order to speed up the preparation time and reduce your fear of public speaking.

Presentation Skills Checklist

Step One: Start with the Presentation (what you want to say) and finish with the slideshow. Most people start with the visual aids and, eventually, realize they have too many slides or too many points and start cutting content. So they end up with a Swiss-Cheese presentation. Start with the presentation first, then choose slides that help you better explain the content.
Step Two: Choose a Compelling Topic (Title). Pretend that you are an audience member, and ask yourself what you’d what to hear about related to the topic. This is more difficult than you might think, because, since we know so much about the topic, we tend to want to tell the audience EVERYTHING that we know. However, that is not practical, so you have to give the audience only what they need, right now. For instance, if you are giving a financial report to the board, they are going to want to know about profit, but if you are giving a report to the sales team, they will be more interested in revenue compared to prior years. think of your audience when you choose your topic.
Step Three: Choose three to five key points to expand upon. Literally… three, four, or five points… TOTAL. Thinking about your topic, choose your key points by determining what are the three to five most important concepts related to the topic that the audience needs to know about. If you cover more points, the audience won’t remember them anyway, so focus on the most important points.
Step Four: Insert Proof for each Point. Insert a few stories, examples, facts, analogies, demonstrations, or samples that prove that your key point is true. If you prove each point along the way, then the group will very easily agree with your conclusion at the end of the presentation.
Step Five: Now Create Your Slides: Once you have the speech designed, now go back and choose visual aids to better explain your content.

Follow this checklist, and you will be able to create any presentation very quickly.

Personal Presentation Coaching in San Antonio, Texas

Doug Staneart — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 02:02:53 +0000

I just got back from conducting some presentation coaching with a few people in San Antonio, Texas, and we had a blast. One of the nice things about having a small group when we teach a public speaking class is that we can really customize the content to the group very effectively. Each participant got a lot of one-on-one coaching, and we helped them reduce the fear of public speaking, helped them create compelling persuasive speeches, and design entire PowerPoint slide decks from scratch. The group gave us fantastic feedback as the class continued, and you could physically see a difference in the way that each person carried themselves when they presented. We had a great time, and the class members really enjoyed the workshop.

Fearless Presentations Workshop in Chicago helps Participants with their Fear of Public Speaking

robjackson — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 01:34:54 +0000

The Leaders Institute conducted another very successful Fearless Presentations Workshop in Chicago, Illinois. The Participants learned how to overcome their fear of speaking in public and build self-confidence in their skills they learned in class. Some were surprised to find out that they were not alone in their anxiety. Public Speaking is the number one fear for most adults and is one of the main factors holding people back from achieving the success they desire in their field of employment. Most people have a fight or flight feeling going on inside when they are asked to give a presentation in front of a group. If at all possible, many people will avoid the opportunity to speak in public, just like running away. But, on those occasions that they are unable to reject the request, they are anxiety ridden and they feel forced to fight their greatest fear. This is where the Fearless Presentations Workshop can offer the help they need to overcome that debilitating situation. The participants are given powerful insights and skills that they can learn to overcome that fear. So, If you are ready to do something about overcoming the anxiety with speaking in pubic or giving presentations, go to the FearlessPresentations.com and locate a class that will be coming to your area and sign up for a class.

Social Speech Podcast with Rob Cottingham

Ian — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 19:32:09 +0000

I was recently interviewed by Vancouver-based social media and organizational strategy expert Rob Cottingham. Rob’s Social Signal blog is a rich source of information on social media and public speaking and speechwriting. He’s added a podcast series and you can click through and hear our conversation on the ways speechwriters can take advantage of social [...]

Guest Posting: The 5 Best Alternatives to Powerpoint by Joanne Westley

Ian — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 16:06:56 +0000

Joanne Westley is a senior manager in the supply chain of the UK’s Jansen Display. In her spare time Joanne likes to go mountain biking as well as hiking in the Lake District. Presentations are stressful, and PowerPoint can make them even more so. Will the computer read your USB stick? Will the version of [...]

Interview – Cynthia Klein: Speaker, Educator, Author

Ian — Mon, 09 Apr 2012 16:17:12 +0000

Since 1994, Cynthia Klein has been guiding parents to creating happy and healthy families. As a speaker to over three hundred groups, Cynthia has given parents the tools and confidence to improve their family dynamics. Her presentations are interactive, highly visual and easy for parents to apply to their own family situations. Parents leave encouraged [...]

PowerPoint Tip Video-Use Pictures Properly to Better Explain Your Presentation

Doug Staneart — Tue, 03 Apr 2012 15:33:29 +0000

PowerPoint Tip Video: Use Pictures Properly to Better Explain Your Presentation

This is PowerPoint Tip #6 of Ten in the PowerPoint Tip Video Series. Pictures can add a lot of clarity to your presentation, but only when we use them properly. Pictures just for decoration sake can add confusion, but remember that a picture is “worth a thousand words,” so an appropriate picture at the correct time can make your words even more clear. This video gives a number of tips related to adding pictures and other visual aids to your PowerPoint Slideshows to make the presentations easier to understand and easier to deliver.

For additional PowerPoint Tips, access our online Video Seminar, How to Do a PowerPoint which gives you all ten videos as well as written tips that will help you design and deliver better presentations.

Participants in Public Speaking Deliver Compelling, Multilayer Presentations in San Diego, California

chrismcneany — Mon, 02 Apr 2012 16:28:34 +0000

Public speaking class in San Diego helps participants deliver compelling, multi-layered presentations in San Diego, California. The Leader’s Institute® conducted its two-day public speaking class in San Diego on March 6-7 to an enthusiastic group of 5 participants.

At first, some of the participants were reluctant to get up in front of the group and speak because of public speaking anxiety. Through the careful coaching by a Leader’s Institute® instructor, participants capitalized on their strengths and became more confident speakers as the class progressed. By the end of the second day, the class members surprised themselves by their ability to deliver presentations layered with stories, analogies, and demonstrations. Each participant receives a video copy of their presentation after the class is done, so they can see their progress.

The Leader’s Institute® holds its two-day Fearless Presentations® class in San Diego, California and across the U.S. and Canada. Whether you are looking to reduce the anxiety that comes with public speaking, or just make your presentations better, this public speaking class is for you.

Participants in Miami, Florida Fearless Presentations Class Learn the Importance of Connecting with Your Audience

robjackson — Mon, 02 Apr 2012 16:13:28 +0000

Participants in the Miami, Florida Fearless Presentations Public Speaking Class Learn the Importance of Connecting with Your Audience when delivering presentations. We had seven people attend the presentation skills class in Miami, and we focused on, not only reducing public speaking fear, but also effective ways to really connect with your audience. The connection begins with the way that you carry yourself when you walk to the front of the room, the introduction that you use to capture attention, the stories and examples that you use to help turn facts and numbers into real-life events for your audience, and the energy that you have when you deliver. This step-by-step process allows for a better connection with the audience.

One of the biggest struggles with any new speaker is that they concentrate on themselves so much that they don’t do a good job of Connecting with their audience. To be a successful communicator, you must learn to connect. Connecting is the ability to identify with people and relate to them in such a way that establishes a positive rapport. When you are trying to persuade your audience to take action, change their mindset, or even purchase your product…connecting is everything. It’s the difference between just communicating and communicating effectively. According to the Harvard Business Review, “The number one criteria for advancement and promotion for professionals is an ability to communicate effectively. When giving an effective speech, it means connecting. Three years ago, I sat through a presentation, given by a very bright speaker. He had a lot of very good information to share with the audience, but failed to ever connect with them. At the end of the speech, the speaker made a call to action and the audience just sat there in awkward silence. Even though the information was good, they hadn’t developed enough trust in him to take the action he wanted of them. He learned the lesson the hard way about the importance of connecting. So, understand that it’s not only about the information; it’s also about developing a positive rapport and making a connection with the audience.

Guest Posting: The Power of Intention by Kate Peters

Ian — Sat, 31 Mar 2012 19:17:56 +0000

Kate Peters has taught voice and communication impact for over 30 years, and is the author of the book, Can You Hear Me Now? In addition, she has been the communications trainer for many successful business clients, a featured speaker with many organizations, and a guest on the KNX Business Hour, as well as on [...]

Participants in Columbus, Ohio learn to be Clear and Concise in the Fearless Presentations Class

robjackson — Tue, 27 Mar 2012 16:31:26 +0000

Participants in the Columbus, Ohio Fearless Presentations class learned the value and effectiveness of being clear and concise when speaking in front of a group. Many people feel like they need to share everything they know about the topic they are speaking on, when all they need to do is say just enough to persuade their audience to take they action that they are recommending. Sometimes, we can talk so much about a topic that the audience is turned off or may become bored by hearing to much about the subject. In surfing, there is a phrase of “kicking out of the wave”. In refers to when a surfer has ridden the wave as far as they can before making a real effort to ride the wave all the way to the beach. Once the wave closes out, a surfer can continue to ride the froth of the wave, but it takes a lot of effort. If they want to catch another wave, the best thing they can do is kick out of the wave once they have reached the end of the wave and paddle out and catch another. The same is true with giving an effective presentation. The speaker needs to say just enough to persuade their audience, but not so much to lose the attention of their audience. The Fearless Presentations class is extremely effective in helping their participants to organize their presentations to be highly persuasive while not saying too much. Go to www.fearlesspresentations.com and sign up for a class today.

Book Review: 10 Steps to Writing a Vital Speech, by Fletcher Dean

Ian — Wed, 21 Mar 2012 19:04:17 +0000

10 Steps to Writing a Vital Speech: The Definitive Guide to Professional Speechwriting, by Fletcher Dean Fletcher Dean is a working speechwriter at the Dow Chemical Company where he is Director of Leadership Communications. He’s also a regular presenter at the Ragan Speechwriters Conference and delivered a half-day workshop at the 2012 event on How [...]

Justina Chen: The Heart of Storytelling

Ian — Tue, 20 Mar 2012 02:14:29 +0000

This is one of the longest blog postings I’ve done on a single presentation. I believe that there was sufficient content in Justina Chen’s keynote to justify the cost of attending the entire 2012 Ragan Speechwriters Conference. In a spectacular closing keynote at the 2012 Ragan Speechwriters Conference, Justina Chen celebrated The Heart of Storytelling. [...]

138 Top Tweets from the 2012 Ragan Speechwriters Conference

Ian — Sat, 17 Mar 2012 23:51:07 +0000

The annual Ragan Speechwriters Conference was held March 14 – 16, 2012 at the Mayflower Hotel in Washington DC. Over 200 professional speechwriters met for two days and attended a series of main stage keynotes and break out sessions. Unlike other Ragan Conferences I’ve attended, where I had to select a small number of “top [...]

Video: 2012 Ragan Speechwriting Conference

Ian — Sat, 17 Mar 2012 18:27:19 +0000

From first-time attendees to 10-year veterans, attendees at the 2012 Ragan Speechwriters Conference were uniformly impressed with the event. Hear what a random baker’s dozen of the audience had to say.

16 Tips from Top Speechwriters

Ian — Fri, 16 Mar 2012 23:12:16 +0000

The final day of the 2012 Ragan Speechwriters Conference ended with a Speechwriter’s Survival Guide Panel session: Caryn Alagno (CA), SVP, Corporate Issues at Edleman Mike Long (ML), Freelance Speechwriter Colin Moorehouse (CM), Freelance Speechwriter David Murray (DM), editor of Vital Speeches of the Day Pete Weissman (PW), Freelance Communications Strategist and Speechwriter Fletcher Dean, [...]

Presidential Speechwriters call for more discipline by candidates

Ian — Fri, 16 Mar 2012 03:13:39 +0000

The first day of the 2012 Ragan Speechwriters Conference at the Mayflower Hotel in Washington DC concluded with a blue-ribbon panel of former Presidential speechwriters (from both parties) calling for more discipline on the part of contenders for the USA’s highest office. George H.W. Bush speechwriter Chriss Winston said Republican candidates are focused too much [...]

Cicero Speechwriting Award Winner: Choosing the Gun, General Peter van Uhm

Ian — Fri, 16 Mar 2012 01:57:17 +0000

Congratulations to Annelies Breedveld for winning the 2012 Cicero Speechwriting Award with her wonderfully crafted speech for General Peter van Uhm, Chief of Defense for The Netherlands “Choosing the Gun” “I do not stand here today to tell you about the glory of weapons. I do not like guns, and once you have been under [...]

The 2012 Ragan Speechwriters Conference

Ian — Mon, 12 Mar 2012 18:07:49 +0000

I’m off this week to the 2012 Ragan Speechwriters Conference in Washington DC. It’ll be my fourth conference and the second one at which I’ve presented. As in 2009, I’ll be podcasting interviews with attendees and presenters and grabbing some video with my Flip video camera to post to YouTube. It all fits with the [...]

Interview: Rod Dunican – Wikipedia expert

Ian — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 21:15:41 +0000

Rod Dunican is an accomplished senior manager and trainer, whose entire career has been centered on delivering exceptional results with a positive, “can do” attitude. With more than 25 years of experience, Rod shares his thirst for learning, managing and personal growth to help individuals and organizations thrive. Professionally, he has served in the roles [...]

Guest Posting: Three Ways to Find a Voice Coach by Sarah Stockton

Ian — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 19:36:40 +0000

You’ve always heard you have a way with voices. You make all your friends and family laugh with the crazy characters you play. Or maybe you’ve been told you have an excellent speaking voice. You don’t need a voice coach. You’re ready to embark on a career as a voice actor now. Or are you? [...]

Avoid Overuse of Animation in PowerPoint Presentations (Video)

Doug Staneart — Fri, 24 Feb 2012 16:14:24 +0000

Free PowerPoint Tip #4: Avoid Overuse of Animation in PowerPoint Slides

PowerPoint will do some really cool types of animation, but remember that if you animate something, it should help you clarify your point. Bullet points that fly in, spin around, make sounds, and blink are just a distraction from your message. For the most part, the animation called “appear” should be your most frequently used. If you want your audience to follow you step-by-step, you can reveal your bullets one at a time. However, you’ll have more energy as a presenter if you just make your slide appear and physically move to your screen and point to your bullet point when you talk about it. You become the animation versus using the slideshow.

Don’t Eliminate Animation Entirely

Keep in mind that we are not suggesting that you eliminate animation entirely. If you do, you’ll be missing out on a great advantage of PowerPoint. A good graphic that is short and eye-catching (and that helps clarify your point) at the appropriate time can be very helpful and add some fun to the presentation. But if you rely heavily on animation to make your point for you, the PowerPoint Presentation will become the presentation, not the presenter.

Avoid overuse of animation in your PowerPoint Presentations.

Participants in Presentation Skills class in Seattle, Washington Transform Into Confident, Anxiety-free Presenters

chrismcneany — Fri, 24 Feb 2012 15:55:21 +0000

Fearless Presentations class in Seattle transforms participants into confident, anxiety-free presenters. The Leader’s Institute® didn’t let the overcast weather bring down the mood for its Fearless Presentations® class in Seattle, Washington February 14-15.

A few of the participants were so nervous when they had to speak that they had the shaky hands, sweaty palms, and other physical symptoms of nervousness. By the end of the two-day Fearless Presentations® class, they had gotten rid of their nervousness and couldn’t wait to deliver their final presentations. One of the participants literally told the class to “watch out” for her final presentation. Now that’s confidence! In addition to overcoming the fear of public speaking, participants were able to incorporate stories and examples into their presentations to make them more compelling and memorable.

In addition to traveling back to Seattle, Washington in August for its Fearless Presentations® public speaking class, the Leader’s Institute® offers the class year round throughout the United States. It is simply the best way to become a better, more engaging public speaker.

Reduce the Data on Your PowerPoint Slides-Video PowerPoint Tip

Doug Staneart — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 06:25:48 +0000

Reduce the Data on Your PowerPoint Slides-Video PowerPoint Tip

Too Much Data on Your PowerPoint Slides: Your PowerPoint slide deck should be a visual aid to help you explain your point, so if you put too much data on a slide (too much text, too many numbers, or charts and graphs – gasp – Is he saying we can’t use charts and graphs?) you will overwhelm you audience and cause them to attempt to draw their own conclusions about the data.

Your PowerPoint slide should convey a simple concept at a glance.

A good rule is what we call 6X6, which means to limit your number of words per line to six and limit your number of lines to about six as well. That way, no matter how big or small your room is, your audience will be able to read your data, and it will be easy for the audience to instantly understand the concept you are communicating.

Memorable Fearless Presentations Workshop follows the Super Bowl in Indianapolis, Indiana

robjackson — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 06:17:27 +0000

The Super Bowl wasn’t the only important event in Indianapolis, Indiana. The Leaders Institute held another Public Speaking Workshop right after the historic game. The people attending the workshop realized that they had a lot in common with the football players. They learned that it takes practice to be great at anything involving skill. Just as football players practice non-stop to be great at their sport, so do great public speakers. The only way to have confidence in your skills as a great presenter is to practice those skills very regularly until you have the boldness and confidence that those players did as they stepped on the field for the most important game of their career. Many times people are assigned an important presentation that will make or break their career. In those situations, you need two important things, a good coach and a whole lot of practice. The Leaders Institute Instructors have conducted hundreds of workshops and had thousands of people successfully develop the skills and confidence to deliver a game winning touchdown of a presentation. With the help of a professional instructor, participants learn to overcome anxiety and design a highly impactful and engaging presentation.

So, get off the bench and get in the game and attend one of Fearless Presentation Workshops held all over the country. You can find a location near you by going to FearlessPresentations.com .

Public Speaking class in San Francisco allows participants to overcome the fear of public speaking

chrismcneany — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 06:12:21 +0000

Public Speaking class in San Francisco allows participants to overcome the fear of public speaking through. The Leader’s Institute® conducted its Fearless Presentations® public speaking class to a small but mighty group of people who started off shy and ended up bold and engaging public speakers.

The participants in this class wanted to overcome the fear of public speaking and all the problems that come with it: the shaky voice, butterflies in the stomach, and shallow breathing that happens as a result of nervousness. By repeatedly getting up in front of the class under the coaching of a certified instructor with The Leader’s Institute®, the participants were able to get rid of their nervous jitters and become confident speakers.

The Leader’s Institute® regularly comes to San Francisco, California for its public speaking class, in addition to cities across the U.S. year round.

People Make A Difference: Danny Brassell interview

Ian — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 01:07:22 +0000

I was interviewed earlier today on the “People Make a Difference” show hosted by Danny Brassell from California State University, Dominguez Hills that showcases the positive contributions of people in various communities . I met Danny in late 2011 at a National Speakers Northern California Chapter event and he invited me to be a guest [...]

Eliminate Death by PowerPoint (Public Speaking Tip Video)

Doug Staneart — Sun, 12 Feb 2012 00:23:10 +0000

New PowerPoint Tip Video

Eliminate Death by PowerPoint is a new public speaking tip video in our PowerPoint Tip series. This is video #2.

Too many PowerPoint slides cause the audience to be bored and lose interest, so remember that in public speaking visual aids, less is more. Reduce the number of slides in your slide deck and create more of a conversation with your audience. Give more examples and analogies, and better explain the content of your main bullet points for a better presentation.

Creating too many slides and using them as a crutch to make sure that we don’t forget anything in our presentation sounds like a good idea when we start designing, our presentation, but in reality, it is a really, really big mistake. Oddly enough, this mistake most often occurs because we make the first mistake. (See PowerPoint Mistake #1 Designing the Slideshow First) Slide… Click… Slide… Click… Slide… Click… is a very boring way to deliver a presentation and makes the presenter look unprepared and uninformed about his/her topic. Only add a slide if the slide helps you better clarify your point.

Participants in the Detroit Fearless Presentations Public Speaking Class Learn about the Importance of Making Good Eye Contact

robjackson — Sat, 11 Feb 2012 22:55:11 +0000

Participants in the Detroit Fearless Presentations Public Speaking Class Learn about the Importance of Making Good Eye Contact and Smiling at the Audience. Many times, people who have some nervousness in public speaking don’t make good eye contact with the people in the audience. This is one of the biggest mistakes that you can make as a public speaker. Good eye contact is vitally important in developing a positive rapport with the people who are listening to you presentation. The key to overcoming the fear of having good eye contact is to look for the smiling faces in the crowd who are giving you positive feedback with their smiles and nodding heads. When we focus on the people who are truly engaged in our presentations, it takes away the nervousness that we often feel inside when we speak in public or do a big presentation.

What happens if No-One is smiling…Smile at them!! Usually the reason no one smiles during a person’s speech is that the speech is low energy and to serious. The best thing that a speaker can do is smile at their audience and they will find that they will smile back. It’s a natural human response.

So the next time that you start to feel the fear of public speaking start to sneak up on you while you’re giving a presentation , remember to smile at your audience and keep good eye contact with them.

For more help with this challenge and overcoming the fear of Public Speaking go to www.fearlesspresentations.com

The Atlanta Fearless Presentations Class Learns How to Handle Adversarial Questions

robjackson — Sat, 11 Feb 2012 22:50:48 +0000

Atlanta, Georgia — Participants in the Atlanta Fearless Presentations public speaking class Learn How to Handle Adversarial Questions. Every once in a while, someone will try to purposely trip you up in a presentation by asking a question that’s main intent is to make you look bad or show that you don’t know what you’re talking about. This is one of the reasons that people develop a fear of speaking in public or give a presentation. Usually, they are just having a bad day and want to take it out on someone, but we have to understand that as an effective speaker, we need to stay in control. It is human to respond to these types of attacks with a negative reaction, but this will destroy the rapport that you have spent your entire presentation building. So the most important thing you need to do is stay calm and never attack back!! Always respond back in a positive manner so that it will keep control of the situation and keep the audience on your side. If the person continues to attack, almost always, someone from your audience will come to your aide and tell the person to just keep quiet and listen to the presentation. But, this will not happen if you attach back or say something condescending to the rabble rouser.

So, if this ever happens to you while giving a speech, always remember to kill them with kindness and remember to never fight back. Keep control of your presentation and keep it positive.

For more help with this chalenge and overcoming the fear of Public Speaking go to www.fearlesspresentations.com

Interview: Timothy Tosta – transformative listener

Ian — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 01:30:55 +0000

Timothy Tosta is a cancer survivor, a seasoned hospice volunteer and a widely acclaimed speaker and lecturer. He is the author of two books and a featured columnist of the Daily Journal, California’s leading daily legal newspaper. Tim is an executive coach to legal and business communities. He also is recognized as one of California’s [...]

Urban Life in Modern China: rush-rush to crush-crush

Ian — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 14:33:31 +0000

In 1985, controversial French sociologist Michel Maffesoli created the term “urban tribe” to describe groups of people who share common interests. The current issue of The Economist has a fascinating article about the subdivisions of urban China into various improbably named tribes (or zu in Mandarin). These include: Yi zu, or ant tribe—recent graduates from [...]

What is the Most Embarrassing Thing that has Ever Happened to You or Someone Else in a Presentation?

Doug Staneart — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 22:27:51 +0000

What is the Most Embarrassing Thing that has Ever Happened to You or Someone Else in a Presentation? We’ve ll had those hiccups in presentation delivery where we either just freeze, or a visual aid malfunctions, or we prepare an hour-long speech and are told just before we start that our available time has dropped to 25 minutes. These glitches can cause embarrassment, but they are also fantastic opportunities to shine. What was your most embarrassing presentation moment, and if you recovered… how did you do it?

The Fearless Presentations Workshop in Washington DC was Another Total Success

robjackson — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 22:01:23 +0000

The Fearless Presentations Workshop in Washington DC was another total success. The class was full of determined individuals wanting to improve their presentations and public speaking skills. The quality of the instruction was equaled to the efforts of the attendees. The overwhelming consensus of the people was that they felt like the class greatly reduced their anxiety for speaking in front of groups. Also the instruction of how to design a presentation with the audience in mind was very helpful in preparing very effect presentations. Washington DC is known for their incredible orators…you can add another 13 to the list. The improvement was very evident from the group from the beginning to the end.

Participants in the Fearless Presentations class in Phoenix, Arizona Eliminate Fear of Public Speaking

chrismcneany — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 21:24:45 +0000

Fearless Presentations® class in Phoenix, Arizona helps participants become more confident speakers. Many of the participants in the class experienced a fear of public speaking and nervousness that was holding them back in their careers.

In the Fearless Presentations® class, participants are able to overcome the fear of public speaking by immediately practicing the exercises that the instructor explains. By no means is this a passive, lecture-based class. Participants spend more time out of their seats than in their seats! When they leave the class, they feel more confident not only about speaking in front of a group, but also about the future of their careers.

Phoenix, Arizona is just one of the cities the Fearless Presentations® class comes to in the U.S. throughout the year. Participants are guaranteed to reduce their nervousness and improve their public speaking skills.

Relevant Resources: Books to Kick Off 2012

Ian — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 23:16:12 +0000

I help edit SPEAKER Magazine for the National Speakers Association (NSA). Each month I curate the Relevant Resources column – a list of time-saving tools and technologies. The January/February edition lists books recommended by NSA members as inspiration for the New Year. Go Ahead and Laugh: A Serious Guide to Speaking with Humor, by Rich [...]

Manufacturing Industry: China will win, hands down

Ian — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 14:11:12 +0000

I download podcasts and listen to them on my drive to work. Today, driving my 16-year-old car which has any number of replacement auto parts keeping it on the road, listening to a 3-year-old Apple iPod, I heard two stories which described how electronics and auto parts are manufactured in China and America. Apart a [...]

PowerPoint is a Visual Aid Not the Presentation

Doug Staneart — Sun, 15 Jan 2012 22:55:31 +0000

This video is a first in a series of PowerPoint Tips to help viewers more quickly and easily design and deliver PowerPoint Presentations. Tip #1 is that PowerPoint is a Visual Aid, Not the Actual Presentation. Most people start designing their speech by creating their slideshow, but that is backwards. If you design your presentation first, it is more easy now to design slides that help explain or prove the points in your presentation. If you design the slideshow first, you are likely to use Powerpoint as a crutch which increases nervousness and increases the chances that you will actually forget something or lose your audience along the way.

Pre-Holiday Public Speaking Workshop in Chicago Illinois Helps 9 People become Fearless

robjackson — Sun, 15 Jan 2012 22:49:39 +0000

While many people are thinking about buying presents and preparing for the holiday season, the 9 people who attended the Fearless Presentations Public Speaking Workshop prepared for a more successful future by improving their public speaking skills. They came from as far away as Paris, France to Chicago, Illinois, with a common goal — overcome their fear of speaking in public and learn a more effective way to deliver presentations. Mission accomplished. Everyone experienced major improvement in the increased confidence in their newly developed skills in public speaking. They each got up in front of the group and delivered five well thought out and delivered presentations. The Fearless Presentations Public Speaking Workshop is centered on the philosophy is that we have to have right attitude to develop a new skill, we must learn the proper techniques to be a great presenter, and to practice the new skills. But, participants found that the biggest difference between this workshop and others they have attended was the Real Time Coaching performed by one of the Leaders Institute’s qualified and experienced instructors.

Don’t miss out on your opportunity to improve your ability to communicate by signing up for one of the Fearless Presentations Workshops in your city, or one close by.

Guest Posting: Worst Brand Name Award of 2011, by Alexandra Watkins

Ian — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 14:36:28 +0000

Alexandra Watkins is the Founder & Chief Innovation Officer at Eat My Words, a San Francisco based creative naming agency known for creating unforgettable brand names. The following post originally appeared in her blog and is reposted here with her express permission. Announcing the most frightful brand name of 2011… the Head Scratcher of the [...]

Interview: Larry Dodd – Change Agent

Ian — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 16:44:02 +0000

Larry Dodd is a proven financial leader, consultant and trainer who applies an innovative, people-centered approach that helps the teams that he serves turn problems into business opportunities. His professional career includes CFO roles with Robert Half’s CFO Services (consulting); Signature Properties and Meritage Homes. His client experience ranges from startups to established companies with [...]

Revealed! The Productivity Secrets of Laura Stack

Ian — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 20:39:55 +0000

Laura Stack is a personal productivity expert, author, and professional speaker. Her mission is to build high-performance productivity cultures in organizations by creating Maximum Results in Minimum Time®. She is the president of The Productivity Pro®, Inc., a time management training firm, specializing in productivity improvement in high-stress organizations as well as the current president [...]

RECOMMENDED: Death By PowerPoint, by Alexei Kapterev

Ian — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 19:36:53 +0000

I’ve just come across Alexei Kapterev’s 2007 slideshare presentation that has attracted over a million hits. Take a look: Death by PowerPoint View more presentations from Alexei Kapterev Kapterev will be presenting on February 23, 2012 at the UK Speechwriters’ Guild London Spring Conference.

VIDEO: Creative challenges for the Holidays

Ian — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 23:20:49 +0000

Here’s wishing everyone a Happy Holiday with the sincere wish that clients or managers at work don’t try your patience in the ways shown in these two hilarious videos. Do either of these creative challenges resonate with you? Viewpoint Creative – Holiday Card from Viewpoint Creative on Vimeo.

Three Ways to Spice Up Your Business PowerPoint Presentations

Doug Staneart — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 22:50:51 +0000

Business PowerPoint Presentations have changed a lot in the last ten years, but some of the best presentation secrets have been around for a while. Almost 25 years ago I was given a little book published in the 1950’s. It was entitled, “Public Speaking as the Audience Likes It”. I don’t remember much of the contents, but I do remember the point- when you are preparing to make a presentation, consider the audience and think about the best way to present your material so they will enjoy the experience and remember the valuable material. So here 3 things you need to know to help you relate to your audience when you design a business PowerPoint presentation.

Consider Your Audience

Before you start to design a business presentation, spend some time thinking about those who are going to receive your message. What do they have in common? What do you know about who they are? What do they feel? What experiences have they had? Where are they coming from? Consider, from the audience’s perspective- what is so important about what I have to say? Why should they listen? How will they benefit? And how can I help them enjoy the experience?

Too often we begin our preparation thinking about what we want and need to say. We think about major point and what information we need them to assimilate or remember. We think about our responsibility, and if we have any fear or trepidation about being in front of people, we just wish it were over and prepare the message without much thought given to the audience.

That last line is too much too true. We prepare the message without much thought given to the audience. We think about the message, what we want to say and how we are best going to say it; we prepare our PowerPoint slides hoping that will “wow” the audience into valuing the material. We remember the KISS method of presentations and we keep is simple, stupid. Maybe we remember the old adage, stand up, speak up, shut up, sit down. Fun little sayings, but not much help.

First in your PowerPoint preparation is to consider the audience and the best way to communicate with them. Think about the specific people, the demographics, commonalities, idiosyncrasies; examine them from every angle you can. Also consider your venue- where you will be making your presentation. Will you be on a stage with people seated in front of you; will you be on the same level as your audience; will they be at tables, round or square; will you use a microphone- hand held, lapel, or stationary; what kind of interaction can I facilitate, and the list goes on based on your own experience and creativity. But always consider your audience; it will influence the rest of your presentation.

Second- Involve the Audience

The days of getting up and speaking and then sitting down have past. We live in an age of reality TV in which we get to vote on the results, interactive games on the computer and via game modems, we have unlimited accessibility through cell phones, email and texting. People are not used to sitting back and just listening, the presenter must get them involved. So you have considered your audience, and you know your message, now how do you get the audience involved?

It is more than asking questions and showing slides, it is putting something in their hands, it is incorporating movement, it is using as many of their senses as possible to get them and keep them involved.

Nearly every book on public speaking skills written within the last 15 years has a section on telling stories, but don’t just tell a story, show it. If you were riding a bike, then show it; if you were going over something, show it; if you were involved in a heated conversation, show it; if you were throwing a ball, show- never just tell a story, but show it, use gestures and plenty of them.

Are you talking about something, an object, show it, better yet, if possible give everyone a sample. If you are talking about something with an aroma, then work the smell into your presentation, use a candle, home baked cookies, incense, whatever it takes. Perhaps it is a sound, a firecracker, jet engine, ocean waves- find a way to duplicate it for your audience’s aural stimulation. Perhaps it is a taste, give them something to remind them of the taste, a candy bar; a drink; ice cream- be creative. Maybe it is a texture- then give them something to feel, sandpaper, a piece of cloth, a rock, use your imagination, but incorporate some type of extra sensory experience for your audience to participate with you in the presentation. Be creative and push the envelope. (Some things I have done- handed out ice cream, given latex gloves and pens so the audience could take notes on their hands (five points-five fingers), lit incense prior so the room would smell like pine trees, given out hotel size soaps; spoken in a Santa Claus suit and a guerrilla outfit; given the participants small craft packages to built a boat made out of wooden ice cream spoons a toothpick and a piece of cloth, given out colored pipe cleaners for participants to fashion antennas… the ideas are as limitless as your imagination. Do it- get your audience involved.

Third- Be Concise in Your Closing

Once you had delivered the main thrust of your PowerPoint presentation and have involved the audience, leave them wanting more. Be concise in your closing remarks. Highlight the high points and then be on your way. Too many speakers close with their main points but continue to drag on thinking that re and re-emphasizing will make the message stick. When it is time to end, then end. Don’t keep re-covering the topics and never introduce new material. If you have considered the audience, gotten them involved, then you can make a quick recap and let their involvement continue to speak after you have stopped.

Besides giving thoughtful consideration to your messages, these are three ideas to help your presentation be powerful and memorable- first, consider the audience; second, involve the audience; and third- make your closing concise.

Participates in New York Public Speaking Workshop See How Personalities Help or Hurt Presentations

robjackson — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 20:28:46 +0000

Participates of the Fearless Presentations public speaking workshop got to enjoy the fun of shopping in Manhattan, New York during the holiday season as well as strengthen their confidence in their ability to speak with confidence. One of the Gifts that they received in the workshop was an understanding of how their personalities are their greatest strength as well as their weakness when delivering a speech. Regardless of someone’s personality, the key is to overcome the fear of speaking in public first. Once the anxiety is overcome, people with outgoing personalities have the strength of sharing their presentations with passion and enthusiasm, while the introverted people will usually use facts and data to get their points across. An extrovert could benefit from including more evidence with their presentations, while the introvert will benefit by delivering their presentations with a little more enthusiasm and excitement.

Make sure to sign up for the Fearless Public Speaking Workshop next time it’s in New York in Early 2012 by going to www.FearlessPresentations.com .

Participants of Presentations Skills Class in Dallas Texas Deliver Concise and Compelling Presentations

chrismcneany — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 17:22:59 +0000

Presentation skills class in Dallas, Texas November 17-18 provided a great opportunity for participants to deliver concise, compelling presentations.

The Leader’s Institute® held its two-day presentation skills class in Dallas, Texas with a very energetic and enthusiastic group. Participants were able to get rid of the fear of public speaking and deliver dynamic, engaging presentations. By the end of the second day, each participant delivered their presentations with ease by learning how to use a clear, easy-to-follow structure. They were able to design these presentations in 15 minutes or less! Then they added more flavor to them, by incorporating stories, analogies, demonstrations, and audience participation questions.

The Leader’s Institute® offers more than just a presentation skills class. It’s truly a life-changing experience! Classes are offered approximately every 3 months in Dallas, Texas and across the U.S.

Book Review: The Wall Street Journal Guide to Information Graphics, by Dona M. Wong

Ian — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 22:16:51 +0000

Dona M. Wong’s slim volume is a beautifully printed guide to “The Do’s and Don’ts of Presenting Data, Facts, and Figures”. As a former graphics director at the WSJ she set standards that made sense of complex data for readers. As a student of well-known PowerPoint critic Edward Tufte she takes the theories of the [...]

Guest Posting: Write Like A Pro, by Carey C. Giudici

Ian — Tue, 13 Dec 2011 16:17:53 +0000

Carey C. Giudici is an award-winning journalist, poet and essayist who has decades of experience using extraordinary language to help individuals, businesses and communities tap into all of their resources and insights. This posting is an adapted version of one of six blog posts entitled “Write Like A Pro.” The series, along with a number [...]

Book Review: You Talkin’ To Me? by Sam Leith

Ian — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 14:23:14 +0000

They say to never judge a book by its cover. One can only hope that Sam Leith’s book on rhetoric, You Talkin’ to Me, rises above the graphic design disaster of its open-mouthed, red-lipped cover. It richly deserves to. Leith’s book is, in fact, a magnificently entertaining romp through the intricacies of classic rhetorical technique [...]

Relevant Resources: Holiday Gifts

Ian — Sun, 11 Dec 2011 02:26:16 +0000

I help edit SPEAKER Magazine for the National Speakers Association (NSA). Each month I curate the Relevant Resources column – a list of time-saving tools and technologies. The December edition listed a variety of gifts suitable for clients, speakers’ bureau contacts, colleagues, friends and loved ones. Whether the recipient is a foodie, science geek, chocolate [...]

VIDEO-Design Your Presentation Based on Your Audience

Doug Staneart — Tue, 29 Nov 2011 16:53:50 +0000

When you write a presentation or design a PowerPoint slideshow, make sure and think of your audience first. This public speaking video gives tips on how to write a speech better by considering the wants and needs of your audience first. When your audience changes, your presentation should also change. When your audience changes, your PowerPoint slideshow also needs to change. Consider your audience, and you are much more likely to have a success delivering your presentation.

This presentation skills video is one part of a three-part video series that helps presenters design presentations more quickly and easily. Subscribe to our feed or LIKE us on Facebook to receive additional tips in this series.

Fearless Presentations Public Speaking Workshop comes back to Sunny Miami Florida

robjackson — Tue, 29 Nov 2011 16:40:07 +0000

Another successful Fearless Presentation Public Speaking Workshop was completed in sunny Miami on November 15 and 16th 2011. The participants met at a beachside hotel to improve their presentation speaking skills. It was once again, as usual for Miami, a multi-national that had two goals in mind, to overcome their anxiety for speaking in public and to learn to design and deliver a more effective presentation. Countries like Croatia, St. Thomas Virgin Islands, and Canada, as several people from the United States participated in a two-day presentations course. The one thing that they all learned is that the fear of public speaking is universal, but something we can all do if we understand that public speaking is a skill that can be developed and mastered. The class saw significant improvement at the end of the second day felt much more confident with their ability to speak clearly and concisely. Fearless Presentations will be back in Miami in February of 2012, make sure to sign up today and take the next step to improving your public speaking skills.

The Fearless Presentations Public Speaking Workshop returns to Historic Boston Massachusetts.

robjackson — Tue, 29 Nov 2011 16:35:32 +0000

The Fearless Presentations Public Speaking Workshop returns to Historic Boston Massachusetts. Just as Paul Revere was able to ride up and down the streets of Boston yelling, “The British are coming, the British are coming,” with confidence and conviction, the participates in the Fearless Presentations class were able to speak with the same confidence after the went through the World Renowned Public Speaking Workshop put on by The Leaders Institute. The group learned 10 ways they could reduce the Anxiety that they, and most people feel before giving a presentation. It was another highly successful two days of building the skills necessary to have poise and confidence in public speaking. Don’t miss out on the next workshop in Boston in early 2012.

Interview: Manuela Pauer – Life Coach

Ian — Mon, 28 Nov 2011 14:14:38 +0000

Manuela Pauer, CPCC is a Certified Professional Coach and workshop leader. She is an authority in personal leadership and self empowerment. She works with clients who are stuck doing what they think they “should” be doing, rather than what they want to be doing. Her specialty is helping people fall in love with themselves so [...]

Infographic: All About Money

Ian — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 22:59:29 +0000

I’ve blogged about ways to represent large numbers that uses images of a trillion dollars stacked on pallets. Now, thanks to Kostas, my financial adviser, here’s a fascinating chart that’s all about money. To view, be sure to click on the ‘+’ symbol in the upper left of the screen a few times until you [...]

YMCA of the USA includes Adding Impact to Presentations breakout session at their annual conference in Chicago, IL

ellenpatnaude — Tue, 22 Nov 2011 04:55:37 +0000

I had a great time in Chicago recently with more than 60 staff from the YMCA of the USA offices from around the country as they held their annual conference, which included a breakout session workshop on Adding Impact to Presentations. The YMCA of the USA is the national organization that umbrellas the YMCA branches found in more than 10,000 communities across the US. This organization has been around for 160 years and serves millions of children and families every year. As one of our partner recipient organizations for our Build-A-Bike team building workshop, we were excited to have the opportunity to work with the Y in their staff’s development.

With only an hour together, it was a fast-paced workshop from the start! We talked about several powerful presentation skills tools for adding impact to any public speaking situation, and then did two exercises that gave everyone the opportunity to try them out. Storytelling is one of our most powerful tools, and the participants had a great time learning more about each other as they practiced our specific format.

“Everyone loved the presentation skills workshop! It was the first one to fill up when we offered it at registration, and it exceeded everyone’s expectations. Ellen was wonderful to work with before, during and after! We will definitely do this again in the future!” — Jackie Gordon, YMCA of the USA

Even hour-long breakout sessions can prove highly effective for enhancing your team’s presentation skills. The interactive style of workshop gives everyone the chance to try out what they are learning. If you want to give your next conference breakout sessions a boost, consider one of our many presentation skills or team building skills workshops!

Toastmaster Time TV Speech: A Tale of Two Cities

Ian — Sat, 19 Nov 2011 15:36:22 +0000

Earlier this month I spent an evening in the Palo Alto Community TV studios being filmed for the monthly Toastmaster Time TV production. This long-running show features speeches by members of different San Francisco Bay Area Toastmasters clubs. Archived speeches go back to 1997. Delivering a speech in a TV studio I’d given my speech, [...]

Video: Making Presentations Unforgettable – Kim A. Page

Ian — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 01:24:48 +0000

Last week I enjoyed an evening at the SVForum Tech Women’s meeting (men welcome!) hearing a presentation by Kim A. Page on ways to make a presentation unforgettable. Since the early 1990′s, Kim has worked as a consultant and trainer within the areas of communication and innovation for multinational and local organizations. She’s had several [...]

Interview: Paul Larsen – Business consultant

Ian — Fri, 28 Oct 2011 14:20:44 +0000

Paul Larsen is an engaging and inspiring business consultant with over 20 years of experience within the business world. He has a proven track record of success in advancing strategic thought, streamlining operations, driving profits, and maximizing organizational growth and development within Fortune 100, start-up, high-tech, and non-profit environments. Paul realizes that many organizations today [...]

Interview: Paul Larsen – Business consultant

Ian — Fri, 28 Oct 2011 14:20:44 +0000

Public Speaking Tip-Stories and Examples Reduce Public Speaking Fear

Doug Staneart — Thu, 27 Oct 2011 17:33:17 +0000

Stories and Examples Reduce Public Speaking Fear

The fastest and easiest way to eliminate public speaking fear is to insert more examples and stories into your formal presentations or PowerPoint Slideshows. When participants in public speaking classes are first introduced to this technique, many of them will often resist the advice thinking, “My presentations are technical (or numbers oriented or academic) so my audience isn’t really into stories.” When a presenter has this attitude, he/she is missing out on a fantastic opportunity to make their presentations easier to follow and understand, more memorable, and easier to deliver. Your audience not only wants examples, but they also expect examples to help them better understand your content.

Stories Make Presentations Easier to Follow and Easier to Understand

The more technical a presentation, the more vital it is to include stories and examples. A technical presentation without examples is purely theoretical, whereas a technical presentation with examples is extremely practical.

For example, let’s say that I’m delivering a presentation on last quarter’s financials for my company. If I just give the audience the numbers… Last quarter, we had a 15% increase in revenue, but profit was down 1.2%, I’ve given the audience the technical aspects of the presentation, but the audience is likely to be unclear of exactly WHY the numbers came out the way that they did. So in order to give the audience a clearer understanding, I’d need to include the story behind the numbers. What happened to cause the increase in revenue and why did profit suffer?

The presenter could relay the explanation in a story by telling the audience how in the middle of the last quarter, the company invested in some new advertising that finally hit in the last month of the quarter. As a result, for the last few weeks, the phones have been ringing quite a bit more frequently, but not all of the new leads generated from the advertising have closed yet, so profit should return shortly. For example, Chris, one of our telephone sales reps got a lead two weeks ago from Microsoft in which he is in the process of negotiating a big $80,000 contract. He expects that contract to close in the next 10 days. We have another seven pending contracts that should close in the next 30 days as well.

The example clarifies the data and makes it easier for the audience to understand—even if they are unfamiliar with the technical side of the business. You don’t have to be an accountant to understand how the revenue can be up and profit down temporarily if you’ve just listened to the story above.

Stories Make Presentations Easier to Remember

When we give our audience a list of facts, figures, and numbers, most often, the audience will remember only a small percentage of the data that is presented to them. However, when we give the data in a story format, the data becomes much more memorable. For example, year to date, Joe’s closing ratio is 12.3%, Colette’s ratio is 21.7%, and Bill is at 7.5%. The average ratio is 13.83% which 3.8% higher than our 10% goal that we set in January. Many presenters will give lots of data in a format such as this (a list… a chart… a graph), but if we just recite the data and numbers without the context, the figures are very challenging to remember.

So let’s test the theory. Without looking back at the numbers above, who had the highest closing ratio, and what was that ratio? If you were able to remember the number, then congratulations. You are in a vast minority of people. Most people forget numbers the moment that they hear them. Now let’s deliver the numbers in a story format and see if it’s easier to remember.

At the beginning of the year, we set a goal of have a 10% closing ratio for our sales team. One of the ways that we wanted to accomplish this goal was to focus more on repeat business. Colette, who is one of our best sales reps, took this goal to heart, and she has really focused on working with her current customers. For example, last fall, she worked with Jet Blue on a series of contracts that brought in about $50,000 in business in their New York hub. Since they are such a good customer, she started working with them to do similar programs in one more of their hubs in Salt Lake City. As a result, she was able to generate an additional $50,000 on the West Coast last quarter. She increased her personal closing ratio to 21.7% because she is getting multiple contracts off of the same lead.

After reading that story, who is our best sales rep? What was her closing ratio? How much total revenue was she able to generate from Jet Blue? If you were able to correctly answer these questions, you’re now seeing the power of stories.

Stories Reduce Public Speaking Fear

Just as a long list of numbers and statistics is hard for an audience member to remember, it’s equally hard for the presenter to remember. As a result, when we stand up to recite a list of facts, we put tremendous pressure on ourselves in increase nervousness dramatically. However, when we deliver the facts and figures in a story format, the delivery is much easier.

Basically, when we tell a story from our own first-person experience, all we really have to do is play the video tape in our head of what actually happened and just recite it as we remember it. This takes away a lot of the pressure. One of the most dramatic changes that class participants receive when they learn this secret is a dramatic reduction in public speaking fear. In fact, if you can use stories or example to prove or verify your bullet points, you’ll wow your audience and pretty much eliminate your fear of public speaking. It’s a win-win solution to public speaking nervousness.

This is an embarrassing example, but it really shows how this works. I was hired to deliver a keynote speech for an association in Chicago, so on the plane trip into ORD, I wrote out the speech that I’d be delivering a couple hours later. (Since I teach people how to write presentations pretty quickly, this is kind of a normal habit for me.) Well, about three or four minutes before I was introduced, the director of the organization introduced me to the president of the organization and let me know that the meeting would be called to order shortly. He said that he would start with a few points of order, but that I would be introduced shortly after the start of the meeting. As I sat down in my seat, I looked over at the seat next to me, and it had a meeting agenda sitting on it. As I looked down at the agenda, I noticed that it had my name listed as the keynote speaker, but the topic of my speech was total different than the one that I had designed on the plane. My heart dropped, and I started to feel a little dizzy. Panic was just about to hit me, and I paused, thought about the topic, came up with a few tips, and basically wrote the whole speech as I was walking up to the front of the room to deliver it. When the speech was over, I got a standing ovation. What made the speech work, though, was that I reinforced each of the tips with a simple real-life story of how to use it. Every time I completed another story, my nervousness dropped. It worked perfectly, and the audience loved it.
So give examples and stories, and you’ll feel more comfortable and your audience will love you.

VIDEO: Stories Make Your Presentations More Memorable

Doug Staneart — Thu, 27 Oct 2011 16:12:27 +0000

In this public speaking tips video, Rob Jackson, instructor for the Fearless Presentations® Public Speaking Class, shows how when you add stories to your presentations, you make your speeches much more memorable. Audience members will remember statistics and data much easier in your PowerPoint slideshows if you relay the stories behind the numbers. Give your audience the examples that explain the data, and they will remember a lot more of your presentation. Adding stories to your presentation is one of the most important public speaking tip that you’ll ever come across.

VIDEO: Stories Make Your Presentations More Understandable

Doug Staneart — Thu, 27 Oct 2011 15:55:46 +0000

This public speaking skills video helps presenters make their presentations more understandable and easier to follow by adding stories and examples into the structure of their PowerPoint presentation or slideshow. In addition to reducing public speaking fear, stories allow the audience to better picture in their minds exactly what the presenter is trying to communicate. So if you want to improve your public speaking, add stories and examples into your presentations.

Fearless Presentations® Class in Phoenix, Arizona Allows Participants to Overcome the Fear of Public Speaking at The Core Institute

chrismcneany — Thu, 27 Oct 2011 15:46:11 +0000

The Leader’s Institute® held its Fearless Presentations® public speaking class in Phoenix, Arizona, where a group of 15 enthusiastic participants from The Core Institute were able to overcome the fear of public speaking in a 2-day public speaking class.

By getting up in front of the group and practicing the techniques taught by the instructor, The Core Institute participants were able to get rid of the sweaty palms, shaky voice, and other symptoms of nervousness that often come with public speaking. One participant mentioned how much she was dreading the class beforehand, but by the end of the 2-day class, said how much she enjoyed the class! Delivering presentations can truly be fun after eliminating the fear of public speaking.

The Fearless Presentations® class is offered in Phoenix, Arizona and in cities across the United States. The class is also offered on-site to meet a specific company’s needs.

Public Speaking Class in Houston, Texas Helps Participants Become More Effective Public Speakers

chrismcneany — Thu, 27 Oct 2011 15:40:59 +0000

The Leader’s Institute® conducted its public speaking class in Houston, Texas to participants who started out nervous and came out as very effective public speakers!

Since it was a small group, each participant received in-depth one-on-one coaching. They were able to receive invaluable tools to overcome nervousness in public speaking, learn how to persuade an audience, and were given a simple way to design presentations in 15 minutes or less! The Leader’s Institute® conducts public speaking classes regularly in Houston, Texas and throughout cities in the United States. It’s the fastest way to become more effective public speakers, and have a lot of fun in the process!

What can Mickey Mouse Teach You about Public Speaking?

Andrew Dlugan — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 03:28:35 +0000

You probably don’t think there’s much of a comparison between you and Mickey Mouse.

Yet this cultural icon has many lessons for you to improve your effectiveness as a speaker.

In this article, we examine eight key speaking insights that speakers can learn from Disneyland and the entire Disney entertainment empire.

1. Commit to Quality

At Disneyland, there is a total commitment to quality which oozes out everywhere you look. There is obviously quality in the rides and attractions. The costumes are flawless. The light shows in the evening were sublime. The music and sounds throughout the park are superb.

The Speaking Lesson…

Commit to quality in every speaking aspect, whether it be your preparation, your timing, your delivery, your slides, your handouts, or your message. Producing quality isn’t easy — it’s lots of work! But consistent quality, more than anything else, will guarantee applause from your audience and requests for you to speak to them again.

2. Don’t overlook small details

Disneyland doesn’t just do the big things well; they deliver on the small details too.

In five days of walking the park, I saw just three pieces of trash on the ground.
The benches, the walls, the ceilings, and the ride queue areas are all decorated.
There was no cracking paint or rusty metal (except where it was part of the design style).
3-D glasses are custom-designed for each attraction which requires them.
There was not a single power cord to trip over (as in so many amusement parks).

The Speaking Lesson…

It isn’t enough to have a strong message and delivery. The little things are important too, such as:

Make sure you’ve prepared enough copies of your handouts for everyone in attendance.
Arrive early so that you can rearrange the room to improve sight lines.
Thoroughly spell check your slides.
Rehearse until you’ve got your timing down.
Check that you’ve got pens for the white board or flip chart.

“Consistent quality will guarantee applause from your audience and requests for you to speak to them again.”

3. You want a great new idea? Reinvent an old one.

Disney has done well in reinventing old ideas. Many of Disney’s fairy tales have their roots in European folk tales, for example.

Disneyland continues this pattern by continuing to reinvent its own stories. While some of the attractions are fairly literal interpretations of the stories or movies which inspired them, many are fresh reinventions. For example, one of the highlights of our trip was a wonderful stage performance of Alladin. The same basic story was present, but it was wrapped in a modern, musical production.

The Speaking Lesson…

One of the most common laments I hear from speakers is “What do I talk about? Every topic I think up has been done before.” While there are new ideas out there, there is also a rich minefield of old ideas waiting for you to add a fresh spin. You can take a timeless message such as “Never give up on your dreams,” and breathe new life into it by telling it from your unique perspective with your unique stories.

4. Take care of your audience

In several ways, Disneyland is not my kind of place. There are crowds everywhere, lengthy lines await you for every popular attraction, and the hot weather saps your energy.

But… Disneyland has a well-developed set of solutions to lessen the pain of these drawbacks. For example:

Most lineup areas are shaded, and many include things to watch and do while you wait;
After major shows, an army of staffers direct foot traffic away from congestion; and
Disney’s FastPass system offers you a way to avoid lengthy lines altogether.

The Speaking Lesson…

In several ways, listening to speakers is not an ideal environment either. Chairs are usually uncomfortable, rooms are often too hot or cold, lighting conditions are not ideal… the list goes on.

All of these factors drain the energy of your audience and draw their attention away from you and your message. You should do everything in your power to create the best environment possible for your audience, including:

Make sure your venue is an appropriate sized — too small is uncomfortable, too large derails your ability to connect
Do what you can to control distraction factors, like extreme noise, temperature, or bad lighting
Design your slides, sketches, props, or gestures so that everyone can easily get the meaning.

5. Everyone loves a story

There was no single demographic in the crowds of Disneyland. Sure, there’s a large number of families with kids between 5 and 10 years old, but every demographic was represented. Lots of (excited) teenagers. Lots of grandparents. Lots of all-female groups. Lots of all-male groups. Lots of couples with no children. Lots of people from all races. Lots of people speaking many languages.

Want to learn more?

Check out The Story Factor, by Annette Simmons for storytelling advice. (Six Minutes review)

Why? What is it about Disneyland that appeals to such a broad array of people? I think it’s the same thing which supports the success of the entire Disney empire: everyone loves a story.

The Speaking Lesson…

Successful speakers understand the engaging power of stories, and weave them throughout their presentations. Stories add emotion and realism to otherwise sterile facts and abstract concepts.

6. Stories need villains and heroes

Mickey Mouse, the princesses, and other heroes may draw the most attention at Disneyland and in Disney movies, but villains are featured right alongside them. Disney understands that stories needs villains as a source of conflict.

The Speaking Lesson…

In a similar way, your speech stories need villains too. Without villains, there is no conflict. Without conflict, stories lack suspense, intrigue, and interest.

Remember that story villains come in many forms, including:

Individual people (e.g. your nosy neighbour, the office backstabber)
Organizations or groups of people (e.g. a rival sports team, your industry competitor)
The villain within (e.g. apathy, fear, pride)
Our environment (e.g. a thunderstorm; aging; disease)

7. Signposts are everywhere

Disneyland is large, consisting of a complex maze of paths, attractions, sights, and sounds. Yet, despite this complexity, it’s very easy to get around. There are signs everywhere, directing you to major attractions and from land to land. Consistent designs (decorative elements, costumes, color schemes) also let you know which area you are in. Employees were everywhere, happy to provide you with copies of maps, or direct you on your way.

“Your speech stories need villains too. Without villains, there is no conflict. Without conflict, stories lack suspense, intrigue, and interest.”

The Speaking Lesson…

As a speaker, you must recognize that, to your audience, your speech can be a complex maze of facts, ideas, stories, and acronyms. Your job is to provide a simple, understandable structure, and guide them along.

There are many ways that you can create virtual signposts to help your audience navigate your speech, such as:

Be explicit and reveal your outline in your introduction.
Count off items which form a list (e.g. “First … “, “My second point is…”)
Use repetition to reinforce key statements.
Use transitions words (e.g. because, however, unfortunately)

8. Frame of mind

Employees at Disneyland are referred to as “cast members”. This is true not only for those dressed up as characters, but also those working in stores, restaurants, and attractions, as well as greeters, janitors, and all other staff members.

It may seem like a little thing (or, it may seem like a stunt), but I think it’s a wonderful way to instill more pride in employees and remind them they are part of the entire entertainment experience.

The Speaking Lesson…

When you speak, are you just “a person standing at the front of the room”, or perhaps simply “a speaker”?

Or, are you a leader? A life-changer? A role model? An inspiration? A problem-solver? A trusted resource?

Your frame of mind will influence your performance and your audience’s view of you. Put on a positive frame of mind!

Have a Question?

Contact me anytime,
or find me on Twitter: @6minutes

Andrew Dlugan is the editor and founder of Six Minutes. He teaches courses, leads seminars, coaches speakers, and strives to avoid Suicide by PowerPoint. He is an award-winning public speaker and speech evaluator. Andrew is a father and husband who resides in British Columbia, Canada.

Relevant Resources: for Writers

Ian — Fri, 14 Oct 2011 18:20:53 +0000

I help edit SPEAKER Magazine for the National Speakers Association (NSA). Each month I curate the Relevant Resources column – a list of time-saving tools and technologies. The October list focuses on resources for writers and writing. Montblanc Fountain Pen – Writing with a quality fountain pen is like making love to your words as [...]

VIDEO-Stories Reduce Public Speaking Fear

Doug Staneart — Wed, 05 Oct 2011 20:05:44 +0000

Public Speaking Tips Video: Stories Reduce Public Speaking Fear

One of the easiest ways to reduce the fear of public speaking is by inserting stories or examples to reinforce or back-up facts or statistics in your presentation. Stories are easy to deliver, and you don’t have to memorize them, so they reduce public speaking fear.

To Register for a Fearless Presentations Public Speaking Class, click here.

Public Speaking Class in San Diego Helps Participants Delivers Fearless Presentations

chrismcneany — Wed, 05 Oct 2011 20:00:05 +0000

Public Speaking Class in San Diego helps participants deliver Fearless Presentations. The Leader’s Institute® traveled to beautiful San Diego, California to conduct its Fearless Presentations public speaking class on September 20-21.

Participants attended the course to overcome the fear of public speaking and to improve their presentation skills. By working with a trained coach, each participant was able to receive personalized coaching and take their presentations to the next level. This group was able to incorporate stories into their presentations very effectively. Stories help to capture the audience’s attention, build rapport, and relax when they feel those nervous jitters coming on. They experienced firsthand how the use of stories in presentations is a win-win situation!

Whether your are in San Diego, California or any one of the other fifty cities where we conduct Fearless Presentations®, we have public speaking classes scheduled year round.

Interview: Madelyn Mackie – Career coach

Ian — Tue, 04 Oct 2011 14:02:01 +0000

Madelyn Mackie is a Professional Development and Career Advancement expert. Having successfully navigated careers in biochemistry research, Tony Award winning theaters and major nonprofit agencies, she brings experience, motivation and step-by-step action plans that will Activate Your Career Dreams! Ask any 5-year-old what they want to be when they grow up and they might answer, [...]

The Magic Roundabout

Ian — Mon, 03 Oct 2011 14:10:53 +0000

Round and round it goes Round and round it goes - Spandau Ballet I recently heard a startling NPR report on Roundabouts in the USA. The report highlights that, over the past decade, the number of roundabouts in the U.S. has increased dramatically, from the low hundreds up to the thousands. Traffic circles (as roundabouts [...]

Andy Bechtolsheim: on innovation for start-ups

Ian — Fri, 30 Sep 2011 06:05:02 +0000

Sun Microsystems co-founder Andy Bechtolsheim kicked off the 2011 Gateway to the US program jointly hosted by ANZA Technology Network and CCICE at the Computer History Museum in Mt. View. His keynote reviewed the challenges and opportunities start-ups face in contrast to established companies. He claims that the current uncertainties in the world economy favor [...]

Public Speaking Fear-The Quick and Easy Way to Fearless Presentations

Doug Staneart — Wed, 28 Sep 2011 15:15:55 +0000

The fear of public speaking is still one of the biggest and most debilitating fears. Public speaking fear causes competent professionals to miss out on fantastic opportunities to persuade and win people to their way of thinking. So where does this fear come from? Better yet… How does the average person get rid of it? The truth is that public speaking is a skill just like any other skill in that the first time that you do it, you will be nervous. However, if you are still feeling the fear time after time, it’s probably caused by some of the things that you are doing to try to eliminate that fear. That’s right… Often the things that you do to try to reduce public speaking fear actually end up CAUSING this presentation nervousness.

Where Public Speaking Fear Comes From?

Anytime a person tries something for the first time, he or she will feel nervousness or anxiety about it. Remember back when you got on a bicycle for the first time? Or the first time you tried to drive on the freeway? We tend to remember situations like riding a bike for the first time or driving a car for the first time because in those situations, we felt an imminent threat to our safety — the bigger that threat to our safety is, the more intense the fear or nervousness. For instance, if you have ever been sky-diving or bungee jumping, you probably felt a lot of fear.

Last week, I took a trip to London with my wife, and since we had been to London a few times, we decided to do some of the things that we always wanted to do, but just never got around to it. So we ended up going to St. Paul’s Cathedral, which is the big architectural centerpiece of London that the US Capitol building was modeled after. On the tour, we got to walk up over 500 stairs up to the very top of the dome. When we got to the top, an usher was sitting in a chair and looked at us and pointed to a small peek-hole built into the floor. My heart started racing as I leaned over and peeked through. Now I knew that there was a solid floor between me and the cathedral floor hundreds and hundreds of feet below, but that didn’t really help. I could feel the room start to spin a little as I got just a little queasy. Somehow my sub-conscious mind came to the conclusion that if I wasn’t careful, my 225 lb body was going to squeeze through this four inch hole and fall to my death on the hard stone surface below. It was a crazy thought. I quickly looked up and realized that I was still in the safety of the confined room, and I started to think more clearly. When I looked a second time, it was still scary, but not nearly as debilitating. Fear when you attempt something new is normal, and if it’s NOT there, you’re likely to have a much bigger problem than if it IS there.

To a lesser extent, though, we feel this fear constantly when we try something new even if the threat of bodily harm is not apparent. For instance, when I got my first Smart Phone, and I accessed the App Store, I was really nervous about downloading that very first “Free App” because I was scared to death that I’d end up with a recurring charge on my phone bill that I’d never be able to get rid of. I felt the same way years ago the first time I entered a credit card number on Amazon.com and bought a book. Nervousness is normal when we try something new. The more imminent the threat to our safety, the more nerve-racking the activity will be. For instance, my heart beat a lot faster when the first time I went bungee jumping than it did the first time than when I bought a book on Amazon.

I good analogy for this fear is when you are walking down a lonely street in a big city. If you see petite woman in a white lab coat walking toward you, you may not feel a lot of fear. However, if you see a teenage with tattoos and gang paraphernalia, you might start to experience a bit a anxiety. If you see four people dressed the same way, and two of them are carrying baseball bats, you will likely feel great fear. The more that you are threatened by an experience, the more fear you will fear during the experience.

Public speaking fear comes from an internal sense of a threat. The more that you see the speaking activity as a threat, the more fear you will feel. So, the key to lowering the threat is to lower the risk. For instance, in the analogy above where a gang of hoodlums is coming at you with baseball bats, if you happen to be accompanied by a couple of armed bodyguards, you will probably not feel nearly as much fear as you would if you were alone and unarmed.

Lower the Risk, Lower the Threat, Lower the Fear

When the risk of harm is lowered, the fear will diminish pretty dramatically. When I was high above St. Paul’s Cathedral, and I took that second look, I had consciously reassured myself that it would be impossible for me to fall. So the second look was not nearly as shocking as the first look. The first time I drove on the expressway, I was a nervous wreck (no pun intended), but after years of success driving at fairly fast speeds, now when I drive on the expressway, it’s almost second nature.

There are times that I’ve driven to the store or my office, and I put my car into park at my destination and think, “How did I get here?” The process was so second-nature to me, that I didn’t even have to think about it.

The skill of public speaking can happen in much the same way. Public speaking training with a good coach can ensure that you gain confidence in a step-by-step fashion so that as you get up in front of the next group, you have a pretty good shot at having a successful experience. Since the risk of failure is now lower, your fear will lower as well. The lower that your risk of failure becomes, the lower your fear will be as well. So after you train with a good coach, and you deliver your next presentation, because you are better prepared, you’re more likely to have a successful experience. The fear may still be there for this first run, but once you complete the presentation, and you have performed well during the speech, you’ll feel more confident about what you’ve accomplished. So the next time that you stand up to speak, it should be much easier. And the next time, easier still.

Are You Growing as a Speaker?

The point is that every time that you speak, you should have a success — You should set yourself up for success. And every time that you have an additional success, your confidence should grow. If that is not happening for you, then something is interrupting this cycle. For instance, some public speaking classes have a teacher or an instructor who uses constructive criticism as a coaching tool. Typically, the class member will deliver the speech, sit down, and receive a critique of his/her performance.

So instead of the teacher helping the class member deliver the initial speech better (helping the participant succeed), the teacher waits for the participant to fail and then gives a critique that reinforces that failure. As a result, when the class member stands up to deliver his/her next speech, instead of confidence, the person is experiencing a higher risk of failure. “I failed last time, so I’m likely to also fail this time… As soon as I sit down, I’m going to get another critique.”

A good public speaking coach will help a speaker deliver a better speech in the first place and then build on each of these successes. The difference in styles would be like letting a four-year-old get on a new bike and pedal and fall… pedal and fall… pedal and fall, and then once the kid is really frustrated coming over and critiquing her performance by telling her the three main things that she did wrong. Then waiting a week or two and repeat the process again. Although the fear would be high on the first attempt, the fear would be even higher the second time this new rider tried to get on the bike. A good coach will hold the seat for the child and then praise her performance once she has a small success. Once she has even a small success the risk of failure lowers, and although she’ll still be nervous, she’s now willing to attempt something more complicated. As the successes grow, the confidence will grow as well.

Get a good public speaking coach, and your confidence will grow. The Leader’s Institute® offers Fearless Presentations® Public Speaking Classes in cities all over the world. Click the link to access a class schedule or to request information.

VIDEO-Public Speaking Fear Grows with Constructive Criticism

Doug Staneart — Wed, 28 Sep 2011 14:55:58 +0000

A new video about how helpful coworkers, supervisors, even spouses who give us constructive criticism to help us reduce public speaking fear actually have an opposite effect. Constructive criticism causes public speaking fear!

The Leader’s Institute® Presentation Skills Class Delivers World Class Presentations in Chicago Illinois

chrismcneany — Wed, 28 Sep 2011 03:34:25 +0000

The Leader’s Institute® conducted a presentation skills class in Chicago, IL, where participants not only improved their public speaking skills, but also delivered outstanding presentations by the end of the second day!

The class is designed to reduce the nervousness that often comes with public speaking, and teach students how to design a world class presentation in 15 minutes or less. We had a very enthusiastic group of people who came from both the Chicago area and from across Illinois and the United States to take the class. They especially enjoyed learning tools to improve impromptu speaking, and had a lot of fun in the process. Good job everyone!

Tiffany Shlain’s stunning autobiographical film

Ian — Mon, 19 Sep 2011 23:10:03 +0000

On Sunday I invited my daughter to the Shattuck Cinema in Berkeley for the opening weekend of Tiffany Shlain’s latest film Connected. Since we both work at Cisco, and the movie trailer promised a discussion of internet and connectivity, I thought we’d both find it interesting and relevant to our day jobs. “It’ll be a [...]

Cross Cultural Communication: Wolters Kluwer

Ian — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 20:38:54 +0000

Wolters Kluwer is a 175-year-old Dutch company who provide professionals with necessary information in the fields of legal, business, tax, accounting, finance, audit, risk, compliance, and healthcare. They have customers around the world and recently exhibited at the Beijing International Book Fair. Understanding the value of subtitles To complement their booth Wolters Kluwer commissioned a [...]

VIDEO-Reduce Public Speaking Risk and Reduce Public Speaking Fear

Doug Staneart — Tue, 13 Sep 2011 04:09:14 +0000

Public Speaking Video: Reduce Public Speaking Risk and Reduce Public Speaking Fear. The fear of public speaking basically comes from an increased risk of failure. The bigger the risk, the bigger the fear. So if you lower the risk associated with public speaking — in essence insure that you have a success when you stand up to speak, the nervousness and fear diminishes significantly.

Nick R Thomas – A Public Speaker’s Blog: The Great Catch-Up Part 8

Nick R Thomas A.L.A.M. (Public Speaking) — Mon, 12 Sep 2011 06:25:59 +0000

Kidlington and District Probus President's Night, Oxford

There are some bookings I really look forward to, for example, when it's a favourite type of event in an area where I know from previous experience that the audiences are very responsive and when I find myself being booked by an organiser who knows exactly what their own expectations are - and what the speaker's requirements will be - for the event.

This was the case when I was booked for the Kidlington and District Probus President's Night in Oxford last October: a Probus event with a good-sized (80 - 90), mixed audience in Oxfordshire and arranged by Mr Derek Watson who had read this blog and decided that the talk My Life as a Freelance Comedy Writer would be the right fit for this function.

And because he booked me some 20 months in adavance I had a long time to look forward to it!

It was a Friday meeting and I travelled to Oxford by train and then took a taxi to the venue, the Oxford Centre. After the excellent dinner I was introduced and, once again, enjoyed a barnstormer in Oxford, one of those talks where I find myself wondering whether I will have to omit planned material because the laughter has gone on so long.

Speaking of which... I had spent much of the day preparing for this engagement with a rolling TV news channel on in the background and the unavoidable story, one which had been building all week but which came to its conclusion that day, was whether Wayne Rooney would stay with Manchester United. As I thought about my talk for Kidlington Probus that evening I considered introducing a line about how their President Derek would be staying with them despite so many other clubs showing considerable interest in signing him. I'm sure it would have got a laugh but I decided not to go with it. I had plenty of material to include already and I didn't want to overrun.

Public Speaking Tip #388: Sometimes there just isn't room for all of your planned content and a good response, for example, the duration of the laughter at humorous material, may be the reason. You are better off editing-as-you-go and sticking as close as possible to the time limit rather than going on too long and losing the audience and perhaps even causing problems with the scheduling of the remainder of the event.

Testimonial from Mr Watson:

"Thank you for a great evening's entertainment at my Probus President's Night at Oxford. I have received many congratulations from our members for having selected such an amusing and entertaining speaker who, without exception, left them all with a broad grin upon leaving! Well done! We all had a superb evening which, in no small part, you contributed to wonderfully. Many thanks indeed, your praises will be sung in this area for quite some time".

This was my second speaking engagement that week. Two days earlier I stepped in to cover a cancellation for Merley Evening Townswomen's Guild where I had previously spoken in June 2009. My topic was Patrick Campbell and once again they were a very good audience. My thanks once again to Mary for the transport back to Bournemouth.

Powers of 10: Time Scales in Public Speaking

Andrew Dlugan — Mon, 12 Sep 2011 03:36:51 +0000

Have you ever thought about the relationship between time and public speaking?

On the surface, you engage your audience second by second, stringing together words into sentences that, over the duration of your presentation, may last minutes or perhaps hours.

Yet, the impact of your speaking experiences may last days, weeks, months, or even years — for you and for those in your audiences.

In this article, we examine time scales ranging from a tenth of a second to hundreds of years, and consider how each of these scales is relevant to you as a speaker.

One Tenth of a Second

A typical speaking rate is 150 words per minute, or 2.5 words per second. This means the average time between words is just four tenths of a second. When you consider pauses, a syllable leaves your lips in about a tenth of a second. (Your brain, of course, has to operate on a much faster scale to keep up.)

In one tenth of a second, perceptions form in your audience’s mind – either positive or negative. It could be an inflection that makes them cringe, or a visual that evokes a warm memory. It could be a facial expression which betrays a lack of sincerity, or a crackling voice which signals genuine emotion.

One Second

Pauses in your speech range from a short “comma pause” (about one second) to longer pauses for rhetorical effect (lasting several seconds). The duration of pauses is critical; if it’s too long, you’ve got an uncomfortable pause.

Want to learn more?

Explore perspectives on filler words in: Are… um… Filler Words… ah… Okay?

The enemy of the pause is the filler word: utterances which include “um”, “uh”, and “ah”. Everyone has a few filler words, but they are more common among speakers who are inexperienced, unprepared, or especially nervous. Skilled speakers understand that, instead of filler words, you can simply pause while you collect your thoughts; you don’t need a filler word to mark the moment.

Although the audience perceives slide visuals on the sub-second level, slide recognition occurs on the order of a second. Well-designed slides are recognized easily, and their meaning is associated the words of a speaker quickly. Particularly confusing slides can cause several seconds (or more) of high cognitive processing.

Ten Seconds

Effective eye contact is achieved when your gaze finds an audience member, and then stays there for perhaps a sentence or two — generally in the ten second range. Eye contact which is significantly shorter — like a ping pong ball — will seem insincere. Eye contact which is significantly longer may be uncomfortable, and perhaps leave other audience members feeling “left out.”

“You should be able to clearly summarize your main message within ten seconds.”

Ten seconds is also the range in which complete sentences are spoken, including most memorable phrases and quotations. You should be able to clearly summarize your main message within ten seconds.

One Minute

One minute is about the length of good story which a speaker might tell. Stories significantly shorter probably do not develop adequate conflict, emotion, or a significant message. Stories significantly longer could likely benefit either from aggressive editing (removing superfluous details which detract from the story) or splitting in two (in case more than one point is being made).

Want to learn more?

You can find numerous tips in How to Introduce a Speaker: 16 Essential Tips for Success

One minute is about the maximum time needed to introduce a speaker in most contexts. Any longer than this, and the introducer risks boring the audience and stealing attention away from the speaker.

Ten Minutes

Ten minutes is the upper limit for what many people might call a “short” speech. In ten minutes, you’ve only got time to properly develop one central idea, while supporting it with several stories and supporting points. It requires precise focus and discipline from a speaker.

Many popular formats hover around this average.

Speaking formats such as Pecha Kucha (six minutes forty seconds) or Ignite (five minutes) restrict speakers down further and yet are wildly popular social events.
TED talks (which have been reviewed numerous times on Six Minutes) come in various lengths, but the longest top out at 18 minutes.

Ten minutes is long enough to read most articles on Six Minutes, or another speaking blog. These bite-sized lessons are intended to motivate, instruct, and challenge you to improve your skills.

In a longer speaking session (e.g. a training session), ten minutes is a rule of thumb for switching gears. It’s wise to vary your technique, switch formats, and otherwise add variety to your session to keep the energy of your session high.

One Hour

One hour is a common length of a keynote address or the corporate staple known as the noon-hour seminar. One hour provides time for a speaker to cover their topic in much more depth and breadth, as well as allowing for an extended question and answer (Q&A) period.

One hour is the most common length of a Toastmasters meeting. It’s short enough to allow members to fit it into their hectic day, but long enough to cover the core elements (prepared speeches, evaluations, and impromptu speaking).

One hour is also a convenient duration for speech coaching sessions. A good speaking coach can work with you to explore your strengths and weaknesses, and one hour provides lots of time for repetitive practice as well.

Ten Hours

Ten hours is the upper bound for a daily seminar, or the daily program at many conferences. Most people will get pretty fatigued with 10 hours of listening to speakers. Speaking in this environment requires special skill in balancing valuable information with lighter, less cognitively draining activities.

One Day

“Your speech should be designed with a clear and emphatic call-to-action to do something that can reasonably be done within a day.”

One day is a practical upper bound for someone in your audience to act on your call-to-action. Nick Morgan claims that “the only reason to give a speech is to change the world.” I agree, and that starts by changing the thoughts and actions of individual audience members. Your speech should be designed with a clear and emphatic call-to-action. It should be challenging enough that opting to do it truly does represent change, but simple enough that it can be started within a day of your speech.

For example, “losing 20 pounds” is not a call-to-action,
but “starting an exercise habit tomorrow” is.

One day is also the outer range where you can receive useful feedback on your presentation (assuming it was not recorded, of course). The best time to solicit feedback is during (e.g. a feedback form) or immediately after (e.g. mingling with your audience) your presentation. Asking for feedback days or weeks after a presentation is not likely to reap many rewards as the feedback you receive will tend to be generic.

One Week

One week is a healthy period to practice your presentation. You certainly don’t need to practice twenty-four hours a day for a full week; thirty minutes per day will usually suffice. Rather than cramming all of your practice into the night before your presentation — or worse, the morning of your speech — consider spreading it over a week to allow yourself the time to become more comfortable with the content.

One week is also a good interval during which you should try to devote some time to developing your speaking skills. Like any habit, it’s hard to built momentum if you don’t get regular exposure. This includes both speaking before an audience, as well as support activities like working on speeches, gathering speechwriting material, or reading speaking blogs and books. It is not a coincidence that Toastmasters clubs (and most other extra-curricular activities) are designed to establish weekly participation.

Ten Weeks

Ten weeks is about the length of time it takes to establish a new speaking habit. Most of us resist change, either consciously or subconsciously. If you want to develop a new habit (speaking or otherwise), doing it once or twice will not suffice.

“If you want to develop a new habit (speaking or otherwise), doing it once or twice will not suffice.”

Ten weeks is the also upper limit needed to fully prepare for most major presentations. Do you think that’s too long? Well, let me bound it a bit.

By “major presentations”, I’m talking about the ones which can make or break your career (like landing a new client) or help you achieve a personal goal (like making your case before city council for a new bylaw).
By “fully prepare”, I mean the time from your initial idea that you’d like to give a speech to the time you deliver it. You might spend the first four or five weeks just brainstorming or researching content. Then, you might spend the next few weeks writing, practicing in front of a test audience, and honing your delivery.

One Year

One year is long enough to set yourself on a new speaking path. The new path depends a great deal on where you are now, and what your goals for the future are:

Maybe “I’m terrified of speaking” gets replaced with “I’m scared, but I speak”.
Maybe “I’m scared, but I speak” gets replaced with “I feel nervous, but I harness that energy”.
Maybe “I speak when I am required to” gets replaced with “I enjoy speaking whenever I can”.

In one year, you could recognize an opportunity, develop a course, market yourself, and launch supplementary income or a whole new career.

Ten Years

Over a span of ten years, you can completely reshape yourself with a disciplined, committed approach to improving your communication skills, and translating that into becoming more effective at whatever path you choose to pursue.

For example, maybe devoting yourself to becoming a master communicator will launch you into management and steer your career to new heights.

One Hundred Years (and more)

You may not live this long, but your words can live one hundred years or longer.

Maybe you’re going to give a political speech that is quoted for centuries to come.

Or, more likely, you’re going to inspire your children, your grandchildren, and your audience members with a message that continues to become more and more powerful as the years pass.

Individual syllables, which last only tenths of a second on your lips, can last for hundreds of years if they are carefully chosen. Consider that the next time you are writing your speech.

Inspiration for This Article

You may be interested on know that the inspiration for this article is Powers of Ten, a classic documentary by Charles and Ray Eames which can be viewed below.

As a science geek, the documentary is fascinating, but there are lessons to be learned for speakers too. Some particularly effective techniques include:

The use of a common, everyday occurrence to set the initial context.
The frequent use of comparison to easily understandable distances (e.g. 100 meters: the distance a man can run in 10 seconds)
The simple, repetitive use of 10 and the consistent pace of the documentary.

Enjoy!

Click here to view the embedded video.

Have a Question?

Contact me anytime,
or find me on Twitter: @6minutes

Author of this article: Andrew Dlugan
Category: Speaker Habits
Article tags: pause, speech timing
© Six Minutes, 2011. | Permalink | 64 comments so far

Guest Posting: How to become a Keynote Speaker, by Patrick Schwerdtfeger

Ian — Thu, 08 Sep 2011 19:20:27 +0000

Patrick Schwerdtfeger is the author of Marketing Shortcuts for the Self-Employed and Webify Your Business – Internet Marketing Secrets for the Self-Employed. He is a regular speaker for Bloomberg TV. He has spoken about Modern Entrepreneurship, Online Branding and the Social Media Revolution at conferences and business events around the world. This article was first [...]

You are Invited to the Outstanding Presentations Workshop

Andrew Dlugan — Tue, 06 Sep 2011 02:14:45 +0000

What if I told you that you could attend a series of workshops given by seven presentation experts?

What if I told you that you could do so without getting on a plane, a bus, or even a bicycle?

What if told it was free?

I’m pleased to invite you to attend a free online webinar series focussed on improving your skills as a presenter.

The speakers include several experts which have been featured before on Six Minutes:

Carmen Taran – author of Better Beginnings (read our book review)
Jan Schultink – author of the Idea Transplant blog, a favorite of mine
Ellen Finkelstein – organizer of the workshop series, and also a noted PowerPoint blogger

Other speakers include Cliff Atkinson, Bruce Gabrielle, Simon Morton, and… me!

Webinars are scheduled every Wednesday. They start on September 7th, and continue through October 26th. (I’m presenting on October 19th.) Sessions will be recorded and available for playback if you can’t make every one… but you must be registered to get access.

I attended several of the sessions in last year’s Outstanding Presentations Workshop, and I learned a great deal. I highly recommend investing just an hour each week in this informative series.

Read more about the Outstanding Presentations Workshop on the website and register today!

Have a Question?

Contact me anytime,
or find me on Twitter: @6minutes

Author of this article: Andrew Dlugan
Category: Resources for Speakers
Article tags: Carmen Taran, webinar
© Six Minutes, 2011. | Permalink | 13 comments so far

Six Minutes is Back

Andrew Dlugan — Mon, 05 Sep 2011 23:57:36 +0000

Six Minutes is back.

Well, almost. After an extended absence due to a busy spring and summer, career shifts, medical journeys, and many other things, Six Minutes will be returning to publish regular articles again soon. We’ve got a number of articles going through final review, and we’ll be publishing them in the days and weeks to come.

In the meantime, you may wish to explore our article archive with hundreds of public speaking articles written over the past four years.

On a Personal Note

Thank you to all of you who have contacted Six Minutes during the publishing hiatus. It was humbling to hear that Six Minutes continues to be a helpful resource to so many speakers around the world. I regret that I haven’t been able to respond to everyone, but I’ll hopefully be able to make amends in the weeks and months to come.

Reader Favorites

Have a Question?

Contact me anytime,
or find me on Twitter: @6minutes

Author of this article: Andrew Dlugan
Category: sixminutes
Article tags:
© Six Minutes, 2011. | Permalink | 10 comments so far

Stories and Examples Reduce Public Speaking Fear

Doug Staneart — Mon, 05 Sep 2011 20:18:15 +0000

The fastest and easiest way to eliminate public speaking fear is to insert more examples and stories into your formal presentations or PowerPoint Slideshows. When participants in public speaking classes are first introduced to this technique, many of them will often resist the advice thinking, “My presentations are technical (or numbers oriented or academic) so my audience isn’t really into stories.” When a presenter has this attitude, he/she is missing out on a fantastic opportunity to make their presentations easier to follow and understand, more memorable, and easier to deliver. Your audience not only wants examples, but they also expect examples to help them better understand your content.

Stories Make Presentations Easier to Follow and Easier to Understand

The more technical a presentation, the more vital it is to include stories and examples. A technical presentation without examples is purely theoretical, whereas a technical presentation with examples is extremely practical. For example, let’s say that I’m delivering a presentation on last quarter’s financials for my company. If I just give the audience the numbers… Last quarter, we had a 15% increase in revenue, but profit was down 1.2%, I’ve given the audience the technical aspects of the presentation, but the audience is likely to be unclear of exactly WHY the numbers came out the way that they did. So in order to give the audience a clearer understanding, I’d need to include the story behind the numbers. What happened to cause the increase in revenue and why did profit suffer?

Stories Make Presentations Easier to Remember

Stories Reduce Public Speaking Fear

So give examples and stories, and you’ll feel more comfortable and your audience will love you.

Fearless Presentations Public Speaking Class Beats the Heat in Dallas Texas

chrismcneany — Mon, 05 Sep 2011 16:42:49 +0000

Fearless Presentations Public Speaking Class in Dallas, Texas. A great group of folks didn’t let the heat wave in Dallas stop them from picking up some tips to reduce nervousness and create captivating presentations for our Fearless Presentations public speaking class in Dallas August 15-16. We had one participant who excelled at using analogies in his presentations to make his content clear to his audience. Through our one-on-one coaching, we helped him fine-tune his analogies to make them even better! Fearless Presentations is a 2-day presentation skills class which gives participants the tools to deliver powerful introductions, learn how to most effectively incorporate stories and examples into any topic, and by the end of day 2, deliver world-class, compelling presentations. Well done, everyone!

Nick R Thomas – A Public Speaker’s Blog: The Great Catch-Up Part 7

Nick R Thomas A.L.A.M. (Public Speaking) — Mon, 05 Sep 2011 09:08:57 +0000

Hamble Valley Stick Club, Hampshire

Sometimes I find myself speaking at a club with its own fascinating traditions. This was certainly the case when I was booked for the Hamble Valley Stick Club in Hampshire last October.

This is a 41 Club. These are for ex-Round Tablers who had to retire from the organisation when they were 45 (it used to be 41, hence the name). They continue to raise large sums for a number of good causes and hold meetings where they have a dinner and listen to a speaker.

The Hamble Valley Round Table presents walking sticks to members moving on under this age rule and there is a lot of stick-related humour at this 41 Club, for example, visitors are known as 'Teflons' (non-stick) and the Chairman is addressed as Boss-Stick!

And there was plenty of humour at their meeting, with witty banter throughout the excellent meal in one of the Meeting Rooms at the Fareham-Solent Holiday Inn at Titchfield and the reading of some hilarious minutes.

Then it was my turn to speak, my topic being My Life as a Freelance Comedy Writer.

There were less than 20 in the audience but I had observed during the meal that they were a lively bunch and the talk went well.

My vote of thanks afterwards was delivered by one of their members who is a retired judge. That sounds daunting but he was very complimentary, especially about the fact that when reading out one of my unintentionally funny press cuttings, I had used the correct pronunciation of the name of Romsey, the Hampshire town he grew up in (it's 'Rum-sey').

Public Speaking Tip #387: Attention to fine detail, such as the correct pronunciation of a place name, can be much appreciated by audience members from that area.

Testimonial from David Moss, their 'Boss-stick':

"Just a quick note to thank you for your very 
entertaining talk to Hamble Valley Stick Club last Friday and to say how much we 
enjoyed your presentation.

You made a major contribution to the success of the evening".

And from Vice-Chairman Manny Martins (I know it appears under the picture of me on my Home Page but it's so great that I just had to repeat it here!):

"Nick spoke at our monthly meeting last Friday (15 
October 2010) at a joint meeting with Kingston 41 Club.  It was a brilliant 
evening.  Nick is an engaging speaker, witty, topical and very 
interesting.  He spoke for three quarters of an hour without notes, a most 
knowledgeable man, 

I cannot recommend Nick enough and assure you that engaging him for an evening is a worthwhile endeavour. I wish you a great evening like ours".

A terrific evening. My thanks to Manny for the transport from Fareham station and back.

Nick R Thomas – A Public Speaker’s Blog: The Great Catch-Up Part 6

Nick R Thomas A.L.A.M. (Public Speaking) — Sat, 03 Sep 2011 09:32:45 +0000

Talks from June - September 2010

Boscombe and Southbourne Probus

In June last year I spoke for the fifth time to Boscombe and Southbourne Probus, my previous visit having been in November 2007. The club is still well-attended and I was pleased to see Mr Tony Harrington MBE again as I had another collection for the charity he founded, the Kabanana Care (Zambia) Trust.

Sadly, the Grange Hotel in Southbourne, where I had spoken to this club and various others on numerous occasions has been demolished but Boscombe and Southbourne Probus has found a good repacement meeting place, the Liston Hotel in Boscombe, another venue where I have spoken in the past.

My subject this time was Dorothy Parker and the Algonquin Wits and the talk went very well, with a decent question and answer session afterwards. As I chatted to members before lunch in the hotel's very good Gilbey's restaurant, there were a number of complimentary remarks about my public speaking, one of which was:

"You obviously enjoy it".

Public Speaking Tip #382: Speak with enthusiasm - your audience will notice! If you enjoy your speech then they are more likely to as well.

Staines and District Probus Club

In early July I set off for Staines to speak about My Life as a Freelance Comedy writer to the men's Probus Club who meet at the Boleyn Hotel.

Decent weather, an excellent lunch, a well-received talk in a very pleasant venue - and an immediate recommendation to another club which has since led to a number of further bookings in an area where I had never spoken before - very nice!

And my thanks for the lift from the station and back.

Gold Hill Probus Club, Shaftesbury, Dorset

Before July last year I had only ever spoken once before in Shaftesbury. This was to their men's Probus Club back in November 1997 so it was good to finally get another booking there, especially as my girlfriend Val and I love this town, having visited it as part of an August Bank Holiday weekend ritual over many years, usually after spending the afternoon at the Wimborne St Giles Open Day.

Gold Hill Probus is, like most Probus in North Dorset, a mixed club with a morning meeting. Their venue is Shaftesbury Town Hall in a room which overlooks the iconic Gold Hill, famous for its use in various movies plus, of course, the long-running Hovis commercials.

There were around 50 members at the talk and a very good audience they were too.

Afterwards I was their guest for a super lunch at the Salt Cellar restaurant, which also overlooks Gold Hill, and they were kind enough to run me back to Gillingham station again.

Bournemouth and District Tinnitus Group

Towards the end of July I spoke to the Bournemouth and District Tinnitus Group who meet at the East Cliff Church.

This was a small but very enthusiastic audience. Over the years I have spoken to a number of groups for people with various disabilities: MS, arthritis, stroke, visual impairment ranging from macular degeneration to blindness, diabetes and many more. These audiences are no different from any others. Obviously a speaker should check to make sure there are no insensitive references in their material which might cause offence - but then that's a good idea with any audience. And for audiences with visual impairment you need to concentrate especially hard on your vocal delivery and dispense with props, visual aids, etc (I blogged in 2008 about how these talks are very much like a radio broadcast).

With the tinnitus group I had wondered about my voice projection but, not surprisingly, they had an excellent PA system. It was a very enjoyable speaking engagement.

Public Speaking Tip #383: People with disabilities are the same as any other audience for a speaker: they appreciate the escapism of an entertaining presentation.

Romsey Women's Institute, Hampshire

The church where I spoke to the Tinnitus Group is just across the road from Bournemouth station which was useful as I had to catch a train to my second talk that day.

Romsey Women's Institute had also booked the talk about My Life as a Freelance Comedy Writer. Now some people might find the idea of delivering the same presentation twice within a few hours monotonous but to me it's a great blessing. Although I have been speaking about this topic since January 1996, the talk never stops evolving, in fact I have well over two hours' worth of tried and tested material to choose from for a typical 45-minute presentation - and counting! This is without including the topical jokes and observations that I include or the hours of recordings of my material that I could also draw upon if necessary. My writing career is ongoing and the next new anecdote is often just a phone call away.

The great thing about doing the same talk twice in one day is that it gives me the chance to hone any new additions very quickly, rather than wait for the next booking. 2010 was, overall, a very quiet year for me so I was pleased to have this opportunity. In fact, my five talks for July and August were all on the same topic so I was able to give it a great deal of attention.

Public Speaking Tip #384: Don't view the prospect of delivering the same presentation twice in quick succession - or even more often - as tedious; it offers you the chance to hone the material and try out and break in any new additions in a very short space of time.

I enjoyed my evening at the Crosfield Hall. I had never spoken to this particular WI before but I knew from numerous previous bookings for other groups in the area that Romsey audiences are always very responsive - and they were no exception.

Staines Ladies Probus Club

I hadn't even arrived home from speaking to the men's Probus in Staines in July before I received a call asking if I was available to speak at the ladies' club in August (many thanks to the member who recommended my talk to his wife - especially as I had no other bookings for the following month!)

The ladies' club also meets at the Boleyn Hotel in Staines. Unlike my previous visit, the weather was poor and during the talk there was heavy, distracting rain outside while I was speaking. Nevertheless, a good talk, especially as I was able to mention a chat I had with one of the ladies beforehand about her interest in astrology and this led perfectly into an unintentionally funny press cutting I often use featuring an old horoscope of mine. I always think it adds a great sense of tailoring and immediacy if you can link a conversation you have just had with a member of the organisation to some part of your prepared material.

Public Speaking Tip #385: If something that crops up in a conversation before your presentation can be linked to its content then by all means do so - it really helps to personalise your content, especially if you are able to mention the person's name.

Needless to say, with weather like that I was immensely grateful for the lift from the station and back again!

Christchurch Central Women's Institute, Dorset

My first booking for September was a short-notice talk for the Christchurch Central WI who have a morning meeting at Christchurch Baptist Church Hall. I had previously spoken to them once before in June 2007 and my subject this time was Patrick Campbell. As with my last visit, they were a very good audience. Afterwards, I chatted to popular fellow Bournemouth speaker Mrs Pauline Giles, whose humorous talk titles include 'Not Dead Again!'. Club speakers don't often get the chance to network with our peers and compare notes so it's always good to catch up.

Poole RAF Association

My second September engagement was a return visit to Poole RAFA who meet at the town's Ex-Servicemen's Club. I had previously spoken to them in September 2006 and this time they had asked for my talk about Groucho Marx. This is a very friendly club and I was delighted when they immediately rebooked me for another talk in 2011.

Jubilee Ladies Luncheon Club, Emsworth, Hampshire

September ended with another repeat booking, this time for the Jubilee Ladies' Luncheon Club in Emsworth (I blogged about my first visit to them in October 2008). Once again the venue was the Brookfield Hotel.

This was the engagement where I delivered the very successful first monologue of topical one-liners that I wrote about in this post.

But the event was not without its problems for me...

I arrived in very good time, chatted to the ladies outside in the hotel garden (it was a boiling hot day), enjoyed an excellent lunch and then went into the cloakrooms before my talk. And then I looked in the mirror...

The bottom of my right ear was caked in blood! Presumably this was the result of a rather careless shave that morning (they don't call me 'Nick' for nothing...) I hadn't noticed anyone staring at me in the street, on the bus, at the station, on the train, in the hotel garden or even during the lunch (or if any of the ladies had noticed it, they were obviously too kind to say anything!) Fortunately my shirt was OK.

I cleaned it off - which started the bleeding again, not heavily, but certainly enough to be noticeable, and it wouldn't stop. I went back into the dining room, was introduced, and had to improvise a new introduction explaining that my ear was bleeding and adding some one-liners about my talk being about writing comedy not horror movies and how it's usually loud rock concerts not talks that cause people's ears to bleed. If I hadn't said anything then obviously the audience would have been wondering why I kept dabbing my ear with tissues every couple of minutes.

Public Speaking Tip #386: If you find yourself having no option but to give an excuse for a very noticeable problem which would otherwise be a puzzling distraction for an audience, then do so briefly, using humour where possible, and then proceed with your planned material to the best of your ability.

Apart from that little matter, the talk went very well! My thanks to Moya for once again giving me a lift back to Havant, where I was amused to note that a local speaker's list was advertising one of my talks as being about 'Dorothy Parker and the Width (sic) of the Algonquin Round Table'. Well, it was Alexander Woollcott who remarked that 'All the things I really like to do are either immoral, illegal or fattening'...

Nick R Thomas – A Public Speaker’s Blog: The Great Catch-Up Part 5

Nick R Thomas A.L.A.M. (Public Speaking) — Fri, 02 Sep 2011 21:48:01 +0000

Coaching for a Mayor-Making

In April 2010 I found myself coaching speakers in quite a variety of settings: a family dining room where I worked with a father and son who were speaking at a wedding, then a university lecture theatre where I coached a lecturer delivering an academic paper to colleagues and finally the impressive council chamber at a town hall where I trained a Mayor-elect in preparation for their speech at the ceremony where they would be installed.

When I accepted this booking I was told that the Mayor-elect wanted to work on their voice projection. This meant that they had a very clear idea of where they felt they needed to improve - which was excellent. Too often people will say 'I'm scared of making speeches' or 'I'm terrible at presentations', as if the whole area is problematic, when what they actually mean is that there are certain aspects of public speaking which are problematic for them, such as writing the material, controlling nerves, projecting their voice or using visual aids. But the speaker who isn't loud enough might not actually have any difficulty, for example, in writing a speech - as was the case here. Too many people think the whole business of public speaking is impossible for them and dismiss it when in fact they really need to isolate the most troublesome part of it and concentrate on that. And when they improve in that area then everything else will seem easier as well.

Public Speaking Tip #381: Very few people find the whole business of public speaking impossible - there are simply difficulties with particular elements of it which put them off. Break it down and work out what you feel is the most challenging aspect of public speaking and get some help with that. Then you will find public speaking to be generally a lot less daunting.

I spent one long session with the Mayor-elect and, weeks later, attended the ceremony where I listened to a well-written, well-rehearsed and well-paced speech delivered perfectly audibly to a three-figure audience. The Mayor had identified what they saw as a difficulty with one aspect of speechmaking, sought help, worked hard and delivered a very good speech as a result. In fact, in an email to me afterwards, they wrote:

"It was great fun and I was totally calm throughout the whole event".

Testimonial from the council that commissioned me:

"The Mayor enjoyed the session and got a lot out of it".

Video: Where Does Public Speaking Fear Come From?

Doug Staneart — Fri, 02 Sep 2011 02:49:51 +0000

Public Speaking Fear: New video Where does public speaking fear comes from? This video is a preview of a series of 30 public speaking tips videos that we are creating that will accompany 10 chapters of our new public speaking book that will be published in the next few months. This first video explains where public speaking fear comes from so that you can then eliminate the fear. Please let us know what you think.

Los Angeles Fearless Presentations Class in August Eliminates Fear for Young and Young at Heart

Doug Staneart — Fri, 02 Sep 2011 02:47:13 +0000

We had a nice surprise in our recent Fearless Presentations Public Speaking Class in Los Angeles. We had our usual group of high level executives, but we also had a couple of teenagers preparing for the future. One of the participants was a young lady who was just about to start college, and her brother who is a sophomore in high school joined her. They added a lot of fun and energy to the class, and the the rest of the participants really welcomed them into the group. One of the things that we hear most often in the class is comments like, “I wish that I had taken this public speaking class 10 years ago (20 years ago… 30 years ago),” because once you eliminate that public speaking fear, doors that were closed tend to open up and opportunities tend to present themselves. These young people have a dramatic advantage as they enter into the workforce.

Don’t be the person who says, “I wish I had”. Los Angeles public speaking classes are scheduled about once every three months, and we offer Fearless Presentations in over 50 cities around the world. Visit the Fearless Presentations website for details.

Nick R Thomas – A Public Speaker’s Blog: The Great Catch-Up Part 4

Nick R Thomas A.L.A.M. (Public Speaking) — Thu, 01 Sep 2011 22:59:00 +0000

My speaking tips in the national press

Last year, my speaking tips appeared in one national newspaper in the UK and on the website of another. In the first case, I was one of a number of people responding to a reader's request for help and in the second I was asked to join an illustrious panel for an online discussion!

Daily Mail 'Answers to Correspondents'

The Daily Mail has a long-established feature where readers can write in asking others for answers to various queries. In April last year a letter appeared in which the writer said that he had been asked to speak at a dinner for accountants so could readers suggest any good accountancy jokes?

Over the following weeks a steady flow of gags came in, many of them very good. I replied as well - but, instead of sending jokes, I recommended that he should take a different approach.

Imagine if you were a non-golfer who was asked to speak at a golf club so you rushed out and bought a book of golfing jokes. What do you think the result would be? That's right: an audience who had heard them all before, some exchanging knowing looks, others raising their eyes to the heavens, perhaps even one or two of the more inebriated ones shouting out the punchline or 'Heard it!' And this would have been the case years ago, long before gags were exchanged so rapidly by text, email or on social networking sites.

And a speech cannot consist of nothing but gags - that's a stand-up routine.

I suggested that he should concentrate instead on any (short) humorous anecdotes and observations from his own field which might still be of interest to accountants (for example, relating to business, banks, insurance, marketing, etc) and amusing material with a general appeal, including one or two well-chosen quotations.

My answer was published on 11 May. Thinking about it some more since then, I could also have suggested that he could make humorous observations about any similarities or differences between his profession and theirs.

Public Speaking Tip #380: If you are an outsider delivering a humorous speech to a specialist audience, try to avoid using non-original material about their particular profession or interest. It is very likely that they will have heard it before and your delivery may not sound convincing anyway. Instead, try to find common ground by drawing upon your own relevant humorous experiences and observations.

Guardian Careers Website

On my way back from the talk at Burwell I received an email asking if I would be intersted in being a member of the panel for a Live Q&A on improving your presentation skills for the Careers Blog of the Guardian newspaper and I readily agreed.

The session took place on 25 May and the three hours seemed to fly by. Many aspects of public speaking were covered for readers, some of whom were posting questions the day before it was due to start!. I concentrated on the benefits of joining a public speaking class, controlling nerves, writing introductions, inclusion of humour, using notes, speakers' bad habits and favourite, inspiring speakers.

There really was a great wealth of decent advice on so many aspects of public speaking. You can read the whole Q&A here, a fantastic resource, especially for workplace presentations.

And here is a brief summary of some of the points from the panel.

This was my first live online event and, in some ways, it was like public speaking in that I was delivering my thoughts for a large group of people. A little easier though - I didn't have to choose suitable attire, travel to a distant town for the gig, focus on my voice or worry about the quality of the microphone. Plus, of course, I had the opportunity to edit!

Interview: Janet Chahrour – The Yoga of Relationship

Ian — Thu, 25 Aug 2011 14:34:58 +0000

Janet Chahrour (Sha-roor) is a life-change artist with a passion for matters of relationship. Her most popular presentations are The 7 Questions to Ask Yourself about Your Romantic Relationship and The Yoga of Relationship. Her website thrivingtogether.net offers a menu of her best articles and favorite books as well as a free report called The [...]

Bookends to the PC Era: Adam Osborne and Léo Apotheker

Ian — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 14:32:52 +0000

The recent news about Hewlett-Packard’s shift in strategic direction caught analysts by surprise and wiped $16B off the company share price on Friday. Commentators noted that CEO Léo Apotheker’s move confused many: Apotheker, who gained a reputation for sharp business acumen when he headed up SAP, thoroughly flummoxed HP shareholders last week with what some [...]

Lokpal Bill burning Incident

Latest Public Speaking Articles — Sat, 20 Aug 2011 12:41:40 +0000

Burning papers of a bill in front of the full media and public glare does not in any way come under the ambit of civil and civilized society. Burning copies of the government's version of the Lokpal Bill might not just be a symbolic action rather it speaks much more than that, such an act does not have any coherence on part of Team Anna who said that the protest would continue till August 16 when Mr. Hazare will again go on fast till the recommendations made by the "Civil" society are not included in the bill.

Now the much hyped movement which was started to weed out the corruption from our country has veered towards a different direction and is at the risk of going completely awry. Seems like Team Anna has completely shifted their focus from working for the masses to taking a hit at the people high up in the political and judicial order. This can be understood from the very fact that sections of the Lokpal bill which has the provisions of preventing the whistle blowers and common people from day to day corrupt activities has received zilch publicity and all the arguments have been jettisoned just shifting the talk towards prime ministers and judges which prima facie is baseless and does not serve any purpose in big scheme of things.

The initial hue and cry about removing all the corrupt ministers and bureaucrats which was just the tip of the iceberg of the whole corruption problem , has now taken the center stage and every member of the Civil Society and Team Anna is now hell bent on just taking a dig at this tip and simply ignoring the mammoth problem which lies underneath. This looks like a no gainer for civil society and is more of a move to satisfy the mega ego's of the people involved.

All arguments now with standing, there lies no sense in burning copies of bill, which is just a mindless and a brutal act, not just against sanity but against the environment too. Many environmentalists have condemned this act of burning papers as criminal and have said that people should have sense in not to aggravate environmental problems while solving(if at all) the corruption problem. There have been problems in the past too, but this senseless burning of copies of the bill, I must say takes away all the privileges of Team Anna and Co. calling themselves a member of the Civil Society. So, we would say that this "hungover" action from the members of the civil society should stop and some sense should prevail. As a nation we need long term solution for corruption , not some symbolic act of burning papers , which at best serves the purpose of and ego-satisfying media gimmick.

Book Review: Tasting the Moon, by Meg Fortune McDonnell

Ian — Fri, 19 Aug 2011 22:37:17 +0000

Full disclosure: I first met Meg Fortune McDonnell in 1980 when I arrived in California to join the community that grew up around the spiritual teacher she describes in her memoir. Unlike Meg, who embraced a relationship to her teacher that lasted a lifetime, I was more of a dilettante, dropping out of the community [...]

NSA Influence ‘11 Convention – 50 Key Take Aways

Ian — Mon, 15 Aug 2011 17:17:45 +0000

20 members of the Northern California Chapter of the National Speakers Association met on Saturday to debrief on the #nsa11 National Convention held July 30 – August 2 in Anaheim and share their key take-aways. We have held these meetings for a number of years, with the understanding that since only 12% of people [...]

The rise of the speechwriter

Ian — Thu, 11 Aug 2011 21:05:24 +0000

Speechwriters are the coming thing. In fact, this is a profession that is more talked about, and more written about, than ever. Want proof? According to the Google Ngrams database of millions of terms from their vast collection of digitized books in American English, “speechwriter” is an increasingly common word. Here’s the results for the the [...]