𝙍𝙀𝙈 𝙏𝙀𝙉𝙀, 𝙑𝙀𝙍𝘽𝘼 𝙎𝙀𝙌𝙐𝙀𝙉𝙏𝙀𝙍
📜 𝙍𝙀𝙈 𝙏𝙀𝙉𝙀, 𝙑𝙀𝙍𝘽𝘼 𝙎𝙀𝙌𝙐𝙀𝙉𝙏𝙀𝙍 📜 “Grasp hold of your subject, the words will follow.” – Cato the Elder There is often a temptation, when preparing to speak, to focus on the words. We spend hours crafting sentences, rehearsing phrasing, tweaking the script. All in pursuit of saying it just right. And yet, Cato the Elder—speaking […]
Signpost your presentation
The brain wants meaning before detail. That’s why you need a signpost. When it comes to presentations, speakers often jump straight into the details—and keep adding more details—before properly setting the context. (If, in fact, they ever get around to setting the context.) And for an audience, it is incredibly frustrating because an audience wants […]
It’s too damn much!
Microsoft created Word and PowerPoint for a reason. A Word document and a PowerPoint presentation are not the same thing. They serve two different purposes! And yet, every day, I see people making their slides as packed and dense as any report or standard operating procedures. It’s a bad practice. You force the audience to […]
🧊🥶 A Lesson from an Ice Plunge 🥶🧊
Taking the plunge can be hard; taking an ice plunge can be terrifying! But the sensation afterwards is incredible. Last week, I had the privilege of once again working with Nokia at their training centre in Båtvik, Finland (~40 km west of Helsinki). The facility is excellent. It sits on the shores of the Baltic […]
The Three Rhetorical Musketeers
The classic novel, The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas, takes place in the 17th century. It follows the adventures of a young man named d’Artagnan who leaves his home to join the Musketeers of the Guard, a prestigious group of soldiers who serve the King of France. Although d’Artagnan cannot join this elite guard immediately, […]
Quotes for Public Speakers (No. 351) – James Clear
“Communication is about what is received, not what is intended. If there is a gap between what you are saying and what they are hearing, you have to find a new way to say it.” James Clear (Bio)
Why native English speakers can’t speak English!
OK, native English speakers actually CAN speak English. However, when presenting in English to an audience of non-native speakers, native English speakers are often misunderstood or not understood at all. Why? There are a variety of potential reasons. It could be the speaker’s accent. Perhaps the speaker is speaking too fast, or using jargon and […]
“DAMMIT! I KNEW IT!”
Don’t overwhelm your audience. The speech Many years ago, a multinational IT company invited me to a full-day event that they were hosting in Lausanne, Switzerland. The keynote speaker was the Head of the company’s Europe, Middle East and Africa division. His topic was new initiatives on which the company was working. I was introduced […]
The public speaking paradox
It’s a paradox. You have to give everything you have when you prepare. You have to have a message that is clear and relevant for your audience. You need to do the appropriate research. You have to structure your presentation in a way that makes it easy to understand. You need to practice to ensure […]
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