Three Lessons from the Island of Corfu

I recently returned from a lovely – and much needed – vacation in Corfu, Greece. Stunning scenery, beautiful weather, delicious food and, most importantly, some of the nicest people you will meet anywhere. As public speaking is never far from my mind, I am always on the lookout for inspiration from unique sources. Corfu did […]
Charisma: It’s what you do that counts

Charisma is not who you are. Charisma is what you do. Many people bemoan the fact that they “are not charismatic”. But this kind of thinking is not productive. Anyone can be more charismatic if they are willing to work at it. Because charisma is all about actions and behaviours. It is a skill that […]
One Thing – Stick to That and Everything Else Don’t Mean Shit

City Slickers is one of my favourite movies. It’s a 1991 Western comedy starring Billy Crystal, Daniel Stern, Bruno Kirby and Jack Palance. It received critical claim and won several awards. It is frequently hilarious but also contains some deep truths about life. Well worth watching. The movie is about three men who have been friends from childhood. They […]
7 Tips for Public Speakers in a 2-minute video

If you give me 2 minutes, I will give you 7 tips that will help you be a more effective, more impactful speaker. In my previous post, I shared a video from my YouTube Channel in which I drew on Japanese culture and talked about the benefit for public speakers of being out in nature. […]
Six benefits of humour in a speech

Humour is powerful. When used well in a speech or presentation, it can have a profound impact on the audience. This, in turn, can help get your message across. The infographic below sets out six benefits of humour. For a detailed analysis of the benefits of humour and 10 tips for using it well, please […]
The importance of a first step

If the purpose of your presentation is to persuade the audience to do something, getting them to take a small, simple first step is one of the most important things that you can do to achieve your ultimate objective.
An important question for every speaker

There is an important question that every public speaker must be able to answer: Why should the audience care about what I am going to say? If you can’t answer that question, you have a problem. Either you are speaking to the wrong audience or you are giving the wrong talk. This post marks the […]
Three public speaking resolutions for 2021

2021. We made it. We finally said goodbye to 2020, a year that will be forever remembered in the history books but not for the best reasons. And, we are still in the thick of the fight against COVID-19. Still, with vaccines now being distributed, there are reasons to be hopeful. And, in any event, […]
Rhetorical Devices: Antanagoge

This post is part of a series on rhetorical devices. For other posts in the series, please click this link. For a comprehensive, step-by-step overview of how to write a speech outline, please see this post. Device: Antanagoge (pronounced an-tana-goji) Origin: From the Greek ἀνταναγωγή meaning “anti” (against) and “anagoge” (leading up). In plain English: Turning a negative into a positive. […]
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