browse our blog archive - start with a search:
I am a big admirer of public speaking coach and overall interesting thinker Nick Morgan. His book, Can You Hear Me?: How to Connect with People in a Virtual World, is one of the resources I have turned to most often in the last 18 months. Because I appreciate Nick’s writing, I’m always particularly pleased ... Continue Reading
The other day, as I was scrolling through an online forum dedicated to my favorite college basketball team (go Heels!), a comment jumped out at me. In response to the question: “Do you think Coach prepares his speeches to the team?” one person responded, “No way. It’s off the cuff. He speaks from the heart.” ... Continue Reading
When you’re nervous, your body can start to betray you. Your hands or voice may shake, or maybe you suddenly can’t quite get your breath. Here’s a quick routine to get you back in your body, and get your body back on your side. Roll your shoulders all the way around their sockets. Forward, up, ... Continue Reading
I have been rewatching some old seasons of “Top Chef,” the reality show where chefs compete over several weeks, and one wins, and they cook lots of amazing-looking things. There is a lot of activity, and hustle, and there’s a deadline, just like in a real kitchen. You need to get your dish cooked and ... Continue Reading
Extend your generosity. When you’re in the audience and the speaker says “um,” mispronounces a word, or seems a little nervous, give them a break. As long as they are prepared, and they’re trying to make a connection with you, give them the benefit of the doubt. If, on the other hand, the speaker seems ... Continue Reading
The idea of an “elevator speech” or “pitch” is that you have something concise at the ready when someone, in an elevator, asks, “What are you up to these days?” Your time is limited! The floors are ticking by! WHAT WILL YOU SAY?! An elevator speech gives you a way to respond that’s better than ... Continue Reading
A client recently had a wonderful insight that I wanted to share. You know how sometimes we talk about “putting out fires” to describe solving urgent problems at work? My client pointed out that even firefighters take a minute to plan before they get to work. In fact, the planning is built into their process: ... Continue Reading
When you’re crafting your presentation, start by figuring out two important things. First, you need to be able to boil your message down to a sentence or two. What are you trying to convey? What’s the kernel of your content? This shouldn’t be a multi-paragraph summary of details. Instead, spend some time determining the main ... Continue Reading
There are SO MANY lists, articles, and videos that spotlight the writer’s “don’t ever do this” language pet peeves. For added credibility, they sometimes claim to reflect “the grammar mistakes that drive your manager crazy” or “eight words that always undermine your public speaking.” Here’s my take. There’s no definitive list of language pitfalls that ... Continue Reading
Some folks come to us for coaching after years of feeling bad about how they communicate. They got some harsh feedback, or maybe they didn’t do a great job on a presentation, and now their internal story is “I’m not good at this.” I’m not sure why public speaking, in particular, brings out so many ... Continue Reading
© 2016 - 2024 IgniteCSP LLC | Site by TheFieryWell.com
