Nine Steps to Owning the Deck
One of the biggest challenges presenters face is using a presentation that they did not create. Physician Speakers in particular, need to learn and practice techniques to make the presentation their own, all while delivering a memorable message and remaining compliant...
Leadership Presence in Action: An Amazing Story of Audience Connection
When I think of leadership presence, I always remember Joanne, a managing director at a large private bank. Here’s her story … This private bank brought in 15 top Ivy League college graduates that they’d carefully recruited for an intensive six-week...
Business Writing Key to Success: Tone, Topic, Transparency
Three important aspects of effective business writing are: tone, topic, and transparency. Tone is critical because it can dramatically affect how the reader perceives you and your message. You will use a different approach when writing to a potential client whom you...
Want to Develop Leadership Presence? Three Ways to Begin
A colleague’s daughter contacted me recently after being passed over twice for a choice promotion. She told me she really wanted to advance in the company, but didn’t seem to have what they were looking for. “I’m responsible, easy to work with, and really good at my...
Got Analogies? Juice Up Your Tech Talk!
When you deliver a presentation, how do you ensure that your points come across in a juicy and engaging way? You might invite your listeners to the party with the use of stories, but you can also consider the shorter, more compact cousin of the story: analogies. An...
9 Scenarios for Presentation Skills Training
If you’ve ever been through a presentation skills training program, you probably know what a difference it can make in just one day. You may have seen a significant improvement in your confidence, polish, and messaging—just between the morning and the afternoon....
Persuade Your Audience
Audience Attitude If you need to persuade an audience, the difference between success and failure may rest on your ability to judge your audience’s attitude and respond appropriately. Before you decide how to organize your talk, know which of the following types of...
The Art of Pushback
We recently worked with a Forecasting team on handling situations that required pushback. For example, one day the National Sales Director came into a forecaster’s office and said, “We don’t really want to have the sales forecast that high, do we?” For Sales, a higher...
What Makes a Speech Persuasive?
You may already be aware that knowing your Purpose, Audience, and Logistics (your PAL™) is the foundation of creating a good presentation. But… What makes a presentation persuasive? A persuasive presentation must appeal to both the mind and the heart; and it must be...
7 Strategies for Assertive Communication to Resolve Conflict
Are you confident in your ability to manage conflict? You may be surprised to learn that assertive communication is essential for managing conflict. This skillset is particularly important when a conflict involves a very strong (or even aggressive) personality....