I just took the Miami Writing Institute class. It’s a 4-5 hour online “taste” of what Miami University has been teaching teachers about writing within each academic discipline and genres through their nationally known Howe Center for Writing. A few weeks ago, I was on panel with its director, Elizabeth Wardle, Ph.D. and had some …
When a client tells me they want to do a group presentation, my first instinct is to say DON’T DO IT! They take a lot more time. (I mean a lot!) It’s harder to make the presentation cohesive. The increased complexity means more risk of things going wrong. Long story short, they are just harder …
For over a year or more as I walked the halls at a large executive speaking coach client organization, I’d been told about an executive with the UM, AH and LIKE problem. You know, those filler words people use when speaking, and in public speaking in particular. They were correct but not complete. After a …
So, are your presentations for your audience or yourself? Are they thoughtfully planned stories with which your audience can relate? Convert your conversation into a presentation.
These are calls I’ve gotten recently from clients, concerned about performances of some of their key women. “She is fine when she’s one-on-one with colleagues, but as soon as she goes into a group meeting or presentation, she clams up. We know she has good communication skills, but she refuses to use them.” “During the …
It was five years ago this last winter that I applied for one of the first TEDx licenses. And apparently, I’m one of the few crazy enough get a 6th consecutive one. Our event has grown both in size and maturity, and it’s become a well anticipated event in Columbus each fall. As we began choosing our speakers this year, …
Lessons from the Front Row: What not to do in your TEDx talk Read More »
A college professor commented that his students were giving him a wide range of feedback on his lectures. “Some students think I’m the second coming and others think I’m a train wreck. What gives?” Having heard him speak at a public forum and also having had many conversations with him, the answer was pretty simple. …
On Wednesday this week, Jan and I attended the ‘final exam’ in Alaina Sheer’s presentation transformation. I hadn’t written about our style and delivery session that we had a few weeks ago as I knew there was some additional work to be done before she was really ready to present. Tuesday night we had a chance …
From fairy tales to extreme makeovers, who doesn’t love a good before-and-after story? HGTV has built an empire around ’em (with good reason) and TLC offers a veritable pantheon of makeover shows about babies, weddings and beauty. So Ruth and I thought it would be fun and, more importantly, helpful and enlightening, to feature a before-and-after story of …
