An experienced and accomplished presenter, Strategic Services Manager at Rapid 7, Maranda Cigna was not convinced that a public speaking training would be of much benefit. Here’s what she discovered.   Let’s get some backstory first. When did Public speaking...

I was talking with a client the other day, and during the conversation, he said something about wanting to sound more like Donald Trump. I asked him to elaborate and he said, "You know, saying whatever is on your mind with complete confidence, and being viewed as...

https://youtu.be/2YgjQfpFf78

Raise your hand if you have ever watched your favorite athlete, actor or singer having a bad performance, and thought to yourself, "Their head is not in the game. They're just phoning it in." If it's an athletic event, you are likely prepared for your team to lose. If...

The last weeks of Jon Stewart’s reign on The Daily Show loom large and it’s been fun to see the parade of long-time, favorite guests in the chair. Enter Sarah Vowell – journalist, author and social commentator. Her response to Stewart’s welcome? “I’m glad I could be...

While everyone in the U.S. was celebrating the Fourth of July holiday, another important milestone came and went: the official half-year mark. That's right - there are only six months left in 2015. It's a great time to take a moment and look back, and then look...

I had the pleasure of meeting a former colleague and friend for dinner last night. We had a great time catching up and walking down memory lane. Lots of laughs - and some new stories were shared. Turns out she never heard about the time when I was presenting to a...

I was facilitating a meeting last week with a leadership team who was trying to advance their strategic plan that was stuck in a ditch, to the point where one of the employees asked her manager, "What plan?" The CEO said to the directors, "Please, I beg you, don't...

Roseann Sdoia is a motivational speaker who shares her powerful story as a Boston Marathon Bombing Survivor to help people of all ages discover their own unstoppable strength.   When did public speaking become a part of your life/career?    After the 2013...

Let's get all the guesses out first. Are you thinking the "one skill" is managing others? Or perhaps you were thinking about technical skills, like being able to calculate EBITDA in your head. Still others may be sure it's something like strategic planning. Those are...

There's a very popular book written by Harold Stolovitch and Erica Keeps called Tellin' Ain't Training. I saw it on my bookshelf the other day and realized the same sentiment holds true for PowerPoint presentations: just because you are clicking through slides does...

It's that time of year again when I get to watch no fewer than 15 team presentations. They are always enlightening and never fail to provide tangible, meaningful and helpful Do's and Don'ts for the rest of us. Here are my favorites: 1. Batting Order:  How to decide...

So much wonder to share from my first live experience of THE MOTH in Boston. ORIGIN STORIES MATTER TO YOUR AUDIENCE It was 1997 and founder George Green was living in NYC. He was sorely missing those Georgia evenings when he and friends would gather on a porch and...

This is a great example of one of our favorite public speaking adages in action. There is a saying in acting, "make a choice and make it bigger"  meaning commit to your plan and self-expression and then enlarge and enliven it for your audience. Enjoy watching Mirren...