One of the keys to being more influential, when you speak in public is to share your message in a way that highlights the benefits to your audience or your clients. When you are asking people to change, or to accept a new way of thinking, or to try something different, what are the benefits for them. A common mistake …
When you get asked to speak at a meeting, be a guest speaker at an AGM, or be asked to share your expertise at a conference, you may consider turning up and winging it without preparation. After all, you are an expert on the topic. This is something I often get asked about: “Is it OK to wing it?”, “Should …
Is public speaking a must-have skill, or a nice to have, optional skill? This is a question that I am often asked by managers and business owners. My answer is always that it depends. It depends on whether you want a high-performance team, if you want to encourage group participation and idea sharing, if you want to enhance creativity and …
The Question and Answer (Q and A) session can be a key component of any presentation, meeting or training session. It is where your audience asks questions that fill the gaps in their knowledge and clarify their understanding of what you have said. Unfortunately, many speakers and trainers struggle when the Q and A session starts. And this may have …
A lot of people have difficulty saying No. In fact, many will agree that it is easier to just say yes, in most situations. And this “saying yes” happens on a daily basis in many workplace environments. There are various reasons why people say Yes when they really want to say No. It might be because they want to be …
Why do we need to build rapport with our audience? An old marketing quote states that “people buy from those they know, like, and trust”. From a public speaking perspective, I like to say, “people listen and learn from those they know, like, and trust”. Building rapport helps you to connect with your audience and it helps to build trust. …
