“Learn the rules like a pro, so you can break them like an artist” ~ Pablo Picasso. I love this quote by Picasso and every time I read it, it reminds that before I do something completely different and go out on a limb I need a good understanding of the first principals of public speaking, audience engagement and indeed …
Share Your Struggles As Well As Your Wins – If You Wish To Be Truly Persuasive
Should you share your struggles, your weaknesses your mistakes? I was doing an online leadership course and one of the questions asked, was “should leaders reveal their weaknesses”? The majority of responses stated that good leaders must appear strong, knowledgeable, experienced and they must not show or reveal any weakness. Of course I disagreed and argued that weakness, or struggle …
The Value Of Feedback
In all of my public speaking workshops I emphasise the value and the importance of getting feedback, one way or the other, on your performance. One of my favorite quotes states that “Feedback is the food of champions” and it is the way we learn and grow. Feedback is important for several reasons. Feedback:- lets you know of areas where …
Taking Responsibility
As a public speaking coach and trainer many people ask me if I can fix their fear, make them a better presenter and a more confident and effective speaker. They do a coaching package, or attend a workshop and then they think they are fixed. When I follow up 6 months later many people state that they have not had …
The power and chemistry of the smile when doing presentations, public speaking and general conversations
Charles Garfield used to coach the Russian Olympic weight-lifting team. He noticed that when the team members had lifted as much as they could, to the point of exhaustion, they would invariably grimace and frown and screw up their faces at the painful effort. In an experiment, he encouraged the weight lifters to smile when they got to that point …
The Power Of Habit
I have just read the book called “The Power Of Habit” by Charles Duhigg and it is both an enlightening and confirming read. For a long time I have been speaking and writing about the importance of habits in becoming more confident and effective as a public speaker. I have also spoken about the need to get in the habit …




