Storytelling Audience Participation Adds Pizzazz

There are many forms of storytelling audience participation from the subtle interaction between teller and listeners to the many out-and-out call and response between teller and audience members. In this article, I address the why, what, how, when, where, and who.

Presentation Ethics -- It's a Matter of Trust

There are ethics and principles that we, as speakers, should embrace and follow. In this article I highlight and explain the speaker’s ethics and principles in which I believe.

Speakers: Are You Struggling to Find a Good Speaker for Your School/Conference?

Staff training day coming around and the headteacher has asked you to get a good speaker to do a day's session on autism ... or ADHD ... or behaviour management. Where do you go? A new section on our website will provide all the information you need.

The Secret of Persuasive Presentations - It's In The Voice!

In making a presentation, speaking isn't enough. You need to be able to be heard AND understood. And you need to be persuasive. Learn about the 4 Ps for persuasive presentations.

Public Speaking: Glossary U - Z

Upstage: The area of the stage farthest from the audience. Also to steal the focus of the audience from the intended main performer. Venue: See Site. View-graph: Alternate name for overhead transparency. Wings: Extreme sides of the stage normally hidden...

Public Speaking: Line of Sight

When you speak alot you run into some crazy room setups. It's your job to be there early to make sure all the little preparation details taken care of. One of these details is the visibility of you and your visuals from each chair in the audience.

Public Speaking: Listen to Everyone

When you are speaking at an event that has multiple speakers, try to listen to as many of the other speakers as you can. In particular, don't miss the...

Photographic Memory

Would you like the audience to think you have a photographic memory? Would you like them to look at you in awe?

Using Visual Aids and Props for Giving More Powerful Presentations

Visual aids and props can go a long way in lending interest and depth to your presentation. Many people are highly visual in nature. “Did you see that!” Audiences tend to remember visually presented information more clearly and in more detail. If you’re still a bit nervous, a small “prop” will help you to keep your hands “busy”, so you can avoid a number of unconscious “nervous habits”. Some props and visual aids I’ve found useful during my presentations include these items.

Public Speaking: Give Me a Brake

... a mental brake that is. Here are some mind tricks when you speak too fast.

Public Speaking: Timing

Timing in public speaking is one of the most important aspects of humor and NO ZZZZZs speaking. Not only is timing involved in an individual piece of humor, it is also involved in the placement of that piece of humor in the overall presentation. Timing is also involved in spontaneous reactions to 'expected' unexpected developments during the presentation

Public Speaking: Lay Down the Law

Lay Down the Law: Getting everyone to agree to your plan in the beginning puts enormous peer pressure on an individual violating any of the rules...

Public Speaking: The Front Row

In the research I did on my recent public speaking trip to Thailand, I discovered that a meeting or seminar custom is to seat VIP attendees in the front row. No one of a lesser status either socially or in business would think of sitting closer to the front than their boss, or someone of a higher social ranking...

Public Speaking:Simile

Simile is a comparison of two things which, however different in other respects, have some strong point or points in common. The words 'like' and 'as' will normally be used when making the comparison.

Public Speaking: Humorous Signs

I run across funny signs all the time. I try to take a mental note or take a picture of the sign for later use during a public speaking engagement. John Jay Daly, a speaker friend of mine, does a hysterical slide presentation called 'The Wacky, Wonderful World of Washington.' Many of the slides are of signs that he has seen around Washington, D.C.