Since we just finished a piece related to everyone’s number one fear, I wanted to point you to an excellent resource I found could be helpful to you as you develop your own speaking skills.
I got an email from TJ Walker over at The Speaking Channel with a pointer to his new show, “Bully Pulpits: […]

I like giving presentations. (Go ahead, get it out of your system…done yet? Good.)
The Lessig Style
From time to time I look up and see if anyone is doing anything new. About 9 months ago I looked up and saw several folks talking about the “Lessig Style” of presentation. I watched a couple of sample presentations, […]

There is a lot to cover about private speaking that we haven’t talked about. And we’ll cover those issues as they come up over time. So far I have provided only the broadest outlines to get you thinking in the right direction. In some ways that’s the single most important part of really developing your […]

Seriously? Yes.
While I’m preparing for your difficult or important one-on-one interaction, I sometimes find that the process of preparation and of creating mind maps isn’t enough. Either the stakes (for me or the conversation partner) are so high that I’m not comfortable even having the conversation, or the conflict is likely to be so intense […]

Who says that speeches and public speaking gigs are the only times you should prepare ahead of time?
Before an important private interaction I always take a little time to sketch out in my mind how things are going to go. How will I open the conversation? How will she respond? Which responses are most likely, […]

At least some of the personal interactions you are going to have as a leader are going to fall into the category of a difficult conversation.
Difficult conversations happen when there is conflict, or anticipated conflict, between the ways two people perceive a given situation. For example, when you have to tell a coworker that […]

Every interpersonal interaction is potentially important. But you won’t recognize which ones are and which ones aren’t until you learn to treat your private interactions with the same degree of care that you treat your public interactions.
Interacting on purpose
Spend a little time before each interaction to be sure you know what you want to accomplish—what […]

First off, happy new year everybody! This is the first post of the new year, and we’re moving on to the last new topic before we finish the whole book.
After this topic is done (in a couple weeks, probably) most of the core of the book will be online. The book has more information, […]

“Theory and big ideas. Don’t you have any tips I can start using right now?” Why yes, I do. Thanks for asking.
Hyperventilate your way to a successful talk
Everyone is nervous before a performance (see the next tip). But if you find your nervousness might distract you from being effective, do what I do: hyperventilate.
A series […]

I love speaking to a crowd. It often gives me my only chance to teach as part of my job, and I get to pretend I’m an graphic designer for a while. But a majority of Westerners list public speaking as their worst fear, beating out death, the dark, financial ruin, and spiders and […]