Will Your Next Meeting Be A Waste Of Time?
Posted on April 20, 2008 - Filed Under Writing and Speaking | Leave a Comment
Prior to the meeting…
1 – Why
Why are you having the meeting?
Determine the purpose of your meeting and communicate that to everyone attending.
2 – What
What are you going to cover? Create a list of items to be discussed then send an email out to everyone attending the meeting asking them if there is anything else they feel needs to be discussed.
3 – Agenda
Create an agenda with all items to be discussed, times allotted for each item, schedule of times, and the person’s name in charge of reporting on that item.
For example (i.e. 8:00 -8:10 (10 min) Budget – Kenny
Article Writing And Marketing - Quality Content And Article Presentation Maximize Article Marketing
Posted on April 19, 2008 - Filed Under Writing and Speaking | Leave a Comment
Quality content is essential when writing articles, but so is the presentation of content if you want to market your articles well. Readers must not only be enticed by what you’ve written but also drawn to read it.
Have you ever been invited to someone’s home for dinner and had to serve yourself from pots on the stove? If your host is a great cook, it doesn’t matter. You’re happy to be there. But if the host is not a great cook, you may feel that you’ve wasted your time. Not only have you taken time out of your schedule but you’ve changed clothes, driven to his home, and either stopped on the way over or will stop afterwards to get something to eat. Bummer!
Read More..>>Speaking Before International Audiences - How To Identify The Needs Of International Audiences
Posted on April 12, 2008 - Filed Under Writing and Speaking | Leave a Comment
International audiences can be very intimidating. The less you have prior knowledge of them, the more nervous you might become about how to appear and present before them. But some preparation beforehand goes a long way towards acquiring necessary skills and gaining confidence to handle international audiences.
There are three basic steps to making sure that you get your core message across and affect your audience. The old advice “Know your listeners” works better if you split it into two parts, one about the listener’s needs and the second one about the manner in which they process information. This method will help you get beyond cultural stereotypes with its many shortcomings.
Read More..>>English Word Stress - Does It Really Matter?
Posted on April 8, 2008 - Filed Under Writing and Speaking | Leave a Comment
Yes and No.
Yes, if you are a non-native speaker speaking to a native English speaker (classified as English speakers from the UK, Australia, New Zealand and North America).
No, if you are a non-native English speaker speaking to another non-native speaker (classified as… everybody else).
Let me explain.
English language teaching theory has traditionally been based on native English forms, more specifically British and American English varieties. In today’s international community however, where more than 1 billion non-native English speakers use English as a lingua franca, teaching theory is changing to focus on English as an International Language (EIL).
Read More..>>Presentation Skills - Your Secret Career Weapon
Posted on April 7, 2008 - Filed Under Writing and Speaking | Leave a Comment
If there’s one skillset that can help you position yourself for career success, it’s presentation skills. That’s because in today’s highly competitive workplace, it’s not enough just to be competent - you need to be seen to be competent. And the best way to do that is to present as often as you reasonably can to as many appropriate audiences as possible. To do this successfully, of course, your presentation skills must be at least better than average.
Read More..>>Tackle Your Fear Of Public Speaking - Overcoming Pre-presentation Jitters
Posted on March 26, 2008 - Filed Under Writing and Speaking | Leave a Comment
There is nothing more impressive that an eloquent public speaker. Confident, well-versed and in-control, he makes it look easy, doesn’t he? But we all know it’s not as easy as it looks.
It is a very natural reaction to become nervous before a presentation. This is basically because it is very unnatural to put yourself in the vulnerable position of standing before a large group of people who will judge you and what you say (which is really an extension of you, isn’t it?).
It’s okay to be nervous—as long as your audience never finds out! Follow these tips to overcome nervousness and build confidence:
Read More..>>Public Speaking - Where Do I Find Great Stories To Tell?
Posted on March 23, 2008 - Filed Under Writing and Speaking | Leave a Comment
Can personal stories make my speech more interesting and impressionable? And if so, how do I ensure I have great stories to tell?
Absolutely! Telling personal stories is one of the easiest and most effective ways of making your speech interesting and impressionable. It is foolproof. You can be the most boring speaker in the entire universe but when you tell a personal story, you will automatically be forgiven. Not only do your stories build rapport with your audience, they differentiate you from the rest of the speakers. In the eyes of your audience, you are unique!
Read More..>>Six Basic Questions While Preparing A Speech
Posted on March 23, 2008 - Filed Under Automotive, Writing and Speaking | Leave a Comment
Thee are various occasions, formal and informal, where you have to make a speech. You may get enough time to prepare your speech or you may have to make an impromptu speech. Whatever the occasion, speech should have a certain plan and pattern of structure.
The following questions are basic issues that every one proposing to make a speech must ask himself while writing a speech. If you are clear about the answers to these questions, you will be able to have the desired effect.
Read More..>>Substance, Humor, Style Of Presenting - Which Is More Important When It Comes To Delivering A Speech
Posted on March 22, 2008 - Filed Under Writing and Speaking | Leave a Comment
It really depends on the purpose of the speech. If it is for entertainment, then humor will be more important than substance. An after dinner speech is one such example. People would expect you to make them laugh more than to make them learn. Can you imagine someone preaching about the seven effective habits of highly successful people after a six-course meal?
Read More..>>In Powerpoint Business Presentations, Visual Aids Must Be Both (be Visual And Be An Aid)
Posted on March 7, 2008 - Filed Under Writing and Speaking | Leave a Comment
I sat through a presentation where the speaker handed the audience a copy of his notes (his talk written out in full), projected those same notes onto a screen behind him, and then read word-for-word from his notes, and sometimes from the screen, which amounted to the same thing. The overall effect was deadly.
The thing to remember about visual aids is that they must be visual and they must aid. Too many people, when called upon to make a presentation or speech, think they must project their words onto a screen behind them as row after row of bulleted points. The result is death by bullets.
Read More..>>