One of the best ways to improve how you come across as a speaker is to cut out filler words. Often known as the “ums and ahs”, they fill in silences when a speaker is thinking about what to say next. It isn’t just ums and ahs that are fillers. Speakers often use other words […]
One of the most common complaints about any seminar or presentation is that the speaker has put a lot of text on a slide and is reading it out. There really is no point to that. If there is just a lot of text on a slide, the audience could easily have read this themselves. […]
Whether online, back in the room or new hybrid formats, there are key things that make a seminar good (or not!). Here are some key aspects to consider when preparing and delivering seminars. What is it designed to do? As with any aspect of public speaking, you should start with purpose. Many professionals put on […]
The Covid-19 pandemic has undoubtedly changed the world. As we move into new ways of working, it appears hybrid working is here to stay, and for good reason. Many are keen to get back to the connection and interaction you can have in a room. The advantages of enabling online attendance are also clear in […]
At a conference earlier this year, I hosted a panel discussion of experienced speakers. I asked them their thoughts on the most important aspect of public speaking. Every panellist said the same thing – your audience. If you are an accomplished speaker – confident, polished, charismatic – but your audience is not interested in or […]
When it comes to facilitating events, having / being a great MC is crucial. I’ve written previously about the role of the MC in providing the links between the programme in a large event. This one is focussed on facilitating events with a single speaker. Warm-up The MC is the first person to speak to […]
A panel discussion is a great way to elicit a range of views from people with different expertise and perspectives. They might come from different fields within your industry, different types of company or have had different starting points/journeys within the topic area. Here are key things to consider if you are chairing a panel […]
There are types of speaking which rely heavily on preparation. In others you must speak completely off-the-cuff with no preparation at all. One of my favourite aspects of speaking is facilitation. The kind of speaking where you are semi-prepared. You can prepare some of what you are going to say, but the rest relies on […]
Communicating purpose is powerful. The previous two blogs explored why in terms of speaking and meetings. Although broad, I want to touch on its importance in other situations too. Understanding the purpose of an organisation – its reason for being – is vital for all activities being undertaken. It should be the very essence […]
In the first article of this series, we looked at the power of purpose in speaking – essentially communication. The fundamental reason for meetings is to facilitate communication. Often, meetings are viewed as an inconvenience. This could be because the person calling the meeting hasn’t properly thought about the purpose of the meeting. Or hasn’t […]
