I heard this on the radio today, “Great Leadership begins with the ability to level with people.” That’s another way of saying we must be transparent to be effective as leaders.
I just heard Obama criticized for going to Cairo to “apologize” for American behavior. It might just be that he was being transparent – leveling [...]

 
Most people are used to hearing others say what is bad and wrong about them.  That is one of the causes of fear of public speaking. It shocks people to hear all the good that you sense and see in them.  We use “mirroring the good” as a part of  our speaking training to help [...]

Public speaking clients ask me how they can “read” their audience. I tell them they must open to receive their audience members.
Receiving is an experience of 1) seeing individuals in the audience, 2) making authentic connection one-to-one with them and 3) taking them in through soft-focus eye connection.
Receiving is my way of expressing an experience [...]

Speaking to groups of people, sharing your ideas, insights and expertise can be a peak experience if you open to be yourself fully in front of others. 
I found myself humming the song “I Enjoy Being a Girl” yesterday.  Who knows why that song was in my head?  As I hummed, I began to think about how [...]

This blog post has nothing to do with public speaking and everything to do with opening the heart.  Well, certainly opening the heart is needed to be great at speaking.  Come to think of it, the heart pounding out of the chest that so many people experience in fear of public speaking is because those people [...]

Our new President just spoke to the world.  He began to reclaim our place in the world.  He called on us all to fill ourselves with the spirit of service, to remember who we are as a nation that has withstood worse challenges than we face now and to begin anew the work of remaking [...]

Andrew Dlugan at Six Minutes Public Speaking Blog has written a brilliant assessment of Martin Luther King’s “I have a Dream” speech.  Check it out for excellent ideas on speech writing.  This was the speech that was so persuasive that it has endured for decades.

Many speakers allow their listeners to ask them questions, but not many ask questions of the audience.  Ellen Finklestein of ellenfinklestein.com writes an excellent article about asking questions of your audience.  I will let you read her article for yourself.
At the end of her article she says it is important to plan your questions carefully.  My [...]

David Portney at Best Public Speaking Training  has written an article on how to Prevent Stage Fright.  He has a great idea to meet and greet audience members just before your talk.  I have advocated this for many years. I hope I have David’s permission to mention his article and to add to his helpful [...]

In Jonathan Livingston Seagull, Richard Bach teaches us that perfect speed is being there. That means the exact right pace for any activity is the pace that allows you to be fully present for the event.
In speaking to groups, presenting and public speaking, pace is a key to effective communication. If you talk too fast, [...]