Does the thought of giving a speech make you feel a little queasy? Do your hands still get sweaty? Does your heart start pounding before you go on stage? Does your brain play a sizzle reel of all the things that could possibly go wrong (everyone hates it, people boo, you fall off the stage, get pelted with rotten tomatoes, etc.) beforehand? Here’s a secret: me too. And I’ve been doing this a long time.
Read MoreLast night I watched Ron Chapman deliver a wonderful speech about what we can learn from dog shows. Yes, dog shows. His point was that in a dog show we are not comparing a pug to a labrador, rather, we are judging whether that pug is the best version of himself compared to whether the labrador is the best version of herself. The point he made was that each of us is the best possible version of ourselves, therefore it’s foolish to try and be someone else.
Read More“It quickly became apparent that while this class was technically about writing essays, in reality it needed to be about learning how to think critically…”
Read MoreThis post is specifically about composing emails that are correspondence with your colleagues, and others with whom you want to make a positive, professional impression.
Read MoreThis post is specifically about composing emails that require a clear action from the recipient.
Read MoreHow do you make yourself stand out amongst all of the competition when applying for jobs? After all, most jobs get multiple applications and many of the applicants have similar levels of education, experience, etc. There are many ideas about this, but the one my colleagues and I have had the most success with is a resume that tells a story about the way you will bring value to the organization and uses visual design to emphasize key elements.
Read MoreOne of the best scenes from an otherwise mediocre movie was when Will Farrell’s character in “Talladega Nights” couldn’t figure out what to do with his hands while he was speaking in front of a large crowd. While he spoke, his arms slowly kept rising next to him, as if possessed by their own will.
Read MoreSeveral years ago blogging began mostly as personal online journals where people detailed their day-to-day lives, reviewed foods/music/movies/etc., or served to build communities around niche interests. Today blogging is one of the most effective marketing tools a business owner can utilize to find new customers and clients, and keep current customers and clients happy.
Read MoreThere’s nothing like staring at a blank page on a computer screen to create a seemingly insurmountable mental block about what you’re going to write. Even the most experienced writers get stuck, and if you don’t have a few good strategies for getting over writer’s block it can create serious issues for your workflow. Here are some of my favorite Do’s and Don’ts for getting over writer’s block.
Read More“If you can’t explain it simply, you don’t know it well enough.” –Albert Einstein
One of the biggest challenges speakers and writers face, especially those who are experts in their field, is how to make complex information accessible and relatable to the audience. Whenever I address this topic with my clients, the immediate push-back I get is “I don’t want to dumb it down.” I expect this reaction, because most of us are not only attached to our work, we’re attached to being experts in our field.
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