3 PowerPoint Photo Tips (Video)
You can take your PowerPoint slides from ordinary to awesome with 3 simple tips shown in this video (4:22): 1. Make your picture BIG! 2. Remove the picture background 3. Match the font of your text to a color in the picture Bonus Tip: If you want to grab the colors from something online, you can […]
Using Quotes in PowerPoint–Video
You get two tips today! Tip #1: Make your quotes look better in PowerPoint. Click below to see the 4-minute Jing video I made on using quotations in PowerPoint: BonusTip #2: Create short videos to explain “how to.” For the above video, I used Jing, a free screen capture tool. Not all of your presentations may be […]
Persuasive Speech Structures
In a recent discussion on the Official Toastmasters International Members Group Facebook Page, member Merv Olsen, asked “What are your thoughts on the ‘Monroe Motivated Sequence’ approach to persuasive speaking?” You might think that this question doesn’t apply to you because you don’t give persuasive speeches. Don’t be too quick to dismiss. Ultimately, almost every […]
Free ebook for Summer Reading: 12 Ways to Be a Confident Speaker
Learn some public speaking skills this summer! This week your free ebook is 12 Ways to Be a Confident Speaker. Get your free Kindle version (US link, Canadian link, UK link) It’s free on Kindle through Saturday, June 21, 2014. You will learn how to: –Speak with Passion –Focus on the Audience –Know Your Material –Use Notes Sparingly –Speak Conversationally […]
Free ebook for Summer Reading: Public Speaking Lessons from TED Talks
Learn some public speaking skills this summer! This week and next, I am giving you free ebooks on public speaking (next week is “12 Ways to Be a Confident Speaker”). Get your free Kindle version (US link, Canadian link, UK link) of the short e-book, Public Speaking Lessons from TED Talks: The Good and the Bad from the 10 Most-Viewed […]
Virtual Communication Skills–Bridging the Digital Divide (Video)
Virtual communication, communication using technology to communicate across continents, cultures, languages and time-zones, is quickly becoming the norm. You can discover practical methods for collaborating and presenting virtually in the video below (34 min, presentation given at a conference at the University of Copenhagen last month–don’t worry, only my speaker introduction is in Danish).Ready. Set. […]
Content vs. Delivery: Which is More Important?
Some people say, “It’s not what you say, it’s how you say it,” regarding the relative importance of content vs. delivery in a presentation. Is delivery more important than content? My most recent experience as a presenter at a conference at the University of Copenhagen on Virtual Communication (the conference title was “You Lost Me […]
PowerPoint on iPhone or iPad: Practice and Present
If you have an iPhone or an iPad and you do PowerPoint presentations, you will want to get the free SlideShark app. I’ve used it on my iPad to do one-on-one presentations and I’ve also used it on my phone to practice presentations. You can also broadcast your presentation to the web and connect your […]
Is Communication Really 93% Non-Verbal?
Have you heard these statistics?: “Effective communication is only 7 percent verbal and 93 percent non-verbal (the non-verbal is 55 percent body language and 38 percent tone of voice). They are often accompanied by a PowerPoint pie chart: Maybe you have even quoted those statistics. I’ve heard so many speakers quote those numbers (including a […]
Improve Your Speaking with Improv
Aside from participating in Toastmasters, the most beneficial activity I have done to improve my speaking was to take a couple of improv classes several years ago. The idea of speaking without preparation may be terrifying to you. It’s still not my favorite thing to do, but practicing improv in class, in Toastmasters and even […]