Is Public Speaking Back in Style

Fellow coach Lisa Braithwaite found this article online - Presidentially Speaking: 59% Say Public Speaking is Back in Fashion suggesting public speaking is back in style!

It outlines a survey of 1700 anonymous USA voters who felt the abilities of President-Elect Barack Obama vs. the ability of Sen. John McCain in the public speaking arena weighed heavily on their choice of whom they would elect.

The conclusion of the article is that 'Public Speaking is Back in Style' - that poor speakers are now held to a higher standard than they have been in years. Whether our presidential election was decided by public speaking is not 100% sound theory - but it certainly had an effect.

Quality public speaking goes beyond keeping your 'ahs & uhms' under control. Physical delivery, facial expression, vocal control, word choice, and authenticity all impact the effectiveness of your communication.

Have you ever heard a bad speech? Have you ever given one? I know I have - and it has driven me to improve my own skills, and dedicate a significant portion of my career to helping others improve theirs.

What will YOU do to ensure your next speaking opportunity, to your employees, stockholders, or association hits the mark? If public speaking is back in style, you may be called to speak sooner than you think!

The Day the Voiceover Died.

Voiceover master Don LaFontaine died Monday at the age of 68.

In case the name doesn't ring a bell, watch the video below:


You may have heard people suggest you watch a movie with the sound down to feel the impact a soundtrack truly makes. A voiceover artist does just as much in a preview, or in driving the plot of a commercial. Mr. LaFontaine's voice became identifiable to us without us even realizing it. He narrated both our TV and Movie lives.

His voice was his brand, just as much as Sinatra, Johnny Cash, and Pavarotti.

Is there something about you that you can brand? It doesn't have to be exclusive - there were plenty of other voices on the airwaves. It doesn't have to be complicated or catchy. Carol Burnett had the ear tug, Johnny had the golf swing, Michael Jackson had his glove. Not their only talents or IDs, but memorable nonetheless.

Look for things that make you who you are, instead of always looking to create new concepts. The do it everywhere for 25 years. And you will be remembered as fondly as the Master of Voiceovers.

What is Intuition?

I just had an interview by phone with a young CEO for a company in St. George. They were looking for a contract sales trainer to travel the world part-time.

The call didn't go well. He decided in about 10 minutes I didn't have the 'intuitive abilities' to handle the position. Of course, he was completely wrong - as he didn't realize that it took me all of 10 seconds to realize I didn't want to work with this arrogant child.

What is intuition? A gut feeling? Or the quick assessment of information given?

What I heard immediately? Arrogance. Impatience. Self-entitlement. His tone of voice was aggressive and petulant. He wanted to make it clear he was boss.

Personally, I have no desire to work for someone else, unless it is a PERFECT situation. I knew immediately this was not it, and went into an interview mode designed to end the call quickly.

Midway through the call, he suggested I was too rigid in my approach to training. Hmmm - my clients don't seem to think so.

At the end of the call, he suggested I didn't have the intuitive powers to be successful with his company.

Ahh...he couldn't be further from the truth!

When your intuition hits, do you follow it, or ignore it hoping it will go away? I have found time after time, whether in business or personal relationships, that ignoring my gut feelings is a mistake.

It's easy to do though. We get blinded by money, power, lust, prestige - and we tell our intuition to go take a hike.

There's a reason intuition is called a gut feeling. It's the stomach trying to defend itself from a kick in the near future.

Passionate Gore wins Nobel Prize

8 years ago, Al Gore had no passion, no charisma, and no brother in Florida to push him into the Oval Office.

Today, his passion has brought him the Nobel Prize. Political speech writer Doug Wead talks about political speakers accused of being lackluster as victims of a system aimed at offending people the least.

Since tackling the Greenhouse Effect, Al Gore could care less who he offends, and doesn't need money from big business to support his cause. If you haven't seen him speak lately, take a look at this, or check out "An Inconvenient Truth".

With the world seeing who he really is, could he now insert himself into the presidential race, pushing between Hillary and Barack to be the new frontrunner? Some experts think so.

Who do people see when YOU speak? Do you portray you the "speaker", or you the Person? While it can be important not to offend, don't water your speeches down to the point that you lose your passion, or you will soon lose your audience as well!

Passion vs. Anger

Passion is a word thrown around rather cavalierly these days. Passionate love in a relationship. Passionate love for an interest or career or brand of ice cream. Passionate demonstrations in sports. We question the passion of those around us, from political candidates to spouses to bosses.

Sometimes, people use passion as an excuse to go over the edge. Crimes of passion, emotional outbursts excused by passion, hard hits in football explained away by losing oneself in the passionof the game.

Anger and Love go hand in hand - the opposite of love is not hate, but apathy. If we don't care about something, we would not waste our energy being angry about it.

But should passion truly be an excuse for bad behavior? For saying more than what should be said, for being disrespectful, for emotional or physical abuse? Said here, it feels clear that it should not, but everyday experience would say otherwise.

Passion should always be tempered with love. Not just passionate love, but the highest form of love - unconditional. When we take the high road - put others needs ahead of our own passions - we put into action that part of ourselves that separates us from the pack.

Should we play, work and love passionately? Absolutely. But Passion should be a driving force, not a cure-all excuse.