I rushed into a restaurant, flustered and overwhelmed, caught in the whirlwind of a hectic day, week, and month. As I approached the host stand, I quickly mentioned that I was meeting a friend for lunch. The host glanced at his seating chart and replied, “We haven’t seated any parties of one. It looks like you’re the first to arrive; why don’t I have your waitress show you to a table?” Without processing his words, I instinctively responded, “I’ll go look for my friend,” and bolted into the dining room, scanning for her familiar face. But after a quick look …
Connect First, Speak Second
Tariq was next on the list to give a presentation during my day-long training. He was nervous but excited. As soon as his feet hit the podium, he began speaking, spitting out a barrage of words. Within thirty seconds, he was gasping for breath. Meanwhile, we, the audience, were struggling to keep up and connect with him. I stopped him mid-sentence. “Tariq,” I said, “I want you to stand in silence for a moment so you can get your adrenaline under control. Quietly observe the emotions you’re experiencing. Ground yourself by feeling the floor under your feet. Inhale … exhale. …
Create Your Last Lecture
Ron had a remarkable story. After buying and selling several successful businesses, he transitioned into consulting, eager to share the lessons he’d learned. However, his desire to create a signature keynote presentation left him stuck. “I can’t seem to pin down a specific topic,” Ron admitted during our first meeting. To help him break free, I asked a simple but profound question:“If you could only speak publicly one more time in your life, who would you want to speak to, and what’s the message you’d want to relay?” Without hesitation, Ron replied, “I’d want to speak to visionary business owners …
Job Interviews: Make a Positive First Impression
First Impressions Matter: Lessons from Two Job Seekers Making a strong first impression is critical, especially when you’re aiming for a leadership role. Let me introduce you to “Carl” and “Sandra,” two job seekers who taught me a lot about the power of presence and preparation. Carl: A Missed Opportunity Carl, a mid-level tech manager, reached out to me for help navigating job interviews. His frustration was clear: “I don’t know what I’m doing wrong,” he wrote. “I’ve been trying for over a year to move on to a position of higher leadership, and I have great qualifications. But I …
Presentation Tip: Managing The Moment Before
Recently, I had the opportunity to watch Sing Sing, a film that tells the inspiring story of inmates at the famed Sing Sing prison who participated in a transformative program called Rehabilitation Through the Arts (RTA). This powerful film, enacted predominantly by actual RTA participants, centers around a character named Divine G, played by the incredible Colman Domingo. Divine G is an inmate wrongfully convicted of a crime, but he discovers a renewed sense of purpose through his involvement in a theater group alongside other incarcerated men. The film’s portrayal of how the essential elements of acting—trusting oneself and others, …
Managing Interrupting and Being Interrupted
When it comes to communication and presentation skills, I’m passionate about coaching and training everyone equally. Today, though, I want to focus on an area that’s particularly relevant for women in my audience: the art of interrupting and holding your ground in conversations. These skills can be pivotal in ensuring your voice is heard, especially when it matters most. I dive into this topic in my book, Claim the Stage: A Woman’s Guide to Speaking Up, Standing Out, and Taking Leadership. Let me share a story from the book that illustrates why this skill is so crucial: Vanessa, a talented …
To Amp Up Your Presentations, Banish the Beige!
If you’ve ever participated in one of my presentation skills training classes, you’ve heard me say the following words: BAN WISHY-WASHY! I even reinforce this point with a sign slashed through with a big red line. When it comes to public speaking, nothing irritates me more than ho-hum, sorta-kinda-not-really-sure-what-I’ve-decided-to-do-or-say-here moments. Unfortunately, most of the presentations I see are full of wishy-washy, bland, or what I call “beige” moments. What Exactly Do I Mean By Beige? For those of you who don’t know what beige is, here’s a nifty definition from Merriam-Webster dictionary: “A variable color averaging light grayish-yellowish brown… a …