Biesenblog
Insights on Communication, Storytelling and Presentation Skills
Insights
Handcuffed to an Awful Presentation? 5 Things You Can Do
A new client came to me with a common problem: she was assigned to deliver a PowerPoint presentation that was created by someone else in her company but that she knew was no good. The slides were data-heavy and the script was boring and not audience-focused. All the recommendations I would normally give were non-starters: […]
How to Focus Your Presentation: 7 Tips
A British professor recently conducted an informal (and wonderful) study showing that boring speeches are more likely to go longer. (Wouldn’t you know it? The pain of sitting through an awful speech is compounded by time!) His findings point to the importance of brevity and discipline. So here are seven ways you can better focus […]
How to Deal With Negative Feedback
It happens to all of us: no matter how much positive feedback we receive, we can’t help but focus on (and obsess over) the negative — even if it represents just a sliver of the overall sentiment. As a speaker (and actor) I get direct feedback all the time, and initially it can be hard […]
All You Need is Love: 9 Lessons for Success from Gilda Radner
There’s a documentary coming out this fall on the late Gilda Radner, one of the original cast members of Saturday Night Live. Called “Love, Gilda,” it’s getting a lot of buzz. In talking about what made her funny, Radner explained, “My biggest motivation has always been love.” That much is obvious. From the exuberance of her […]
Sergio Marchionne and the Power of Emotional Storytelling
Fiat Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne died unexpectedly last week. It was a great loss — for the company that he helped rescue from the brink, and for his family and friends, of course. In my latest book I wrote about an electric moment in Chrysler’s history where Marchionne took the stage and demonstrated the power […]
How to Say No and Preserve Your Sanity
I have been asked several times by frazzled colleagues how I manage to avoid being overwhelmed with work. My answer is simple: I know how to say no. It goes back to my agency days. If you’re not careful, your time gets parceled out to so many clients and projects that none get the attention […]
How to Create a Story: a 5-step Process
Study after study confirms that stories have unparalleled power to captivate audiences and persuade them to act in our favor. But how do you go about crafting a story? Here’s a step-by-step guide that will show you how to create a story that will help you win hearts, change minds and get the results you […]
How to Rehearse a Presentation: 5 Simple Steps
Failure to prepare is one of the biggest mistakes presenters make. But most people have a hard time getting their arms around the process. In my workshops I share the technique that works for me. Participants have found it to be one of their most valued takeaways, so here is my totally not-patented five-step process for […]
Speakers: How to Write Your Own Introduction
Here is one common phrase that you’ll never hear me utter at the start of a presentation: “Thank you for that kind introduction.” Why? Because it would be vain. After all, I’m the one who wrote that kind introduction! And that’s what every speaker should do. Even if you’re simply an occasional conference presenter, learning how to write […]
How to Use Stories in a Presentation: 6 Tips
The worst presenter I ever saw did everything wrong, from not understanding his audience to lecturing instead of engaging us to turning the session into one long sales pitch. Worst of all, his talk was nothing but data — endless columns of it, packed onto dense, ugly slides. There was no narrative holding his points […]