Biesenblog
Insights on Communication, Storytelling and Presentation Skills
Win Business and Influence People Through Public Speaking
Sharing your wisdom from the stage at professional and industry conferences and other venues is one of the best ways to raise your profile, advance your career or boost your business. Public speaking will get you noticed and help build your reputation as an expert. And that can attract all kinds of opportunities, from a […]
How to Control Your Emotions When Speaking: 10 Tips
Even in the best of times, it can be hard to control our emotions. But we haven’t been living in the best of times. Most of us have experienced some level of stress or even trauma as a result of the pandemic. So it’s natural to be feeling a little “raw” emotionally and unpracticed socially […]
Present Like a Boss: 5 Essential Tips
Want to be viewed as a leader? Then get up on stage and present like a boss. A presentation tests your mettle in any number of ways, from your ability to inspire others to how you work under pressure to whether you can translate information into action. It can bring out your best — and […]
Tough Love: How to Overcome Presentation Anxiety
If you’re like most people, you get nervous before a presentation. It’s okay. Even professional speakers occasionally experience presentation anxiety. The difference is in how it’s managed. You can let the anxiety drive you crazy and even affect your performance, or you can meet it head-on and at least subdue it, if not quite conquer […]
How to Handle a Hostile Audience: 7 Rules
If you ever have to handle a hostile audience at a meeting or when giving a presentation, here are a few things I learned the hard way. How hard? Like an employee interrupting a CEO’s speech to yell at him and then storming out of the room hard! That experience taught me a lot about […]
3 Keys to a Successful Virtual Presentation
Virtual presentations have always been hard. Audiences are restless, distracted and can easily tune out since no one’s watching them. But doing a virtual presentation from home is even harder — both presenters and audiences are dealing with isolation, disruptions and limited technology. So if you want to make a real impact and achieve your […]
How to Nail Your Next Virtual Presentation
With millions of people working from home right now due to the coronavirus, it’s a safe bet that many of us are going to be leading or taking part in more and more virtual presentations and online meetings. So I put together this 35-minute video tutorial designed to take the pain out of online communication: […]
Still Presenting Like it’s 1999? Take This Quiz and Find Out
Remember 1999? It was a magical time: The dot-com boom promised an unbroken era of universal prosperity. George Lucas introduced us to Jar Jar Binks, destined to be an all-time fan favorite. And PowerPoint 2000 was released, ushering in a Golden Age of Business Oratory. Yeah, not so much. Maybe Prince was right. Party over, […]
7 Phrases to Eliminate from Your Presentations Right Now
There are certain phrases speakers use that set off alarm bells in my head. They signal a lack of preparation, audience focus or commitment to the opportunity. And it is an opportunity. You have a roomful of people who came to hear what you have to say and are hoping it will change their world […]
5 Credibility Killing Mistakes Most Presenters Make
Being a professional speaker has absolutely ruined my ability to watch other people’s presentations. I can’t help but critique them, especially since working with people to improve their presentation skills is a big part of my business. Here are some of my latest pet peeves — the mistakes most presenters make at conferences I attend. […]