To paraphrase another president: there he goes again! The Obama administration putting a prop to good use, this time upping the ante by having the CIC himself wield it. So glad to see it. I’ve wondered in the past why Obama and other chief executives don’t make better use of three-dimensional visuals in their speeches … Read more
Can speechwriting be taught? To an extent, yes. But the key ingredient that separates a good speech from a great speech will always be elusive. I was reminded of this by an NPR story this morning. It described a concept called appoggiatura, which one expert says is the secret to writing a hit song that tugs at the … Read more
All week the message of the Chrysler “Clint Eastwood” commercial has been drowned out by politics, something that took the car company by total surprise. And the criticism offended the dealers, too, who took the step of releasing a statement, denying that there was any political agenda behind it. Now comes this story from today’s … Read more
Now that’s how to use a prop! I’ve lamented the fact before that so many executives (including chief executives and presidents) fail to make good use of physical props to illustrate their points. They’re concerned that it’s somehow cheesy or beneath them. But I love props, whether it’s a pie chart or a scale model … Read more
I’ve now been on both ends of the webinar experience. I’ve attended my share of good and bad ones. The worst was when the moderators didn’t have master control over the microphone, so we were treated to people’s keyboard clicks, phone calls and, most embarrassingly, one group on speakerphone who provided running negative commentary on … Read more
There is an established institution in town that does good business going out to companies and using stage techniques to help them with their issues — management, leadership, creativity, etc. So I was surprised to see an FAQ on their website in which they assure potential clients that, no, don’t worry, we won’t make your … Read more
In my writing classes at the Second City Training Center, we were assigned to come in each week with a 5-to-7-page sketch to present for the class and instructor’s dissection. (That was every week for nearly a year-and-a-half, by the way.) One day the instructor had us take the first two pages of our sketches … Read more
When I started writing the book, I thought about crowdsourcing it. There are sites where you can put up a chapter at a time, invite comment, ask questions and start debate. I quickly realized that that’s never been the way I write and decided to just do it the traditional way. But I’m learning so … Read more
As I’ve said, I feel a ton of pressure to practice what I preach in my presentations by defying the conventions of tired old PowerPoint templates and creating something really exciting and interesting visually. I learned a lot in the process about finding good images on the Internet, and here are some tips that can … Read more
Listening is not a one-way process. It’s not just about hearing. Listening often requires you to dig so you really understand what’s being said. I was reminded of this in the webinar Friday. Which went great, though the Q&A portion was a little difficult to manage. Normally in a live situation, an audience member asks … Read more