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Think you’re good enough to roll up to the podium, or take the floor in the seminar room and embark on a cold launch of a presentation or speech? Many people think they can do it, but let me assure you there are very few who are actually capable of pulling it off. Sorry to […]
The opposite of spontaneity is rigidity. It’s how most of us live our lives – through a combination of rationality, hard work and a devotion to format. There is nothing wrong with rigidity in terms of getting the job done, but it is hardly a formula to get to get you noticed. If you are […]
When did you first hear the word ‘prorogue’? While the occasion may not be up there alongside the likes of other great life events (JFK, Watergate, the Spice Girls splitting), if you are not familiar with the distinctly quirky terminology of the UK Parliament you may well have checked its meaning online only to find […]
Once asked about how he prepared for a film role, Daniel Day-Lewis replied, “I don’t rehearse at all in film if I can help it. In talking a character through, you define it. And if you define it, you kill it dead.” On the surface this may be interpreted as ‘Oscar winning actor doesn’t rehearse […]
All it takes is a few seconds. One-time Labour leader, Neil Kinnock called it a ‘rush of blood to the head;’ the point when all good sense appears to go out of the window and a well planned speech stumbles down a calamitous path of spontaneity… It is perhaps no coincidence that Boris Johnson’s lead […]
“SO! Before I begin, I’d like to start today by saying thanks to everyone for coming. Today I’m going to talk to you about… is this thing on?… Oh yes. Before I begin, can everybody hear me ok?… I’ll take that as a yes. So, let’s crack on as I know some of you are […]
A fact about the South American country of Suriname – the lingua franca of 500,000 inhabitants of this country is Sranan Tongo, also known as Taki Taki. Why is that relevant? Because Taki Taki, is listed as the language with the fewest words, at only 340. By comparison English, widely recognised as the language using […]
“Do you have any tips for improving slide presentations?” is a question that has come up on several occasions in recent times. Powerpoint, Prezi, Haiku Deck, Pickit… there are many presentation packages out there offering great user options but we must never forget that at the business end of every great presentation tool is the […]
Hello, good morning and welcome to my technical presentation. Please turn off your phones, settle back and prepare to spend the next 45 minutes to an hour being bored out of your mind… Not the best introduction, I know, and one that, in my experience at least, has never been used as an opening salvo […]
It’s crunch time for Theresa May and her Brexit vision this week when she will be hoping for a miracle in the form of a Parliamentary majority that backs her deal. According to a recent poll, 70% of MPs think Mrs May has done a bad job of negotiating with the EU, however there is […]
I have often written on here about the need to prepare for an effective presentation. It is a mantra I urge every professional stepping up to the podium to adopt! However, in this blog I am going to consider the disadvantages of being too prepared. That’s an oxymoron right? Well yes, but no! I stand […]