Brace yourself, I’m about to tell you something that may surprise you: A little nervousness before you present your speech is actually a good thing. That adrenaline rush surging through your body is what gives you energy and enthusiasm to deliver your message with a bang. The way that you interpret this anxious feeling will […]

The big day of your presentation is almost here and you’ve been doing your best to ensure everything goes as planned. You’ve prepared your PowerPoint slides, rehearsed your speech a hundred times, visualized yourself wowing the audience and them fawning over you (well maybe this is going a little overboard), and now you should be […]

“I don’t even know what her speech was about.”  This is what my mother said to me about the keynote speaker at the breast cancer survivors’ luncheon she recently attended.  I wasn’t sure if my mother meant that the speech wasn’t memorable, or that she didn’t get it.  I asked her to clarify a bit […]

I recently attended the annual fundraising banquet for a local chapter of a well-known, national nonprofit organization. The event was held at a very classy restaurant on the water and attendees were certainly dressed to the nines: from floor-length gowns to cocktail dresses to tuxedos – there was definitely an atmosphere of elegance. So you […]

I must admit something. This article could just as easily have been called “The Quickest Way to Annoy Roquita.” However, this personal pet peeve of mine is certainly not unique to me.  It’s a sentiment shared by many an audience member who’ve attended a presentation. How do you annoy your audience in no time flat? […]

Many moons ago, I worked at the happiest place on earth. No, not Disneyland. Another magical place where parents and children abounded called Babies R Us. I had been a college graduate for all of two years and was ecstatic to finally land a job in the marketing field.  As Store Promotions Coordinator (or SPC […]

One evening, I was listening to a guest speaker at my Toastmasters club meeting.  He was an extremely charismatic speaker who engaged the audience with energizing activities, captivating anecdotes, and memorable analogies. In fact, his analogies were so memorable that I started feeling like I was having a case of Déjà Vu.  Much of his […]

Remember that iconic song by Carly Simon about a self-absorbed ex-lover? “You’re so vain, you probably think this song’s about you…” You’re singing the words in your head right now, I bet. Unfortunately, I’m sure we’ve all met someone like that before! Lover or not. But what about the self-absorbed speaker? You’ve probably crossed paths […]