Blog - How to Improve Your Professional Communication Skills

Impromptu Speaking: 7 Tactics to Communicate in Unexpected Situations

One of the most common challenges our clients and students face is impromptu speaking. In most offices, you will need to speak off-the-cuff at various points: meetings, brainstorming sessions, or Q&A after a presentation. But we often fail to perform when caught off-guard. Our boss turns to us a...

Meeting Facilitation: How to Run a Meeting with Powerful People (5 Lessons)

Lessons in Meeting Facilitation from the 2020 Presidential Debates On October 22nd, 2020 Kristen Welker taught a masterclass in how to moderate a debate, and in doing so, taught us how to run a meeting with powerful personalities. What was fascinating though, was the difference between her debate an...

10 Tips to Reduce Stage Fright Right Before Your Presentation (video)

During this livestream we explored 10 tips to get a handle on stage fright and nervousness before public speaking or presentations. I also answered some questions from the attendees on rehearsal, mistakes during public speaking, and more. Here are 10 major tips to manage stage fright and reduce nerv...

Why Your Zoom Meetings are Boring and Tedious (and How to Fix Them)

Making zoom meetings engaging is a skill that can be learned. Unfortunately, many people don’t have that skill, leading to lots of boring and awkward remote meetings. Here are some reasons why they can be boring, and what to do about it. Problem: No Fun, Just Awkward Sitting at home in front o...

Reimagining Public Speaking for the Covid Era

There will definitely be a jump in purely virtual events in the near future because of Covid-19. But there will always be an interest in live, in-person events. The question is how these events and conferences will reimagine themselves in the post-covid era. Here are some predictions. Livestreams an...

Microphone Tips for Public Speaking

It’s not natural to speak into a microphone. So using it properly will take some practice. Keep these tips in mind. It may seem inconvenient to remember all these things, but remember that your microphone is your voice. Poor use of the microphone means your voice will get lost, or the audience...

Presentation Training and Public Speaking Coaching

How to Rehearse for a Major Speech: 5 Best Practices

If you have a major speech coming up, it’s incumbent on you to rehearse and rehearse well. Whether it’s a keynote at a major conference, a critical presentation to your board of directors, or a major speech to the public, the stakes are high and you need to get it right. These are five b...

Dealing with Difficult Colleagues

Difficult colleagues are a fact of life at work. Your ability to deal with difficult colleagues and still get work done will make a big difference in your success. And it will be a key determinant of your sanity. These lessons are based on my own experience of working with or managing thousands of p...

Getting Assertive in Fast-Moving Conversations

You’re in a conversation with multiple colleagues or clients. You want to speak up to get your perspective heard. But the conversation is being dominated by a few loud and confident voices (usually those with the highest status in the group). And there’s a lot of quick comments being exc...

April 27, 2020
Leadership
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Why You Can’t Be Friends with Employees

We all want to be liked, even managers and leaders. While making friends with as many people as possible is a great way to network, it’s not a good way to lead. Of course, a friendly and comfortable work environment is important. But resist the temptation to become friends with your subordinates. ...