What I have to say about lecterns and podiums is academic, but nevertheless worth mentioning. A podium is a raised platform on which a speaker (or an athlete) stands (look left.) A lectern is the upright object on which he or… Read More »Presentation Tips: Lectern vs. Podium
Science, like the rest of us, advances through trial and error, better known as dumb luck. One summer day in 1991, neuroscientists in a lab at Parma University wired up a monkey’s brain for a simple experiment. They wanted to… Read More »Public Speaking Skills: Mind Maps of Gesture
When transforming your house into a dream home, talk to three architects. When getting heart surgery to transform the quality of your life, talk to three surgeons. And to transform your sales presentations, talk to three consultants. I have three… Read More »Sales Training: The Five Don’ts of Sales Presenting
Cicero, the great Roman statesman and orator, said that he preferred tongue-tied intelligence to ignorant loquacity. That’s a convenient polarity, and one we’re familiar with. We see the former occasionally when college professors make an appearance on national TV. They… Read More »Effective Presentation Skills: Substance with Style
I believe one of the best models for presenting skills is the act of giving directions to someone who has stopped her car, leaned out the window, and said, “How do I get to Bloomfield Avenue?” If you’re standing in front of your house, and you… Read More »Presentation Skills: Doing it in the road
Back in the days before Gutenberg, it took months or years for a few dedicated scribes to create a single copy of a single book. A literate medieval person, provided he or she was not interrupted by the Inquistion or… Read More »Effective Speaking: Keeping Attention