I bristle at those who say to presenters, “Just be yourself.” Which self? The self that converses with my best friend’s grandmother at her dining room table, or the guy who teases his teammates and drinks beer while taking off… Read More »Which Costume Should You Wear?
Angela Lansbury and Cate Blanchett spoke briefly at last night’s TONY AWARDS ceremony. They both have magnificent speaking voices. They were not alone. Most Broadway actors have strong speaking voices. The question is: did they become successful because they were… Read More »Voice and Speech Training
About two years ago, I attended a free webinar on marketing and liked what the presenter had to say. I also liked his voice. So I called him and chatted about my marketing issues, and eventually I hired him. He… Read More »Communication Skills: E-mail vs. Presentations
Um and His Cousin Er I hate speech coaches who don’t let you say “Um!” I listen to a lot of speakers, and a few “Uhms” don’t bother me. They make the speaker seem normal and conversational. On the other… Read More »Speech Training: Speech Disfluencies
Many of us are familiar with the work of Dr. Albert Mehrabian of Stanford University, who demonstrated in his research that 85% of emotion is communicated through voice tone and body language. Many of us have read Blink, by Malcolm… Read More »Voice Projection: The Power of Voice Tone
Last week, in New Jersey, Denver, and New York City I ran into the exact same problem in three different industries–a consulting firm, a pharmaceutical company, and a hedge fund. The problem was this: People were having trouble beginning their presentations so that… Read More »Scientific and technical presentations