Integration: Putting it All Together
December 16, 2009 by Jerry
In 1873, John Godfrey Saxe, an American poet, published a poem based on an ancient Indian fable about six blind men who were asked to describe an elephant by touch. One man said it was a wall, another a spear, another a snake, another a tree, another a fan, and the sixth man called it a rope. The last stanza of the poem concludes: And so these men of Indostan Disputed loud and long,
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November 11, 2009 by Jerry
In the previous post, you read that New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg poured $90 million of his own money into his re-election campaign but, leaving no stone unturned, he also made three significant changes in his presentation style to overcome a reputation that the New York Times described as “blunt, dismissive and even crass.” 1. Body Language. New York City Councilwoman Letitia James claimed that “when the mayor spoke to her, his body language spoke volumes, she said: He would look up, down, around, anywhere but at her face…‘Now he looks at you…But it’s the season we’re in,
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November 9, 2009 by Jerry
Last week, billionaire Michael Bloomberg won his campaign for a third term as the Mayor of New York City, but only by a surprisingly close margin. According to the report of his victory in the New York Times, “Published polls in the days leading up to the election suggested that the mayor would win by as many as 18 percentage points; four years ago, he cruised to re-election with a 20 percent margin.” This time, however, his margin was only 5 percentage points. The Wall Street Journal’s report of the outcome quoted Maurice Carroll, the director of the Quinnipiac
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September 11, 2009 by Nichole
Pecha Kucha, is the Japanese term for the sound of conversation, or chit-chat, usually pronounced “pe-chak-cha”. In 2003, Astrid Klein and Mark Dytham of Klein Dytham Architecture established Pecha Kucha Night as a place for young designers to meet, network, and present their work in public. Pecha Kucha follows a simple concept. Each presenter is allowed 20 slides or images, shown for 20 seconds each, totaling 6 minutes 40 seconds. This format showcases many presenters, keeps the presentations short, and interest strong. Pecha Kucha Night has spread virally to over 100 cities worldwide. Time Magazine, Wired
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August 24, 2009 by Jerry
In my previous post you read about the roots of right and left preferences that trace all the way back to our cave-dwelling ancestors and forward to how we read text in Western languages. The nexus of these two deep roots goes back to the year, 105 AD, when Cai Lun, a eunuch in the court of the Chinese emperor Ho Ti, made paper for the first time, using the bark of a mulberry tree. Prior to that, ancient writing was done on stone with a hammer and chisel. A right-handed person would hold the hammer in the right
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August 21, 2009 by Jerry
(Olivier Fontana of Microsoft, who recommended the subjects of both prior blogs this week, also suggested today’s. It’s become Olivier Fontana Week.) We live in a right-dominant world. Estimates of the right-handed majority range from five to one all the way up to nine to one. This dominance is also reflected in our language; think about the many common phrases that attribute positive values to the right: “It’s all right with me” “All’s right with the world” “My right hand” “Right-of-way” Conversely, think about the many common phrases that attribute negativity to the left: “Left out”
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July 6, 2009 by Jerry
This is the house that Jack built. This is the cat That ate the malt That lay in the house that Jack built. This is the cat, That killed the rat, That ate the malt That lay in the house that Jack built. This is the dog, That worried the cat, That killed the rat, That ate the malt That lay in the house that Jack built. The repetitive progression structure of this classic Mother Goose nursery rhyme has been applied in many variations with many stories in many cultures. In all its expressions, the progression
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June 3, 2009 by Jerry
“The presenter is the focus of the presentation, not the slides.” Over the past 20 years as a presentation coach, I have spoken that phrase so often—to the thousands of clients in my programs, to the readers of my three books, and to the readers of my many blogs—it has almost become a slogan. I have also spoken that phrase in response to objections that usually begin with, “But you just don’t understand,” and then continue on with, “We need to have the slides to send ahead!” Or with, “We need to provide leave-behinds!” Or with, “My audience wants
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May 8, 2009 by Nichole
With Mother’s Day approaching on Sunday, I suggest you visit a website that has posted a list of “mom-isms—things your mom always said.” I found many of the sayings that I had heard as a child, and I’ll bet most of you have heard them, too. Seeing those phrases again made me realize that they have helped me communicate today. 1. “How many times do I have to tell you?” and “If I’ve told you once…I’ve told you a thousand times,” MEANING: Listen to the key point of the message being delivered to you. This will help you to give
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March 3, 2009 by Jerry
From his former role as the New York Times drama critic to his current role as one of their leading political columnists, Frank Rich has long impressed and even inspired me with his depth of knowledge and points of view. In his most recent column, however, he took a point of view about my field—public speaking—with which I must respectfully disagree. Writing about Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal’s broadly derided speech, (please see yesterday’s post on the subject) Mr. Rich said, “The morning-after conservative rationalization of Jindal’s flop was that his adenoidal delivery, not his words, did him in, and that
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