Cat Got Your Thumb?  

by Jay Speyerer

Open your faux pas file and use the stories as examples to make your points

 

I was holding this cat, see, and trying to protect it from a dog. The cat panicked and bit my thumb. Go figure.

 

My friend Maureen has two cats and a big, gallumphing coon hound named Quigley, who adores me. Quigley couldn't love me more if I were a combination of Lassie, the Dog Whisperer, and the inventor of Gravy Train. But he and the cats don’t get along, and that’s why he spends most of his time on the first floor of the house, and the cats live on the second... 

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How to Connect with Your Audience

by Al Borowski, CSP

The rapport you build with your audience determines the ultimate success of your presentation.

Your high-tech, high-content presentation becomes memorable and valued when you include a high-touch component that connects you to your audience...

PS: Use Passion and Stories to Persuade!

by Maureen Murray

In order to persuade our listeners to consider new concepts, embrace new material, or lower resistance to change, we must touch both their minds and hearts. The “mind connection” is essentially straightforward, and results from providing interesting and relevant content. If your material is organized and delivered well, the mind will engage and learning will occur. However, if you want motivation to rise, or change to happen, you must build “heart connections” into your presentation.

Expert speakers build this bridge to their audiences in many ways. For starters, here are two valuable tools for making persuasive connections that will have enduring impact on your listeners: PS—Passion and Stories.

To Do or Not To Do…That is the Ethical Question

by Patty Kreamer

Did you ever get stuck making a decision about something that just didn’t feel right? If so, you are not alone. Life is nothing but a long series of choices—some are no-brainers, but others may not be as black and white as we would like. This is where a great deal of intense decision-making is required.

So what’s so hard about that? Well, another ingredient you need when making decisions is a healthy dose of knowing the difference between right and wrong. That is where the problem lies.

Character Based Ethics

by Dr. R. Bruce Bickel

As a culture, we attempt to keep pace with the myriad of changes that are thrust at our society. Any sense of stability is often sacrificed at the altar of pragmatism. “If it works” has become the battle cry of the aspiring at the expense of the...

Everyday Eloquence

by Jay Speyerer

Mark Twain said, “The difference between the almost right word and the right word is like the difference between the lightning bug and lightning.” But that lightning can come in a bottle; eloquence can be a small thing...

How to Stay on Course to Stay the Course in Your Business
by Dr. Joanne G. Sujansky, CSP

Few things have kept my company, KEYGroup® more effective over the long term than operating as what I refer to as a Vibrant Entrepreneurial Organization (VEO). I consider this approach vital to fully engaging myself and those who work...
 

Persuasive Communicators Resemble Trial Lawyers

by Bonnie Budzowski

Successful speaker and sales trainer, Terri Sjodin, describes how she floundered in a commission sales job as a young woman fresh out of college. On a particularly low day, Sjodin visited her college debate teacher...

Team Up for Success

by Sam Wieder, MBA

Have you ever heard of anyone climbing a mountain alone? This may be possible, depending on the size of the mountain and the skill of the climber. However, mountain climbers generally work in teams—and for good reason. It's simply too...