TJ’s Insights

TONIGHT You are invited to a launch party for
The Speaking Channel
www.speakingchannel.tv

An internet TV network devoted to all aspects of speaking, presenting and spoken communication. Be a part of our live broadcast and even have your questions about speaking answered live on the air. Tonight, July 13th, 6-8:00 PM. Media Training Worldwide, 110 West 40th Street, Suite 203.

Get the latest TJ Walker video tutorials at the Speaking Channel homepage, or add to your arsenal of speaking tips and tools at the Media Training Worldwide Store

When you are giving a speech, you are essentially giving a monologue. But the more you can make it seem like a dialogue, the better. No one likes to be lectured down to for even five minutes. But everyone enjoys an interesting conversation, even if it goes on for hours.

Broadway shows with a full cast typically outsell one-man or one-woman shows. It’s just a lot harder to be interesting when only one person is doing the talking.

A lot of junior executives mistakenly believe that great speaking skills are something they won’t need until they’ve gotten several more promotions and have become senior executives.

Wrong!

Every time you open your mouth in front of colleagues, they are making judgments about your communication skills, your competence, and your intelligence. The problem with waiting until later in your career to become a better speaker is that it may be too late to change the opinions of those who are exposed to you regularly.

We, the audiences for business speakers everywhere, demand the following rights.

-1- The right NOT to be treated like a dumping ground for hundreds of bits of data.

-2- The right NOT to be bored to death.

-3- The right NOT to be read to. Ever.

-4- The right to be addressed directly by the speaker (and not have to stare at the speaker’s back while he or she stares at a PowerPoint slide).

-5- The right to know exactly what the speaker is talking about within the first minute (and not be left wondering for five minutes what the speaker is talking about).

Sometimes the most effective sales pitch has nothing to do with logic or facts or a powerful image on a PowerPoint slide. Occasionally, the best way to convince someone to do what you want during a presentation is to simply beg-with passion!

While on a family reunion in Folly Beach near Charleston, SC, I found a fossilized shark’s tooth the side of a quarter. That’s nothing unusual for that part of the coast, but it’s still exciting anyway. I showed all
of the children at the reunion, including my 9 year old niece. I have spent a lot more time with my niece than all of the other children who were the children of my cousins.

The soon-to-launch Speaking Channel, the #1 destination on the web for TV content about public speaking, is pleased to announce its partnership with Popcorn Pictures to broadcast its new hit show, “Tell Me A Story.”

The show celebrates and promotes the telling of stories.

“Everyone loves a good story, and we are proud to partner with The Speaking Channel to bring the power, warmth, humor, and learning experiences that come from telling them,” said “Tell Me A Story” Executive Producer Marty Monical. “The Speaking Channel is the gold standard when it comes to public speaking, so our forming a partnership with them was idyllic for both sides.”

Nothing can mar a good speech faster than appearing condescending to the audience, especially if you are a political figure covered by the news media. In late September 2006 Bush Administration official Karen P. Hughes gave a speech to 500 women in Saudi Arabia. Hughes told that women that she hoped that they could one day earn the right to be able to drive a car and be able to “fully participate in society.”

To Western ears, these don’t seem like radical or even interesting sentiments. But Hughes’ comments elicited a stinging rebuke from the audience. One woma challenged Hughes by saying the following: