Articles
everything I know about public speaking, elevator pitches, and communication just for you
One night with the homeless and what I learnt…
The truth is, it is ridiculous, almost offensive, for me to talk about the lessons I learnt from one night with the homeless. First of all, it wasn't even a night - more like 4 hours in the evening. And I wasn't, as you might have expected, out in the biting...
Why I don’t like the “ I have a dream ” speech
OK, let's get one thing straight. The I have a dream speech is a phenomenal speech. It is the seminal speech of the 20th century, and it has a legitimate claim to the title of greatest speech ever given (although my personal vote would go to Abraham Lincoln's...
How to network successfully in 2021 (without coming across like an ahole)
The first rule of networking is: Don't be an Ahole. The second rule is... DON'T BE AN AHOLE!!! Seriously. If you want to know how to network successfully without coming across like an Ahole, it pays to know what a real networking Ahole looks like. ...
If your answer to this question is ‘Yes!’ then you can be a brilliant public speaker
It's a simple question. The answer is either 'Yes' or 'No'. Whatever your doubts or fears or challenges with speeches and presentations in front of an audience, if your answer is 'Yes' to this question, then I promise you, you can be confident and brilliant at public...
What to wear for public speaking (and what absolutely positively not to wear) before your next speech
What to wear. What to wear. What to wear for public speaking. What to wear for public speaking is a much more important question than even I used to think. In my practice as a barrister, the options for clothes were pretty limited. Dark Suit, white shirt, dark tie,...
12 famous people who also struggled with presentation anxiety
Hate public speaking? You are not alone! Study after study confirm that public speaking remains our single greatest fear, even higher up in the list than death! Console yourself. It's normal and to prove it, here is a list of 10 famous people who suffered from...
Celebrity Speechmatch: Obama vs Trump. And the winner is…
It’s the battle the world has been waiting to see. Right up there with Ali vs Foreman; Barcelona vs Real Madrid; Serena vs... well nobody came close to Serena, so let's go with Chris Evert vs Martina Navratilova. Obama vs Trump. Professor vs Businessman. Socialist vs...
Communicators of the world, Unite!
What's going on with the world? Where have all the great communicators gone? When did we lose the ability to talk with each other? When did we forget how to disagree without being disagreeable? We are, each of us, born with the innate ability to speak (whether in...
How to deal with questions during your presentation without getting stumped even if you don’t have all the answers
You work all night on your presentation, create some cool PowerPoint slides, and then nail the delivery on the day. Your speech flows sweetly, the audience is hooked on every word, and it’s all going better than you imagined it possibly could. And then you spot him;...
The definitive head to toe guide to awesome public speaking
Head, shoulders, knees & toes; knees & toes. Watch children speak and you'll notice that they instinctively use every inch of their bodies to convey their message to the audience. And yet by the time we get to adulthood, that natural expressiveness (that helps...