I have a definition of communication that I use in all my public speaking training. There are multiple definitions that I could use. I chose this one. It gets everybody on the same understanding of what oral communication is. The definition is:

Communication is the giving and receiving of information, ideas and attitudes.

Most people will pick up on the fact that it is a giving and receiving process and most will acknowledge that we exchange ideas and information. Many will miss the fact that we also exchange attitudes when we communicate. We do that through our nonverbal message. Through our facial expression, body language, and our gestures. We also do it tone of voice. So it is important that we ensure that these are in synch with our message.

While we acknowledge that communication is a giving and receiving process most of us don’t put enough emphasis on the receiving portion. This is particularly true when we are speaking to a group of people. Depending on the size, most audiences will communicate solely by nonverbal. In these situations we have to condition ourselves to listen with our eyes in order to get the messages they are sending.

Now go out and Make Your Voice Heard!

Want to learn the 5 Tools (you already have) to become a confident, engaging and effective speaker? Click the link for FREE video training. The Speaker’s Tool Box

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If you speak publicly you will inevitably make a mistake or experience a blooper. If it hasn’t happened yet, it will. The good news is that it doesn’t have to be a show stopper if dealt with properly.

I get some of my best material and content when I make a mistake. I have learned, with time, not to react negatively to these. Instead I embrace them as an opportunity to show my personality. They are frequently a good source of spontaneous humour. I don’t do them on purpose and I don’t look for mistakes to happen. This make my response to them that much more genuine and effective.

The next time you experience a mistake or blooper don’t react negatively to it. Use it as an opportunity enhance your unique style.

Now go out and Make Your Voice Heard!

Want to learn the 5 Tools (you already have) to become a confident, engaging and effective speaker? Click the link for FREE video training. The Speaker’s Tool Box

I would love to hear your thoughts on this. Leave me a comment or suggest a topic for a future blog.

There are many situations where you might be required to formally introduce another person. It could be an association function, a family wedding, or a workplace activity.

I have witnessed many variations of introductions. Some very short with little or no information to the other extreme where there is too much information. The introduction should only be about a minute and should highlight aspects about the speaker that are relevant to the function and the audience.

I recommend letting the speaker know what you plan to say in your introduction. That way there are no surprises. The speaker may want to make some changes. Many speaker will provide their own introductions. If they do and they are longer than you feel is appropriate don’t be shy about cutting out aspects that aren’t relevant to the function. It is still good practice to let the speaker know what you have removed and why.

A well thought out and prepared introduction can make you look very professional.

Now go out and Make Your Voice Heard!

Want to learn the 5 Tools (you already have) to become a confident, engaging and effective speaker? Click the link for FREE video training. The Speaker’s Tool Box

I would love to hear your thoughts on this. Leave me a comment or suggest a topic for a future blog.

Delivering a toast for a business or corporate event is different from delivering a toast at a wedding.

The toast should be no longer than 2-3 minutes. Most are less than 2 minutes.

The toast is like a mini speech. It has an opening, body and close. In the opening the person delivering the toast stands with a glass of refreshment in hand, invite the audience to join you. ‘Please stand.’

Once they have stood you share 2-3 points about the reason for the toast. Let’s assume the company has received an award. You can identify what the award is and why the company was chosen. This shouldn’t be long winded.

The close is where the toast is actually delivered. Please join me in acknowledging this company milestone. Congratulations Company ABC on your recent award. Have a sip from the class. This would signal for your audience to do the same. Then ask them to ‘please be seated’.

Now go out and Make Your Voice Heard!

Want to learn the 5 Tools (you already have) to become a confident, engaging and effective speaker? Click the link for FREE video training. The Speaker’s Tool Box

I would love to hear your thoughts on this. Leave me a comment or suggest a topic for a future blog.

In this video I explore the Communication Model. I created this model to help explain what is happening when we communicate face to face. The model applies to all face to face communication, one on one or one on a thousand. It consists of 5 components.

The first 4 items are the cornerstones of oral communication. In a perfect world this would be all there is. however that is not the case. There is a fifth component that comes into play and it can have a dramatic impact on the communication process. That factor is ‘noise’. Noise consists of anything that can negatively impact the communication. It could be real noise such as jack hammers or it could be environmental such as room temperate, too hot or too cold. It could be attitudes of the individuals involved in the communication. It could be poor room layout The list can be endless.

Other less obvious noise factors could be distractions. ie a piece of food in your teeth, a zipper down. It can be anything that will take the audience’ attention off the message.

In their extreme these noise factors can be very difficult for the speaker or presenter. So the more equipped you are to recognize noise factors the more capable you will be at handling them. I call this ‘managing the noise’.

Now go out and Make Your Voice Heard!

Want to learn the 5 Tools (you already have) to become a confident, engaging and effective speaker? Click the link for FREE video training. The Speaker’s Tool Box

I would love to hear your thoughts on this. Leave me a comment or suggest a topic for a future blog.

One of our greatest fears is our fear of speaking in public. This fear holds many people back from being the best that they can be, whether it is in the work place, community or personal life. The ability to communicate effectively and confidently in front of a group of people is a powerful skill.

Some speaking anxiety is good. Uncontrolled speaking anxiety is not.

I like to represent our speaking anxiety as a funnel. When we are at the top of the funnel we have low anxiety, we have lots of ideas and those ideas are easy to retrieve. This allows us to be spontaneous with our thoughts and ideas and makes our presentation more vibrant and meaningful. When we are at the bottom of the funnel we have high anxiety, we have limited ideas and the ideas are hard to retrieve.

In order to move up the funnel you need to take measures to reduce your speaking anxiety. This won’t happen overnight. You have to be patient. We all show our speaking anxiety in different ways. Some have shaky hands. Other get flushed, while others perspire. Some have wobbly knees and the list goes on. The key is to recognize how you display your speaking anxiety, accept it then get on with the task at hand, speaking.

It takes time to learn to manage our speaking anxiety. So one of the things I recommend is to begin by creating the perception of confidence. This can be done by focusing on body language, facial expression and posture. Don’t make apologies to your audience. Don’t let them know you are nervous. Most times they don’t detect it, so don’t tell them. As you focus more and more on creating the perception of confidence it will ultimately become your reality.

Now go out and Make Your Voice Heard!

Want to learn the 5 Tools (you already have) to become a confident, engaging and effective speaker? Click the link for FREE video training. The Speaker’s Tool Box

I would love to hear your thoughts on this. Leave me a comment or suggest a topic for a future blog.

This video was shot on a beautiful spring day at a small village outside St. John’s Newfoundland. Unfortunately I didn’t have the microphone turned on. However the scenery was fantastic and there was an iceberg in the background. So I decided to create a voice over rather than delete the video.

I hope you enjoy it!

The tip I shared was related to impromptu speaking. I do an impromptu session at the beginning of each Business Communication course. I do an overview of my Speaker’s Tool Box concept and then I conduct the impromptu session. Impromptu is an excellent way to get comfortable thinking on your feet. I begin the impromptu by coaching them that if they run out of content or draw a blank to not say anything to the audience. Just experience the moment. It may take a few seconds and those seconds will seem like an eternity. It is the worse thing you can experience when speaking. So take advantage of the opportunity to experience what that is like and realize that is the worse it gets.

I provided the same advise to several classes over several years and no one did as I suggested. Then I had one class where the first or second student got about halfway through his impromptu and stopped. He had run out of content and didn’t know what to say next. Instead of saying something like ‘I don’t know what else to say’ or ‘that’s all I can say about that’ he just paused and quietly looked around at the audience. He took about 7 seconds and it seemed like an eternity. The audience was starting to squirm in their seats. Then he started back in and finished his small speech.

What was really interesting as that two more students did something similar, just not as long. After several years with no one doing it I had three students act on my advice and they did a fabulous job. I now share this with every new class I work with. I have had several others do something similar.

They just needed to know that they could.

Now go out and Make Your Voice Heard!

Want to learn the 5 Tools (you already have) to become a confident, engaging and effective speaker? Click the link for FREE video training. The Speaker’s Tool Box

I would love to hear your thoughts on this. Leave me a comment or suggest a topic for a future blog.

This week’s video post is about seizing the opportunity and the impact that it can have on how you are perceived by your audience.

I recently attended a Board of Trade luncheon. There were approximately 150 people in attendance. The speaker was about 5 minutes into his presentation when the power failed. Emergency power only provided one light for the room. After a couple of minutes the speaker decided to continue with his presentation. It was impressive to see how he took advantage of the situation. Not only did he have a strong message, but he delivered it very well under extreme circumstances.

The speaker seized the opportunity. What would you have done?

Now go out and Make Your Voice Heard!

Want to learn the 5 Tools (you already have) to become a confident, engaging and effective speaker? Click the link for FREE video training. The Speaker’s Tool Box

I would love to hear your thoughts on this. Leave me a comment or suggest a topic for a future blog.

This is the launch of my video blog. It seems very fitting that my first post was shot at Cape Spear, Newfoundland & Labrador. Cape Spear is the most easterly point of North America. This video was shot on a windy spring day.

Most of my posts will be video and they will be a mix of indoor and outdoor shoots. The outdoor videos will showcase some of the great Newfoundland scenery.

Your feedback and comments are welcomed.

Now go out and Make Your Voice Heard!

Want to learn the 5 Tools (you already have) to become a confident, engaging and effective speaker? Click the link for FREE video training. The Speaker’s Tool Box

I would love to hear your thoughts on this. Leave me a comment or suggest a topic for a future blog.