My husband and I were waiting for our lunch at Harry Caray’s (famous Chicago Cubs baseball announcer) at the Chicago Midway airport when a man came in and caught my eye. His suit jacket was camel cashmere. Using my best professional guessing calculator I imagined that he was a doctor – a businessman would never wear a jacket like that. He sat down, ordered some ice tea, and then pulled out a thick stack of papers. It looked like a PowerPoint® presentation, and it looked like he was reading over his script word for word.
Yikes! I had to consciously restrain …

I’m often asked who some of my favorite presenters are. Steve Jobs is always one that I mention. Here’s why:
1. Always conversational
2. He took 100% of his personality into each and every presentation. Steve, the presenter, was the same Steve you would meet on the street.
3.His PowerPoint slides were incredibly vivid and simple
4.He usually had some sort of creative surprise for the audience: pulling a floppy disk out of his pocket as though he were a magician, sitting on a living room chair as he was demonstrating the iPad…..
5.He cared – through his voice and through his expression, there was …

Not just any story – what makes a really really great story? Here are the critical elements:
1. Use material that speaks to you. Almost any area of your life can be a source for a story – a trip, an adventure, a family gathering, a success, a failure, etc.The important thing is that it should ignite emotion within. You have to “feel” the story in order to tell it well.
2. Set the scene.Describe the details in three dimensions: help your audience to see the story as though it’s happening right now, help them to experience the story through descriptive words, …

I am very excited today, because I have just finished an enormous project. I’ve just shipped (well-emailed) my popular Sales Presentations Training Camp to Ireland. Soon it will become available to the other Certified Instructors in the US and around the World. I really enjoyed plunging into the depths of sales and researching the question,”why do people buy?”.
There is one secret that pops out – people buy for their reasons, not yours. So the key is to ask the #1 question: “What are your top-two priorities for choosing this product/service?” Then, in an interactive discussion, address those top-two priorities. …

I often find that my trainees have their voices in a cage, and they need lots of help to put emotion and energy into the vocal part of their presentations. Here are three tips that will help:
1. Practice going from a low level of energy to a high level. Think of something that you do not like (maybe you don’t like cats), and practice speaking about that topic in a very flat, soft, uninteresting voice. Then think of something that you are wild about (maybe a certain sports car). Speak about it in a very loud, energetic voice with lots …