I stayed in a hotel for three nights over the weekend – I was competing in a dog agility competition. As I often do when I’m on the road, I try to guess what people do for a living, why they are staying in the hotel, and how they are connected to the people they are with. This turned out to be an extremely intense adventure.
Day 1: Riding down the elevator with my Sheltie and young Golden Retriever, I was trying my best to keep the white hair on the Sheltie and the muddy paws on the Retriever from annoying …

One of the best ways to add some muscle to your presentations is through telling great stories. One of my favorite stories is a true one about my muscle-building high school buddy, Mike Mentzer. I try to weave that story into almost every training session I can, because audiences just love it. What makes a great story? There are 5 main ingredients:
1. Tell it from your heart with passion
2. Create vivid details with picture words
3. Expand on those picture words through your gestures and expressions
4. Use voice inflection to create the tone
5. Craft a memorable message – an unforgettable message

Thank you for all the entries that came in from all over the world for the 5-minute website scavenger hunt. I was so glad to hear that people had fun with the adventure, and several mentioned that they enjoyed the tips in the video, “Eat the Crust First”. I was thrilled with the opportunity to re-connect with clients and to meet new business professionals. Congratulations to the winners:
First Prize, $250 – Robbie D.
Second Prize, $100 – Jessica H.
Third Prize, $50 – Jackie L.

You are invited to enter my new website scavenger hunt with a chance to win up to $250 cash. The deadline is December 15, so don’t miss this opportunity to have some fun, and maybe even win some extra money for the holidays. It takes less than 5 minutes! The questions are listed below. Check it out:
Prizes: $250, $100, $50
Rules: Answer the 3 questions correctly and you will be entered in a random draw for the prizes. One entry per person. It’s OK to forward to your colleagues and friends, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook.
Deadline: December 15, 2010 at 5pm Pacific …

Get to the point, please! That’s what I was thinking as my family and I were listening to the long-winded audio tour of the famous Civil War battlefields at Gettysburg, PA. I bought the condensed version, but it was way too much information for our needs. We sat in the car for ten minutes at Stop #1, then Stop #2; by stop #8 we abandoned the man on the CD. It was getting dark, and we wanted to finish our tour – on to Devil’s Den, and the Peach Orchard, and the Eisnehour Farm. We were very disappointed in the …