Three Great Pieces of Advice from Obama’s Speechwriter
I love the lead up to Christmas; am I the first to mention the C word this year? Please forgive me but my granddaughter, the wonderful Heidi, arrived yesterday all excited and telling me what she wanted for Christmas – a fish tank, she has given up all hope of getting her first choice, a […]
The THREE NOs to Avoid When Presenting
Presentation Skills & The Three Nos to Avoid! First No: Do not start with “Hello, it’s a lovely day, and I am delighted to have the opportunity to speak with you!” BORING! Also, it’s not necessary to start with your name and your business name. I am sure someone has already introduced you, or it’s […]
Presenting is much more about Confidence than Content
What do I mean by this statement? Have you ever gone to the movies and sat through ninety minutes of content, where you never engaged or rooted for the characters? I read some research recently that said, in the majority of books sold, that the reader never progressed beyond page eighteen! Both of these examples […]
The perfect pitch – podcast
Pitching Skill Workshop: How to Create the Perfect Pitch to Win Sales & Investment Here is a podcast packed with advice and tips on how to create the perfect pitch. I also provide a pitch template which will help you win sales or investment. The basics of creating a successful pitch are the same […]
Talk Worm not Cake and Grow your Business
I am contacted regularly by organisations, be they large or small, who have pitched and failed to have successful outcomes, be it to win sales or investment. I explain to my clients that the pitch is in lots of ways similar to a ‘First Date’. On the ‘First Date’, if you keep talking about how […]
Your USP – 6 Steps to Success
‘Art of Pitching’ Last Friday I spoke to an audience of over 100 business women on International Women’s Day. The topic I was asked to address was the “Art of Pitching” and how to succeed when seeking to win new business. In my view, a pitch must be delivered in a conversational way, that puts […]
First Impressions Last – Make Sure they are Good!
Today’s article covers the area of creating good first impressions. You only get one opportunity to create a good first impression, be it a blind date or a business pitch. I plan to address the issue of first impressions under two general headings. 1. Written communication: Is particularly challenging for me, I initially describe myself […]
Tips on How to Engage an Audience
How to create an engaging and persuasive Presentation Please do not start with slides if you wish to create an engaging and persuasive conversation (presentation) that leads to success for you and your organisation. One of the world’s leading and most successful companies engaged me recently to coach a large number of their technical team […]
Create Your New Business Story for 2019
Businesses I have worked with from the very beginning are now coming back to me to have their story (pitch) refreshed and updated. Either they have outgrown their initial business story, or they are realising that they need to pivot. There are several reasons for these re-engagements; the primary ones are: To increase sales and […]
7 Steps to a More Focused and Intentional Life
7 Steps to a More Focused and Intentional Life (Create Pictures in your Head) What have … Barack Obama, Michelle Obama, Richard Branson, Sheryl Sandberg, Padraig Harrington, Gabriel Byrne, Joe Schmidt and little old me got in common? We all have the ability to dream, visualize and create pictures in our heads. Why is this […]