(To go straight to the exercise, click here.) The Value of Pausing in Music It’s past time I talked about Lorna Cooke deVaron. “Cookie,” as everyone called her (though not to her face :-)) was head of the New England Conservatory of Music’s choral department from 1947 to 1988. And when I attended NEC in Read More
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How to Make A Strong First Impression as a Public Speaker
We all want to “own the room” when we first step out to speak in public. And fortunately, the first four exercises in my “25 x 25 in ’25” series will help you do just that. What is “25 x 25 in ’25”? This is where, throughout the year, you’ll learn 25 public speaking exercises Read More
How to Smile: A “25 x 25 in ’25” Public Speaking Exercise
Years ago, when I was a more-than-full-time corporate speechwriter, I was working at a large internal meeting when a crew member came up to me back stage and said, How do you do that? How do you smile and talk at the same time? Until that moment, I must have thought that everyone could calibrate Read More
How to Make Eye Contact: A “25 x 25 in ’25” Public Speaking Exercise
If you’re new to “25 x 25 in ’25,” welcome! I created this series of 25 public speaking exercises that can be done in 25 seconds a day to help you practice (and perfect) some critically important public speaking skills. So feel free to begin with this exercise, or to catch up on previous exercises Read More
25 x 25 in ’25: Because We All Need Public Speaking PRACTICE!
Practicing is the only way to become a better speaker! [NOTE: Click here if you’d like to go straight to the list of exercises.] Yeah, I know. It’s possible you hate practicing. That’s because—by definition—when we practice, we’re working on something we haven’t mastered yet (and maybe even suck at). That’s not fun for many Read More