Email has become the preferred means of communication for business, yet many people forget that it still is mail. And all emails are not created equal. Some are conversations between colleagues and can be very informal, where texting language can be used. But when an email is going outside of the company, especially for an…
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JK Rowling is celebrating 15 years of Harry Potter books this month. She sat down to an interview on Good Morning America August 27th to talk about how she crested her amazing characters. You can see that interview here or watch the video below. Ms. Rowling said that her most beloved character, Professor Dumbledore, was…
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Once in a while, I have the pleasure of working with someone who is giving a speech at a wedding. If any speech should come from the heart, it would be a wedding toast. Last week a delightful man, I’ll call him Daniel, came for help with giving the speech of his life at his…
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Today Nelson Mandela Nelson Mandela celebrates his 95th birthday. He is a South African anti-apartheid revolutionary who served as the first black President of South Africa from 1994 to 1999. After serving more than twenty years in prison in South Africa, he served with love and compassion as the president. he showed the world how…
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“Authenticity is a practice” says Dr. Brene Brown in a conversation with Oprah. You have to choose it every day. This applies not only in one’s personal life, but in business as well. In business, authenticity generates authority. When we speak from our own inner authority, others sense our power. But it takes courage to speak…
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Performing arts training, of necessity, includes methods to develop relaxation, concentration and presence. Years ago, in acting school, I learned to do a voice and body exercise warm-up before auditioning or performing. While it did not completely get rid of my performance anxiety, it did help calm me. When I became a teacher of public speaking,…
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Ron Finley says, “Food is the problem and food is the solution.” He planted food forests all over LA as an act of guerilla activism. Food is his art. Food is a tool for transformation. Food is defiant. Watch his TED Talk: Ron proves that you don’t have to be a perfect speaker to be…
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People are often incredulous when I share my story about being trained an actress and yet having such fear of public speaking. But acting is a skill based on saying the words of a character, not usually your own words. In acting there is no need to reveal your own thinking, whereas in public speaking,…
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As 2013 and the movie version of Les Miserables open, we can all use a little inspiration to remind us it is possible to fly and to spur us all on to new heights. No one did that better than Susan Boyle at her first audition of Britian’s Got Talent! Her is a video of…
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Thinking on your feet is “streaming speech.” Just like video streams over the internet, streaming speech is flowing your words, thoughts and feelings unimpeded by mind control. People who are in a position to have to think on their feet usually have a deep well of knowledge and experience. Yet they often don’t trust themselves…
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