Posts by Virginia Avery
5 Ways to Alienate Your Audience
“All the great speakers were bad speakers first.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson When you make a presentation, whether it’s a report to the board of directors, a speech to the Kiwanis Club, or a major talk at a conference, it is vitally important to captivate your audience and make them want to listen to you.…
Read MoreThe Power of Your Speech
“If all my talents and powers were to be taken from me by some inscrutable Providence, and I had my choice of keeping but one, I would unhesitatingly ask to be allowed to keep the power of speaking, for through it I would quickly recover all the rest.” – Daniel Webster Language expert Wilfred Funk…
Read MoreYour Voice: Friend or Foe to Your Success?
“How wonderful is the human voice! It is indeed the organ of the soul. The intellect of man sits enthroned visibly, on his forehead and in his eye, and the heart of man is written on his countenance, but the soul reveals itself in the voice alone.” – Henry Wadsworth Longfellow He calls it his…
Read MoreConquer Your Fear of Public Speaking
Let’s begin by hearkening back to a time when Romans considered it to be good sport to feed Christians to the lions. One day, the festivities had been going as usual when a strange thing happened. The Christian in the arena whispered something to the lion. The lion then turned tail and slunk away. The…
Read MoreHow to Construct an Outstanding Presentation
He ambled up to the lectern and said, “I am not a public speaker, so I didn’t prepare anything. I just want you to know that.” Believe me, that announcement was unnecessary. I was at a meeting of businesspeople working on an expansion proposal for the local airport – and our first speaker had just…
Read More