ClearTalkMastery

Start Your Presentation With A Bang!

Start Your Presentation With A Bang!  For today’s dollop of clear English speech coaching, here’s more advice about starting your presentation with a bang. 1. If you do nothing else to prepare for your speech, make an opener that not only gets people’s attention, but makes them think about your theme. 2. For that reason, […]

A Brilliant Opener to Your Presentations

A Brilliant Opener to Your Presentations Here’s more on a brilliant opener to your presentations—the story or anecdote. 1. An anecdote briefly describes an incident that’s interesting, amusing or biographical. All three together are sure to get attention. That’s why many presenters start by saying “A funny thing happened to me…” 2. It’s critical to make the […]

Earn Your Audience’s Attention!

Earn Your Audience’s Attention!  Let’s turn our attention to those first words for your presentation. 1. The audience has given you their time. But their attention is something you have to earn. 2. The only way you get them thinking and participating is to seize their attention, to grab them. 3. Questions are good grabbers. So are […]

Pauses In A Presentation, Part Two

Pauses In A Presentation, Part Two For your weekly dose of clear English coaching, we have a weekly speech tip video below. Do you want to know a brilliant tactic for pausing at the beginning of a presentation? 1. Brilliantly effective is this: When you are first introduced, upon arriving at the podium or your location of delivery, […]

Pauses In A Presentation, Part One

Pauses In A Presentation, Part One If you are an ESLer, your audience welcomes pauses in a presentation. If it is a lengthy pause of more than two seconds, smile at them, so they won’t think you forgot what to say next.  1. Pauses give the audience time to process words when they are said in accented English. […]

A Powerful Point of View for Presentations

A Powerful Point of View for Presentations Remember this:  “The presentation is a moment of truth for the presenter. We can’t hide. We are exposed, for better or worse. The listeners decide whether they like us, believe us, trust us, and perceive whether we are secure in ourselves and confident in what we are saying.” — Kevin Daley […]

Stand Still and Watch Your Confidence Grow During Presentations!

Stand Still and Watch Your Confidence Grow During Presentations!    You may have a picture in your mind of a speaker pacing back and forth while holding the eyes of everyone on him. But walking around just gets in the way of your voice clearly ringing in the ears of your listeners. 1. You look […]

How Does an Audience Impact a Speaker?

How Does an Audience Impact a Speaker? 1. You walk to the front of the room and turn to face the audience. Your instincts say to scan the audience. Your eyes almost wander by themselves. But that makes a feeling of nervousness. You get an extra jolt of adrenaline. Your thoughts get jumbled; your mind can go […]

Don’ts for Effective Preparation and Speaking

Don’ts for Effective Preparation and Speaking 1. Never read a speech to an audience. They deserve better and so do you. Recall your own experience. Have you ever been impressed when a speaker read a talk or sermon to you? If you answer is, “No,” then don’t inflict the same injury on others. 2. What about reading notes? […]

Cool Tips for How to Prepare for Your Presentation

Cool Tips for How to Prepare for Your Presentation 1. Should you write out your talk? Some say absolutely no. Others say that with the computer, this is easy and helps us think. People are surprised to hear that is what I do. Many other ESL people have told me that is what they do. 2. […]