I was watching some of the political coverage of campaign speeches this past weekend and was astounded by what I saw and heard. As someone who's in the field of public speaking, coaching people on how to do it effectively and having made my own fair share of speeches, I felt the need to apologize on their behalf. This has nothing to do with their parties, their politics or their policies. The approach of descending to juvenile ridicule for which we'd be admonishing our sch

They seem to be taking over. Our surrounding, our lives, the way we stay in touch. It's those gadgets, smartphones, apps. Things have changed quickly and opened up many new streams of communication. And if you wait just a little while, there are bound to be new ones being released and embraced. With all this impacting our lives and those of just about every one around us. Does public speaking matter any more? After all, when Socrates or Plato addressed the crowds in Ancient G

Value Matters No Matter What You Do! I recently attended an art gallery opening, something I hadn't done in some time. I was looking forward to it, not just for the social experience, but also because my college degree was in painting. Then add to it an exhibit called "Inspired by Italy" (to which I love to travel) had me looking forward to it. Arriving and being offered a glass of Prosecco made it start off enjoyable. La vita bella, right? The art was varied, some of which

One thing that plagues some speakers is a frequent use of what is sometimes called “verbal graffiti.” That includes those “ums,” “likes,” “you-knows” and similar words that a lot of people say while they’re thinking of exactly what they want to say next. Those words detract from the professionalism of speakers and certainly don’t do anything to enhance the audience’s listening experience. Done too often they become irritating and will obscure the meaning of the speech itse