Want to Be an Effective Speaker? Eliminate Pointless Phrases

Patricia Fripp, CSP, CPAE - Executive Speech Coach, Hall of Fame Keynote Speaker
Patricia Fripp, CSP, CPAE – Executive Speech Coach, Hall of Fame Keynote Speaker

As an executive speech coach, I recommend that in preparing your presentation you record yourself and then listen carefully to find and eliminate all non-words, clichés and redundancies from your talk; these will only dilute your message and bore your audience!

Lisa Braithwaite wrote this great article on “filler phrases” which appeared in Ragan Communications. Thank you Lisa.

Eliminate These Pointless Phrases from Your Vocabulary

With all due respect, these filler phrases have to go. You know?

by Lisa Braithwaite

How many pointless or nonsensical phrases do you insert into your everyday speech? Probably a lot.

We all do, and in normal conversation, they easily slip by unnoticed. But when you’re on a stage and all eyes are on you, two things happen:

1. You react to your nervousness and insecurity by saying or emphasizing things you normally wouldn’t.

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Are You Making Any of These 12 Biggest Mistakes Commonly Made in Sales Presentations?

SuperStarsmaller
Salespeople put themselves and their companies on the line with every word…

Sales professionals put themselves and their companies on the line with every word. Here are the 12 most common sales presentation mistakes I see when companies hired me to help them get better results from their important conversations and presentations and how to avoid them.

1. Unclear thinking. Want clarity? Imagine that a busy executive says, “You have ten minutes to tell me about your company. In one sentence, how should I describe your benefits when I talk to my managers tomorrow?”

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Connecting to Your High Stakes Audience in 8 Minutes: Emotionally and Intellectually

Are you confident your sales presentations are more compelling than your competition?

Do your sales presentations connect to your audience intellectually AND emotionally?

My friend Joe, a sales manager for the Fairmont Hotel in San Francisco, called me for help. He was confident in his one-on-one salesmanship, but he’d lined up an eight-minute presentation to a 10-person convention committee considering his property for an association event — and he was nervous. They’d be staying in the hotel for two days, and he’d have a chance to wine and dine them a bit so they’d know him before he spoke. But the possibility of losing a $500,000 sale to a San Diego competitor loomed large in his mind.

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The #1 Best way to Make An Impact With Your Speech – Customize

Patricia Fripp, Hall of Fame Keyote Speaker - Speaking for The American Payroll Association
Patricia Fripp, Hall of Fame Keynote Speaker & Executive Speech Coach – Speaking for ADP

If you are looking for the number one best way to make an impact with your speech –  the answer is simple. Customize!

Be aware of your audience’s needs and concerns as you develop every aspect of your speech. Here is an overview of top techniques to customize your presentations. These techniques are used by top professional keynote speakers. However, my corporate speech coaching clients have been incorporating many of them into their presentations with great success.

Top Techniques to Customize Your Presentation

1.) The number one customizing technique… ask background questions.

2.) Interview for examples of the skill you are helping the audience improve.

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Do You Thank Your Prospects for Their Time? Are You Making This Mistake?

Sales Presentation Expert & Executive Speech Coach - Patricia Fripp, CSP, CPAE
Sales Presentation Expert & Executive Speech Coach – Patricia Fripp, CSP, CPAE

Don’t make predictable sales mistakes – like this one:

At the close of a sales presentation when thanking your prospect for their time, you might say, “Thank you for your time today,” and then you might think, “That was nice and simple. I was polite.”

If I have described you, think again. This is a mistake, because at the close of your sales presentation it is critical that you add specificity to your words of thanks. You do not want to sound like every ordinary sales person trying to sell something. You do not want to sound like the copier sales person – especially if you’re selling professional services, or a $500,000 investment strategy!

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Are You Clear on Your Own Message?

Executive Speech Coach & Hall of Fame Keynote Speaker, Patricia Fripp CSP, CPAE
Executive Speech Coach & Hall of Fame Keynote Speaker – Patricia Fripp CSP, CPAE

Legendary Hollywood producer Sam Goldwyn said, “If I want to send a message, I’ll use a telegram.” Yet, all great films – and good speeches – have a message. Some recent movies go on and on with explosions and car chases. They’re exciting, but at the end, the audience is often left with a big, “So what?”

In a speech, the funniest or most exhilarating story will be pointless if you don’t tie it into your theme and provide a lesson for the listener.

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Lost Your Voice and Need to Speak?

Executive Speech Coach and Hall of Fame Keynote Speaker Patricia Fripp, CSP, CPAE
Executive Speech Coach & Hall of Fame Keynote Speaker – Patricia Fripp, CSP, CPAE

One of my really good pals, a great high energy professional speaker and fellow members of Speakers Roundtable, got so excited in a presentation that he lost his voice. He found this solution and said it worked! Thanks so much Adam Drake for sharing this information. I recommend you take Adam’s tips to protect your voice. However, if you find yourself with a voice or throat problem, you will want to keep this list handy. I will!

Patricia

How to Purge Effects on the Voice Box

By Adam Drake, eHow contributor

Our voices are like barometers that indicate our overall health and well-being. Voice is produced through the delicate interaction of three different systems — air flow, vibration and resonance. When there are difficulties in any of these areas, because of illness or accident, the voice can become weak, painful and ineffective. Damage to the vocal cords, which are in the larynx (voicebox), can occur after prolonged periods of infection, such as laryngitis, or loud speaking or shouting. Reduce or eliminate unwanted effects with some simple vocal exercises that will return your voice to optimum condition and performance.

Instructions

1. Sit or stand with a straight back and place your open hands flat on your stomach with the fingertips just touching. Breath in through your nose and push out your stomach. Your fingertips should separate. Count to three in your head, then exhale while slowly drawing your stomach in. Your fingertips should touch again. Repeat this exercise five times.

2. Shrug your shoulders up to your ears then relax. Repeat this movement five times.

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The 12 Most Cringe-Worthy Business Phrases

Patricia Fripp, Coaching Attendee at World Champions' Edge Speech Coaching Camp
Patricia Fripp, Coaching an Attendee at a Recent World Champions’ Edge Speech Coaching Camp

One of my roles as an executive speech coach is helping my clients sound original, fresh and thoughtful. Phrases and words that are redundant and overused should be banished; whether you’re writing or speaking, these will weaken your message and cause your audience to tune out.

Ragan Communications featured this article by Marc Ensign.  Marc shares his list of the 12 most cringe-worthy business phrases. We agree on so many of these phrases!

Listening to most business people makes me cringe. They purposely sprinkle their language with fancy schmancy catchphrases and five dollar words in what I can only assume is an effort to make up for years of being picked last in kickball. Could you be one of them? Let’s take a look at 12 of the most offending words and phrases and find out.

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Ten Pitfalls to Avoid in Public Speaking

Patricia Fripp, CSP, CPAE - Executive Speech Coach and Hall of Fame Keynote Speaker
Patricia Fripp, CSP, CPAE – Executive Speech Coach and Hall of Fame Keynote Speaker

Whenever you open your mouth – whether your audience is one person or a thousand – you usually want to get a message across. Maybe you want your opinions heard at meetings, or you’re giving a formal presentation. Possibly, you’re even in a position to advise your sales team or CEO on an important presentation.

Anyone who sets out to present, persuade, and propel with the spoken word faces 10 major pitfalls:

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Your Presentation – Remember the Three S’s of Dynamic Stories

Patricia Fripp - Hall of Fame Keynote Speaker & Executive Speech Coach
Patricia Fripp – Hall of Fame Keynote Speaker & Executive Speech Coach

As an executive speech coach I’ve had corporate speakers bring me sheets of statistics and say, “Here’s what I want to talk about.”

“Why should your audience care about all this?,” I ask. “Where is the excitement? Where is the story?” Then we set about turning the numbing data into stimulating descriptions of what it all means. More than any words you say, people will remember what they “see” in their minds while they are listening.

If you plan to be a dynamic business or professional speaker, you need to deliver dynamic stories – stories that are interesting, memorable, and illustrate your point in a way that can inspire, persuade, or teach.

When an audience – of one or one thousand – listens to your story they must find it interesting, connect to it emotionally, and learn a lesson from it. Your story must make an obvious point in your speech or conversation.

Here is the sure fire formula that all good stories follow:

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