A Great Acceptance Speech Example from Bruce Phipps, American Payroll Association 2011 Man of the Year. Every year I help the American Payroll Association’s Man and Woman of the Year prepare their speech to be delivered at the APA national convention called Congress. The Man and Woman of the Year deliver an eight-minute speech the […]
Read More...Improve Public Speaking with Three Techniques for Better Storytelling
Improve Public Speaking with Three Techniques for Better Storytelling By Patricia Fripp, Presentation Skills Guru Everybody loves a good story. No matter what our culture, we grow up knowing that hearing a story is somehow a reward. Stories are how we learn values and our family’s legacy. When we go to school, we discover that […]
Read More...The Best Way to Open a Panel Discussion – Expert Advice
If you are a leader, manager, executive, professional speaker, Toastmaster, or ambitious professional, most likely you will have the opportunity to moderate a panel. If you believe there is nothing duller than a bad speech, may I suggest a dull panel is even worst? As with any great presentation, when opening a panel discussion, the […]
Read More...Want to Make Your Webinars More Exciting?
Be creative. Think Hollywood! Tell stories and give examples as you go through your program, the same way you would in person. However, your Webinar needs more visuals to help engage the audience. Use more slides than with an in-person presentation. Add bullet points one at a time as you “build.” Don’t present a list of all your points before you discuss them. Keep it simple, keep it moving, and interact often.
Read More...How to Present to a Board of Directors
Gail was the Association Executive when I was president of the National Speakers Association. We planned the board meetings ahead of time at a health spa in Palm Springs. We would exercise in the morning, plan in the afternoon. The tough job for an Association Exec is that they have a new president every year, […]
Read More...Too Bad Only the Good Speakers Will Listen to You
“Public speaking is the only regularly-performed public art where the majority of performers refused to submit to the artistic conventions.” That’s the opinion of Chicago speech writer Dan Conley. Prior to going independent, Dan was the speech writer for Virginia Governor Doug Wilder, Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley, and IBM’s Senior VP for Sales Bill […]
Read More...The Great Comedians: What they Say about Comedy
“The jester is brother to the sage.” – Arthur Koestler In a conversation with my friend, Larry Wilde (New York Times says he is America’s best selling funny man) he said, “Making people laugh is the most specialized and respected talent in the arts. It does not matter how successful or famous or rich a […]
Read More...Tips to Make You Look Professional and Win With Your Audience
Recently I had a conversation with author, speaker and consultant Jeff Davidson. Here are a few tips and guidelines we offer to help your next speech be an even greater success. Fripp’s Top Tips to Win with an Audience Every Time! Have a personal relationship with the company whenever possible. I have been introduced by […]
Read More...White Paper on Technology in Speaking Skills A/V Technology: Necessity…or Nightmare?
(The Pentagon Declares War!) What do the Pentagon, corporate CEOs, and Patricia Fripp have in common? We all deplore the current trend toward replacing solid presentation content with flashy audio/video effects. A Wall Street Journal headline (4/26/00) announced: “The Pentagon Declares War on Electronic Slide Shows That Make Briefings a Pain.” We sit in the […]
Read More...So You’re Going to Make a Speech
Congratulations! You’ve been chosen (or drafted) to deliver a speech. Don’t panic — Fripp is here! What Do I Talk About? Start by asking yourself three questions: Who is my audience? (What do I know about the corporate culture or collective personality of the group?) What do they want or need to know from me? […]
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