Why do we tell stories?
Every night, after tooth brushing, my pajama-clad identical twin daughters crawl into their beds and ask, “Who is reading the story tonight?” (When you imagine this, don’t forget to image hearing the words in stereo!)
Our nightly family tradition represents the larger tradition of storytelling in our society.
I answered a Quora Question:
For the average person speaking at a normal pace, what is the typical number of words they can say in one minute?
I am a professional speaker and podcast host and I speak at approximately 145-160 words per minute (wpm), while many sources state that average American English speaker engaged in a friendly conversation speaks at a rate of approximately 110–150 wpm
When I am making presentations about public speaking or delivering a podcast (yes, that really is me in the picture above), I often talk about the perceptions formed based on the rate of speech of the presenter.
Why We Mumble and Slur Words
“How do I stop mumbling and pronounce words more clearly?” is a very common question I’ve heard from clients over the years. But before I directly answer the question about better diction, I think it’s important for you to first think about why you mumble. So here are the primary reasons people mumble.
1. “I’m focused on something else.” It’s pretty simple.
Hello,
Thanks for the invitation and opportunity to work with us.
Below you will find possible questions for Lisa B. Marshall drawn from her bestselling book, Smart Talk, and from her award-winning podcasts, The Public Speaker and Smart Talk. These are provided to help your host appear as if they familiar with her work. Feel free to use them or not.
Professional training and development solutions address difficult and often costly communication issues.
Typically an engagement starts with a communication-based audit to better understand organizational strengths and weaknesses and to clearly identify the root cause of the presenting problem(s). A strategic plan, including a series of recommendations, is then developed.
Although talking about death is generally considered taboo, this TED talk from Candy Chang, titled, Before I Die, I Want To… was an inspiration. She explained the powerful way that death clarifies life and through her art, she wanted to bring that same clarity to her local community.
Public speaking is a great way to affordably target and reach your ‘ideal prospect’. Public speaking allows both entrepreneurs and corporations to build personal relationships with potential customers. Freely sharing your expertise builds credibility and desire to work with you before the discussion ever moves to price. Remember, prospects are looking for expert information.
“The eyes are the windows of the soul.” I’ve always really liked that saying. For me it says that we get meaning from looking into someone’s eyes; sometimes even more than what the words express. When I hold someone’s gaze, and I mean really look into their eyes, it make me feel like I am physically closer… like I am making a connection.
Disfluencies, in general, weaken messages. They’re distracting for your listeners and they make you sound bad.
In the first 30 seconds I counted four “likes” and three “rights” and two “ums”. Worse, I’m certain that Tom had no idea that his speech was infected with these verbal viruses.
