May 2, 2008 at 10:13 am
· Filed under Public Speaking
TIME IS TIGHT
You’ve been booked to do a 45-minute speech. How much material do you prepare? I know, silly question. But I’ve seen speakers who realise with horror that they still have fifteen minutes of material to present when they receive the five-minute warning. There is only one word for that – unprofessional.
Timekeeping is all about knowing your material and respecting your audience, not to mention your fellow speakers. There is no excuse for over-running, or for having to ditch parts of your presentation because you failed to pace yourself properly. The key, as always, is preparation, but not only that. It is also about keeping an eye on the time and having checkpoints in your speech – perhaps two or three – so that you know you are on schedule.
Always plan to speak for slightly less time than has been allotted to you, to allow for introductions, slight over-running, and questions. It’s easy to fill up time, but much harder to cram a mass of material into the last few minutes. In addition, no speaker ever received criticism for finishing a few minutes too early.
By Alan Stevens, Media Coach www.mediacoach.co.uk
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May 2, 2008 at 10:05 am
· Filed under 1, Public Relations
Alas, another posthumous MediaMaster award this week. Humphrey Lyttleton, jazz musician, quizmaster and all -round good egg, died at the age of 86 a few days ago. From being a pioneer of British jazz in the 1950s and 1960s, to the much-loved chairman of the Radio 4 Show, I’m Sorry, I Haven’t a Clue, Humphrey always delighted his audience. That’s all any of us could wish for as an epitaph. At the age of 79, he played with Radiohead, and was only recently voted one of the top three most respected figures by university students. A great bloke.
I probably should have awarded the MediaMug trophy to this week’s winner many years ago, because she’s been lecturing people for quite a while. From peering in people’s fridges and then shouting at them, to inspecting the contents of people’s toilets (sorry if you’re having breakfast), Gillian McKeith has built a nutritional empire. A few years ago, she had to drop the “Doctor” tag, when the Advertising Standards Authority pointed out that her “distance doctorate” was not to be used in adverts to suggest that she was a qualified nutritionist. Her latest book is just out. I suggest you read some of the reviews, or even flick through it in the bookshops, and draw your own conclusions. In view of her reputation for litigation against criticism, wherever it occurs, I’ll say no more here.
By Alan Stevens, Media Coach www.mediacoach.co.uk
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April 28, 2008 at 10:01 am
· Filed under Media Coaching
This week’s MediaMaster is not a person to argue with, even though she is 100 years old. Molly Reeves pulls on a pair of gloves and practices her moves once a week to keep in shape. She charmed reporters at The Sun, saying: “I feel a bit achy afterwards but I really do enjoy it. It’s a giggle.” She loves the sport so much she says Olympic silver medallist Amir Khan, 21, is her hero – and adds he is “cute”. As my good friend, Billy Schwer (champion boxer becoming champion speaker) would say “Keep your hands up”.
Wikipedia has many advantages, but accuracy is not always one of them. According to Wikipedia, the Pennine village of Denshaw gets just four hours of sunlight a day and locals relax by throwing sheep at one another. The entry continues: “Due to the complex hill formations surrounding the village, sunlight is only visible for four hours a day…” It also says that until recently, the village “consisted mainly of small holding farms and a few timid brothels such as the Golden Fleece pub”. A further snippet was the claim that the village football pitch slopes at an angle of 35 degrees. Locals were outraged, of course, and the entry has now been corrected. Still, it’s worth a good laugh and a MediaMug award for the unknown editor.
By Alan Stevens, Media Coach www.mediacoach.co.uk
Presentation Tip of the Week
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April 28, 2008 at 9:57 am
· Filed under Media Coaching
It’s a funny old life. On Wednesday, I had breakfast with my gorgeous wife in a wonderful old cafe, E Pellici’s, in the Bethnal Green Road in East London. At lunchtime, I had coffee in the House of Lords with a politician. In the evening, I went to the Comedy Store for the best value night out in London – two hours of improv comedy from the Comedy Store Players. . Of course, not every day is like that,
Do you Twitter?. I do, or at least, I do now. I signed up with Twitter a while ago, and didn’t really use it. However, I noticed that people kept signing up to “follow” me, so that they could see what I was up to. However, it wasn’t until I had lunch yesterday with Thomas Power and Penny Power from Ecademy that I decided to give Twitter a chance to show me how it works. I may see you on there.
I’ve interviewed some incredibly talented people. This week’s interviewee fits into that category. Jana Stanfield is a brilliant songwriter, performer and speaker. Listen to her by clicking this link. Remember – you can hear it directly through your PC’s speakers – you don’t need an iPod.
By Alan Stevens, Media Coach www.mediacoach.co.uk
MediaMaster, MediaMug
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April 18, 2008 at 9:16 am
· Filed under Presentation, Public Speaking
Media Tip of the Week
OK, your audience is always alert and attentive. But just occasionally, there will be a nodding head or two, To make sure that a trickle does not become a flood, here are a few ideas.
- Get your audience involved. Not by telling their neighbour their life history (I hate that stuff too), but by making them think.
- Shorten your talk. Can you get the same message across in 20 minutes rather than 40? In that case, use the last 20 minutes for questions and debate.
- Cut back on the slides. You know why.
- Don’t confuse your audience. If they are confused, they stop listening, and they are one step closer to dozing off.
Even if you are speaking in the after-lunch slot, you should be able to keep your audience wide awake. If not, then start a consultancy for curing insomniacs.
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April 18, 2008 at 9:13 am
· Filed under Press Releases
Presentation Tip of the Week
The MediaMug award goes to a radio station that broadcasts nothing but the sound of birdsong. Starting at 6am every day and closing at midnight, the Birdsong station plays a 20 minute-long recording of birds singing in chorus on a continuous loop. Half a million listeners regularly tune in, which is far more than most “normal” radio stations achieve. The station is only temporary until someone buys the wavelength to use commercially. However, there are already two facebook groups trying to save it. Apparently they need to raise a million pounds. Sounds cheep to me.
You can’t make this stuff up. According to The Sun, an un-named Londoner, 19, wanted a taxi to take her to Bristol airport, and rang directory enquiries, using Cockney rhyming slang “Joe Baxi”. When the operator told her she couldn’t find anyone by that name, the teen replied: “It ain’t a person, it’s a cab, innit.” Alas, she was then put through to a furniture store. Then matters got worse. She spoke to a bemused saleswoman and eventually demanded: “Look love, how hard is it? All I want is your cheapest cab, innit. I need it for 10am. How much is it?” The sales person said “180 pounds” and the teenager paid by credit card. The next morning, a lorry delivered an office cabinet to a puzzled would-be traveller. That’s worth a MediaMug trophy any day of the week.
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April 11, 2008 at 9:51 am
· Filed under Presentation, Public Speaking
Media Tip of the Week
What are the two most important elements of every great speech?
- The speaker cares about the topic
- The audience cares about the topic
So finding a topic to speak on should be simple – firstly, decide what you want to speak about, then decide what aspect would interest your audience.
Of course, it isn’t always that easy, since you may think that you have nothing to say to a particular crowd. In this case, you have two options – don’t speak (but find a gracious way to excuse yourself), or think a bit harder. In the latter case, the words of Dale Carnegie may help – “The entirely new is not interesting; the entirely old has no attractiveness for us. We want to be told something new about the old.”
In other words, find a topic that everyone cares about, and offer a new perspective on it. A good speech is like a good present – tailored to fit the interest or hobby of the receiver.
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April 11, 2008 at 9:37 am
· Filed under Press Releases
Presentation Tip of the Week
Whenever I read a story about someone insuring a part of their body (don’t get ahead of me here), for a huge sum of money, I assume it is done for publicity purposes. Nothing wrong with that. The latest to hit the news is Ilja Gort, the Dutch owner of Chateau de la Garde in Bordeaux, who has taken out policy to cover the loss of his nose and sense of smell. He felt the need to announce his decision to the press, but nevertheless, attains the status of Master of Media, as well as Master of Wine. You can tell what is coming next, can’t you? “This certainly is an insurance policy not to be sniffed at,” said Jonathan Thomas, lead underwriter at Watkins Syndicate who co-insured the policy with Allianz Nederland. Rimshot.
A bull terrier called Bronx played Bill Sikes’s dog in “Oliver” in the Southend Operatic and Dramatic Society’s production at Cliffs Pavilion in Westcliff, Essex. Alas, Bronx has been sacked, for continually stealing the limelight. His owner Edward James told The Sun newspaper it was because of Bronx’s bizarre stage antics: “He flaps his leg and stamps. He got on stage when Bill was having a romantic moment with Nancy and did his dance, with his leg going up and down. Everyone started laughing and ignored the actors.” I’m sure at some point, there will be a place for Bronx in a BBC reality show called “Dog Stars”, presented by Graham Norton. Until then, he can be consoled by the award of the MediaMug trophy to his previous employers.
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April 4, 2008 at 2:30 pm
· Filed under Press Releases
Presentation Tip of the Week
OK, this is not an April Fool story ( I hope). Japanese scientists have invented a pair of glasses that will help you remember where you put your car keys. The Smart Goggle records everything the wearer sees – and can recognise objects, reports the Daily Telegraph. Inventor Yasuo Kuniyoshi and his team at Tokyo University School of Information Science and Technology have created the world’s most advanced object recognition software. If a user initially tells the glasses the name of everything he or she looks at, the glasses will remember them, and can even replay the video of where they were. Now that’s worth a Mediamaster award. I can see one flaw though. What if you can’t remember where you put your glasses? Zoran Kiseloski, a bee-keeper from Macedonia, is the winner of the MediaMug crown. Frustrated by the attacks on his hive by a bear, he used bright lights and loud music to scare it away. However, the generator failed, and the bear returned. Finally, the frustrated apiarist decided to take the bear to court. The court found the bear guilty and, since it had no owner and belonged to a protected species, ordered the state to pay the £1,700 damage it caused. Unfortunately the bear did not attend. Mr Kiseloski said to reporters outside the court “I’m glad it’s over. The bear should have left me alone when I first shouted at him.” Hmmm. I wonder if there will be a follow-up to this story?
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April 4, 2008 at 2:19 pm
· Filed under 1, Public Speaking
Media Tip of the Week
OK, I like the idea of GPS too. But when you travel somewhere new, do you like to get your bearings? Most people do, and more often than not, will use a map to help them to do so. Your audience will also appreciate a map of your presentation, to help them understand where they are, and most importantly, where you are taking them. It’s the old maxim of “Tell ‘em what you’re going to tell ‘em”. But don’t just start with a summary of what points you intend to cover. Explain what you trying to achieve. State roughly how long you are going to take, your policy on questions, and whether there will be anything required of the audience (such as short group exercises). Take care not to frighten them – say “Don’t worry – no-one will be embarrassed or hurt”. Don’t take your listeners on a mystery tour. Supply a good map in the first 90 seconds, and your audience will relax and listen. OK, start up the bus. By Alan Stevens, Media Coach www.mediacoach.co.uk
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