The ABC' of Executive Speaking: Clarity

"Clarity affords focus."
Thomas Leonard

In my last post, I followed my discussion of the “A” of the “ABC’s of Executive Speaking” framework– Authenticity with an examination of the “B” of the “ABC’s” – Brevity. In this post I will cover the “C” of  the “ABC’s”– Clarity.

CLARITY

Thomas Leonard, one of the founding leaders of the executive coaching industry said, “Clarity affords focus.” For speaking executives this is doubly true. Clarity brings greater focus to what the speaker will say and a greater understanding by the audience of the content that it hears.

But Clarity is a slippery eel for many speakers. Because many executive speakers are also subject matter experts, it is difficult for them to parse out the “noise” that occasionally interferes with the content they are presenting. Achieving Clarity as a speakers means your content must be:

• Coherent

• Intelligent and

• Transparent.

Let’s take a look at each of these qualities.

COHERENT

Being a Coherent speaker is the number one speaking behavior where most executive speakers first lose their audiences. Being Coherent is the act of uniting or forming as a whole an idea or action. When you speak as an executive, your audience relies heavily on your ability to design and refine your content and then opine it effectively. You must be logical and clear in everything you say. Your thoughts must be connected in a way in which the words you say create an image of what you want the audience to absorb or act upon. You cannot obfuscate, hem, haw or otherwise confuse your audience by meandering from idea to idea without some sort of logical pattern. A coherent speaker is a trusted speaker. Just ask any audience.

INTELLIGENT

Intelligence in the executive speaking world can be defined as having Certainty. Certainty is a quality of knowledge about a fact of which there is no doubt.

In an article from the job board, The Ladderstitled “8 Things that Set Truly Confident People Apart”, number 4 on the list was “They speak with certainty.” Here is an quote from that article:

“Confident people speak assertively because they know that it’s difficult to get people to listen to you if you can’t deliver your ideas with conviction.”

Conviction is a level of belief, faith and trust that you develop, as a speaker, from having done the background work, verified the research, and integrated the knowledge you’ve gained into your speaking essence. While content can be borrowed, its delivery should never be faked. Doing so would violate all the elements of being an Authentic speaker (the “A” of The ABC’s of Executive Speaking). Giving a speech prepared by another person is like taking a ten-mile hike in some else’s shoes; you may get into them, but the fit is awkward and over time will produce painful blisters.

I witnessed this happening when I saw two gentleman attempt to deliver a long form presentation created by another person who asked them to step in at the last minute to cover for him. The longer they went on the less intelligent they sounded and the more restless the audience became waiting for them to reach their painful conclusion.

The lack of a speaker’s intelligence is most quickly revealed when they begin to demonstrate a lack of knowledge of their content material.

TRANSPARENT

A Transparent speaker is a Confident speaker. Transparency is in demand these days from every source, authority, and organization. Speakers are not exempt. In fact, speakers must be the standard bearers of communication transparency. By virtue of the public nature of speaking, all speakers including executive speakers, must be confident enough in their content to allow themselves to be open to the public scrutiny of transparency.

Since, as speakers, we hold ourselves to a higher standard, this should not be an issue of concern. Speakers acceptthe unwritten code that “we will do no harm to our audience”. This means, as an executive speaker, you will not knowingly mislead your audience through the purposeful delivery of a misstatement of facts or events. It means that you hold your audience in a higher esteem than you hold yourself.

There can be no other way for you to establish the trust of your audience. After all, their faith in you as a leader rests upon the trustworthiness of what you say.

THE CASE FOR CLARITY

It should be easy for you to see that, as an executive, whenever you speak Clarity is your greatest ally in both getting your point out and getting it across. Listeners respond most favorably to speakers with clear, logical, easy to process language that supports the purpose of their speech.

The primary role of communication is to allow people to connect. It does no one any good if the connection is unclear, muddied by incoherent, unintelligent, and cloudy speech. To be effective, think about becoming a master of Clarity committed to delivering one great Coherent, Intelligent, and Transparent speech after another.

Thanks for your support as a reader of my blog and I eagerly welcome any comments on how you’re thinking about achieving the possibility of your promise. Also, I would appreciate any suggestions you might have for future posts in this blog on a topic near and dear to you in the comments section below. As always, please feel free to share this post with a friend or colleague.

Bringing Positivity to Everything,
The Brain Tamer

The ABC' of Executive Speaking: Authenticity

“Always be yourself. Everyone else is taken.”
Oscar Wilde”

In my last post, I introduced you to the “ABC’s of Executive Speaking” framework. This post will explore the “A” of the ABC’s – Authenticity.

With every passing day, the world of the executive speaker continues to evolve. This evolution presents challenges that many executive speakers have never previously addressed. From the virtual meeting, to the webinar, to the teleseminar, to the promotional video – all of these opportunities test the ability of an executive speaker to create, organize and deliver memorable and effective content that informs, influences and energizes every audience.

Some speakers meet these challenges by choosing to emulate the speaking techniques of other, notable speakers without first analyzing their own style and effectiveness. Executive speaking is hard enough without adding a layer of imitation on your speaking style that is, after all, borrowed at best and seldom done seamlessly.

What you need as an effective executive speaker is Authenticity.

AUTHENTICITY

As Shakespeare wrote, “This above all, to thine ownself be true.” It is an admonishment all executive speakers should take to heart. To be true to oneself implies that you have introspective knowledge of yourself that is honest and unfiltered. This is not always easy to do. Why?

Because it takes time. Introspective reflection requires openness to input from others and, above all, acute self-awareness. Armed with this level of “trueness”, a speaker can rely on their innate qualities, trust their instincts and have confidence that, “I know what I know” is sufficient a platform to take and control the stage wherever that may be.

To be an Authentic executive speaker you must be Genuine, Credible, Valid, Legitimate, and Trustworthy.

GENUINE

A genuine speaker has a quality of self, based on the deeply derived trust one earns from confronting themselves through honest examination. The authentic speaker knows what they know, feels what they feel, and maintains an aura of discernable genuine character capable of supporting and enhancing their influential aspirations. It’s hard to be genuine when you are not being yourself.

CREDIBLE

There is an unwritten rule for all speakers, “I will do no harm to my audience.” Because of this, you have a credibility card you should never play when speaking. Playing your credibility card card asks an audience to forgive your intentionally misstated facts, policies and information. All professional speakers know that the most important character you bring to the stage is that of truthfulness. Truthfulness that holds the highest respect for your audience, while safeguarding them from harm through falsehood. In order to be held as a leader of the highest repute, executive speaking demands credibility of the highest level as well.

VALID

Executives are often charged with the responsibility of increasing an organization’s worth. When you speak as an executive, the value of what you say can increase an organization’s worth as well. Deepening the understanding of complex initiatives, policies, and vision can engage a workforce, unite stakeholders, and increase loyalty among customers.

Simply put, flapping your gums based on the authority of your title just doesn’t qualify as effective executive speaking in today’s business world . You must bring inspiration, intensity and insight into your speaking content in order to create the memorable and repeatable outcome you need and should desire. 

Your audience will value your perspective, concreteness of fact, and the sincerity of your intent. Your content must be timely, accurate and impact them in a meaningful way.

Nothing less will do.

LEGITIMATE

This is where the rubber meets the road in executive speaking. It is the point at which your style and your substance unite, creating an unbreakable bond between you and your audience. Being a legitimate executive speaker presents itself through the actions you take while on stage. 

It is through your speaking legitimacy that you demonstrate the following:

• That you confidently own content that is originally yours

• That you fully credit any content you have borrowed from others

• That you willingly and humbly share what you have learned with your audience.

Now ask yourself, “Am I doing this when I speak?” If you honestly are, then you are being an authentic executive speaker.

TRUSTWORTHY

Steven Covey wrote, “Trust is a must”.

I believe that every executive speaker’s goal is to build a lasting relationship with their audience. In my work with my clients, we spend considerable time on relationship building. First with themselves and secondly with their audiences. At the core of this work is the understanding that all relationships spin on a hub of trust. 

Therefore, as an authentic executive speaker, your principle responsibility is to leave your audience feeling comfortable and trusting in the content you have shared. Helping your audience trust you by showing them you trust yourself through both words and actions will increase their trust in you and thereby your effectiveness. This sense of being trustworthy is the cement that sets the bond between speaker and audience.

THE AURA OF AUTHENTICITY

In the end, Authenticity is not something you can walk into Executives R’US and buy off the rack, take to work, hang it on a hook in your corner office, and slip into whenever the occasion calls. Authenticity is an integral character of self and a practiced behavior as a speaker. You can strive for it, achieve it and own it when you practice being Genuine, Credible, Valid, Legitimate, and Trustworthy every time you get the opportunity to speak in your executive capacity. It may start out as a challenge, but eventually you will find that it fits you to a tee. And, your audiences will appreciate and thank you for being authentic when you speak.

Thanks for your support as a reader of my blog and I eagerly welcome any comments on how you’re thinking about achieving the possibility of your promise. Also, I would appreciate any suggestions you might have for future posts in this blog on a topic near and dear to you in the comments section below. As always, please feel free to share this post with a friend or colleague.

Bringing Positivity to Everything,
The Brain Tamer

TheBrain Tamer introduces “The ABC's of Executive Speaking”

“Be sincere; be brief; be seated.”
Franklin D. Roosevelt

In my practice, The Speech Wiz, I coach executives on how they can become high level speakers and leaders. Many of my clients get to speak in a variety of settings from boardrooms to conferences, webinars to meetings, and more. Over the years, I have learned from my clients that the type of speaking they do is highly driven, temporal, and critical to the success of their businesses, organizations and careers. I have also learned that what they do is not classic public speaking but a leadership style that relies heavily on their ability to convey authenticity, practice brevity and demonstrate the highest level of clarity regarding the content and purpose of their speaking.

This knowledge led me to formulate a framework for executive speakers I call “The ABC’s of Executive Speaking”.

WHAT IS EXECUTIVE SPEAKING

Executive Speaking is a category of business communication with high impact, extreme focus, and immediacy. It is most effective when practiced with intention, awareness and skill. Executive speaking is high on content, more relaxed on formality and pivotal to advancing the goals of leadership, policy and engagement. Executive speaking happens whenever and wherever leaders engage their workforce, stakeholders, shareholders, prospects, and customers.

SO SIMPLE, ANYONE CAN DO IT

If you are an executive or aspire to become one, the sooner you embrace “The ABC’s of Executive Speaking” the sooner you will reap its benefits. It is no secret that, in the workplace, the fastest and easiest way to distinguish yourself from others is to demonstrate command and use of advanced communication skills.  Employees with advanced communication are regularly promoted from the ranks of workforces around the globe to take on leadership roles, lead initiatives, and foster change and growth.

The leader who engages “The ABC’s of Executive Speaking” framework will lead better meetings, experience the thrill of truly connecting to their audience, and establish increasingly higher levels of trustworthiness and credibility. They will inspire, motivate, and transform those they lead by demonstrating the strength one gets from being genuine, respectful of other’s time, and model the ability to convey important information simply and effectively.

Anyone can command the skills within the “The ABC’s of Executive Speaking” framework. Mastering “The ABC’s of Executive Speaking” does not require an advanced degree, years of experience, or an impressive title. All you need to succeed is awareness of the elements, a desire to elevate your speaking skillset, and the ability to embrace every speaking opportunity that comes your way.

AN OPEN INVITATION

Over the next three blog posts I will be examining each of the elements of “the ABC’s of Executive Speaking” framework. They are Authenticity, Brevity and Clarity. You’re invited to follow these blogs and gain insight into this simple and highly effective framework for becoming a truly effective and impactful executive speaker. If you lead an organization, I encourage you to invite those you lead to follow these blogs as well.

Thanks for your support as a reader of my blog and I eagerly welcome any comments on how you’re thinking about achieving the possibility of your promise.  Also, I would appreciate any suggestions you might have for future posts in this blog on a topic near and dear to you in the comments section below. As always, please feel free to share this post with a friend or colleague.

Bringing Positivity to Everything,
The Brain Tamer

4 simple tips to help you limit the stress of public speaking.

"You can’t always control what goes on outside
 but you can always control what goes on inside.”
Wayne Dyer

The key to becoming a stress-less speaker is to have a plan for what you plan to say.

Sounds simple. Right?

For lots of people (and perhaps you) the simpler things are, the harder they are to believe in. We humans like the clutter and challenge of the complicated. Why not? With so many variables that the complicated offers, we can relish in the comfort of knowing that if we come up short, we at least “gave it a good try.” The simple does not afford the luxury of “if at first you don’t succeed”. The simple if very Yoda-ish. “Do or do not. There is no try.”

If you’d like to become a stress-less speaker, think simple. It is not a complicated process. It only becomes that way when you avoid the simple and reach for the complicated. In this blog, I will share 4 simple tips you can use to become a stress-less speaker. The four tips are PLAN, OUTLINE, EXTRACT and KNOW.

PLAN

Steven Covey wrote in the 7 Habits of Successful People that you should “begin with the end in mind.” This is where your stress-less speaking plan should begin. Simply take a moment to  think about what you want your audience to “get” from your speech. What you determine, should let you know if you are speaking to persuade, inform or entertain. Then just write a simple sentence (this is known as a topic statement) stating the purpose of your speech. This has to be a simple sentence. “Ifs” and “Buts” are OK but absolutely no “ands”. If you find yourself including an “and” stop right there. This is a clear indication that you have two speeches. And, that is a very complicated thing to do.

Having a plan is critical to stress-less speaking. A plan will help increase your focus and elevate your intention. The more you intend to do with your speech the less stress you’ll have when you speak.

OUTLINE

If there is one piece of wisdom I repeatedly share with anyone who tells me they need to write a speech, it’s this: “Don’t write that speech!”

If you write a speech, what do expect will happen?

•  Will you fall in love with the beautiful words and phrase you’ve written? Yup.

•  Will you try to commit the speech to memory? Yup.

•  Will you needlessly add a whole layer of avoidable stress to the speaking process? Yup.

Writing a speech is an exercise in futility. You will write with your brain echoing the words of your 11th grade English teacher who admonished you to use complex sentences. Therefore, your sentences will be wordy (20 – 30 words or more). They will be indigestible to your brain’s memory core and even harder for your audience to swallow. 

We communicate differently for the eye than we do for the ear. The ear processes on the fly, without the ability to slow down, parse, or rehear what has been said. The ear relies on the short and the simple.

Instead, develop your speech using an outline. Only put down simple sentences. Follow an outline format so you will stay on track. This will help you curb verbosity while maintaining an approach that plays to a tried and true recipe for making your speech infinitely memorable and repeatable.

EXTRACT

I once heard an author deliver a speech about a list of 10 things you needed to do that she had in her book.  She had only fifteen minutes to speak. She never got beyond #3 on her list.

Really effective speaking is a subtraction process. Most speakers (and their audiences) suffer from information (content) overload. They use a fire hose when a sprinkler is required. The key to becoming a stress-less speaker is learning how to eliminate content that, while interesting, may not be critical to reaching your speaking objective.

Once you’ve determined what content you need to have in your speech, begin to refine it by extracting the key words and phrases within your content. By doing this you will trigger the deep knowledge and understanding you have about your topic. This refining will also allow you to speak spontaneously and fluently about your topic.

From here it just becomes a matter of practice and familiarization.

KNOW

There are three things, and only three things you should ever speak about; What you Feel, What you Know and What you have Experienced. Many speakers encounter a lot of stress regarding the confidence they have in What they Know. This is often the result of being a surface dweller on the topic you have selected. If you are speaking about What you Know, then you should relax and take solace in the following expression, “I know what I know.” This does not mean you know everything, and that’s OK. Nobody knows everything about any one thing. They may know a lot, but not everything. 

Experts come in all sizes and with varying levels of knowledge. In most instances, even when there is someone in the audience more accomplished than you, the audience is genuinely interested in hearing what you know about the topic of your choice. They will take from your content what they need to further their own knowledge. This may include new information as well as corroboration of their existing knowledge.

Stress-less speakers “Know what they know”. They find comfort in knowing there may be people in their audience who no more or less than what they will share. But they are full of intention, well-practiced and familiar with their content, and they “Know what they know”.

DON’T SWEAT THAT SPEECH

If you’re interested in learning the art of becoming a stress-less speaker, begin by following the four simple tips I shared in this blog,  PLAN, OUTLINE, EXTRACT and KNOW. When you do, you’ll find yourself more readily embracing each opportunity to share of your passion, wisdom and experience with audiences eager to add your content to theirs.

Thanks for your support as a reader of my blog and I eagerly welcome any comments on how you’re thinking about achieving the possibility of your promise.  Also, I would appreciate any suggestions you might have for future posts in this blog on a topic near and dear to you in the comments section below. As always, please feel free to share this post with a friend or colleague.

Bringing Positivity to Everything,
The Brain Tamer

How to Grow Your Speaking Voice through Respect.

“Stupid is as stupid does.”
Forrest Gump

These words above, from the fictional title character of the film, Forrest Gump, have amazing clarity and truth. Think about it as it applies to you. We all do stupid things, mostly by accident, sometimes by omission, and other times strictly due to a lack of concentration. But, “Stupid is as stupid does.” Let’s take a closer look.

I feel safe in venturing that few, if any, of us wake up each morning with the singular goal of, “Gee, what stupid things can I do today and still live to tell about it?” Yet, we manage to do more stupid than brilliant things without really trying. The fact that we are not aware of our own propensity for stupidity may be more of a curse than a blessing. The fortunate end of this is that most often the stupid things we do are little things which, when taken individually, have little or no effect on our life each day. Yet day after day we still do the stupid without regard to the cumulative effect it has on our lives as a whole. While some consider doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result to be a definition of insanity, I like to think of it a dose of good ole homegrown stupidity. This type of behavior will eventually call into question the foundation of Respect we have for yourself.

RESPECT AND THE SPEAKER

As a speaker, you must be ever aware that your authority to speak rests greatly and precariously on the foundation Credibility you established for yourself. A large portion of your credibility is impacted and shaped by the depth of respect you have for yourself, your foundational message, and your relationship to the audiences you serve.

In many cases, as a speaker, it is what we do when we are saying nothing that can easily betray the depth of our credibility and the level of respect we maintain.

You’re at the airport on the way to a speaking opportunity when you step into the newsstand to pick up some water and a snack for the flight. As you walk down the aisle you cross in front of another shopper who is tortuously deciding which chewy snack will hit the spot and you do so without even offering a courteous, “Excuse me.”

“So, what,” you say, “they probably didn't even notice!”

You might be right. But, that’s not the question you should be asking yourself. The real deep question here is. “Did you notice?” And if you did notice and did not offer a polite, “Excuse me” you may have committed a double offense, one to the person you offended and two to your personal dignity and respect.

When you walk in to your speaking engagement the next day, you are greeted by the very person you were rude to at the airport. You feel stupid for having acted badly in a situation you can never undo. You cannot NOT communicate and the message you have sent through your action is a sign of disrespect and questionable credibility.

RESPECT AND YOUR SPEAKING VOICE

“Actions speak louder than words” and growing your speaking voice is less about what you’re saying and more about the foundational base from which are speaking. While you are diligently digging to discover content that matters to you and will impact your audiences, your actions throughout the process will help solidify a platform with the integrity to support your message.

The more actions of respect inward and outward that you perform, the stronger your experiential base as a speaker will be. Not only will what you say grow, but the strength of conviction within the voice behind those words will grow as well.

SPEAKING OF RESPECT

The general point here is that it is more than just a common courtesy so say “Excuse me” when we infringe on another’s space. By doing so, we acknowledge there are rules of conduct which we ascribe to as a civilized society. These rules help us to create order while they relieve us from the potential rule of chaos.

Saying, “Excuse me” not only bestows a measure of respect on the infringed, it bestows a measure of civility on the infringer as well. This behavior can and will establish an atmosphere of mutual respect between each person involved in the encounter. Respect makes our world a better place to live. It makes our common efforts rewarding. It makes us understand the basis of our common existence.

My challenge to you is to try to be courteous and respectful in all situations. Particularly those when you are about to knowingly do something stupid. Give yourself a break. Take yourself off of autopilot and take command of your vessel. At the end of the day, acknowledge the stupid little things you have done and make a conscious effort not to repeat them.

Remember, the most important person in the world is you. If you don't show yourself the maximum amount of respect you deserve, it's quite possible no one else will either. If you keep on going day after day repeating one small stupidity after another, it will have a cumulative effect on your reserve of self-respect.

 “Stupid is as stupid does,” but stupid does not have to become a standard of performance or an excuse to be rude.

Thanks for your support as a reader of my blog and I eagerly welcome any comments on this post or suggestions you might have for a future blog on a topic near and dear to you in the comments section below. As always, please feel free to share this post with a friend or colleague.

Bringing Positivity to Everything,
The Brain Tamer

Now you can easily create and share engaging stories with The Brain Tamer's C.A.R. technique

"If you're gonna tell your life story, you gotta be honest, or don't do it."
R. Kelly, American Musician

Today, in corporate and professional speaking circles, storytelling is all the rage.

This come as little surprise to me. Humans have been communicating through stories since the first cave dweller put a flame to a twig. Let’s face it, humans are storytelling machines.

People tell stories in all kinds of settings other than after the daily hunt. They tell stories at parties, while networking, in meetings, when training, on sales calls, on the phone, over a meal, and especially during job interviews. Perhaps you do as well.

A story has the power to inspire, motivate and transform its listener. The goal of a story is to convey an experience of value from one person to either another person or to many people. The purpose of the story is to either persuade, inform or entertain the listener in the process.

Regardless of the setting, the basic structure of all stories is the same with a clear beginning, middle and end. When some people speak, it is not uncommon for their story to seem fractured with disconnections between the three basic parts making it difficult to follow and hold your attention. This most commonly happens when the storyteller jumbles the order of the events within the story. It’s similar to hearing the punch line before the joke.

The best stories are the ones we cull from our mind. They’re made truly engaging when the details they contain are placed in their proper and most effective chronological order. It really helps when you are constructing a story to have a method to guide you in this process. So, today, I am offering my C.A.R. Technique to help you create and share engaging stories with your listeners.

THE C.A.R. TECHNIQUE

Whether you look at your resume or a roster of clients, every instance of experience or performance tells a story. The story has elements common to all good storytelling. By using my C.A.R. Technique you will be able to quickly construct an engaging and meaningful story with relative ease.

What does C.A.R. stand for?

C.A.R. represents the three basic elements of every experiential encounter. They are:

• Challenge

• Action

• Result

By simply recounting these three basic elements you can craft a story that will engage your listeners.

Let’s look at each element.

CHALLENGE

Every fictional story ever written or told begins with the lead character having to meet a great challenge. Think about the experiences you have had in your life. Without over dramatizing it, everything you have learned or mastered began as a great challenge. From learning to walk to learning to ride a bike. From getting into college to finding a job. Each experience begins with the challenge. So, does your story.  So, begin your story with the challenge.

• Think about the challenge you had to meet.

• Think about how you would define the challenge.

• What were the circumstances that created the challenge?

• What was at stake if you did not meet the challenge?

• Why did you take on the challenge?

The beginning is where you build your listener’s anticipatory interest in how your story will end.

Once you have clearly established the intensity of the Challenge you will meet, you will want to move the story along by detailing the Action steps you performed.

ACTION

Every summer, moviegoers stream into theaters around the world to gobble up the latest action film. Action sells, because it tantalizes the reader, viewer or listener with the possibilities of human achievement. Through the action of your story, you will inspire your listener while demonstrating your creativity, resilience, and resolve. In your story, you may not save the Universe, but you may have surpassed a sales goal, or discovered a new process for doing something, or earned the loyalty of a customer.

Remember, in every story, it’s the action that captivates, inspires and engages your listener.

Once you have detailed the action steps of your story, it is time to bring it to an end with a triumphant Result.

RESULT

Think about the stories you’ve read, heard or seen. How do they end? Some stories might end with, “And they all lived happily ever after”. Others with, “It is a far, far better thing that I do, than I have ever done; it is a far far better rest that I go to than I have ever known.” The ending justifies the meaning of the story.

Think about how you’d like your story to end. What is the one thing you’d like your listeners to remember about the story you are telling?

The ending of a story should represent a triumph of some sort. There are many varieties of triumph from the utterly spectacular to the completely amazing. The end of your story will detail the effect of the Result that came about due to the Action(s) you took to meet the Challenge you faced.

The Result need not be too long. In fact, the one thing you really don’t want to do at the end of your story is ramble on or rehash the story you’ve already told. Instead, think of how you can wrap it up in one sentences or two. Think about how you can summarize the story with a pithy line, turn of phrase, or tag line.

STAYING TRUE

American Musician R. Kelly said, "If you're gonna tell your life story, you gotta be honest, or don't do it."

One of my executive speaking coaching clients was asked to deliver the keynote address at a trade conference because he had written a paper about a technical process. His first instinct was to deliver a presentation detailing the paper with lots of slides that had a ton of detail on them. After working with me, he delivered a keynote that told the story behind the paper and the process. His keynote covered the Challenge he faced, the Action steps he took and the Result he achieved.

My client’s keynote received a standing ovation and he went on to speak and travel for many years based on this one success. He succeeded because his story came from his mindful truth. He engaged his listeners by sharing the truth of his story without the need to embellish beyond the actual and the factual.

YOU CAN DO IT TOO

Click here to download my C.A.R. Technique Worksheet to help you on your way to crafting engaging stories of your own. This worksheet will help you construct clear, concise and accurate stories to support your speeches, interview responses and networking conversations.

From the beginning to the end of your story, my C.A.R. Technique can help you remain true to the details of your story while crafting an engaging experience for your listener. No speaker is ever at fault for being too truthful. In fact, there is no such thing as being “too truthful”, there is just the truth governed by a level of disclosure deemed appropriate to the situation.

When a speaker tells a story, there is only one way to tell it, honestly. As a speaker-storyteller, you will have to learn to trust the truth of your story as being important and impactful enough to warrant your listeners’ awareness, attachment and appreciation.

I trust you enjoyed learning about how you can use my C.A.R. Technique to create engaging stories for your listeners. Storytelling is a pivotal Content Creation skill enabling you to speak effectively as a thought leader, subject expert, or executive. I am grateful for your support as a reader of my blog and I welcome any comment on this post or suggestions you might have in the comments section below. As always, please feel free to share this post with a friend or colleague.

Bringing Positivity to Everything,
The Brain Tamer