My pictureCoachability

The Seminar Source Newsletter
for educators, coaches, & entrepreneurs
               
 
January 11, 2009
Issue #27



The Seminar Source Objectives:

 � To encourage readers to offer seminars as part of their businesses.

            � To increase awareness of ready-made seminars available..
            � To provide tips on how to earn money giving seminars.

            � To provide samples of available books and seminars you can use.
Month/Year
Greetings!
 
Reading the newspaper every day and listening to the news can be very disheartening. Will things ever get better? Will I ever be able to retire? Will I lose my house? Will my children be able to succeed? These plus so many other questions must go through the heads of the thousands of people who have lost their jobs and those who feel that their jobs are threatened or those who have lost a lot of money in the stock market--basically, all of us.

Are there any positives within these dire times? I believe there are. People are very creative, and we are drawn toward those persons, places, and things that make us feel good. Maybe the 4,000 square foot house is no longer a viable consideration, but that doesn't mean a smaller residence couldn't be equally satisfying. Satisfaction (which is pleasurable) can come from finding ways to save time and money, ways to enjoy the family without spending money traveling, ways to entertain less expensively, ways to enjoy daily living without spending.

Last night I watched an HGTV (House and Gardens) segment about a couple and their two little kids who had a huge house with lots of room, but they weren't satisfied. They ended up moving to much smaller quarters in a surrounding they better enjoyed where the initial major negative was the size of their new home, but in short order they found they enjoyed the closeness of their children.

In today's paper, a section was devoted to entertaining, serving hearty, creamy soups with homemade bread instead of a filet or a roast.

Maybe in the spring, the joy of gardening will experienced for the first time by those looking to save some money, or crafts--sewing, knitting, crocheting, needlework, cabinetry making--will be added pleasures of living life closer to nature, closer to the ways of our grandparents.

Today's quote relates to creating yourself. That's the positive of our current economic situation.

Happy, happy,
Gail


Feature Article:

TALK OBJECTIVES and OPENING SENTENCE


by Gail Cassidy


Why are you giving your talk? Is your objective

�to inform?
�to entertain?
�to persuade? or
�to inspire?

The evidence you use and your delivery techniques depend on your purpose. The clearer you are your purpose, the easier it will be to support your talk with the best, most appropriate evidence.

Visualize someone who is there to entertain you. Now see picture the head of a transportation system giving a talk to inform you of their latest policies. How does that person's demeanor differ from a religious leader trying to persuade you or a motivational speaker trying to inspire you?

Once you are clear on your objective, write your opening sentence, keeping in mind that objective.  
      

The question you want to ask yourself is "How can I best gain the audience's attention?" Use one of the following ideas:

Startling statement:  "Look to your right and left.  One will not be here by the end of the semester." "You may lose your house in these economic times."

Quote an authority:  "The fire captain said the most common area for fires is the kitchen."

Use a prop:  If you are selling a product, show your product.  If a prop relates to your talk, use it.

Compliment your audience:  Find out something special about the group and relate it to them. "I understand your Rotary Club gives out over $50,000 a year in scholarships. That is incredible!"

Ask a question:  Rhetorical:  "Are you afraid of losing your job?"  Direct:  "How many of you have slept through your alarm?"

Ask your audience to do something:  "Stretch.  Introduce yourself to the person next to you.  Stand."

Tell a story or joke (if you can).  

Show a graphic on an overhead.

The PURPOSE of a strong opening statement is
1.    To get an immediate response from your audience.
2.    To release tension.
3.    To build confidence.
4.    To get a perspective on your audience by their responses.

The next step is to plan the EVIDENCE (why should they believe you?), supporting information, for your talk.

CITE AN EXPERT:  Quote someone in authority. Attributing the statistics you use to the head of an organization give

EXPERIENCES:    A story about something that has happened to you or to someone you know. People love stories. Notice the silence when you relate an actual experience--yours or someone else's.

STATISTICS:   Numbers, comparisons, percentages.

PROPS:  A visual, picture, object, drawing, etc.

ACTION:  Act out how something works. A talk to inform may be the perfect one in which to incorporate action.

METAPHORS:  Making a direct comparison.  Relate to something to which the audience can relate. "The car skidded 120 yards" vs. "The car skidded the length of a football field." Which can the audience "see" more clearly in their minds?

The clarity of your speaking objective and the importance of your first sentence applies to a thirty-minute talk, an hour presentation, or a three-day event.  The longer event will also include small group activities, which will solidify the information you are presenting.

The last part is the closing which we will cover next week.  Your ultimate goal is to have people to remember you, what you said, and that is frequently as a result of how they felt while you spoke.


Quote of the Day

Life isn't about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself.

 -George Bernard Shaw


NEXT WEEK
 
CLOSINGS

Gail Cassidy
http://www.Coachability.com
Join Our Mailing List