Communication Matters Newsletter

What NOT to Say:

"It's not worth your time"

In this edition of our What NOT to Say video series, we take a look at why you never give your audience a reason NOT to listen. Watch video.

Watch more 2-3 minute videos from our What NOT to Say video series.

Don't stink! Communication advice from ESPN Commentators

When your opportunity knocks, will you be ready?

This week marks one of my favorite times of year: the beginning of college football! While I never played the sport, I've become a big fan, and I follow it as my schedule allows (which is less and less with each passing year).

Last year I had the pleasure of working a game for ESPN3, which afforded me the opportunity to sit in the press box between the play-by-play guy and the color commentator. I watched them with fascination. I didn't tell them what I did for a living until after the game. They were kind enough to grant me an interview.

The play-by-play guy, Roy Philpott (@RoyPhilpott ), started by calling high school football games for free. He has done a wide variety of TV and radio sports. But he shared with me the piece of advice his first producer gave him. Just seconds before he was about to go on air the first time, the producer told him in his headset: "Don't stink - it'll be on YouTube by games end and you'll never work again!" Talk about pressure! And pretty great advice for any communicator. Don't be bad at it.

George Wrighster (@georgewrighster ) was an Oregon Duck tight end who played professionally before injuries put him in the broadcast booth. His secret? That night I observed him was his very first game. I thought he did great, but especially considering it was his first effort. I dug and found out a little more. Turns out he had been to broadcast school, an exclusive opportunity that accepted only 40 of 1000 applicants. What allowed him to have what it takes for that exclusive club? George had created a studio in his basement, bought a headset, and watched 100 games while recording his commentary. He listened to them all to discover how he could get better. George called 100 games before he got accepted to school to learn how to broadcast and get his first job.

There are two takeaways to learn from these men and apply to ANY speaking situation:

You lose credibility and opportunity if you are not competent at communication. You might get the interview, the opportunity to pitch to the VC guy/gal, or an audience with the president, but if you mess it up, you'll not get your desired result or another chance.
You must practice before you need it. When the chance calls, you have to be ready. It's too late to prepare on your way to the conference.

I also observed a lot of the skills we teach in our seminars. Even though the image of Roy & George on air was limited to a few minutes (an intro before the game, a halftime talk, and a summary after the game), they spoke to each other conversationally, with animated gestures and vocal inflections on even the most mundane of plays. They paused, changed their speaking rate, and adapted to a changing story line. It's more improv than narration. Their skills could be put to use in any phone call, webinar, meeting, presentation, or speech.

Could anyone do it? Probably. If they put in the time. Roy states, "The #1 skill is preparation. You've got to be prepared. You have to be able to commit yourself to be the play-by-play guy. To memorize the players. To understand what they're going to do. To watch film coming in. You have to put in the prep work. And if you don't do that, you don't have a chance."

"Whoa Nellie!" That advice will work anywhere!

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Presentation Sin:

The Practical Guide to Stop Offending (and Start Impressing) Your Audience

It's almost ready!!

I am in the final stages of my most exciting

professional project to date, the publication of my book on speaking well. The title is Presentation Sin: The Practical Guide to Stop Offending (and Start Impressing) Your Audience. It is a compilation of observations that form the backbone of our communications workshops, and is filled with tips and examples of how you can be exceptional while speaking. It is for anyone who wants to get better at communicating: in meetings, webinars, speeches, presentations, sales pitches, interviews, inspirational leadership, and everyday conversation.

I am hopeful it will be on Amazon by the end of the month.

Check my Twitter feed for updates as the big day approaches!

12 Ways to Better Present Yourself On-Screen

We've partnered with our good friends at Your Local Studio to create a whitepaper that includes companion videos highlighting 12 ways to better present yourself, and convey your message when your on-screen.

The whitepaper covers these topics:

how to be a confident speaker
vocal intonation
handling nerves
the importance of a smile
passion
the pause
opening words
power phrases in sales
internal voice
gestures
eye contact
what to wear

Download your free whitepaper!

Only 3 weeks left to sign up for The Ultimate Conference for Speakers!

The Presentation Summit

Sep 27-30, 2015 * New Orleans

Join Alan in New Orleans as he presents his Keynote presentation, "What Not to Say: The 10 dumbest things speakers say" and his breakout session for speakers on "When Everything Goes Wrong: How can you still succeed?"

The Presentation Summit is a user conference, featuring live presentations, workshops, and a hands-on support center. People attend in order to learn how to become better content creators, better presentation designers, better storytellers, better presenters, and better users of PowerPoint and other software. They leave with a much broader and deeper understanding of the principles and best practices for presentation design, creation, and delivery.

Because Alan will be one of the keynote speakers, we are able to offer our clients an instant discount of $75 when they use "client code" NOLA75.

See you in "The Big Easy!"

September 2015

In this issue

What NOT to Say Video

Don't Stink!

Presentation Sin

12 Ways to Better Present Yourself On-Screen

Presentation Summit Conference

Upcoming Workshops

Upcoming Speaking Events

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Upcoming Workshops

Powerful, Persuasive Speaking Workshop

Raleigh, NC

Sep 14-15 Limited seats still available!

Oct 26-27

Dec 7-8

Two days that will change your life! This highly interactive, hands-on workshop gives you the skills to face an audience and deliver content in a clear, concise, and compelling manner. Close that deal, give that career-changing presentation, or motivate your audience to action. Speak with confidence, power, and ease. Limited seating.

Upcoming Speaking Events

PechaKuch Night Raleigh

September 17

Raleigh, NC

Watch presenters from the Triangle area talking about topics they are passionate about in a unique format.

Learn more.

NCSHRM Annual Conference 2015

September 24

Concord, NC

"Why Modern Business Communication is Killing Productivity (And What You Can Do About It)" will be Alan's topic at this year's NCSHRM conference.

Triangle AMA

October 15

Raleigh, NC

Based on his upcoming book, Alan will present "Presentation Sin: The Practical Guide to Stop Offending (and start Impressing) Your Audience."

Watch for more info.

Presentation Summit

September 27-30

New Orleans

Alan will be presenting at the national Presentation Summit on two topics:

"When It All Goes Wrong: Making your speech good when your situation turns bad."
"What NOT to Say: The 10 dumbest things speakers say."

Join him in the French Quarter for a great week of learning and fun!

Get more information.

Speaking

If you need a speaker for your next corporate meeting, professional organization, or conference, contact us at nfo@millswyck.com. Check out our keynotes or have us customize a presentation or workshop for your group.

Now booking speaking engagements for Spring 2016. Book early!

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Find out more about our public workshops, corporate training, private coaching, and keynote speaking at www.millswyck.com.

MillsWyck Communications

Communication matters. What are YOU saying?

Alan Hoffler, Philorator (Teacher & Lover of Speaking)

(919) 386-9238

email: info@millswyck.com

www.millswyck.com

Alan Hoffler is the Executive Director and Principal Trainer at MillsWyck Communications. He is a Trainer, Speaker, Author, and Coach who passionately moves others to effective and engaging communication.