Tag: public speaking tips

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Melissa Dinwiddie Photo - Melissa is the queen of leading fun and engaging virtual meetings — Melissa Dinwiddie, Founder, CEO, Lead Curriculum Designer & Facilitator at Creative Sandbox Solutions

More About Our Guest Melissa Dinwiddie:

Melissa specializes in working with innovative, people-first organizations grappling with boring (or nonexistent) virtual trainings and events. She helps them engage and delight attendees, who acquire new skills and behaviors while building connections and having fun.

Melissa’s the author of The Creative Sandbox Way™: Your Path to a Full-Color Life, an interactive playbook that countless readers have sworn freed them from creative block virtually overnight.

Melissa has a reputation for creating impactful, memorable experiences that teach key skills while being fun at the same time. She loves collaborating, and is great at encouraging, cheerleading, and creating a positive vibe.

Melissa’s front-of-room experience ranges from traveling the country teaching calligraphy, to speaking on stages from Connecticut to California, to performing as a singer for audiences as big as 6,500, and presenting at professional conferences internationally. Since the COVID-19 pandemic, she’s become sought after for her expertise in play-based techniques for leading engaging, interactive virtual meetings. When there isn’t a global pandemic going on, she performs improv with a number of different groups in the San Francisco Bay Area.

A graduate of UC Berkeley with a Bachelors in Social Science, and the University of Birmingham, England, with a Masters in Cultural Studies, Melissa lives with her husband in Silicon Valley and spends her free time making art, playing ukulele, or chasing around her rescue kitties, Vinnie and Jack Jack.

For more in-depth information and resources, please check out Melissa’s website – https://creativesandbox.solutions/

Tags applied improv, applied improvisation, communication skills, connection, interactivity, podcast, public speaking, public speaking podcast, public speaking tips, virtual meetings, virtual presentations

Breathing Improving Your Presentations Public Speaking Nerves Public Speaking Tips Talking about uncomfortable topics

Episode 16: The A-Ha! Method Public Speaking Podcast

Post author By speakersalliance
Post date May 19, 2022
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Pelvic Healing for Better Public Speaking with Dr. Mariesa Barbara

Mariesa Barbara, DPT, joins Dayna and Gabe to talk about pelvic health and pelvic healing and how these issues can affect our public speaking. Mariesa helps us understand the connection that our pelvic health can have on all aspects of our health and well-being. She also demonstrates a helpful breathing exercise that speakers can do before they give their talks and presentations to relax their muscles and allow for better diaphragmatic breathing.

Not going to lie, this is not Dayna’s most professional episode as she gets very uncomfortable, tense, and even silly about the topic of pelvic health and the pelvic floor region. Mariesa handles it like the professional she is though, and she shows us that it’s important to talk about the tough and uncomfortable topics because not many people are talking about them right now. Acknowledging that it may be uncomfortable, using the correct terms instead of calling them “weird” terms, and normalizing the subject matter can make your audience (whether one-on-one or a large group) feel more at ease with the topic and more willing to engage with you. At the end of the episode, Mariesa even helps Dayna say the correct terms and feel much more comfortable with the subject matter, and she can help you feel more comfortable about it too!

Check this episode out for helpful breathing tips, how to speak about tough/uncomfortable topics, and quality information about your pelvic floor health! We use our pelvic floor muscles everyday, and it’s important to be aware of our pelvic health and get help and healing when needed.

Dr. Mariesa Barbara – Owner and Founder of My Pelvic Healing and Island Movement Yoga Studio in St. Croix, US Virgin Islands.

Find out more about Dr. Mariesa Barbara:

Website: https://mypelvichealing.com/
Check out her Meet Your Pelvic Floor Course: https://courses.mypelvichealing.com/meet-your-pelvic-floor
Book a one-on-one session with Dr. Barbara (via virtual consult) for any pelvic floor issues you may be experiencing – open for all genders!
Follow Mariesa on Instagram or Facebook!

Speakers Alliance Announcement:

You can now sign up for Private Speaker Coaching on our Speakers Alliance Website. If you have an upcoming pitch, presentation, or speech that you are working on, you can practice it with both Dayna and Gabe and get feedback and suggestions for improvement. For more details, go to https://speakersalliance.org/speaker-coaching/

Check out this episode and our other episodes of The A-Ha! Method Podcast here:

Follow us on social media for the most up to date announcements and so you never miss when a new episode is released. 😍

More About Our Guest Dr. Mariesa Barbara:

She received her Doctorate from The University of St. Augustine in Physical Therapy. After PT school, she began treating outpatient orthopedics in Phoenix, AZ where she began to specialize in Women’s Health. She was always interested in the intricacies of the female body and how it adapts to child birth, trauma, and injury.

In 2016, she received her 200 hr Yoga Teacher Training and started teaching yoga. The impact and connection between the mind, body, and spirit is empowering. Her journey has shifted to helping women with chronic pelvic pain and childbirth injuries.

She moved from her hometown of New Orleans to St. Croix, US Virgin Islands in 2018. She loves scuba diving, free diving, and feeling connected with nature.

She is so excited and honored for this opportunity to create content to help guide women through healing. ❤️

For more in-depth information and resources, please check out Dr. Barbara’s website – https://mypelvichealing.com/

Tags becoming a better speaker, breathing, communication skills, pelvic healing, pelvic health, podcast, public speaking, public speaking nerves, public speaking podcast, public speaking skills, public speaking tips, publicspeakingtraining

Fear of Public Speaking Podcast Public Speaking Tips

Episode 15: The A-Ha! Method Public Speaking Podcast

Post author By speakersalliance
Post date April 4, 2022
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Find the Fun in Public Speaking

Dayna and Gabe kick off Season 2 and the beginning of 2022 with a lighthearted discussion about how to find the love, joy, and fun in public speaking. Finding the fun in public speaking is much easier said than done though, so they dive deeper into how you can (not should!) find the fun in public speaking as well.

This episode has a “big reframing energy” to it as they share some ways that you can reframe your negative or nervous thoughts about public speaking and think about it in a more exciting way. Also, Gabe shares some very interesting analogies to illustrate how he feels about public speaking. 😂😂

There are lots of great tips and tricks in this episode to help you find more fun in your public speaking journey. The more we view public speaking as fun and enjoyable, the more we want to do it and the better we get at sharing our stories and our messages with the world!

Show Notes:

Follow us on on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, or LinkedIn for more updates and fun!
Check out our new Workshop Your Workshop Class starting in mid-April!
Gabe’s Tedx Talk – How to Win at Losing: a Failosophy for Innovation | TEDxFrankfurt
Gabe’s Tedx Talk – Conquering addictions with AI algorithms | TEDxSanFrancisco
Gabe’s Tedx Talk – The Future of Creativity and Innovation is Gamification | TEDxVilnius
Gabe’s Tedx Talk – Gamification | TEDxKids@Brussels
For more information about the The A-Ha! Method Course on Udemy, please go to https://speakersalliance.org/join-a-course.

Check out this episode and our other episodes of The A-Ha! Method Podcast here:

Follow us on social media for the most up to date announcements and so you never miss when a new episode is released.😍

Tags becoming a better speaker, Fun and Public Speaking, podcast, public speaking, public speaking nerves, public speaking podcast, public speaking skills, public speaking tips

Finding Your Voice Podcast Professional Speaker Public Speaking Tips

Finding Your Voice – Episode 13: The A-Ha! Method Public Speaking Podcast

Post author By speakersalliance
Post date February 15, 2022
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Finding Your Imperfectly Beautiful Voice with Chloe Dolandis

Chloe Dolandis, a dynamic entertainer, award-winning voice actor and singer (and excellent improviser!), shares amazing advice on being vulnerable, being your true self, and finding the love and joy in what you do. Making the words on the page or script come to life with your voice is such a phenomenal skill and talent, and voiceover artists, like Chloe, make it look so effortless and easy. The skills used in voiceover can also relate to public speaking, such as pacing, vocal variety, vulnerability, and taking care of your voice and your body. Also, energy reserve is a real thing! Just like voiceover artists, public speakers must make sure they conserve their voice and energy before an upcoming talk or presentation.

Listening to this episode, you can tell that Chloe is such a genuine and caring person. She shares her stories, struggles, and experiences with such grace and humility. We really could listen to her talk all day (seriously, she is so good at what she does!). It was an honor and a treat to talk with Chloe and learn from her. Chloe inspired us to accept and love our voices the way they are and use our voices for good in this world. We hope you will be inspired in many ways as well!

Find out more about Chloe Dolandis:

Chloe’s Website – https://chloedolandis.com/
Follow Chloe on Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter.
During the interview, Chloe mentioned that she would provide some places with excellent voiceover classes for those who are interested. Here are some of her favorites:

https://atlantavoiceoverstudio.com/
https://www.shutupandtalk.com/coaching/
https://www.thevodojo.com/ (their “Fight Club”)

Check out this episode and our other episodes of The A-Ha! Method Podcast here:

Follow us on social media for the most up to date announcements.

Tags becoming a better speaker, public speaking, public speaking podcast, public speaking skills, public speaking tips, voiceover, voiceover artist

Podcast Public Speaking Tips Sharing Your Stories Storytelling

Episode 12: The A-Ha! Method Public Speaking Podcast

Post author By speakersalliance
Post date January 20, 2022
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Share Your Stories with the World, Even When It’s Hard

Gabe coaches Dayna on how to best share a story about her experience with Hurricane Ida in August 2021. Dayna is struggling with the decision to even tell the story and also how to organize it and share the most important details. Dayna spins her wheels about the story and other similar stories, but Gabe helps her to realize that there is value in sharing these stories when she is ready to share them.

Sharing your personal stories is a great way for people to learn more about you and your life experiences. It can also be very healing and cathartic. However, sharing tough and traumatic personal stories can be hard, especially when you are trying to figure out how to organize your stories and process what you learned from them. You may not want to share some deeply personal stories, and that’s okay. But when you feel comfortable sharing particular stories, we hope you will share them with the world. Share your stories, even when they aren’t perfectly ready. Start sharing them so you can see what works and what doesn’t. It takes time to craft a great story, but it’s worth it when you do.

Show notes:

Check out The A-Ha! Method Public Speaking Course on Udemy, which has lots of great resources to help you with organizing your stories and then preparing to share them.
Dayna references a speech she did about her experience with Hurricane Katrina (yes, hurricanes are a common theme in this episode). She is still figuring out how to best tell this story and deliver it in a better way, but here is a speech she gave in 2020 for a Toastmasters Area Contest and won the contest! (This speech was given in early March 2020 before the world shut down…back when we could do speeches in person and get awesome audience participation and feedback!)

Check out this episode and our other episodes of The A-Ha! Method Podcast here:

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Tags becoming a better speaker, public speaking, public speaking podcast, public speaking tips, sharing stories, storytelling

Distracted Audience Improving Your Presentations Podcast Public Speaking Course Public Speaking Tips Work Presentations

Episode 11: The A-Ha! Method Public Speaking Podcast

Post author By speakersalliance
Post date December 13, 2021
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Part 2 – The Discussion Continues: Behind the Scenes about The A-Ha! Method Public Speaking Course

In this episode, Gabe tells a funny story in the beginning about a mariachi band playing during one of his recent speeches at a conference, and then Dayna and Gabe try to make call back jokes about mariachi bands as many times as they can throughout the episode.

With her long list of questions, Dayna continues part 2 of her interview with Gabe about The A-Ha! Method Public Speaking Course on Udemy. They discuss how to make your slides look and flow better, and Gabe also shares his method for learning his slides and material without having to memorize all of it word for word. There are some excellent tips and tricks provided throughout this episode to help you improve your presentations. The most important tip to remember when preparing for your next speech or presentation – Less is more when it comes to public speaking! More is not always more! (So true and yet we…aka Dayna…forgets that all the time!)

Show notes:

Check out The A-Ha! Method Public Speaking Course on Udemy!
In the episode, we reference Dayna’s blog article about the A-Ha! Method Course – check out that article here: https://speakersalliance.org/2021/07/28/the-a-ha-method-public-speaking-course/

Check out Part 1 of this discussion and other episodes of The A-Ha! Method Podcast here:

Distracted Audience Improving Your Presentations Podcast Professional Speaker Public Speaking Goals Public Speaking Tips Speaking at Conferences Virtual Presentations

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Tags communication skills, public speaking, public speaking course, public speaking podcast, public speaking skills, public speaking tips, publicspeakingtraining

Episode 9: The A-Ha! Method Podcast

Post author By speakersalliance
Post date September 23, 2021
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Fighting Distractions and Giving Quality Presentations with Robert Tercek

Robert Tercek, an experienced and innovative keynote speaker, shares his advice and tips for fighting off distractions and giving quality presentations that public speakers of all levels can apply during their own presentations. Audience members are very distracted these days, and it can be difficult to look out into a room and see all of your audience looking down at their phones or computers. The key is to frame your talk in a unique way so that it keeps their attention and also not be phased if it seems your audience is not looking at you anymore — just assume they are tweeting and making notes of all the great points you are saying!

Robert is a dynamic and engaging presenter, and his passion for public speaking shines in this episode when he talks about needing to practice and know your material to make your presentation worth the audience’s time. He even had Dayna clapping and applauding at one point because he was so compelling and in his element! It was a privilege and a pleasure to speak with Robert. He left us feeling motivated and inspired to be better speakers and give quality presentations for our audience, and we hope you will feel that way as well after listening!

Find out more about Robert Tercek:

Website – https://roberttercek.com/
Robert’s Vaporized Book – https://roberttercek.com/book/
Robert’s Tedx Marin speech – https://roberttercek.com/videos/tedx-marin/
Videos of Robert’s speeches – https://vimeo.com/tercek
Follow Robert on Twitter (@Superplex), Facebook and LinkedIn.

Ways to listen to The A-Ha! Method Podcast:

More About Our Guest Robert Tercek:

Robert Tercek is an award-winning author, entrepreneur, and educator focused on the process of dematerialization and innovation.

In his professional capacity, Mr. Tercek is a seasoned business executive with deep expertise in digital media and internet services. He is a prolific creator of interactive programs and products. He has designed and launched successful consumer experiences on every digital platform, including digital television, game consoles, broadband Internet, and mobile networks.

In 2021, Mr. Tercek was recognized as the Humanitarian of the Year by the Media Excellence Awards for his leadership in designing and launching COVID SMART™, an interactive training program designed to keep workers safe on the job during the pandemic.

Tercek’s book “VAPORIZED: Solid Strategies for Success in a Dematerialized World” was selected as the 2016 International Book of the Year at the Frankfurt Book Fair by the editors of GetAbstract from a field of 10,000 business books.

As a keynote speaker, Robert shares his vision of collaborative innovation at conferences, private corporate retreats, university symposia, and workshops around the world.

He has participated as a featured speaker at many industry events including the CMPA PrimeTime, GSMA Mobile World Congress, E3 Expo, The Game Developer Conference, Billboard’s Digital Media and Entertainment Expo, the Consumer Electronics Show, the National Association of Broadcasters NAB Show, National Association of Television Producers, MIPTV, Tokyo Game Fair, Digital Hollywood and many more. He served as Chairman of the Future of Television Summit and the Mobile Game Symposium at GDC.

He has lived and worked throughout Europe, Asia and the Americas. He currently lives in Los Angeles.

For more in-depth biography and information, please check out Robert’s website – https://roberttercek.com/.

Tags becoming a better speaker, keeping your audience engaged, public speaking, public speaking podcast, public speaking skills, public speaking tips, publicspeakingtraining, quality presentations

Big presentation at work Improving Your Presentations Podcast Sales Selling Virtually Virtual Presentations Work Presentations

Episode 8: The A-Ha! Method Podcast

Post author By speakersalliance
Post date August 23, 2021
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Winning Virtually at Sales and Public Speaking with Nitya Kirat

Nitya Kirat, Founder and CEO of YOSD Consulting, joins us to discuss how to improve virtual sales meetings and how public speaking can help improve your sales skills, even if you aren’t a salesperson by trade. We talk with Nitya about some of the techniques and tips he provides in his recently published book Winning Virtually: 10 Tiny Habits For Big Virtual Selling Success.

Nitya has a great mindset and approach to sales, and he even used some of the techniques in his book to answer Gabe’s tough questions about sales, which was very impressive! We learned that not being scared of sales is the first step to improving your relationship with sales and then improving your techniques and processes can take your professional and personal sales transactions to a new level so that all parties involved feel like they are winning!

Check out Nitya’s Winning Virtually book at https://www.winningvirtually.com/.
YOSD Consulting: https://www.yosdconsulting.com/
Follow Nitya on LinkedIn .

Ways to listen to The A-Ha! Method Podcast:

More About Our Guest Nitya Kirat:

Nitya has built, delivered, and coached sales and sales leadership development programs at companies including PIMCO, BlackRock, Allianz Global Investors, MetLife, Google, Causeway Capital, and Transamerica.

Nitya has worked in sales and consulting roles for the past 18 years. He was an award-winning salesperson at Schering-Plough and UBS prior to starting YOSD. Nitya’s sales strategies have also been influenced by his global perspectives, having lived and worked in several parts of the world including Singapore, India, Tanzania, and Belgium.

Nitya received a B.S. in Chemical Engineering from New Jersey Institute of Technology and an M.B.A from the UCLA Anderson School of Management, where he is an active Director on the UCLA Anderson Alumni Board.

He lives in Los Angeles and loves to watch and play soccer whenever he can.

Follow Nitya on LinkedIn .

Tags communication skills, public speaking, public speaking podcast, public speaking tips, sales, sales book, sales skills, sales training, selling virtually

Boosting Your Confidence Comedy and Public Speaking Founders Pitches improv Improving Your Presentations Podcast Public Speaking Tips Start-up Pitches Storytelling

Episode 7: The A-Ha! Method Podcast

Post author By speakersalliance
Post date August 5, 2021
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Going Beyond Public Speaking with Jeremy Au

In this episode of The A-Ha! Method Podcast, we have special guest Jeremy Au join us to talk about public speaking. Jeremy goes beyond the traditional discussion about public speaking and expands on many creative elements and uses of public speaking through storytelling, improv, and even stand-up comedy.

Jeremy initially did not like public speaking as a kid and even shares an embarrassing story from middle school that haunted him for years. Then he grew to love it in college and finds himself using public speaking skills every day.

He has given many start-up pitches and presentations and watched many business pitches as an investor and venture capitalist (VC), and he provides some insightful tips for new founders getting started with their pitches. Jeremy shares his love for storytelling and using storytelling techniques to evoke emotions from your audience. He also discusses his improv journey and how it has helped him along the way.

Learn more about Jeremy Au here: https://www.jeremyau.com/.
The Brave with Jeremy Au Podcast is available on Spotify, Google, Apple Podcasts, Amazon, TuneIn, Pocket Casts, Stitcher and others.
Follow Jeremy on LinkedIn, Instagram (jeremyauz) and Twitter (@JeremyAu).

Ways to listen to The A-Ha! Method Podcast: