Rob Biesenbach's Blog, page 7

Emily Ford, Alaska Energy Authority

Our team of engineers is technical and data driven, often sharing information in the most complex ways possible. Rob’s training showed us how to focus on our key messages and not to rely on PowerPoint presentations as a script or slides filled with data and graphs. Rob did a great job infusing humor and fun into an informative half-day session; the team is still talking about how valuable the training was.

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Claire Hassett, Director, Global Communications, Deloitte Touche

I cannot thank Rob enough for the time, effort, energy and enthusiasm he put into his storytelling presentation for Deloitte’s global communications meeting. It was simply spectacular and the highlight of our program. We received many positive comments. He was perfect for our group.”

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Storytelling Requires Courage, Discipline and Trust

Storytelling is about making hard choices, having the conviction to stand bythose choices and respecting your audience’s intelligence.

That’s a particularly tall order when you’re telling a story on behalf of a giant organization,where the approval process is fraught with perils, hurdles and lawyers.

So I was delighted to come across a stellar example of great storytelling from Deloitte, one of the largest auditing and consulting firms in the world.

They hired me to conduct a storytelling wor...

New: A Guide to Creating TED-style Slides

TED Talks have changed audience expectations for what a presentation should be. Or perhaps they’re merely a reflection of where audience tastes are going.

Either way, there’s no doubt the trend is toward speeches and presentations that are shorter, driven by story and visually compelling. As a result, the bar for speakers has never been higher.

Death by PowerPoint is the Worst

I know that a little piece of me dies every time I enter a meeting room and see a screen with big blocks of black tex...

This One Word Makes You Sound Like a Jerk

We’re in the thick of Hollywood awards season, and with it come the acceptance speeches, which are sometimes inspiring, sometimes funny and sometimes downright pretentious.

Which reminds me of a speech Madonna gave at the Golden Globes ceremony a few years ago that will forever live in my memory — all because of an ordinary, everyday word that she utterly drove into the ground.

And The Word Is …

It’s a word I’ve heard used and abused by countless people over the years and it’s like nails on a...

Anniversary Sale: Half Off 11 Deadly Presentation Sins

It was two years ago this week that I brought 11 Deadly Presentation Sins into this world and, just like that, Death by PowerPoint has been eradicated from the world’s conference rooms and ballrooms.

Not actually … which is bad news for business people, but good news for continued book sales and workshop bookings!

11 Deadly Presentation Sins is the book that’s so easy to understand, even a T-Rex (pictured) can follow it. It offers practical tips for overcoming the worst speakinghabits, from m...

Now Tweeting: #100SpeakingTips in 100 Days

Want to improve your presentation skills? For the next 100 days, I’ll be tweeting one tip a day designed to help anyone craft and deliver better presentations.

Follow #100SpeakingTips on Twitter

You can follow the hashtag #100SpeakingTips or check out my Twitter feedeach morning for the next several months. Tips will include some of my favorite bits of advice gleaned from two decades writing speeches for corporate executives and almost five years delivering my own keynotes and workshops.

I’l...

10 Steps for Surviving a Dysfunctional Family Christmas

To butcher Tolstoy, all families are dysfunctional in their own way — especially around the holidays, when stress and expectations are sky high.

Being a communicator by profession, I naturally believe most problems can be solved with communication (andthatpoor communication is the root of most problems).

Not that I always practice what I preach — I’m sure I don’t. But I’ve been through a lot of holidays over the decades. And as our family expanded and shrank and expanded again, encompassing i...

6 Steps to Delivering a Killer Presentation

Why do we continue to see so manydull, lifeless presentations? I’ve thought a lot about this problem, but the #1 reason is that speakers seem to think it’s enough just to inform an audience.

But it is not. Audiences want to be entertained.

Here We Are Now, Entertain Us

Some may find that notion objectionable, but it’s the truth.

There’s a reason we watch and share all those TED Talks. They’ve set the standard for what a speech should be — focused, compelling, visual — and they’ve raised the b...

6 Keys to Acting Naturally in a Presentation

One of the most important factors in delivering a successful presentation is the ability to look and act naturally.If you’re stiff, uncomfortable and “not yourself,” that’s definitely going to negatively impact how your audience perceives you.

There’s no magic formula that will instantly make you look and feel cool, calm and comfortable. But there are definitely steps you can take to project the quiet confidence of a seasoned professional.

Present Like Nobody’s Watching

A funny thing happens...