Knockout Presentations (revised 2009 edition) - Softcover

Diresta, Diane

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1886284253 ISBN 13: 9781886284258

Publisher: Chandler House Pr, 1998

Synopsis

Provides practical advice and creative ideas on making presentations with tips on conquering nervousness, effective listening, researching an audience, and building a presentation

About this title

About the Author

Diane DiResta is an international communications coach and speaker who has helped numerous organizations, including AT&T, Chase Manhattan Bank, Grey Advertising, IBM, Reuters, the NBA, and the WNBA. She has also provided media training for sports and entertainment celebrities such as Vanna White, Bob Lanier, and Rolando Blackman. She is a faculty member at New York University and lives in Staten Island, NY.

From the Back Cover

Whether speaking one-on-one or before a large audience, you are making a presentation -- of both your ideas and yourself. Now you can dazzle any audience with the expert advice and creative ideas Diane DiResta has used to train thousands of business people and celebrities in the art and skill of delivering Knockout Presentations.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

What Every Speaker Should Know A national survey was conducted to determine the most commonly held fears people have. Some of the fears respondents identified were of crowded space, heights, insects, and elevators. But of all the fears listed in 17 categories, guess which one was cited most often? Fear of public speaking! It even beat out the fear of death! Some people would rather die than give a speech! I have personally surveyed hundreds of participants in my seminars to find out why they are afraid to speak in public. The most frequently given reasons are as follows:

 Afraid of appearing foolish Don't like being the center of attention Don't like their appearance "I don't know what to say" "My voice shakes" "I turn red"

It seems that people are afraid of humiliation. Furthermore, they think that public speaking is some magical genetic trait that only a select few are lucky to receive from their parents. The myth is that good speakers are born. The truth is that good speakers are made. Gifted speakers are born. Martin Luther King, Ronald Reagan, Jesse Jackson, and Maya Angelou were blessed with a God-given talent that they maximized through much training and practice. Not everyone is gifted. But anyone- including you-can be an effective public speaker.

The Story of Bill

Bill was referred to me by one of my clients. He was a young entrepreneur and had to deliver a speech in two days. His partner didn't think Bill should be speaking because he didn't do a good job at a prior presentation. My assignment was to coach Bill on his laptop computer presentation. We worked for two hours on his delivery skills and tweaked his organization. Bill then rushed off to catch a plane and made some last-minute changes on the flight. When he arrived at his hotel, he practiced his presentation using the coaching techniques we'd worked on together. A couple of weeks later, I received an excited call from Bill. He told me how well his second presentation had gone, and he faxed me the results. Bill's customer confided that he had delayed giving Bill feedback from the first presentation because it had not been very good. Here's the feedback Bill received before and after the coaching:

 Before coaching: Overall score of 2.6 (on a 1-5 scale)
 Written comments:
 Poor presentation skills 
 Delivery hard to follow 
 Confusing 
 Disorganized 
 Knows subject, poor speaker

 After coaching: Overall score of 4.0 (on a 1-5 scale)
 Written comments:
 Speaker was very clear
 Entertaining, informative
 Great info, a bit too fast
 Broad, deep knowledge
 

As Bill found out, effective presenting is simply a matter of learning the proper skills. First, you have to conquer your fears. Then you can learn the skills, apply them, and benefit from them. When you learn a skill, you develop awareness. As you practice that skill, you develop mastery. With mastery comes confidence. With confidence comes a sense of control. And having a sense of mastery and control helps you conquer the fear. I was terrified when I skied for the first time. I was afraid I would crash and hurt myself because I didn't know how to stop. As soon as I picked up speed, I would cause myself to fall. After going downhill head first, several times, I realized there had to be a better way. Then I learned to snowplow. This skill gave me a sense of control. I'm not a great skier but I can now get down the hill without falling. It's the same with public speaking. By learning the appropriate steps and skills, and practicing them, you will have a sense of control. If you get into trouble, you'll know how to recover. Most important, you will no longer avoid one of the most important skills for career success. The ability to communicate and be visible in an organization is necessary for job promotion and career mobility. According to Harvey MacKay, author of the book Swim with the Sharks Without Getting Eaten Alive, "The number 1 skill most lacking in business today is public speaking-the ability to present oneself." I once spoke at a women's conference on the topic of Present with Power. I felt it went well. Afterward, I listened to the comments of the crowd. One woman was discussing my presentation. She said, "I thought she was good, but I don't public speak." Everyone is a public speaker. Any time you speak up at a meeting, talk to a circle of friends, or train your colleagues to perform a task, you're speaking in public. What's the difference between situations like these and situations you might think of as "formal" public speaking engagements? Well, in your "everyday" public speaking situations, you feel comfortable with the people and you know your subject. So how do you create that same comfort zone when you're giving a 'formal" speech or presentation? I recommend the YAM formula:

Know Yourself

Know your Audience

Know your Material It's that simple! Everything we're going to talk about in this book falls into one of these categories. But you cannot improve your public speaking and presentation skills by simply being a passive reader of this book. On the contrary, this book will challenge you to take an active role as we work together. This book is interactive. There are exercises, checklists, and surveys for you to complete. This book is your experimental lab. You cannot make a mistake. You're simply trying on new behaviors. Some will suit you. Others won't fit. Take what works and start applying it immediately. Let's begin. Together, we're going to take the mystery out of public speaking and give you the skills and confidence you need to present with power, punch, and pizzazz. Special Features There are some special features I've included to make this book more useful to you.

Exercises. Spread throughout the book are a variety of exercises. They're in shaded boxes and ask you to do some activity that will help You master the ideas in that part of the book. Try them. They'll help you achieve the proficiency you're seeking.

Case studies. Also found in shaded boxes, these provide anecdotes to help enliven and exemplify principles and techniques

Edition details

• Publisher: Chandler House Pr
• Publication date: 1998
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1886284253
• ISBN 13: 9781886284258
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 300