I’m often asked what it takes to become a great public speaker. This question is often asked by people who have struggled with feeling successful in giving a presentation in the past. Maybe they’ve given presentations and felt embarrassed or that the speech didn’t go well.

To grow as a speaker, or anything really, it takes what I call the 4 C’s.

1. Courage. It takes a...

It was a critical presentation that would be make-or-break for funding of my friend's new business venture. I was there when she gave her presentation. It didn’t go well.

I asked her if she wanted help framing her presentation weeks before. Her response was that she didn’t need help because she was extroverted and had given some presentations in the past.

Did I mention that it...

I have a friend who is very extroverted. She is a good communicator and had a great role in the financial industry before staying home to raise her children. A few years ago she started her own business and needed exposure and funding. She was chosen to give a presentation that would solve both of those issues. In talking with her I asked if she needed an extra set of eyes to help her craft and...

50.7% of the population is introverted. That is a whole lot of people that often will discount themselves as great public speakers usually because of 3 reasons: personality, anxiety and false belief.

Let me explain.

The personality of someone whose behavioral style is introverted tends to be introspective. So if you are an introvert your inner world is where you re-charge and draw energy. You...

I talk with introverted people all the time and they all have one thought in common: Extroverts make great public speakers, introverts do not. Let’s just get this out of the way. That belief is completely false. It is simply not true.

If you are reading this blog chances are good that you are at least slightly introverted. You might even buy into the line of thinking that I...

I was talking with a friend the other day and she didn’t believe me when I told her I was  shy, quiet and introverted as a kid. I told her that my mom says quite frequently that she can’t believe what I’ve chosen to do professionally. I was the kid that always hid behind her skirt.

It’s true. I was shy. I was, and still am quiet in certain situations. Let me explain...

I got a phone call a few years ago from a lady named Kristy (not her real name). She had heard about me through a friend and called me because she was desperate for some help. Kristy was in her mid-to-late 30’s and was career-oriented, however, she had passed up a couple of opportunities to move into management because the position would require speaking in front of people. Kristy, like...

Imagine a headline reading, “80 million jobs lost in the US by 2030!” That imaginary headline is an actual prediction from the research arm of McKinsey and Company, one of the big 5 consulting firms. If that future scenario becomes reality because of advancing technology, how would it impact you? 

What do you think will be some of the jobs that would not be replaced by...