Speaking

Speak Up: Respectful Rebels Welcome

By |2025-07-18T14:48:50-04:00July 18th, 2025|Communication, Speaking|

You don’t have to agree to belong. Some of the most courageous contributions you can make at work (or at home) come not from nodding along, but from speaking up. This isn’t about criticizing; it’s about constructive dissent. According to author and university lecturer Jenara Nerenberg, the key to being a better dissenter isn’t just

I’m Speaking: 3 Ways Women Can Ditch the Doubt and Present with Power and Presence

By |2024-12-23T21:02:38-05:00December 23rd, 2024|Speaking|

As women, we face a unique challenge when it comes to public speaking: the double bind of being expected to project both authority and warmth, confidence and relatability. It's an unfair and often unconscious bias, but one that can leave us feeling like we're constantly walking a tightrope between being "too much" and "not enough."

How to Present to an Audience That Knows More Than You

By |2024-12-23T21:06:08-05:00December 23rd, 2024|Speaking|

I was five years into my executive coaching practice when I was invited to lead a workshop on “Coaching Skills for Human Resource Leaders” at a global conference. As the room filled up with participants, I identified a few colleagues who had already been coaching professionally for more than a decade. I felt self-doubt start

Presentations (Virtual + In Person): Presenter Takeaways Worth Remembering

By |2024-11-26T19:30:52-05:00February 27th, 2024|Self Care, Speaking|

As a public speaking coach, I’ve spent decades helping people plan for what to do if something unexpected happens to them in the middle of a presentation. I had to take my own advice. I had COVID, and I ran out of air during a webinar I was leading. The more I spoke, the more

Your In-Person Presentation Skills Need a Refresh

By |2023-12-14T08:04:00-05:00December 14th, 2023|Business, Deborah Grayson Riegel in Harvard Business Review, Speaking|

Three years ago, the way we shared presentations at work (and school) drastically changed. Anyone used to presenting in person had to adapt, revise, and change their public speaking strategies. Whether you were a student sharing work with your class, a sales associate pitching to prospects, a consultant advising clients, or in any other field,

Nail Your Presentation — Even When Your Time Is Cut Short

By |2023-08-26T19:16:23-04:00August 26th, 2023|Deborah Grayson Riegel in Harvard Business Review, Speaking|

As a professional speaker for three decades, I’ve had to deal with my fair share of surprises that could have completely derailed my presentation. Like what? Like speaking during two separate blackouts without lights, AV, or functional toilets. Like facilitating a two-day training session where, in the middle of the first day, all participants got

The Best Public Speakers Put the Audience First

By |2023-01-27T14:28:43-05:00January 27th, 2023|Business, Deborah Grayson Riegel in Harvard Business Review, Speaking|

Several years ago, I traveled from New York to Geneva, Switzerland to be the closing keynote speaker for the World Communication Forum. I was excited to have the opportunity to speak with global leaders about how nonnative English speakers can present their ideas — and themselves — with greater clarity and confidence. For my allotted

How to Throw Together a Presentation in 30 Minutes That Still Sounds Impressive

By |2021-02-19T12:20:59-05:00January 28th, 2021|Deborah Grayson Riegel in the Muse, Speaking|

How can you take the America’s number one fear—public speaking—and make it even scarier? Oh I know! By adding in almost no time to prepare. And who would do such a thing? Oh, just bosses, clients, the real speaker whose flight was delayed. So, in other words, it happens all the time, when you least

How to Use Notes When Public Speaking Without Losing Your Audience

By |2020-06-22T16:23:59-04:00February 26th, 2020|Speaking|

As a professional speaker and speaking coach, I rarely refer to notes while I'm actually speaking, and that's for three reasons: First, it's my job to know my content inside and out. Second, because my presentations are interactive, I have multiple opportunities to check my notes while my audience is doing an activity or having a discussion.

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