Call for Action

Many presenters want to persuade or convince the audience.  They give essential information and even lay out a roadmap to achieve a desired goal.  Their presentation skills may be sharp and have audience members motivated throughout the presentation.  Without a call for action, any initiatives may not be followed through.  Audience members may not know what their role should be.

A call for action is simply giving your audience directions.  What they need to do, what path they need to take and how to get there. 

Remember, you know what you want to achieve.  The audience is willing to follow you.  But without a call for action - no matter how motivated they are - control is lost.  The visions start to disappear.  People start to forget.

Having a call for action commands them to follow through.  It provides the necessary path to achieving the goal.  You may want to divide the call for action by groups or even individuals.  You may want to divide the tasks and the responsibilities.  And don't forget to follow-up to remind them of the goal.  Let them know the progress and motivate them along the way.

The 3-phases of Responding to a Question

If anyone asks a person during in an official situation such as a meeting, presentation,
etc, an average person (whose primary language is not English) would mostly answer
in one sentence, or two. This is not an ideal way of structuring the answer, and you
are advised to follows guidelines below:

Example of a Less Appropriate Response:

Q: "Please tell me what you have in mind regarding North Korea."
A: I think that the issue must be dealt between the South and the North first."

Example of an Appropriate Response:

Q: "Please tell me what you have in mind regarding North Korea."
A (Phase 1): "Well, thank you for asking me that question."
(Acknowledging the nature of the question)
A (Phase 2): "As you may know, the issue on the North Korea is global."
(Generalization without telling much what you have in mind)
A (Phase 3): "However, I believe that the issue must be dealt between the
South and the North first."
(Your answer)

You can switch (2) and (3).

If asked with a close-ended question, you may answer with YES or NO, and
then proceed as instructed above.

Three Ks of Public Speaking

Whether you are presenting or giving a speech, keep in mind the three Ks of public speaking.

1.  Know Your Audience

     What is your audience interested in?  What is their attention span?

2.  Know Yourself

     What is your capability?  Can you deliver a joke?  Do you have a sense of timing?

3.  Keep it Simple

     Deliver detailed information in handouts.  Speeches are for delivering concept and motivation. 
     Presentation is for information, selling or persuading.

By focusing on these three Ks, you can eliminate over-analyzing your speech or presentation and keep focus on the important things.

Presentation Secrets of Steve Jobs

Most of us agree that Steve Jobs was one of the best presenters of all time.  In his trademark jeans and black mock turtleneck sweater, he captivated audiences around the world.  So let's see what it takes to give a killer presentation.

The Presentation Secrets of Steve Jobs - Carmine Gallo

View more presentations from Carmine Gallo

The Fear of Public Speaking

Glossophobia or speech anxiety is the fear of public speaking. 

Most of have this in some degree.  The reasons why are often unexplainable.  But this fear can prevent us from effectively speaking in public and from delivering presentations.

So, what can you do to overcome this fear?

Here are some tips:

Breathe:  Take deep breaths to control your overall sense of nervousness
Drink:  Plenty of water or other beverages that can hydrate you
Relax:  Stretch, shrug your shoulders, stand on your tippy toes - these can help calm you down
Practice:  The more you are confident, the less nervous you should be