Amelia
The Beginning You are here. We are happy. Our world is better. You have a beautiful mom. She will get older. Tell her how great she is. Even when I’m not there. She is always right 90% of the time. That’s a pretty, pretty good batting…
Communicate Quickly with One-Sticky-Note
Context This article describes how to communicate well with minimum preparation time when you have a quick update to provide or a request to make. Quick means you're speaking less than five minutes, although a subsequent discussion might last longer.…
Leadership Presentation
Topics I gave a presentation on leadership behaviors to over one-hundred people at a conference in Valley Forge, PA on July 27th, 2019. The topics were: OwningPrioritizingCommunicatingCoachingDeciding Resources Check out a copy of the presentation handout with resources, exercises, and…
How to Get Feedback for Your Speech
Read earlier posts in the 'How to Create the Best-Speech-of-Your-Life' series. Introduction When developing the best five-minute speech of your life, you need feedback. If you’re delivering any important communication, a message to your team, a big presentation, answers for…
How to practice listening
Introduction For me the way to listen better is to turn the scenarios below into a video game. I score points whenever I use techniques like below. I lose points (and go red like the image below) whenever I say…
Why practice listening?
Introduction When Bria told me that she was pregnant, she surprised a smile out of me with a note that read "Time to practice. Get ready. August 2019." She knew I'd smile because she knows how much I reference Allen…
‘Create the Space’ speech – Why write fifty drafts?
Introduction Because I'm crazy. That's why. If you read the speech text from the most recent version of my 'Create the Space' speech you'll see its draft number 54. While I'm a little crazy, there's a bigger reason why I…
‘Create the Space’ Speech Video (Version Four)
Introduction The video below is from May 18th, 2019 at a conference at the Crowne Plaza in Cherry Hill, NJ with a few hundred people attending. This is the fourth time I delivered this speech in public and the final…
How to Write the Second Draft of Your Speech
Read earlier posts in the 'How to Create the Best-Speech-of-Your-Life' series here. Introduction First drafts are defining your idea. Second drafts are shaping your idea into a meaningful message. I think of a first draft as writing and the second…
How to Write the First Draft of Your Speech
Introduction If you're content with delivering a mediocre speech, please stop reading. If you want to create a speech without investing much time, come back in the future when I write that article. This is not it. This article is…