It feels very different giving a presentation to real-life people who are physically in front of you, after so many months of delivering online. Here are my tips to help you readjust and celebrate being back in the room: Nerves are normal We have spent so long shut...

By the time they get to me, a lot of my clients have experienced a number of rejections. Their confidence has taking a battering and they’re feeling inadequate and, often, hopeless. As a former actress, I know all about rejection. You turn up to an audition, wait with...

“Tell me a fact and I’ll listen. Tell me a truth and I’ll learn. But tell me a story and it will live in my heart forever.” I love this Native American saying. It makes me think of my days working for a theatre company, touring schools with historical drama workshops....

We went for a family lunch at the pub on Sunday. We were given a two hour sitting, which I understand (pubs need to get as many covers in as they can right now, and to be honest, with three kids, two hours is more than enough to be sitting down!). We waited an hour...

We all know the deal: second wave…social distancing…WFH for the foreseeable…As a team leader, your job is now a whole lot harder, especially when it comes to facilitating your team meetings. We’ve all taken for granted those casual conversations in the lift; the...

The Prime Minister of New Zealand has received much praise for her handling of the Covid crisis. Regardless of whether we agree with her policies, we can learn a lot about leadership from a woman who is a very effective communicator, both formally and informally....

What’s your most recent Google search? I’ll tell you mine: “Does Donald Trump have a public speaking coach?”. (I can’t find any evidence of one. This may or may not surprise you). This week, he gave his first Coronavirus briefing since March, when he famously...

Now we’re on day 27915 of lockdown, we’re into our stride. We feel we’ll never need to go back to the office; online conferencing is where it’s at. The problem is that the more used we get to something, the more casual we tend to get. I’m noticing standards are...

Why is empathy so important in your presentations? Because you need people to trust you. If you want people to buy in to what you’re saying, they need to believe that you understand them and that you have their interests at heart. In short, they need to know you’re on...

One day this Corona-crisis will end. But it has changed the way we work, forever. Conference rooms and lecture theatres are empty. But businesses and educational settings are realising that, actually, online communication is effective. Systems have coped. The world...

1. ONE CORE MESSAGE It’s tempting to cram in as much information as possible. Don’t! You’ll overload your audience and they’ll lose sight of what’s being asked of them. Ask yourself: What do I want my audience to do after this presentation? Why? What’s in it for them?...

We’ve all heard, and probably used, the idiom “the best thing since sliced bread”. The interesting thing about sliced bread is that it was not recognised as..er..the best thing since sliced bread until two years after it was introduced. This game-changer languished on...