Fripp THE Executive Speech Coach

Executive Communications: Why Accent Matters

Executive Communications: Why Accent Matters

Accent Reduction is a controversial subject. Some people believe that having an accent reflects one’s cultural and ethnic heritage and that by changing it we are being untrue or disrespectful to our ancestors or countries of origin. Accents can also be pleasant to listen to and can add “flair” or “allure” to the individual. Imagine a massage therapist with a Hungarian accent or a scientist with a German accent. The fact remains that people stereotype others and make judgments based on accent, whether positive or negative.

Many non-native speakers of American English choose to change their accents in order to communicate more clearly and confidently. This may enable them to get a job or promotion, establish rapport in sales relationships outside their ethnic group, excel in school, or merely feel more comfortable in meetings, presentations, and conversations. The problem is finding a way to do this quickly and effectively. In many cases, students take classes where they do not receive the individualized attention and focused error correction necessary to make noticeable progress in a short time.

Rebecca Linquist offers a viable alternative. She is dedicated to supporting non-native speakers in transitioning from speaking with a noticeable accent to speaking clearly and effectively with patterns characteristic of a native speaker of American English. She does this by first analyzing the individual’s speech linguistically so that learners don’t waste time on exercises that they don’t need. She puts together a plan of action, and in 10 weeks, participants make considerable changes in their speaking that yield results and improve their lives.

Suzie Ushijima, a Korean business woman and client of Rebecca Linquist, contends that “It was so frustrating to have to repeat over and over again. I had taken many English classes, but I still had an accent. With one-on-one sessions that taught me to change the patterns I use, I began to make progress. Now people understand me the first time.”

Rebecca works one-on-one with clients, providing the combined knowledge and skills of applied linguistics and speech therapy. She customizes the sessions to match the needs and abilities of each client, allowing the person to make progress quickly, doing little or no homework, other than listening to their recorded speech and doing behavioral change exercises.  Her techniques create transformational change through an eclectic blend of techniques that enables clients to reduce their accents in a two month period.

Appearances matter --- how we present ourselves through speech is part of our appearance. Non-native speakers who hire a coach to help reduce their accents find that language is no longer an insurmountable obstacle.

Rebecca Linquist is the accent reduction specialist at Fripp Associates

Experts in Business Communications (415) 753-6556

More more information on all aspects of business communicates and executive speech coaching.

Accent Reduction May Be Your Competitive Edge!

Accent Reduction May Be Your Competitive Edge!

Accent reduction is an important new service added to the speech coaching services Patricia Fripp adds to Fripp Associates. This article was written

Rebecca Linquist helps Eugen Roman, lose his Romanian
accent at her Campbell office as reporoted to Patrick Tehan of the San Jose Mercury News/MCT
 
SAN JOSE, Calif. — Two decades after emigrating from Taiwan, Sean Chang's accent was a barrier to friendships with Americans. Native English-speakers found it too much work when conversation went beyond small talk, said the electrical engineer from San Jose.

Luis Ramirez, a home inspector born in El Salvador, developed a case of the mumbles when speaking English because of the insecurity he felt during inspections for Anglos. But when he spoke to Asian real estate agents with strong accents, the Fremont, Calif., man would catch himself wondering, "Did they pass the licensing test?" before feeling a pang of guilt about stereotyping someone else.

Doug Fong, on a business trip to New York, realized his angry clients were blaming him for a problem product because they couldn't understand his Hong Kong accent. "From that time on," said Fong of Alameda, Calif., "I knew that I needed some help."

Fong, Ramirez, Chang and other immigrants are keenly aware that accent is one way people judge one another. But linguists who study the interplay of language and society say most Americans believe there is an objective, dominant standard How accents define us a right and a wrong, a better and a worse How accents define us for language and accent.

Coping with accents is part of everyday life in Silicon Valley. The South Bay has one of the nation's largest populations of Vietnamese, Hindi, Farsi and Chinese speakers How accents define us not to mention that one-in-five people speak Spanish as a first language. In a way that no longer fully applies to race, accent endures as a marker of social identity, an audible flag for who is a native, and who is not. Accents can make us see someone as alluring or suave ("Bond. James Bond.") How accents define us or as unqualified. Accents can turn a simple home repair job into a confrontation, or a vulnerable request for directions into smoldering resentment.

For one Silicon Valley woman, accent reduction is a successful business opportunity. Accents can both unnerve native English-speakers, and become barriers to career advancement for highly educated immigrants.

This is especially true in Santa Clara County, where 2005 census data shows that English is not the native language for 50 percent of adults. Which suggests that roughly half the county's adults speak with what native-speakers hear as an accent.

Americans categorize people by how their speech measures up to a dominant standard, say linguists, even though often the listener is really applying beliefs about race, gender, class, and culture How accents define us even religion.

"You don't have to have a foreign accent. If a blond woman comes up to you and starts talking to you in a strong Southern accent, tell me you don't have preconceptions," said Rosina Lippi, a linguist and the author of "English with an Accent: Language, Ideology and Discrimination in the United States." "We all have these ideas of `good' and `bad' language, which are all wrong."

Linguists say objective English pronunciation is a myth. A person from Peoria, they say, does not speak better English than someone from Australia, Ireland, Alabama, Jamaica How accents define us or, perhaps, Taiwan.

But almost everyone stereotypes by accent.

"If somebody speaks with a heavy Mexican accent, that's viewed as a negative," said Carmen Fought, a sociolinguist at Pitzer College. "But if someone speaks with a heavy French accent because they are from Paris, it's not viewed the same way."

What's really in play, Fought said, are stereotyped beliefs about France (the Louvre) and Mexico (illegal immigrants).

Still, there are immigrants who want to change their accents. Rebecca Linquist says her "English By The Hour" accent reduction classes are so busy she hasn't taken a vacation since last year.

That everybody's accent is OK "is a beautiful message, but in reality it doesn't work," says Linquist. Her clients tell her: "I want to speak clearly and effectively in American English. I don't want people to accept my accent."

Many in the South Bay can tell a story about how language or accent complicated some simple function of everyday life. Not long ago, Helen Moore got lost in San Jose and asked for directions.

"Everyone I asked didn't speak English," said Moore, "and the ones that did spoke very poorly, so I got lost more."

Accents weren't a problem when she moved to California 35 years ago, said Moore. But the lack of a common, comprehensible speech, she said, undermines Americans' sense of collective belonging.

"That's what makes us who we are. I remember years ago How accents define us I'm Irish, and the Italians were living in my neighborhood. And people would say, `You ..., they're this and they're that.' Nobody wanted to bother with them. I married an Italian, so I know how it feels," she said. "But, see, everybody was willing to merge and that's what made this country great. And these people are not willing to merge."

Santa Clara County led California in four of the past five years in discrimination complaints based on accent filed with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Santa Clara County had one-quarter of all accent discrimination complaints filed in California since 2000 How accents define us more than Los Angeles and San Francisco counties, where cultural clashes seem closer to the surface.

While accents do cause daily complications, people also learn to deal with them.

"It's not a huge hindrance in my life," said Serena LoConte, a facilitator for a nonprofit agency who recalled several situations in the past year where accent caused her trouble. "I grew up in San Jose, so you grow up with all that. But for people who have moved here later in life, I think they're less tolerant."

Federal law says employers may base a hiring decision on accent only if job duties require effective oral communication and a person's accent "materially interferes" with that communication, according to EEOC guidelines on Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, which prohibits discrimination due to national origin.

But accent is often overrated as a source of communication problems, Lippi said. Often, what people perceive to be an accent problem is really due to other biases.

In one experiment cited in Lippi's book, university students listened to taped lectures by a white woman from central Ohio. Half the students were shown her photo and told she was the lecturer. The others were shown a picture of an Asian woman, with identical dress and hairstyle. They were told she was the lecturer, and heard the same tape. In comprehension tests, those who thought they heard an Asian lecturer "scored considerably lower than the kids who thought they heard someone who looked like them," Lippi said. Fought calls the phenomenon "accent hallucination."

"People are discriminated against on the basis of language," Lippi said, "because that is a stand-in for something else."

One recent Tuesday afternoon, Linquist pushed through the doors at eBay for an accent reduction class with Frank Guo, a manager born in Hong Kong.

With a motto of "Lose Your Accent & Change Your Life," Linquist's accent coaching attract clients who range from Italian trial attorneys to Farsi-speaking oil executives.

In an eBay conference room, Linquist listens intently as Guo reads Patrick Henry's "Give Me Liberty, or Give me Death" speech, stopping Guo and modeling how to position tongue on teeth for some sounds — even singing certain syllables — to help Guo hear how they sound.

"Your `R' is still a little short," she says. To help Guo concentrate on stretching his syllables to the appropriate length, Linquist has him tug a rubber band as he speaks his vowels and consonants.

When Guo struggles to say the "gill" in guilty and to untangle the "l's" and "y's" in disloyalty, Linquist sings the syllables to help him hear their pronunciation.

"You're just going to have to stick your tongue out when you say that," she tells him.

Former students said Linquist improved their communication skills, but the biggest result was in ho"I feel more confident," said Ramirez, 30, who years earlier in grade school, saw his grades go from A's to D's when he moved to Fremont and was thrust into an English-only environment that he said caused him to withdraw from other kids. "You feel isolated," he said.

Some linguists say accent reduction is demeaning.

"Sometimes people will be able to change their accents, but the bigger question is why is this necessary," Lippi said. "It's people that come from stigmatized language communities — Vietnamese accents, Sudanese accents — those are the people they market for."

Linquist said most of her students — the most successful — are professionals, many with post-graduate degrees. The educational system has failed immigrants by not stressing accent and pronunciation enough, said Linquist, who has a master's degree in linguistics.

"Accent reduction is kind of a taboo subject in the language community," she said. "The idea of having an accent and working to reduce it is swept under the rug."

Why not watch a Patricia Fripp six and a half video on the 10 Traps: Dull to Dynamic.

Public Speaking: Nervousness is good!

Public Speaking: Nervousness is good!
 
If you’re nervous when you get up to speak, good! It’s the price you pay for being a race horse instead of a cow. As long as you’ve done your homework, nervousness gives you nothing to worry about and much to be grateful for. When you rehearse and you prepare, nerves are evidence that you care. They give you energy to spare, and help you fill the air with your passion and your flair.

These comments are from Sims Wyeth my East Coast speech coaching associate.

However, after just leaving the National Speakers Association convention I can promise you some of the main stage presenters were very nervous.

My breakout session From Good to Great to Awesome had standing room only. My approach is to stay very focused. Practise on the treadmill and run through the Power Point in advance in my room.

For my next class check out the Story and Structure and Coaching Camp with Darren LaCroix.

Ed Tate World Champion Speaker Gives THE Executive Speech Coach Advice

Ed Tate is the 2000 Toastmasters International World Champion of Public Speaking.

He is also one of my co-authors in Speaker's Edge book.

He is also one of my partners in World Champions Edge public speaking coaching community. One important lesson I have learned from him is to "Have an emergency end to your speech."

At the National Speakers Association convention in Orlando on Monday, July 19 at 3.45-5.15pm I will be quoting him in my presentation "How to Go from Good to Great to Awesome."

Ed told me "Here is what I was going to say for the ending to my championship speech:
"The gate agent presented me with a First Class Ticket on the two O’clock flight to Phoenix.
 
Friends, every now and then we must step outside of our comfort zone. We must answer that voice in our head and heart. The voice inside all of us. It is the voice of our conscience. The voice that questions, ‘What is the right thing to do?’ The voice that cries out, ‘If not you then who?’ It was like I said all along, I knew it was going to be (Audience completes the sentence) One of those days!"
 
Emergency ending:
 
"It was like I told you from the beginning, I knew it was going to be (Audience completes the sentence)

One of those days." "

To learn from Ed Tate check out his brilliant learning materials on public speaking.

Why not investigate Patricia Fripp and Darren La Croix's next coaching camp?

www.worldchampslive.com/champcamp-coach.html

Observational Humor from John Kinde: Fripp is Recycled!

John Kinde is on of my Las Vegas friends and humor mentors. He often entertains my speaking schools audiences. This is one of his recent posts on his Humor Power blog.

You can read some more of his advice on my website in humor articles.

If you’re interested in a deeper look at the principles and psychology of creating humor, read on.

What’s the difference between Observational Humor and Customized Humor?

Observational Humor, by my definition, is humor that springs from or is inspired by something that you’ve just seen or heard.  True Observational Humor lines are not jokes that you prepare in advance and bring to the event with the intention of using them.

Customized humor may be funny lines that are written or adapted to fit a certain speech, event and audience.  For example, you might take a favorite golf joke and be prepared to tell it about the CEO of a company.  That’s a type of customized humor.  It’s not observational humor.  Sometimes I’ll round-out or fill-in an Observational Humor monologue with some of the lines I usually use in the opening of my keynote speech.  Those lines are not Observational Humor, they’re just an attempt to put a garnish on a monologue that might need some help.  Customized, pre-planned humor can have it’s place in a monologue, although I prefer to use it very sparingly.

My definition of Observational Humor does not exclude recycling previously used Observational Humor lines.  Nor does it mean you can’t use old jokes that are adapted to the present moment.  What makes Observational Humor special that it is inspired in the moment, not pre-meditated…although some pre-planned humor can certainly create the illusion of spontaneity.  Our goal is to become more skilled at in-the-moment humor and not solely relying on prepared lines.  Although a good monologue may contain some of both elements.

The focus of this article is about reusing old lines in a way that meets the intent and freshness of Observational Humor.
What makes these “old” lines fresh is that you had no intent of using them until something at the event stimulated your recall of those lines.  Maybe five-percent of the time the lines I create for a monologue are lines I’ve used before or heard before, but I don’t bring them to the event with the intent of using them.  Here are some thoughts on the process of recycling lines in a fresh way.

I have, on many occasions, heard Patricia Fripp speak and have presented Observational Humor monologues on about eight of those occasions.  I attended a Lady and The Champs workshop in Las Vegas, presented by World Champion Speakers.  Most of he audience was hearing Fripp speak for the first time.  And the audience was mostly not familiar with my past Fripp-event monologues.

When I recycle an Observational Humor line (which happens most frequently at Toastmasters meetings), I often try to present the line with a different twist.  When you’re recycling a previous Observational Humor line, there are at least two reasons to change it.  First, you’re making an attempt to improve it.  Second, you’re challenging yourself to find a different angle for the joke.  That stretches your creative skills and helps you become a better creator of humor.  Sometimes the second time you tell the joke is not as strong as the first and that gives you the opportunity to analyze the process, to learn and to grow.

RECYCLE EXAMPLE NUMBER ONE

Here’s an abbreviated segment from a Fripp story which provided me a seed for Observational Humor:   She told about being in a Ladies Room and being approached by a woman who asked, “Are you British.”  And then added, “Aren’t you Patricia Fripp?”  The stranger had been in one of Fripp’s audiences in the past.

The first time I heard this story, here’s the monologue line I created.

I was in the Men’s Room during the lunch hour combing my hair.  A stranger came up behind me and said: “Are you British?”  I said, “No I’m not.”  And he replied, “For a second there I thought you were Patricia Fripp.”

This line was based on a reversal, placing me as the receiver in the men’s room, and got a very good laugh.  The second line was a topper.  And the absurdity of being mistaken for Fripp activated the joke.  I’m not British.  I’m not a woman.  I’m about a foot taller than Fripp.

About a year later, I was at another Fripp presentation and heard the same story.  I asked myself, “What can I do with this that would be different than the line I created the first time I heard the story?”

Here’s the approach I took:  During the lunch break, Fripp was in the restroom when a voice from behind asked, “Are you British?”  And then I realized I was in the Ladies Room.

In this joke, instead of reversing it to have me receiving the “are you British” line in the men’s room, I changed it to having it be ME as the person who said the line while accidentally in the ladies room.  The line received a strong response equal to the first line.

RECYCLE EXAMPLE NUMBER TWO

Here’s an example of a recycled joke where I didn’t change anything and which received a much weaker response the second time I used it, much to my surprise.  It’s also from a Patricia Fripp program:   Fripp is a successful speaker coach and often does her one-on-one coaching in a hotel room.  Some of the students had jokingly referred to meeting Fripp in their hotel room.  It became a running gag which came up at least three times during the day of the program.

Here’s the line I created as a result of that seed:  I met Fripp 24 years ago when I joined NSA.  But I feel cheated.  Back then she wasn’t meeting men in their hotel room.

The line received a very strong response.

At a later program, another Fripp coaching client mentioned to the group that he had received coaching in his hotel room. It was a very specific reference, mentioning the hotel and room number.  I recycled the same line that I had used previously, since it had been such a strong line the first time.  It received a very weak response, just a titter.

Here are some reasons for that luke-warm response to a line that previously received such a huge laugh.

Reason One:  It reminds me of the Curse-Of-Knowledge principle discussed in Made To Stick by Dan and Chip Heath.  (A highly recommended book.)  The principle refers to how we forget what it’s like not to know something.  Our knowledge blinds us. In this case, I was armed with the knowledge that “this joke is funny.”  The truth is that it was funny for the FIRST audience.  The second audience was a totally different event.  And surprise!  It wasn’t funny.  Every time you present a tested piece of humor, you still need to examine the circumstances, the set-up and the audience to evaluate whether the joke is structured right for THIS audience.  Don’t be fooled into KNOWING that a joke, which was funny once, will be funny again.

Reason Two:  The set-up seed at the second event had not become a running gag and had not been repeated three times during the day, as it was at the first event.  The group only heard the “met me in my hotel room” one time.

Reason Three:  The relationship of Fripp to the two audiences was considerably different.  At the first event, it was HER speaker school.  She was on the platform the whole day, building a rapport with the audience and, in fact, was herself joking about meeting students in their hotel room.  She was the sole star of the day.  At the second event, she shared the platform with three other star presenters (Darren LeCroix, Ed Tate and Craig Valentine).  Many of the attendees had not heard her speak before and hence the relationship between Fripp and the audience was different from the first event.

Reason Four:  The audience perception of my relationship to Fripp was different from the first event to the second.  At the first event, I coordinated the registration desk for Fripp.  It was obvious we were friends.  At the second event, my connection to Fripp was not as obvious.

When you combine Reason Three and Four, you have the issue of “permission” come into play.  Without the stronger relationship established between Fripp and the audience, and between Fripp and me (comparing the first event to the second), when the audience heard the line about Fripp “meeting men in their hotel room” they weren’t sure if they should laugh.  What’s Kinde implying here?  Will Fripp think it’s funny?  The laugh gets censored in the mind of the audience.  I hadn’t created the permission necessary for me to do the joke.

Here’s what I might have done differently.

First, I needed to repeat the set-up since it had not been as strongly set-up during the day.  Since it had not been the subject of a running gag during the day, and only mentioned once, I could have opened the joke with, “Unlike the first speaker, I may not have met Fripp at the Suncoast Hotel, room 437.  But I did meet her 24 years ago…which was really a bummer, because back then she hadn’t started meeting men in their hotel rooms.”  This structure emphasizes the set-up necessary to give the joke a chance.

Second, a set-up to establish that Fripp was in on the joke, an giving some clue that I’ve previously known her, would have been helpful.  Perhaps something like this:  “I’ve known Fripp for a long time.  I may not have met her at the Suncoast Hotel, room 437.  But I did meet her 24 years ago…which was really a bummer, because back then she hadn’t started meeting men in their hotel rooms.”  It makes the joke longer and a bit wordy (I like to say clunky), but sometimes a joke needs a more extensive set-up to work.  At the second event, the shorter version of the joke just didn’t work.

LESSONS LEARNED

Recycling previously used humor lines is a reasonable, and in fact a good thing to do.  I normally recommend trying to change the approach you use for the line to either improve it or at least give you the challenge just to do something different and make it a learning experience.  If you think a tested line is really strong, think twice and examine it within the context of THIS audience on THIS day.  Don’t be fooled into thinking that just because something was funny before, that it will be funny again.  Probability theory tells us that each repeat of a joke is a separate and independent event!

For more information on John Kinde, his programs to sign up for his newsletter www.humorpower.com/

Got Stress? Laugh More: THE Executive Speech Coach & Comedy Legend

Today's meeting of the National Speakers Association of Georgia was full of celebrity speakers. My program was "How to go from Good to Great to Awesome."

My World Champions Edge partner Mark Brown came as a guest presenter. Rich Hart, the smart program chair put Mark on the program. He spoke about 2 secret speaking weapons. Adjectives and adverbs. Mark is the 1995 Toastmasters International World Champion.

The much loved and funny June Cline has moved to Arizona and was back on in Atlanta on family business.

Ken Futch had family in town, however when they went sight seeing he came to support Fripp and NSA. Check out his website. He is the only person I know who shot himself in the head, lived and turned it into a rip roaring, hilarious speech that audiences love and corporations pay big bucks to hear. 

The audience and I were thrilled to see famous humorist and comedy teacher Jeff Justice. He just came back from a family vacation and did not let jet lag keep him away!

Jeff invested in my learning materials...at the end of this message you can see him handing over his credit card! On his content-rich and fun website he offers plenty of content and free jokes.

Clean Jokes To Go ... from Jeff Justice. Why not sign up for his newsletter?    www.jeffjustice.com/humorlettersignup.htm

God is Missing
A couple had two little boys, ages 8 and 10, who were excessively mischievous.
The two were always getting into trouble and their parents could be assured
that if any mischief occurred in their town their two young sons were in some
way involved. The parents were at their wits end as to what to do about their
sons' behavior.

The mother had heard that a clergyman in town had been successful in
disciplining children in the past, so she asked her husband if he thought they
should send the boys to speak with the clergyman.

The husband said, "We might as well. We need to do something before I really
lose my temper!"

The clergyman agreed to speak with the boys, but asked to see them
individually. The 8-year-old went to meet with him first.

The clergyman sat the boy down and asked him sternly, "Where is God?"
The boy made no response, so the clergyman repeated the question in
an even sterner tone, "Where is God?" Again the boy made no attempt to
answer, so the clergyman raised his voice even more and shook his finger
in the boy's face, "WHERE IS GOD?"

At that the boy bolted from the room and ran directly home slamming himself
in his closet. His older brother followed him into the closet and said, "What
happened?" The younger brother replied, "We are in BIG trouble this time.
God is missing and they think we did it!"

Want to know more about how YOU can be a more effective speaker? Check out my speaking skills value packs ?

 

The Triple Threat in Business Communications

The Triple Threat in Business Communications

My East Coast Fripp Associate Sims Wyeth is the master at saying so much in a few words.

When I first met him he told me "Patricia, I used to work in a large executive communication coaching firm and they always told me not to mention I have been an actor." Naturally I encouraged him to maximize this experience. Having enjoyed stage training makes him an object of interest. Enjoy...

"When I was younger, and just starting out as a speaker, I needed a surface and a look: a degree, a suit, a haircut, and (I thought) a flashy style.

Once I had the look, I needed the content. I needed to become an expert. I wanted to know everything about speech: the history, science and practice of persuasive communication.

Now I want to experience my own authenticity and my own truth.  I want to speak from my heart and less from my brain. I am less interested in seeming and knowing and more interested in being.

I suspect these phases are all necessary. You need a good first impression; knowledge born from experience; and finally, a sense of perspective about the limits of knowledge.

On Broadway, you’re a triple threat if you can sing, dance, and act. In business, you’re a triple threat if you look the part, know the part, and see your role in the larger drama." Sims Wyeth

Meanwhile I am on my way to Las Vegas for my Patricia Fripp Speaking and Presentation Skills School and The Odd Couple Marketing and Strategy Seminar with Alan Weiss. Here is the best advice if you want to be a successful professional speaker or consultant...you need to be great at your craft, equally good at marketing and understand the speaking industry.

Executive Presentations: How to introduce a speaker

Executive Presentations:  How to introduce a speaker

My East Coast Fripp Associate Sims Wyeth is always great at giving simple and practical advice on executive presentations. Enjoy...

First, you must be brief, and avoid all stale and stilted phrases such as:  "It
is indeed an honor" "a man who needs no introduction" "we are gathered here
tonight."

You must not embarrass the speaker with over-florid predictions of the treat
that awaits the audience.  Nor should you exaggerate your speaker's
qualifications.

You must avoid giving your speaker false starts.  E.g. "...and so I take great
pleasure in introducing Paul Prolichs" [Mr. Prolichs rises] "a man who is
supremely qualified" [Mr. Prolichs drops back into his chair.]

Finally, you must not try to steal the spotlight, or strive to give the
audience a sample of what it is missing because the program committee did not
have the good judgment to schedule you for the main speech.

If you are a speaking...do yourself and the introducer a favor...write your introduction yourself.
Your introduction is not your bio. I present mine in 18 point type and bullets rather than paragraphs. This makes it easier to read. Send a copy in advance and carry a copy with you.

If you want more information on public speaking and executive presentation skills, check out the Patricia Fripp Speaking and Presentation Skills School in Las Vegas June 10-11, 2010.

Executive Communications: A Presentation is a tool

As you will read...my East Coast Fripp Associate Sims Wyeth has the ability to get an idea across in a clear, concise way. How about you? If not why not attend the Patricia Fripp Speaking and Presentation Skills School June 10-11 in Las Vegas?

A Presentation is a tool
 
Tools do work. A presentation is a tool made of words and images.
Speakers design presentations to accomplish specific tasks. For instance, brand plans are designed to win budget allocation. Cap intro talks are designed to induce curiosity and trust.
With screw drivers, the tip of the tool has to fit the head of the screw. Presentations have to fit the grooves in the mind of the audience in order to turn them in the right direction.
Design your talk to do the work you want.

THE Executive Speech Coach: To Edit or To Add?

THE Executive Speech Coach learns from author Eleanor Dugan: To Edit or To Add?

From author Eleanor Dugan, “Fripp, we have chatted in the past about the meaning of the word "edit" -- which you interpreted as "cut out" and I explained actually means to polish by adding, deleting, or changing.

On the topic of the verb "to edit," I found the following explanation in today's Word-a-Day bulletin indicating that when one edits one actually gives -- and thought of you:
“Which came first, editor or edit?”

This may sound like a chicken-and-egg question, but it's not. It's easy to assume that the word editor was formed from the verb edit. In reality, the word editor came first (from Latin edere: to give out). Then we formed the verb edit from it. Words such as babysit, vaccinate, donate, all were derived from their noun forms, not vice versa."

Cheers, Eleanor

Eleanor is also a quilter of renown. With her friends they have made and given away sleeping bags for the homeless.