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Why is it so hard to give a good speech?

The ability to communicate is a skill/ability that is in short supply.  I know of a number of highly intelligent people who seem to struggle during their presentations to share their ideas.  If you can’t effectively communicate, then the impact of your ideas is near zero.  Communicating, especially 

Phil McKinney
Phil McKinney
1 min read
Why is it so hard to give a good speech?

The ability to communicate is a skill/ability that is in short supply.  I know of a number of highly intelligent people who seem to struggle during their presentations to share their ideas.  If you can't effectively communicate, then the impact of your ideas is near zero.  Communicating, especially publicly in the form of a speech or presentation, can be quite intimidating.  The fear of failure or possibly looking foolish holds people back which in turn impacts their careers.  You may have the best ideas in the world but if you can't share it so that  people will adopt them, then what value are they.

I recently came across a book (one of the best I've come across)  that explains how to create what I call killer presentations.  A killer presentation is one where the audience leaves the event feeling that they received enormous value for the time they committed to attend, a clear understanding of the call to action and the commitment to follow-through.  Maybe 1 in 100 presentations I attend qualify.  When I do experience one, I don't easily forget it.  It is burned into my memory and I go back and replay it over and over again.

If you want to be that 1 in 100, then start by reading this book ….

Resonate

Resonate: Present Visual Stories that Transform Audiences

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Phil McKinney is an innovator, podcaster, author, and speaker. He is the retired CTO of HP. Phil's book, Beyond The Obvious, shares his expertise and lessons learned on innovation and creativity.

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