I will show you how to become a far more effective speaker and cut your learning curve in ninety minutes. By the end of this short program, you will understand what it takes to speak and respond spontaneously in any situation from a public toast to a private intimate conversation.

I can promise you that I was where you are now, once upon a time.

I decided to become a great public speaker after reading about how effective public speaking is. It was ugly at first. I almost passed out at a podium, holding on for dear life, in front of a small audience at a luncheon speech I agreed to give. It was terrible for me. I learned to be a world-class keynote speaker when I was invited and paid to speak to all kinds of audiences internationally.

The secret to giving a great speech is more about how I feel about myself and my audience than anything else, even though there are some simple things that can make it great. The same things that make a public speech great are what make telling a story to some friends fascinating instead of boring, and having a private intimate conversation with someone more meaningful and authentic than it could ever be without them.

Even though I have taught hundreds of people to become better communicators, the original idea for this program came to me recently.

At a recent graduation, I heard people who were thought to be good or great speakers fail when they got to speak. After taking the microphone, in front of an excited and motivated audience of students and parents, instead of wowing them, they just fell flat and left their audience bored and wanting for something more.

The speaker had a great story and even told it pretty well, but what they said was just fine. It wasn’t their content that was lacking, it was about how they thought about themselves as a speaker and their audience, and what they wanted to accomplish in the short time they had in front of them. They were unsure and afraid when they spoke, when they could have been motivating and inspiring with little effort.

I decided that these people could become great speakers if they allowed me to help them. I decided to design the program you are reading about that day.