Speaking

If you own a business, you have an obligation to tell good stories. As a business owner you, quite frequently, talk to an audience. Whether that's an audience of one or many, it's an audience.

On a daily basis you speak with customers, employees and prospects. Think of the last person you spoke to about work. What category did the conversation fall into?

• Were you in a training conversation?
• Were you in a selling conversation?
• Maybe it was a networking conversation?
  

Because of your posi…

First, what is a brand story? You might think your brand story is about your company or business. That's partly true. But people do business with people, so your brand story is really about you. AND there's a big caveat to that...  

Talking about yourself may be uncomfortable but there is a way to do this which illustrates your expertise without being perceived as egotistical. The challenge is not too many people do this well.    

Your brand story can also be called your origin story, or your …

When I was a copywriter, I had to learn to switch voices depending on which brand I was writing for at the time. To do this, I liked to visualize putting on a certain hat that matched the voice of the brand. In other words, does this brand wear a fedora, a baseball cap or a top hat? There is a personality in a brand. It provides a way for us to differentiate and show our uniqueness.

Video provides a medium to literally hear a voice and see a personality – and if it fits, perhaps wear an actual …

I’ve been meeting a lot of new people lately. If you’re a soloprenuer, coach, or consultant then you know just how important networking is to your success.

The trick to networking is making it effective by elevating your brand. The challenge is, how do you define “effective” networking? Do you think networking is only effective if it results in sales? If you said yes, then I have to blast the buzzer on you and say: EEEE wrong answer! Here’s a story to prove it: 

I recently went to a lunch with…

Words have power. They can create. They can destroy. This is as evident historically as much as it is today. They are the key tool used to influence.

When it comes to business, the mark of an influential brand is when it’s gets woven into the fabric of our lives through language. For example, do you search things online or do you Google them? Do you send overnight packages, or do you FedEx it? When you hear, save 15% in 15 minutes or less, you know it’s a Geico commercial.

These brand-associat…

Most communication coaches and consultants focus on improving public speaking and leadership skills. They may help you prepare for your next big event presentation or lead your team with confidence in meetings.  

But here’s the problem... You get so consumed with what you say and how you say it that you forget who it’s for.

And let me be clear, public speaking is a very valuable skill. And giving a speech in front of an audience can be very powerful for your brand and business. BUT…   

…havin…

I’m no early adopter but I am interested in exploring new opportunities. So, as Clubhouse started blowing up in popularity recently, I got curious… and an unsolicited invite.

So, I joined, turned notifications on and participated in a few “rooms” to check it out. This audio-only, community-based social media platform does have its advantages:

• bringing together without the pressure of video, meeting and connecting with people worldwide, getting access to big-name leaders, to name a few.

Bu…

It was 1997 and I was in working on my undergraduate degree in communication. I just landed a job at a radio station in Fort Lauderdale where I sat in a 10x6’ room with 5-6 other people calling loyal listeners to survey them on the latest radio playlist. It wasn’t glamourous but as a communication major I was proud to finally have a job “in my field” at a popular radio station. 

Having entrepreneurial parents, I lived through both the prosperity of being a business owner as well as the struggle…