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“From Fear to Success” Audiobook = Keep a Notebook Nearby

 

Ask me what I had for dinner last night and there is a really good
chance I won’t remember. Not many of us can easily come up with what
we ate without really thinking about it. Now think of the greatest speech
idea you ever had, but can’t remember. How many times have you been
driving down the road or woken up in the middle of the night thinking,
“Wow, I need to remember that,” or, “I should do a speech on that,” or
some other iteration, then kept on driving or fell back to sleep and never
remembered what it was? The easiest way to solve that problem is with
a notebook or folder nearby. I keep a notebook on my nightstand and
a folder in my laptop bag, which is typically always near me. I simply
jot the idea down and toss the paper back. It can be one word or a short
sentence. Write down whatever is enough for you to remember. Notice I
didn’t say write out the entire speech. You can let the idea stew and grow
in your mind while it’s in the notebook or folder. The idea will continue
to nurture and develop itself over time. Go back to it when it is time, and
start outlining the message and content. You will be shocked how easily
the speech flows because your mind has been running in the background
with this topic, simply because you wrote it down.

 

 

Thomas B. Dowd III’s books The Transformation of a Doubting Thomas: Growing from a Cynic to a Professional in the Corporate World (Honorable Mention at the 2012 New England Book Festival) and From Fear to Success: A Practical Public-speaking Guide (2013 Axiom Business Book Awards Gold Medal Winner and 2013 Paris Book Festival Honorable Mention).  Audiobook version of “From Fear to Success” is also available! See “Products” for details on www.transformationtom.com.  Book and eBook purchase options are also available on Amazon- Please click the link to be re-directed: Amazon.com

MP3 Downloads of “From Fear to Success:  A Practical Public-speaking Guide” are available at Apple iTunes, Amazon, Rhapsody, Emusic, Nokia, Xbox Music, Spotify, Omnifone, Google Music Store, Rdio, Muve Music, Bloom.fm, Slacker Radio, MediaNet, 7digital, 24-7, Rumblefish, and Shazam “From Fear to Success” MP3 on CD Baby

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“From Fear to Success” Audiobook = Brainstorm: The Friends-and-Family Effect

 

Who knows you better, outside of yourself, than your friends,
family, and colleagues? When you are searching for topics or trying to
fine-tune a passionate presentation, invest time with the people closest
to you. Throw ideas against the wall and see if they stick. Use the close
relationships to ensure that the messages you want to convey truly
come across as intended. You should not fear feedback because of the
comfort in realizing that if this group of people can’t provide you with
the gift of their honest opinions, then who can? It is impossible to do
it alone.

I spent the first year and a half after joining Toastmasters practicing
my speeches in the car and in front of mirrors. Although both are
good tools, they can’t compare to the eyes of your spouse or significant
other staring back at you. I learned that if I could do it well in front of
my wife, then a couple hundred people would be easy. I finally shared
a competition speech with my wife right before I got in the car to drive
to the competition. The speech typically took six and a half minutes
to perform. For her, I did it in five minutes because of my anxiety,
since I really wanted to impress her. Within the speech, I had the line,
“Millions of dogs and cats”; instead, I said, “Millions of dogs and a
cat.” We laughed together after the speech. I knew she was a supporter
of my public speaking, but didn’t realize how much I could rely on
her. After I became more comfortable with my dependence on her, I
learned to have healthier dialogues regarding subjective feedback. In
another speech, I had the line, “My first legal adult beverage…,” and
my wife said it was too obscure and lacked the punch I wanted. She
suggested using, “My first beer….” I fought her on it until a friend suggested
the exact same line. Somehow, I had known she was right, but I
had refused to listen (I still have work to do in listening to my wife). I
have now become an open book to friends and family, especially to my
greatest supporter, my wife.

 

 

Thomas B. Dowd III’s books The Transformation of a Doubting Thomas: Growing from a Cynic to a Professional in the Corporate World (Honorable Mention at the 2012 New England Book Festival) and From Fear to Success: A Practical Public-speaking Guide (2013 Axiom Business Book Awards Gold Medal Winner and 2013 Paris Book Festival Honorable Mention).  Audiobook version of “From Fear to Success” is also available! See “Products” for details on www.transformationtom.com.  Book and eBook purchase options are also available on Amazon- Please click the link to be re-directed: Amazon.com

MP3 Downloads of “From Fear to Success:  A Practical Public-speaking Guide” are available at Apple iTunes, Amazon, Rhapsody, Emusic, Nokia, Xbox Music, Spotify, Omnifone, Google Music Store, Rdio, Muve Music, Bloom.fm, Slacker Radio, MediaNet, 7digital, 24-7, Rumblefish, and Shazam “From Fear to Success” MP3 on CD Baby

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“From Fear to Success” Audiobook= Don’t Talk About Your Bad Day

 

We have all had bad days, whether we are not feeling so hot,
didn’t sleep well, or forgot to pick up the bread our significant other
asked for (sorry, honey). These days happen. However, in the publicspeaking
forum, your audience most likely doesn’t care. In fact, you
are giving your credibility a backseat to the messages you want to send
if you start your presentation with, “Please give me sympathy, or at
least understand that I’m not giving you my ‘A’ game.” You shouldn’t
announce it or even show it in your non-verbal cues. You can’t afford
to lose your audience. Never start a speech with an apology. Make the
effort to muscle through whatever it is and set a better tone right from
the beginning. You may be surprised to find that the audience’s energy,
which you are helping to create, may just solve whatever problem you
were having anyway.

 

 

Thomas B. Dowd III’s books The Transformation of a Doubting Thomas: Growing from a Cynic to a Professional in the Corporate World (Honorable Mention at the 2012 New England Book Festival) and From Fear to Success: A Practical Public-speaking Guide (2013 Axiom Business Book Awards Gold Medal Winner and 2013 Paris Book Festival Honorable Mention).  Audiobook version of “From Fear to Success” is also available! See “Products” for details on www.transformationtom.com.  Book and eBook purchase options are also available on Amazon- Please click the link to be re-directed: Amazon.com

MP3 Downloads of “From Fear to Success:  A Practical Public-speaking Guide” are available at Apple iTunes, Amazon, Rhapsody, Emusic, Nokia, Xbox Music, Spotify, Omnifone, Google Music Store, Rdio, Muve Music, Bloom.fm, Slacker Radio, MediaNet, 7digital, 24-7, Rumblefish, and Shazam “From Fear to Success” MP3 on CD Baby

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“From Fear to Success” Audiobook= Make The Message Stick

Audiences learn and retain information differently. My youngest
daughter can sit back and absorb a presentation without taking a
note and repeat back everything—and I mean everything—she heard.
Others, like me, are consummate note-takers. Still others may need
some type of visual or auditory stimulation to retain information. It is
important to understand this learning diversity when preparing your
presentation. Depending on the type of presentation, if possible provide
multiple options that work best for information retention by various
learning types.

As a speaker, you must have an engaged audience. You can capture
their attention by getting them involved, possibly by having them out
of their seats to complete an action, or asking open-ended questions
that need responses. Additionally, you can have the audience repeat
key points you want emphasized or remembered. For some learners,
you should provide handouts; many of these learners want something
to hold and read from or want to fill in the blanks. Providing
paper and a place to take notes makes a big difference to someone like
me. Finally, you have people who sit on their hands until they see a
visual on the screen or hear music in the background. It’s important to
account for these visual and auditory learners. More importantly, it’s
essential to show flexibility for different learners in your audience. The
message sticks more when you are conscientious about your audience’s
needs and learning types.

 

 

Thomas B. Dowd III’s books The Transformation of a Doubting Thomas: Growing from a Cynic to a Professional in the Corporate World (Honorable Mention at the 2012 New England Book Festival) and From Fear to Success: A Practical Public-speaking Guide (2013 Axiom Business Book Awards Gold Medal Winner and 2013 Paris Book Festival Honorable Mention).  Audiobook version of “From Fear to Success” is also available! See “Products” for details on www.transformationtom.com.  Book and eBook purchase options are also available on Amazon- Please click the link to be re-directed: Amazon.com

MP3 Downloads of “From Fear to Success:  A Practical Public-speaking Guide” are available at Apple iTunes, Amazon, Rhapsody, Emusic, Nokia, Xbox Music, Spotify, Omnifone, Google Music Store, Rdio, Muve Music, Bloom.fm, Slacker Radio, MediaNet, 7digital, 24-7, Rumblefish, and Shazam “From Fear to Success” MP3 on CD Baby

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