Telling stories is one of the most powerful ways to connect with your audience.

When you tell a story…

You bring down your audience’s defenses.
You help your audience to remember your message better.
You show your human side which helps your audience relate to you.
You pull at the heartstrings of your audience.

In a recently published book The Elements of Persuasion by Richard Maxwell and Robert Dickman, they define a story as “a fact wrapped in an emotion that compels us to take an action that transform our world”.

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I just got back from Sri Lanka’s Division Evaluation & Humorous Contest 2007, organized by the Toastmasters International. And again, it was an eye opener.

Sri Lankan is a country famous for many things. For example,

Tea.
Gems.
Tamil Tigers.

But… today, I discover that this country boasts of very talented and witty speakers too.

I also conclude that humor is universal. Things that make a Singaporean laugh will make a Sri Lankan laugh too. For example, dating and marriage.

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Here’s my top five recommendations for this week.

234 Things I’ve Learned about Writing, Delivering and Marketing Speeches

Scott is my latest stalker victim. I visit his blog every day and I have read (almost) everything that he has written.

Why you may ask?

Because his stuff works.

He has written quite a number of books on approachability and thanks to his generous tips, I have learned how to make a name for my upcoming book. And so far, we have been doing pretty well in the publicity aspect, both online and offline.

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In Sept 2005, I did an act of courage.

That’s me in action at the Toastmasters Humorous Contest 2005 (Club Level)

After much hesistation and procrastination, I joined a US Toastmasters club. It was scary especially since I was new in town (Philadelphia). However, it was one of the best decisions I have ever made.

During that one year, my growth as a public speaker shot to the roof.

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“Not Just Answers But Also An Elaboration Of Tips To Help The Reader Be A Better Speaker. A Book Worth Investing In!”

While reading through The FAQ Book on Public Speaking, what really amazed me was Eric’s sincerity in answering the questions. The answers were not just answers but also an elaboration of tips, strategies and advice to help the reader be a better speaker.

Eric did not answer them solely based on his instincts. He took the extra effort to add in concrete references from books and examples to make everything more understandable.

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Most of you don’t know this but The Public Speaking Blog is not my first blog. I used to write at a personal development blog titled “Life is too exciting to be bored” and then continued at blogspot with “Life is (still) too exciting to be bored”.

It has a mix of personal rants and lessons learned but I stopped last June. Apparently life became SO exciting that I had no time to blog. Alright you nosy people, stop trying to google for the sites. *grins*

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Recently, I have been fascinated by the science of persuasion. I suspect its the power that comes with it.

Imagine this - you are SO persuasive that you get YOUR way every single time.

Your boss gives you a promotion, third one in the quarter.
Your customer offers you a $1,000,000 business deal with just one presentation.
Your employees work double time, with no complains and produce their best work.
Your children volunteer to do extra homework so that they can make you happy.
The Sri Lankan government offers you a lifetime visa to their country with no strings attached…

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“Helps You Alleviate Your Fears And Become A Successful Public Speaker”

Public Speaking is one of the most lucrative careers out there. The opportunity cost for not confronting your fear of public speaking is too great to be ignored. Fortunately, my good friends Eric Feng and Andrew Zhan have put on their thinking caps, superhero capes and ultra red underwear to help you alleviate your fears and become a successful public speaker.

Having known Eric for close to 5 years now, it’s not surprising to see the “same brand” of humor injected into the book as when I hear him speak “live” in front of hundreds of people.

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I read an average of 25 blog entries, 2 ebooks and half a book every day. And I still think it is not enough. A good 50% of the content relates to public speaking, the other 50% relates to internet marketing, holistic living and branding. What about you? What do you read on a regular basis?

In a recent survey to my SpeakEZ subscribers (see box on top right hand corner), I posed a series of questions to them including this one: “What other public speaking websites do you visit?”. The results was shocking. A good 74% of them only visits sites that I recommend in my emails and blog. I am not sure if I should be flattered or worried. Flattered because they trust my opinion. Worried because they are lazy… and they don’t bother googling for more speaking resource.

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“A Lot More Useful Content Than Most of the E-books I Read”

The FAQ Book on Public Speaking actually has useful content, which is a lot more than can be said for most of the e-books I read. You have great experience and it translates in being able to handle the content well.

– Scott H Young, A-list Blogger on Personal Development, Canada (http://www.scotthyoung.com/blog/)

Today’s Free Chapter: Chapter 2 — Overcoming Your Stage Fright & Nervousness

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