CTL 2016 – “Strengths Finder” on Public Speaking

I just spent 2 days at the Career Thought Leaders Conference in Denver and presented alongside a talented group of business owners. When I was in the audience, I was able to engage in one of my favorite activities: Watching speakers, and finding their strengths. The speaker lineup was excellent overall. Here’s a rundown of 5 elements that mark excellence in public speaking, and who displayed them in spades at CTL 2016. Presence: Vaneese Johnson, The Boldness Coach, has a presence most professionals strive for years to achieve. It’s a natural gift, and she comes to the stage with a strong voice,…

The Art of Storytelling

Join us at Liberty Common High School this Saturday, March 5th from 9am-12pm for the First Annual Spring Colloquium! We’ve lined up 20 presentations on a wide variety of subjects including black holes, the Thirty Years’ War, the history of the color red, and I’ll be speaking on the art of storytelling at 11:15 a.m. Don’t miss it! See www.libertycommon.org/spring for location, speaker bios and talk summaries. Cindy Skalicky, M.A.: The Ageless Art of Storytelling LCHS parent and owner of On Point Communications, LLC, Cindy Skalicky will analyze the art and function of storytelling. Using one of her On Point coaching tools, she…

Hide Your Title Slide

Giving a Power Point soon? Try this: Don’t display the title slide as individuals enter the room – leave the screen blank. Instead, greet those taking their seats, welcome them with a smile. When it’s time to begin your talk, move a little closer to the audience if space allows. Keep that title slide hidden. Start with just you. Give a brief, general explanation of your presentation objectives. Itching to start that slide show? Hold on. Resist the temptation to take the focus off yourself for just one more moment. Maybe there’s time to tell a short, related story. Wrap it up and…

Testimonials

“Cindy, Your coaching was fantastic. You are so good at this. I have done a lot of this too, but I am in awe of your approach, the simplicity of your suggestions and your general professionalism. Thank you.”

Susan Strong, Director at SAGE Boulder

“As a professional speaker, I know the value of getting feedback before giving an important speech. As I prepared my TEDx talk, Cindy was the perfect person to give me outside perspective. She did a beautiful job taking the many ideas I had floating around in my head and helping me select what to use, how to organize them, and how to tie it all together.

I love the way she coached, not trying to make her words my own, but instead, considering what I was trying to achieve and helping me stay true to my voice. If you have to stand and deliver a great talk, working with Cindy can help you ensure you’re at your best!”

Tanis Roeder, Elevate Your Communication

When speaking at the CTL conference this spring, I had the privilege to sit in on Cindy’s Storytelling talk. Cindy has an impressive background, and a wonderful approach to helping you present more effectively. Telling a compelling story is crucial for effective presentations that connect with your audience, and Cindy can equip you to prepare and present in a structured, but seemingly unrehearsed way.

Kristin Sherry, Author|Speaker|Coach

Cindy, you were immensely helpful in narrowing down the story part of our pitch. With your guidance, we were able to make a very complicated technical problem relatable to a mixed audience. We still can’t believe the first questions was, “it sounds too good to be true.” That is so much better than the feared, “I do understand what your product does.” Thank you for your professional help and support. RVC knew what they were doing bringing you in as a pitch coach.”

Samuel Thomas Elliott|Co-Founder, Tejon Technologies

“Cindy, BRAVO! The Colloquium was a splendid success. Thank you for your hard work. I’m very proud of how it turned out. Very truly yours, Bob Schaffer”

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