K.I.S.S.

"Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not simpler."

– Albert Einstein

I Don't Know

I am not young enough to know everything.

– Oscar Wilde

We never know everything. We never will. Even experts get stumped. There are a lot of great questions. Yet so many people say, “I get so nervous before a presentation because I’m afraid I’ll get asked something I don’t know.“ So?

What you get asked can’t hurt you. What you say in response can. Be comfortable in not knowing something, it’s human. Be ready to openly admit it and offer to help find the answer, or to help find someone who knows the answer. It’s more authentic, and therefore more appealing.  Even subject matter experts explore with, and learn from, their audiences. And it’s best when the presenters are completely transparent about their limitations; trying to cover up or make something up is also quite transparent, so don’t go there and risk compromising your credibility unnecessarily.

Just because you’re the speaker does not automatically mean you’re omniscient. “I don’t know, I can find out for you” is a brilliant answer!

Quote of the Week

"It usually takes me more than three weeks to prepare a good impromptu speech."

- Mark Twain

Me Too!

I sometimes marvel at the extraordinary docility with which Americans submit to speeches.

- Adlai E. Stevenson

SmartMouth Note: Me too, Adlai, I marvel at the very same thing. Perhaps if there were a little more civil unrest, we'd be more entertained, better informed, inspired, and even highly motivated! Alas, we Americans are amazingly passive and polite audience members. Hmmmm, interesting food for thought.

Another Yogi-ism ... So, So True for Speakers

Half this game is ninety percent mental.

- Yogi Berra

Which one are you?

"There are two types of speakers: those who get nervous and those who are liars."

- Mark Twain

Hey Presenters, Listen Up! Yogi's Right . . .

You got to be careful if you don't know where you're going, because you might not get there.

- Yogi Berra

So True of Communicating . . .

"When you do the common things in life in an uncommon way, you will command the attention of the world."

- George Washington Carver

Quote of the Day

“The mind is a wonderful thing. It starts working the minute you’re born and never stops until you get up to speak in public.”

~ Roscoe Drummond, Washington Columnist