Michael Davis - Speaking CPR

Don’t Sweat Your Subject Matter, Just Look Inside

Posted on January 27, 2013 by Michael Davis | 0 Comments

What’s trapped inside you is eating you alive- Charles Henderson Many times, speaking coaches are asked “what are good subjects to talk about; what is popular today?” On the surface, this sounds like a good question, but it’s not. Why? Imagine if you asked this question, and the answer you received was “The impending death of the personal computer in…

Time to throw away the crutches?

Posted on January 20, 2013 by Michael Davis | 5 Comments

During a recent lunch with my associate Pam, she said, “I finally stopped using my crutches. We realized that I was depending on them too much and it was slowing down my rehab.” I had a thought, “Too many speakers are being held back by crutches. Ya gotta help them, Mike. It’s your duty to kick those crutches out from…

Are You Making Progress, or Simply Going Through the Motions?

Posted on January 11, 2013 by Michael Davis | 0 Comments

“Do not confuse motion and progress. A rocking horse keeps moving but does not make any progress.” - Alfred A. Montapert I saw this quote today, and it reminds me of the challenge faced by many speakers and presenters. They confuse the act of talking in front of an audience [motion] with truly communicating and connecting [progress]. Far too many…

Do you have a fear of speaking in public?

Why You are Afraid of Public Speaking

Posted on September 30, 2012 by Michael Davis | 0 Comments

Public Speaking…few phrases in the English language strike more fear into the hearts of adults than those two words. This isn’t just your run-of-the-mill fear, either. This fear can cause your stomach to turn major somersaults for weeks, or months; create cold-sweats in the middle of the night; and completely paralyze you by simply thinking about standing before other people…

How to Survive Your Next Speech

Posted on July 16, 2012 by Michael Davis | 0 Comments

Imagine that you’ve just been asked [by your boss, a committee member at church, or some other person of authority] to give a 20-minute presentation one week from today. How do you feel? If you’re like many others, you feel uneasy…. nervous… panicked. You’re not focused on the presentation, you simply want to survive the ordeal. If this is how…