Blog posts

Why we sometimes need to share our dark side

Submitted by Jack Milner on July 11, 2023

I was working with a client once (no not the guy in the picture) who was just a lovely, lovely, lovely man. And guess what, when he presented, he came across as simply lovely, lovely, lovely... smiled loads, light and fragrant almost and... minimal gravitas.

He was super bright, and his organisation saw him as a future leader.  However, he didn't get many opportunities to present and so shine to the wider senior leadership team. In truth this lack of gravitas was the reason why, and of course the fewer times he presented, the less confident and more smiley he became.

Human Capital Innovations Podcast

Submitted by Jack Milner on May 30, 2023

So what makes a good podcast host as opposed to the average? Firstly, hosting and interviewing guests is not easy. I know from experience it’s easy to ramble, or for the podcast to go off track completely. The best interviewers keep it relaxed and fun, while also moving you onto the stuff that is going to have most value to the listener. One such expert is Jonathan H. Westover. 

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Britain's funniest city

Submitted by Jack Milner on March 31, 2023

A study by the Beano comic has named the nation's funniest city, with residents there laughing 33 times a day on average.

ALSO. According to the findings, nearly a quarter (24%) of Brits found sarcasm to be their favourite type of humour, followed by witty (23%) and observational (11%). Well, there's a surprise for you!

To discover Britain’s funniest city… 

HOW TO AVOID PRESENTING NAKED!

Submitted by Jack Milner on March 20, 2023

The great theatre director Peter Brook was two thirds of the way through his rehearsals for famous Paris production of Hamlet. The star was Adrian Lester.

Brook was probably the greatest and most innovative theatre director of the 20th century. He’d been directing for almost sixty years and had achieved almost God-like status. He was also the definition of “expert leader” and few if any questioned his judgement. His audience for the sell-out shows would surely be made up of Shakespeare buffs and fans. Approaching the first preview, with the show already in fantastic shape, what could possibly go wrong?

Delivering an Impromptu Speech

Submitted by Jack Milner on March 20, 2023

The tricky speech or presentation is not where you have weeks to put together your content and rehearse but the one where some bright spark suggests you “say a few words to (fill in the blank).”

So for all you impromptu presenters, here are four simple steps to creating a 5 minute speech that can be delivered with close to zero preparation.

So what do you do?

Interview with Adam Mendler

Submitted by Jack Milner on March 14, 2023

I was recently interviewed Adam Mendler, where we talked all things Presentation Mastery. He also asked for the single best piece of advice I’d ever been given. I’ve received so many wonderful bits of advice over the years it was hard to choose. But I’m pleased with the one I went with - all thanks to my Dad. See if you agree.

(Adam is an entrepreneur, writer, speaker, educator, and within the US is a nationally-recognised authority on leadership, as well as being host of the business and leadership podcast Thirty Minute Mentors, where he regularly elicits insights from America's top CEOs, founders, athletes, celebrities, and political and military leaders.)

Can You Be Too Professional?

Submitted by Jack Milner on March 7, 2023

When writing this piece, my initial intention was to lead with a story about ShezAr nailing “With a Little Help from my Friends” on The Voice and linking it across to Joe Cocker’s version and then bridging that to a presentation tip about not being too professional!

Grabbing Your Audience

Submitted by Jack Milner on March 2, 2023

Imagine yourself back at school. Your day is made up of a grey wash of one lesson followed by another lesson, and on and on it goes, most of which you are ambivalent about. Then, one day you arrive at a different classroom. It already looks fun or interesting.

The teacher tells you to collect three random objects from around the school block. You have two minutes. First ones back get a prize. When you return, you’re told what you’re going to be doing but, the teacher wants your ideas.