The Buzz of Drones

I’m not ashamed to admit I’ve quite enjoyed the peace and quiet of lockdown where we live in the Cotswolds. My house looks out across a river and countryside – and I’ve noticed a lot more wildlife recently. There are Swans, Ducks and Moorhens in the river along with their babies – colourful songbirds perch in the trees along the riverbanks and majestic birds of prey circle lazily on the thermals rising from the warm earth. Red Kites, Hawks and Buzzards own the skies – dwarfed only by the Herons that look like escapees from Jurassic Park as they fly in the distance.

blogMark Faithfull11 June 2020motivational speaking

Public Speaking and Presenting Made Easy - a new podcast and YouTube show

Public Speaking and Presenting made easy is an online show and podcast. It is full of tools, tips, techniques and advice in bite-sized chunks that will help you stand up and speak with confidence - every time!

blogMark Faithfull3 June 2020podcast

Don't say it - show it.

Product Launch presentations are tricky – one the one hand you want to create excitement and a buzz about your new product / course / company / book. But on the other hand, it doesn’t matter how exciting and world changing the product is – if the presentation or presenter is boring, dull, lifeless or cliché then the audience will believe the product is equally dull and boring.

blogMark Faithfull26 May 2020clarity, confidence, presenting, product launch

Find your Unique Story - the 1000 Voices Challenge

We're on a mission to identify a 1000 voices that the world needs to hear. And you can join in by finding your unique story in our 5 day challenge.

blogMark Faithfull20 May 20201000Voices

Did you fail the test?

The education system does not prepare us for the challenges life presents. In fact it teaches us a very backward set of expectations. At school we all sat through weeks, months or even years of lessons. Then we sat a test – to find out if we had learned the lesson. In life, however, it happens the other way around.

blogMark Faithfull13 May 2020personal stories, public speaking, motivational speaking

What everyone hates and fears about Public Speaking

I’ve spent the last two years asking hundreds of people what they dislike or find difficult about Public Speaking and Presenting – this is what they told me…

Mark Faithfull4 May 2020confidence, public speaking, presenting, online

Crashing the Terror Barrier

There comes a point in any journey of personal growth and development where the next step we need or want to take suddenly feels way bigger than all the others taken so far. You might be embarking on your biggest ever project at work, preparing your first public speaking gig, creating your first presentation for work, starting a business or turning up to join a local sports team or theatre club for the first time. Whatever it is, it is something that is taking you out of your comfort zone.

blogMark Faithfull29 April 2020confidence

Top tips for presenting professionally on Zoom

With so many meetings and even whole businesses moving online, here are our top tips to help you present effectively and professionally when using Zoom, Skype, Teams or other teleconference software.

blogMark Faithfull28 April 2020Zoom, Skype, Teams, lockdown, online

How to Communicate in a Crisis

It is the leaders job to define reality and communicate this to their team.

If you don’t define reality for your team someone else will. In the absence of clear communication from their leaders, people will define reality for themselves based on their fears and assumptions.

Communication during a crisis needs to be clear, consistent and concise.

blogMark Faithfull27 March 2020communication, clarity

How to present with Clarity

Presenting with clarity is the ability to communicate your message in such a way that the people in the room are able to hear, understand and receive your message.

blogMark Faithfull5 March 2020presenting, clarity

How to write a best man speech in 6 easy steps

The best man’s speech is a traditional part of the wedding day and the cause of more than a few sleepless nights on the part of the best man – and often the groom!

Here is my 6 step guide how to write the best best man’s speech.

blogMark Faithfull7 February 2020best man speech, wedding

How to speak to camera

Speaking to camera is not the same as speaking on stage to hundreds of people, nor is it like presenting to a room of a dozen. When we speak to camera it is much more intimate conversation – a one to one experience on the part of the viewer.

blogMark Faithfull5 February 2020Camera, Filming, Video

Mastering Rhetoric #6 - Rhyming phrases

There is something about the rhythm and symmetry of rhyming statements that pleases the mind and so inclines the listener to believe the statement is more true – or at least make it more memorable.

blogMark Faithfull16 January 2020rhetoric

Mastering Rhetoric #5 - Exaggeration

The fifth essential Rhetorical device for speakers to master is Exaggeration. If I’ve told you once, I’ve told you a million times – this stuff matters.

Hyperbole, which comes from the Greek meaning to ‘overshoot the mark’ is a popular rhetorical device among politicians and other motivational speakers.

blogMark Faithfull3 January 2020rhetoric