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January 2004 |
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Did PowerPoint Blow Up the Space
Shuttle? Believe it or not, says NASA Board. |
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PowerPoint
may have been partially responsible for the disaster of the Space
Shuttle Columbia, according to the Columbia Accident
Investigation Board. In a report, the board argued that NASA
had become too reliant on PowerPoint.
The specific
cause of the disaster was the ship’s foam insulation. But the
New York Times reported recently that when NASA engineers
presented findings of the wing damage during the mission, the
PowerPoint presentation was confusing and may have worsened
the situation. The engineers tried to present too much
data. The slides were crammed with confusing information.
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Resolve to
Improve Speaking Skills in 2004. Heard
about the Shrink and the Light Bulb? |
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Question: How many psychologists does it take to
change a light bulb?
Answer: Just one. But the light bulb has to
want to change.
That’s what we tell people when they ask if they
can really improve their communication skills.
Of course you can improve. But, like the light
bulb, only if you want
to. So with many people resolving to improve
their communication skills for the New Year,
here are a few ideas on how to improve. |
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Beat Back Brain Freeze when Speaking. Attend
the Persuasive Speaker
workshop. |
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Entertainer
George Jessel said “The human brain starts working the moment
you are born and never stops until you stand up to speak in
public.”
Of course
many people do freeze when they get the chance to speak. But
it doesn’t need to be the case. |
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No.
1 Crime Against Audiences?
Speaking over the Time Limit. |
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In the
Speechworks Code of Crimes Against Audiences, speaking
beyond your time limit during a presentation is a crime
punishable by hanging, being shot, electrocuted, drawn and
quartered, and lethal injection.
At the
very least, someone should give you a wedgie.
If you
have 20 minutes to speak, don't ever, under any
circumstances, speak for 21 minutes. The best presenters
will speak for 15 minutes and leave five minutes for
questions. |
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Communication Situation Coaching: A New Approach to Public
Speaking Training. |
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When Henry
Ford introduced the Model T, the joke was that you could have
your car any color you wanted “Just so long as you want
black.” Unfortunately, most public speaking training is the
same way.
The
overwhelming majority of people that attend public speaking
workshops experience the same thing: A chance to present on
videotape and get some feedback from a coach. |
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