Making a speech funny
It’s easy to make a speech funny. Hire some comedians, gather them in a room and they’ll make it funny. What’s hard is to make
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Consistency vs. Stagnation
There’s a fine line between consistency in your actions and stagnation. Stagnation is almost inevitable when you act the same way over and over again.
Bypasses
Straight lines are not always the quickest path. That’s why bypasses exist. It might be shorter to drive straight through the town, but the detour
Taking responsibility for our work
Knives can kill people. Are the makers of the knives responsible? How about the marketers? Let’s assume X out of every 100,000 knives are used
You better pay attention
Andy Miller, who after he’d sold his company to Apple reported directly to Steve Jobs, explains what it was like when he wasn’t paying attention
It’s not how good you look or feel
A lot of speaking advice is about feeling good and looking good, e.g. how to feel more confident, how to use convincing body language, how
The (real) importance of the first impression
Every once in a while a study pops up that proves the importance of the first few seconds of a speech. Often, the conclusion is
How Spotify chooses the price it’s willing to pay for success
Daniel Ek, CEO of Spotify, had this to say during a company wide town hall about the Joe Rogan controversy: “If we want even a
Knock, knock! Here’s your passion!
For most people, passion is not something that just comes along and says “hello”. It’s not something you wait for and suddenly, it’s there and
Pitching to the masses
With Apple’s massive success over the years, it’s easy to miss that Apple’s greatest pitches were not to the masses. Quite the opposite. Many observers
The complete picture
Many communicators struggle with the challenge to convey a complete picture of their topic to their audience. After all, it’s quite a complex topic to
5 new clients every week
It’s easy to speak with clarity. What’s hard is to speak with clarity about the things we deeply care about. “This program will bring you
“I think; therefore I am right.”
That’s the sentiment we see in many public discussions where opinions are the premise rather than the result of a thinking process. “I am right!”
8 million
Each year, more than 8 million children die due to poverty (source). That’s a huge number. But how large is it, really? The human mind
If marketing was a bakery
We would probably hate cake. As a baker, when your cake doesn’t taste great, the best thing you can do is to learn to bake
Avoiding your audience’s autopilot
Our audiences have a lot of bad (or good?) habits that affect us. When they read a boring headline, the scroll-further habit kicks in. When
Don’t persuade harder, resonate stronger!
Traditionally, marketing is about getting the audience to do something. Marketers use all sorts of subtle techniques to gently (or not so gently) push or
Sometimes, a smile is all we need
Can I ask you a favor? Could you send a smile to someone who you think needs one today? It might be as simple as
New information
“Have you heard the news about David?”“Oh, yeah, yet another proof for how selfish he is.” When new information becomes available, we immediately relate it
The perfect job reference
Job references are issued at the end of a work relationship, sometimes in between, in regular intervals. They are usually a judgement of how well
The not-so-rational argument
Fact: The glass is half full.Which is the same as half empty. The more relevant question is what conclusions do we draw from the fact?
Playing around
When you’re testing a new approach, are you really testing it or are you just playing around? When we play around, we don’t expect to
Afraid of failing
Some people are so afraid of failing that they can’t find the courage to succeed. Sometimes to the degree that they won’t even start to
I’ll just improvise
A lot of people tend to think that improvising is about being super spontaneous. What gets easily overlooked is how much improvising has to do
The of course effect
Of course a tablet turns on instantaneously. Yet, before the iPad came out we were used to minute-long wake-ups from computer laptops. For many users,
The practice drug
In a world of get-rich-quick advice it’s an eye-opening journey to explore the realm of world class musicians who practice an insane amount of time
Fear of missing o…
A couple of things that FOMO, the fear of missing out, helps us with: What if the world is going crazy about a tennis player
On the surface
Google’s search engine is incredibly complex inside and incredibly simple on the surface – basically a search bar and that’s it. Many startups take a
Speaking up on their behalf
When Simon Sinek or Brené Brown tweet a sentence, it gets them 1000 likes and 100 retweets in a matter of minutes. When you (or
The brilliance of salespeople
“Look, you’re not so brilliant. But don’t worry because I am.” That’s, in essence, the approach of a certain breed of salespeople: To play the
Error without consequence
“The essence of training is to allow error without consequence.” Ender’s Game The great thing about training is the safe environment. It’s like taking a
Is it a product?
Is it a product? Or a bunch of features? Can you say why it exists without saying how it does what it does? Can your
Here’s to an open mind
A mind is like a parachute. It doesn’t work if it is not open. – Frank Zappa Unlike parachutes, though, an open mind might actually
Trusting your customer
Let’s suppose your customer knows what you know. Would you trust them with the decision to buy from you? If not then why not? Is
Good intentions gone wrong
“I’m just going quickly over this graph!” And she’s doing it with good intentions. Because that thing she’s going quickly over is not that hard
How not to buy tea
I wanted to buy tea. Easy, right? Wrong! Our local supermarket carries hundreds of different teas. Which means that for someone like me who is
You don’t need permission
You don’t need permission to change the world. If you feel that you have a great idea that has the potential to change things for
Your best decision
What was the best decision you made in 2021? Think a moment about it. I bet you chose a decision that led to a great
So incredibly powerful when she says it
“It sounds so incredibly powerful when she says it.” Just wow. But why is it that the same thought that you’ve thought a thousand times
I don’t know much
We had this mathematics professor at the University. During a discussion about some topic or another, he would often emphasize that he was not very
Unexpected ground
A few years ago, I used Hemingway’s 6-word novel “For sale: baby shoes, never worn” in a keynote to illustrate a point about storytelling. What
Would you like tea or coffee?
A simple decision, isn’t it? Well, you have no idea. Let’s have some fun with it and pretend we would have to decide in a
Gifts
Here are some ideas for last minute gifts that will still arrive on time to bring someone joy over X-Mas. Smile.Lend them a helping hand.Say
Quick in, quick out
The goal of almost all media is to suck you in as quickly as possible and once you’re in to keep you in as long
The furious entrepreneur
Recently, I met an entrepreneur who was furious at his audience. They just didn’t get him. Although he explained his idea in thorough detail and
So you did nothing wrong
You did nothing wrong. And yet you take responsibility. That’s a hard to find attitude in a world that’s used to equate imperfection with failure.
In the middle of the night
I was 16 when my dad died out of nowhere in the middle of the night, 30 years ago on this day. It was about
Hey, here’s more of what you like
A huge building block to the appeal of social media – and ultimately to their success – is their brilliance in surfacing more of the
A better use of your time
If you feel the need to check Instagram while watching a movie, it might be that you’re watching the wrong movie. If you feel the
The power of staring at a blinking cursor
Never underestimate the power of staring at a blinking cursor. Resist the urge to grab your phone if there’s no immediate thought and nothing to
The slow buyer
Most businesses are obsessed with getting customers to buy faster. While dismissing that the customer who buys slowly, after careful consideration, is more likely to
When a story spreads
Your story spreads when your audience is able and eager to tell your story. So. Are they able to tell it? Do they get it?
Champions keep playing until they get it right
Both aspects here are crucial: Champions keep playing. And they want to get it right. They don’t quit. Not after the first failed attempt. And
Marketing in sync with the outcome
Great marketing is true to who you are. Great marketing also delivers results. The confusion occurs when our true story doesn’t deliver the results we’re
Change
Today marks the end of Angela Merkel’s period as Germany’s chancellor. Three attitudes she brought to the office: Keep calm.Be respectful.Listen. Put together, these three
Good resistance, bad resistance
Resistance is the universal force that keeps you from doing things. However, there’s an important distinction about two very different types of resistance. The first
About coaches
There are two kinds of coaches. Those who give you answers and those who give you questions. There’s a place for both but it’s likely
The complete secret recipe
Here’s the complete guide to marketing success. Ask yourself this question: “If they knew what you know, would they buy?” Depending on the answer, do
Order from above
“Don’t ask me why. It’s an order from above.” Still a common scheme in corporations – both outward and inward facing. It frustrates customers and teams
A fun game with stories
A fun game from impro theater is to tell a story in turns: Everyone’s allowed a single sentence. Then the other person continues, again only
Enough! I need a rest.
“Enough! I need a rest.” As a leader that’s among the most difficult sentences to say – even just to ourselves. And yet, how are we
That’s a lot
But really is it? Or when you say “That’s not much!” how few are we talking about? The thing is that what’s a lot to
A huge Black Friday deal
What are you planning to buy today? I’m buying time. My own time. I offered myself a huge Black Friday deal. 100% off. A no
Speaking with clarity is a habit
Speaking with clarity is a habit. As is the lack of clarity. If a team tolerates lack of clarity it trickles into every corner of
The magic of a great story
That brilliant keynote speech that told a story about climbing the Mount Everest and inspired you to finally start your company. That fascinating book that
It’s either good or bad
“Oh, that’s like Instagram but for poems.” When we see or hear something, our brain automatically compares it to the things we know. We put
If you want their attention
If you want to be seen by someone, see them first.If you want their attention, pay attention first. What are they proud of? What do
All eyes are on you
“So, what shall we do about it?”, Martin asks. Suddenly, all eyes are on you. It’s a crucial phase of the project. The team is
Most delicious
The bakery shows us one piece of each of their three most delicious cakes, each one more delicious than the other. Each one so delicious
Sweat the details: What it really means
Focusing hurts. It means letting go of details. Details that we care about. Details that we feel we can’t possibly leave out. Details that are
If it absolutely has to be a meeting
A boring meeting is a great opportunity to catch up with unread mails. Sure. But why not address the cause instead of the symptoms? Why
The innovator’s communication dilemma
Many innovators spend an enormous amount of time trying to make us appreciate their innovation. After all, it’s the innovation that they sell and so
Caution: Dangerous communication
Quite early in our lives we learn that when we fall from a tree, it hurts. We accustom to it and learn to be careful
Nothing new
Humans are story builders. Whatever we experience must fit into a story that makes sense. In a way, you could say that we are “sense
Start with WHAAAAAT?
When developing your story, it’s a good idea to start with why. But when delivering the story, it’s even better to start with “WHAAAAAT?” –
So you want to shine?
Recently, I saw two concerts at a festival. One started with a 3 minute explanation of what we were about to hear: That this was
2 minutes, twice a week
2 minutes, twice a week might be all it takes to level up your communication and tell your story in a way that it gets
Empowerment
“Empowerment” is a fancy way of saying that you trust your team with making decisions. Unfortunately, what some leaders mean when they use that word
The true core of your message
As the pandemic brought a lot of businesses to a screeching halt, many of them took this as an opportunity to rethink the path they
Kind of remarkable
The Blue Man Group is kind of remarkable. Actually, it’s two kinds of remarkable: “built in” and “on top”. Built in remarkable is the way
Status boosters
When you pass a new information along and when that information is in line with your reputation then the mere act of passing along can
Opinionated leadership
Someone once told me that “there’s no prospering team that’s not led by a strong leader with strong opinions.” And, indeed, reality seems to prove
The two kinds of suspense
There are two types of suspense: artificial and intrinsic. Artificial suspense is what TV casting shows do to you right before an ad brake. They
What’s hard about slogans?
It’s not really hard to come up with a great slogan that grabs someone’s attention. What’s hard is to come up with a slogan that’s
How cool is that?
“How cool is that? I can speak about my idea for 30 minutes and everyone’s going to listen? Wow! This is great. Let’s get to
Why people feel uncomfortable in public speaking
The most common reason for people to feel uncomfortable with their way of communicating is that they use words they don’t believe in. For all
Embracing weaknesses
In school we learn that it’s best to have no weak spots. In real life, however, it turns out that acknowledging our weak spots allow
Inciting action
The beauty of books is that you can live other people’s lives. The beauty of dreams is that you can live a different version of
In the moment
The best camera is the one you have with you. For most of us that’s our phone, nowadays. I’m glad that these cameras are at
Let’s meet for a doing
Meetings are corporate hell. Let’s switch to doings instead. What’s the difference? Meetings have an agenda, doings have a goal. Meetings are about conversations, doings
The “pocket” is underappreciated
When marketers rave about one of the greatest ad slogans of all time, they tend to overlook the most important piece. I’m speaking of the
What do you mean?
Imagine you meet a good friend of yours for a beer. You tell them about your newest idea. As they respond with a blank stare,
How did you brighten someone’s day today?
Did you say a word of appreciation to someone who needed to hear it? Did you give to someone more than you needed to give?
Settling with second best
A lot of doors open up when you are willing to settle with second best. Many of these doors never get within reach when you
I’m so obviously right, what the hell is going on with you?
Some stances are just so obviously wrong that it’s hard to understand how anyone can even come to that conclusion. The natural reaction is to
Will it break?
Quite early in our lives we learn that porcelain breaks when it drops onto the floor. A fact, that one of my clients used to
Can an ugly site work?
Amazon has a pretty ugly site. It’s overloaded and cluttered. There are hundreds of places to click with several competing calls to action. In design
Karaoke skills
In their great book „Moments of Impact“ on how to make better meetings, Chris Ertel und Lisa Kay Solomon define this term: Karaoke skills is
Fear of commitment
Better to play it safe because what if they don’t like it, right? Fear of rejection is one of the huge roadblocks in many corporate
Just the way you are
You’re not Apple. Neither Red Bull nor Tesla. Keynotes that work for Apple won’t work for you. You just don’t have the media attention that
And thus, you have my attention!
“This is me! This is exactly what I’m struggling with. This is exactly what I desire.” And thus, you have my attention. I feel seen