Leon Sergent

Executive Storytelling is said to be a model of organization or message construction that helps speakers and presenters keep their audience's attention and deliver more memorable presentations. In addition, this way of organizing the content of the presentation promotes the understanding of more complex ideas and data through context, relevance to the audience, and a structure that is easier for the human brain to assimilate. According to neuroscience studies, humans can retain stories more easily than data, so using a narrative improves retention, More… »A primer for professionals who want to use Executive Storytelling

I was recently at a wedding reception where speeches from friends and family preceded a very hearty meal. It's impossible for me not to listen to a speech or a presentation without my professional training and my ears as a strategic communication coach interfering a little! This is also the same person who was able to keep the thread of her ideas even though she spoke with great emotion in her voice and was interrupted many times by members of his audience. So, why was she successful? More… »Successful public speaking: The Executive Storytelling model

We have been talking about presence and executive presence for many years. Much like leadership or charisma, it is easy to acknowledge its presence or lack thereof, but more difficult to provide a definition on which all could agree. Why executive presence now? Is this still topical? Maybe more than ever. In a context of talent shortage and succession planning, let us remember the old adage: All the important decisions about you will be made when you’re not in the room. More… »Executive presence, trust, probity and impact.

Nothing seems to be working, your presentations never finish on time. Let's look at some of the causes and suggest a powerful fix: More… »I ran out of time. Strategies for presenters who finish late.

Vous avez sans doute entendu parler de se limiter à trois phrases ou énoncés pour le résumé de votre présentation. Mais pourquoi trois? Deux idées et l’auditoire reste sur sa faim. Quatre ou cinq idées et il semble que le conférencier amorce une autre allocution en abusant de la patience… More… »The three-point summary. So why three?

Last week, I reviewed several PowerPoint presentations developed by a new client. Each one of these presentations had a slide titled "Questions or Q&A?" Here is a pro tip: Instead of showing a slide titled "Questions?" (Which frankly serves no purpose as you made a prior announcement that there would be a Q&A at the end of your presentation and that you asked for questions after presenting your recommendations), show the slide More… »Could we please do away with the Q&A slide?

Why would your audience do what you propose? How can you tip the scales your way? Does the solution, recommendation, or product you present gives them a set of benefits that they are not currently enjoying or does More… »Convince your audience... with benefits.

Last week, I witnessed somebody skidding off the road! A presenter inadvertently defied a rule that every seasoned speaker has known for a long time. Unfortunately, what was supposed to happen, happened. The presenter froze in front of her team and could not restart. The cause of the accident? She had memorized her presentation word-for-word! Sometimes you just have to experience it for yourself. Here are the symptoms, causes and remedies: More… »Why memorizing your presentation could be perilous... and tips to avoid the worst.

I was attending a professional development virtual meeting of professional and experienced presenters this morning, when the following questions was put forward to the participants: How do you prepare when you are asked to present internally or externally on a topic that you know using visual content that is new to you and given very little time to prepare? Many professionals have had and still must contend with this challenge. Here are 5 ideas which may help you increase your odds of delivering a great presentation. More… »So many slides, so little time. 5 tips to make your preparation more successful.

However tempting it is to start building your next presentation narratively from the beginning of the story, after all, this is what everybody is doing, I would challenge you to try starting with the end in mind. Should you choose to start from the end, you will find it easier to write up your content, save a lot of time and be assured that you will ace the conclusion. Here is how to do this: More… »Start with the end in mind