Common Sense Ideas for Becoming the Career Star You Are Meant to Be

Today is Thursday, so this post is on communication skills.

I always like to have a nice shine on my shoes.  A good shoe shine makes me feel good.  If you like a good shine, and find yourself at Denver International Airport, look up Jareem on Concourse A near Gate 39.  Jareem is a shoe shine master.

And, like a lot of young guys working service jobs, he’s shining shoes to help pay for his college tuition.  Jareem and I have struck up a pretty good friendship over the five years he’s been shining my shoes.  We talk sports, politics, movies and current events.

The other day, he mentioned that he had to give a speech in his Communication class.  He was doing an explanatory speech on the basics of basketball.  When I told him that I teach speech classes, he asked for some advice.

I was running to get a flight, so I narrowed down my advice to him to, next to preparation and rehearsal, what I consider to be the most important advice on doing a good talk.  The audience remembers how you begin and how you end.  So make sure that you know exactly what you will say to begin your talk, and exactly what you will say to end it. 

Today, I stopped to get a shine prior to getting on my flight to New York.  I asked Jareem how his talk went.  “Awesome, man.  You gave me some really good advice.  I memorized my opening and closing.  When I got up to do my talk, I wasn’t nervous, because I knew exactly what I was going to say”, he said.

Jareem got it.  He realized that when you prepare and practice your opening, it is easier to control your nerves, and get right into the body of your speech.  And when you know exactly what you say to close your talk, you end strong, on a high note.  You just don’t drift off.  You finish positively and command the respect of the audience.

The common sense point here?  Know exactly what you are going to say to open a talk.  Know exactly what you are going to say to close a talk.  Practice your opening and closing, until you have them down cold.  If you do this, you’ll be on your way to becoming a great presenter.

That’s it for today.  Thanks for reading.  Log on to my website www.BudBilanich.com for more common sense.  Check out my other blog: www.CommonSenseGuy.com for common sense advice on leading people and running a small business.

I’ll see you around the web, and at Alex’s Lemonade Stand.

Bud

PS: Speaking of Alex’s Lemonade Stand – my fundraising page is still open.  Please go to www.FirstGiving.com.TheCommonSenseGuy to read Alex’s inspiring story and to donate if you can.