Monthly Archives: July 2010

The Good Kind of Stupid

Want to get schooled in messaging? Write a country song!

In 2003 I took some time off from marketing to learn to be a songwriter. The West Coast Songwriters conference gave me my first chance to screen a song for a real live A & R guy. This was a big deal. Artist and Repertory people select songs for a record label’s artists. Remember record labels? They’re those companies that used to sell music!

To Overcome Fear of Public Speaking, Know What You are Talking About

More advice about overcoming fear of speaking. Really?

Humans have contended with this fear since cavemen could grunt, and tips for overcoming it can’t have been far behind. Somewhere there is a self-help cave drawing advising aspiring storytellers to imagine the audience without their bear pelts. So no, I don’t want to be the millionth person to suggest imagining your audience naked. Depending on the audience, that could give you nightmares anyway! Besides, the goal isn’t just to overcome fear, it’s to deliver a compelling presentation.