AIESEC Canada - comments

George Torok spoke to AIESEC Canada about presentation skills. Here is what they said.



“Truly eye-opening and entertaining. A great way to see the clear relevance of effective executive speaking and understand easy, specific ways to improve your own style.”

Carolyn Rush, Regional Vice President Ontario
AIESEC Canada

“George makes everyone feel comfortable together as a group, yet pushes each individual outside of their public speaking comfort zone. Just through watching George present, I am motivated to improve my speaking skills.”

John Kelly, Region Vice President West & Atlantic
AIESEC Canada


“George has an amazing ability to take the mundane and creating it into something engaging yet simple enough to remember and put into practice. Over the years, I have taken classes and read many books on effective speaking; however George’s class had the most impact on my development. I saw improvement in participating for only 4 hours of his session.”

Messalina Tiro, Vice President Corporate Development
AIESEC Canada


“George is not only a fantastic presenter he is also extremely effective with his time and content delivery. In a couple of hours he delivered several simple tips and techniques that will make me a much better presenter. Attending the “Effective Executive Speaking” course was certainly a great investment in my professional and personal development.”

Talicia Correa, Director of Alumni Relations
AIESEC Canada


“A truly motivating and inspirational presenter. This is my second time to receive training from George and I learn something new every time. The skills and techniques from this course help me every day both personally and professionally. Given the opportunity, I would certainly take a course from George again.”

Juan Panlilio, Director of National Accounts
AIESEC Canada


George Torok
Presention Skills Training

Executive Speech Coaching

You don't have a presentation

You don’t have a presentation


As I prepared to deliver my presentation I told the AV guy that he could turn off the computer projector – that I would not use PowerPoint.

His response was, “Oh you don’t have a presentation.”

I grinned at him and said, as I pointed at my head, “Oh yes I do, and it is all in here.”

Isn’t it funny how some people equate presentation with PowerPoint. I guess that congratulations are due to Microsoft on the power of their marketing. Microsoft has trained a generation of managers that believe that presentation = PowerPoint. Poor managers and especially poor presentation prisoners.

Many PowerPoint presentations are so bad. It is often just the speaker’s notes on the screen. Sometimes the PowerPoint is the speaker’s presentation – word for word.

A good presentation is about connecting with your audience, about delivering stories and about moving them to action. PowerPoint does none of those things. I’m sure that if George Orwell imagined the possibility of PowerPoint he would have included it in his novel of Big Brother’s torture “1984”. Dante’s Inferno would have surely included a gate in hell marked “PowerPoint”. You belong there if you commit the PowerPoint Sins.

My question to you – do you have a presentation or do you have a PowerPoint?


George Torok

Speech Coach for Executives

Presentation Skills Training

Motivational Speaker

Presentation Stories: The Night Before Christmas

THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS
by Clement Clarke Moore

'Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse;The stockings were hung by the chimney with care, In hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there;

The children were nestled all snug in their beds, While visions of sugar-plums danced in their heads; And mamma in her 'kerchief, and I in my cap, Had just settled down for a long winter's nap, When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter,I sprang from the bed to see what was the matter. Away to the window I flew like a flash, Tore open the shutters and threw up the sash.

The moon on the breast of the new-fallen snow Gave the lustre of mid-day to objects below, When, what to my wondering eyes should appear, But a miniature sleigh, and eight tiny reindeer, With a little old driver, so lively and quick, I knew in a moment it must be St. Nick. More rapid than eagles his coursers they came, And he whistled, and shouted, and called them by name;"Now, Dasher! now, Dancer! now, Prancer and Vixen!On, Comet! on Cupid! on, Donder and Blitzen! To the top of the porch! to the top of the wall! Now dash away! dash away! dash away all!"

As dry leaves that before the wild hurricane fly, When they meet with an obstacle, mount to the sky, So up to the house-top the coursers they flew, With the sleigh full of toys, and St. Nicholas too. And then, in a twinkling, I heard on the roof The prancing and pawing of each little hoof. As I drew in my hand, and was turning around,

Down the chimney St. Nicholas came with a bound. He was dressed all in fur, from his head to his foot, And his clothes were all tarnished with ashes and soot; A bundle of toys he had flung on his back, And he looked like a peddler just opening his pack. His eyes -- how they twinkled! his dimples how merry! His cheeks were like roses, his nose like a cherry! His droll little mouth was drawn up like a bow, And the beard of his chin was as white as the snow; The stump of a pipe he held tight in his teeth, And the smoke it encircled his head like a wreath; He had a broad face and a little round belly, That shook, when he laughed like a bowlful of jelly. He was chubby and plump, a right jolly old elf,And I laughed when I saw him, in spite of myself; A wink of his eye and a twist of his head,Soon gave me to know I had nothing to dread; He spoke not a word, but went straight to his work, And filled all the stockings; then turned with a jerk, And laying his finger aside of his nose, And giving a nod, up the chimney he rose; He sprang to his sleigh, to his team gave a whistle,

And away they all flew like the down of a thistle. But I heard him exclaim, ere he drove out of sight,"Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good-night."

Presentation: Telling Stories

Telling Stories

Tell stories. Paint word pictures that create images in the listeners’ minds. If they can see it they are more likely to understand and remember your message. The best public speakers are storytellers Use stories and anecdotes to illustrate and reinforce the main points of your presentation. Learn to master the skill of storytelling. Listen to newscasters, entertainers and other speakers.

The best stories are personal. Because they are yours - they are easier to remember and they make your presentation unique. We listen to stories. We hate lectures. If you forgot that lesson - just ask your kids. The way to find personal stories that can be used in your presentations is to write them down. Make a list of significant things that happened to you and those around you; the first time… the best, the worst, the biggest mistake, the best break, the greatest ah-ha, the funniest moment, the most frustrating incident, the dumbest thing you did, the most embarrassing moment…

The things that hurt you the most make the best stories to tell in your presentations. Rehearse your stories to edit them down into a short story that is easy to listen to. The hardest thing for you might be to leave out details. The hardest thing for your audience is listening to you describe unnecessary details. Just make the point.

The above is an excerpt from Secrets of Power Presentations by Peter Urs Bender.

George Torok

The Speech Coach for Executives

Presentation Skills Training

Delivering your Presentation

Delivering your Presentation

Last minute details before you begin speaking
Get into the room before your audience arrives to check the setup and get the feel of the room. This helps to make it your room. Walk around the room and sit in a few different chairs to take in the feel of your room and how your audience will see you. Check your equipment and put on your busiest slide to check for readability. Drink one or two glasses of warm water to both lubricate your vocal cords and hydrate yourself. Public speaking dehydrates you.

Emergency preparation
Check the exit doors and paths from the building. If an emergency occurs the audience will look to you, the speaker, for leadership and maybe their lives. Be prepared to tell people how to leave the room and building. If it becomes necessary - do it in a calm, commanding and confident voice. Public speaking carries the responsibility of leadership. Everything you do while speaking will be better if you prepare the skills to deliver.


Your confederate
Always have at least one confederate. This is a simple yet important secret to presentation success. Your confederate should sit near the back of the room so they can survey the room, help late arrivers and do things without disturbing the audience. They will take care of the lights, handouts, ushering people to their seats and even asking a planted question. It is their job to head off problems before they erupt. They should know how to work the lights and who to call when problems arise.


Eye Contact
Talk directly to people. The best presentation is delivered as a conversation to every person in your audience one person at a time. If you want to be believed – talk to every individual – looking him or her in the eye. Don’t make the big mistake committed by many novice public speakers - staring at the spot on the back wall. This one technique is a powerful element of successful presentation skills.


Emphasizing key points
If you want people to remember something – repeat it at least three times during your speech. The first time they might hear it. The second time they might mull it over. The third time it might stick. “I have a dream”. Do you know how many times Martin Luthur King repeated that phrase in his famous speech?


George Torok
Speech Coach for Executives

Public Speaking for IT Careers

Importance of Public Speaking Skills for IT

November 12, 2007 (Computerworld) -- When it comes to technical skills, you either have them or you get them. This year’s salary survey shows that there’s demand for a broad range of skills, many of which have been hot for several years (see our jobs report snapshots).

But what else makes for a great IT hire? In their continual struggle to align IT with the business, IT executives say they’re increasingly looking for staffers who have, in addition to technical chops, solid business acumen and so-called soft skills, like strong communication and listening abilities.

Computerworld’s most recent hiring and skills survey confirms that. Survey respondents said writing and public speaking are two of the most important soft skills they look for when hiring new employees. Classes that teach technical skills are easy to find, but what’s the best way to learn soft skills? Here’s a look at nine skills employers are looking for, with IT executives and career experts’ advice on how to get them.


Number three on the list is Public Speaking Skills

3. An aptitude for public speaking. They may be a throwback to the 1960s, but Toastmasters International clubs can help IT workers refine their public speaking skills and get past their jitters. Also, SIM’s Regional Leadership Forum can help up-and-coming IT professionals polish their leadership skills, including their speaking ability, says Keefe.


Read the rest of this report at Computer World.


Public Speaking Tips

Fear of Public Speaking

George Torok

Speech Coach for Executives

Imagine a Presentation without PowerPoint

Imagine a Presentation without PowerPoint

What? You’re giving a presentation without PowerPoint! Are you crazy?

That might be the reaction you would hear if you announced that you were planning to deliver your next presentation without the crutch of PowerPoint.

PowerPoint is a presentation tool for presenters who want their notes on the screen. Why know your presentation when you can read it from the screen? Most presenters might as well warn their audience at the beginning of their presentation. “Hi, I couldn’t be bothered to practice and learn my presentation so I’m just going to read the words on the screen to you. And I hope that you won’t notice that I am insulting you by reading what you see.”

How do you feel when the presenter reads the words on the screen to you?

Do you think, “Wow, what a great presenter. He can read the same words that I see on the screen.”?

Or do you think, “Why is this speaker treating us like children?”

PowerPoint is an easy-to-use presentation software. It’s so easy to use that it makes people stupid. They forget to ask, “What is the best way to get my message across?” They fail to ask, “Should I use PowerPoint for me presentation?” Instead they act like Borg drones, “If I deliver a presentation we must use PowerPoint. Resistance is futile.” I salute Microsoft and the power of their marketing.

It’s funny what people get used to. How easy we accept mediocrity. When I presented at a conference in Vancouver this week I instructed the AV guy to turn off the computer projector because I won’t use it. His response was, “Oh, you don’t have a presentation?”

Isn’t that curious that he equated presentation with PowerPoint.

I laughed while pointing to my head and said, “Of course I have a presentation and it’s in here. It won't get lost and it won’t break down.”

PowerPoint is a presentation crutch for handicapped presenters. It doesn’t make them better presenters. It emphasizes their handicap.

Presentation does not equal PowerPoint.


George Torok
Speech Coach for Executives
Business Presentation Skills Training

Avoid the PowerPoint Sins

PowerPoint is a registered trademark of Microsoft
Any comments about PowerPoint on this blog are not endorsed by Microsoft and are the opinions of this blogger.

Presentation Skills

Presentation Skills

Presentation Skills Training

Presentation Skills Coaching

Presentation Skills for Engineers

Presentation Skills for Accountants

Presentation Skills for Novice Speakers

Presentation Skills for Advanced Speakers

Presentation Skills for Business Professionals

Presentation Skills Monthly Tips

Impromptu Public Speaking

Impromptu Speaking

Sometimes you might be asked to give comments or a presentation without advance notice. You might be tempted to think on your feet. I strongly suggest that you do not think on your feet. It is easy to get yourself into trouble. Instead always be prepared to speak on very short notice. Impromptu speaking is similar to regular presenting – in that both are based on skill development. The better you know and practice the techniques the more it looks like talent.

Here are some techniques to help you with impromptu speaking.

Be prepared with some favourite stories that you tell well and can use to illustrate more than one message as required.

Quickly write three points on an index card – then talk about those points. Decide on the one thing that you want to get across – and deliver that message.

Conduct your speech as an interview with yourself. Ask questions – and answer them.

Don’t think on your feet – instead be prepared.

George Torok

Speech Coach for Executives

Presentation Skills Training