Joan Detz is the author of How to Write & Give a Speech and Can You Say a Few Words?. A professional speech coach, she advises prominent executives across the country and conducts communications seminars for major corporations. She lives in Bucks County, Pennsylvania.

Acknowledgments

xiii

Preface

Section One What You Say

(4)

Section Two How You Say It

(100)

Choose Your Best Communication Option

(3)

How Long Should You Talk?

(4)

How to Organize Your Message

(6)

How to Do Terrific Research

(9)

How to Use Storytelling Techniques

(2)

How to Improve Your Speechwriting Skills

(5)

How to Improve Your Delivery Skills

(65)

Using Humor

101

(4)

Section Three When You Say It

105

(20)

Timing Is Everything

107

(9)

Impromptu Speaking

116

(1)

Awkward Timing

117

(1)

Frequency

117

(1)

When You Must Deal with Resistance

118

(1)

When It's Better to Wait

118

(1)

When You Have to Say ``No''

119

(2)

When You Have to Say ``I'm Sorry''

121

(2)

Procrastination

123

(2)

Section Four Where You Say It

125

(14)

Choosing the Best Location

127

(1)

The Hometown Advantage

128

(1)

Make the Most of Your Location

129

(2)

Bad Locations

131

(1)

Technical Glitches

132

(2)

Speaking Outdoors

134

(1)

Out-of-Town Problems

135

(4)

Section Five Who Says It, and Who Is Listening?

139

(18)

The Right Speaker for the Right Message

141

(1)

Who Says It?

141

(3)

Who Is Listening?

144

(9)

Interpreting the Agenda

153

(4)

Section Six Who Else Could Say It for You?

157

(10)

Substitute Speakers

159

(3)

Choosing the Right Person to Introduce You

162

(1)

Working with Other Speakers

163

(1)

Panels

163

(4)

Section Seven Was Your Speech a Success?

167

(24)

``I Could Have Been a Better Communicator if Only...''

169

(1)

Identify Your Speaking Personality

170

(1)

Assess Your Speaking Style

171

(2)

What Are You Doing to Become a Better Speaker?

173

(1)

Manage Negative Emotions

174

(1)

Identify Your Own Strengths

175

(4)

Build on Your Strengths

179

(1)

Identify People Who Can Help You Improve as a Speaker

180

(1)

Measure Your Effectiveness

181

(1)

Get an Audience Evaluation

182

(3)

Learning from Other Speakers

185

(1)

Learning from a Professional Coach

186

(5)

Section Eight Appendix---Useful Books, Websites, and Professional Organizations

191

(28)

Useful Books

193

(22)

Useful Professional Organizations

215

(1)

Useful Websites for Speakers

215

(4)

Index

219

Supplemental Materials

What is included with this book?

The New copy of this book will include any supplemental materials advertised. Please check the title of the book to determine if it should include any access cards, study guides, lab manuals, CDs, etc.

The Used, Rental and eBook copies of this book are not guaranteed to include any supplemental materials. Typically, only the book itself is included. This is true even if the title states it includes any access cards, study guides, lab manuals, CDs, etc.

Excerpts

Chapter One

The title of this book reads It's Not What You Say, It's How You Say It . But I have a confession: That might be a slight exaggeration. Because "what you say" does matter ... it just doesn't tell the whole story.

Let me explain.

Maybe you have to run a community fund-raiser, or meet face-to-face with a sales prospect, or handle a tough job interview. Maybe you have to give a short presentation to a few colleagues at a department meeting, or give a big speech at a professional conference.

Whether you're talking to one person or a thousand, you certainly need a message. And that message must be targeted to your listeners' needs.

Before you decide "what to say," ask yourself these important questions:

(1) What do they want to hear from me?

(2) What do they need to hear from me?

(Pamela Harriman, former U.S. ambassador to

France, once defined leadership as "the ability to

tell people not what they want to hear, but what

they need to know.")

(3) What do they already know about this topic--and where did they get their information?

(4) What misconceptions do they have?

(5) What problems do they face--and how did those problems develop?

(6) What solutions have they already tried?

(7) What message would be most comfortable?

(8) What message would be most troubling?

(9) What information could save them money?

(10) What information could save them time?

(11) What changes would I suggest they make?

(12) What recommendations could they put into practice most easily?

(13) What advice would be welcome?

(14) What advice would be resented?

(15) What perspective can I bring to their unique situation?

(16) And, perhaps the most important question: What

can I say to them that no one else could say as

effectively?

Once you ask yourself these basic questions, you should have a pretty good idea of what to say. And that's important, because you certainly need a message.

But good presentations demand more than a message. And that's why this chapter--the "content" chapter--is the shortest in the whole book. As you will soon see, good communication isn't just "what you say," it's how you say it.

Excerpted from IT'S NOT WHAT YOU SAY, IT'S HOW YOU SAY IT by Joan Detz. Copyright © 2000 by Joan Detz. Excerpted by permission. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.