"CYA" (cover your ass) is a great phrase for office life, but sometimes it has connotations of selfishness, like you're saying someone just wants to protect himself, he doesn't really care about the group or the company. Example: "That email was mostly CYA. He just...
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Three tips for videoconferencing
I know a lot of you are working from home this week. It probably involves a lot of videoconferencing, which might feel a little strange, since it's probably a bit unfamiliar. I do a lot of videoconferencing, so here are three tips that might help. 1. Humans like...
CXO letter sample
---------- Forwarded message --------- From: matt@krauseenglish.com Date: XYZ Subject: CXO Letter sample To: xyz@xyz.com A favorite word that I've run across an unusual number of times in my readings this week is "slog." This word can be a noun or a verb, and using it...
Presentation checklist
Click here to download the presentation checklist (one-page PDF).
Free stock photo sites
BucketListly Photos CC0 Archives | Magdeleine Cupcake FoodiesFeed Foodie's Feed Free Refe Real Life Photos FreeDigitalPhotos Function - Design Blog Gratisography ISO Republic Jay Mantri Kaboompics.com Life Of Pix Little Visuals Magdeleine MMT morgueFile Pexels...
Interview with Memet Yazıcı
Baldwin and Matt interviewed Memet Yazıcı, Managing Partner of TRPE Capital. Memet speaks here about preparing for pitch meetings, a portfolio company’s management team’s role in telling the company’s story, and the importance of relationships with LPs.
Interview with Roland Meerdter
Baldwin and Matt interviewed Roland Meerdter, co-founder of Door Ventures. Roland speaks here about streamlining the DDQ process, the origins of Door, how standardized DDQs evolve over time, and how digitalization is affecting the due diligence process.
Interview with Kyle Dunn
Baldwin and Matt interviewed Kyle Dunn, CEO of Meyler Capital. Kyle speaks here about marketing in the fund world, and what opportunities fund managers are missing, and that performance is vital, but it’s table stakes, it’s like BMW saying, “Our cars run good.”
Encore interview with JB Beckett
Baldwin and Matt enjoyed the first interview with JB so much, they invited him back for an encore.
Interview with JB Beckett
Baldwin Berges and Matt interview JB Beckett, author of #New Fund Order.
Listener question for Ole
A listener asks Ole Rollag, a guest on our podcast, his thoughts on their newsletter.
Interview with Ole Rollag
Baldwin Berges and Matt interview Ole Rollag of Murano.
Mistakes fund managers make – bonus
Baldwin and Matt talk about one of the mistakes they see fund managers making: Mismatching their product design and their target investors.
Mistakes fund managers make – #5 of 5
Baldwin and Matt talk about one of the mistakes they see fund managers making: Not qualifying their prospects.
Mistakes fund managers make – #4 of 5
Baldwin and Matt talk about one of the mistakes they see fund managers making: Always sending in the highest-ranking person.
Mistakes fund managers make – #3 of 5
Baldwin and Matt talk about one of the mistakes they see fund managers making: Trying to go all the way on the first date.
Mistakes fund managers make – #2 of 5
Baldwin and Matt talk about one of the mistakes they see fund managers making: Rushing their investor.
Mistakes fund managers make – #1 of 5
Baldwin and Matt talk about one of the mistakes they see fund managers making: Not equipping their investors to argue their cases to other people.
Tsufit on speaking at conferences
Tsufit started out as a lawyer, singer, and actress, and for over 15 years now she has been coaching others to step into the spotlight. In fact, she wrote a book titled exactly that: “Step Into The Spotlight!”
Baldwin Berges on speaking at conferences
Baldwin Berges spent years in the investment world, helped companies raise money, and is now helping them clarify their messages, making complex ideas simple to understand. In this interview he talks a bit about speaking at conferences, and gives some tips to other speakers.
Erik Vos on speaking at conferences
Erik Vos has worked and presented in 91 countries and counting. In this interview he talks a bit about speaking at conferences, and gives some tips to other speakers.
Zeynep Stefan on moderating a panel
Zeynep Stefan has been in the insurance and risk management business for over 10 years. In this interview she talks a bit about moderating a panel.
Unlock the skills you already have
The best presentations use the skills you already have.
Use Presenter View to improve your bond with the audience
What if you want to keep some reminder notes around, but don’t want to hold pieces of paper in your hands?
Aydın Bırık on a startup’s investor presentation
Aydın Bırık sees many, many startups pitch their companies to potential investors. Here he talks about what he does (and does not) like to see, and what suggestions he would give to the entrepreneurs…
Office hours
UPDATE: As of March 2017, Matt’s public office hours have been replaced by “members only” office hours. For the location of the members-only office hours, please see: https://dopplercomm.com/members-only/office-hours/ Matt holds […]
Reader comments on Kevin Spacey speech
One of the most commented-on items in our Tips & Tricks series is a Kevin Spacey speech…
What’s behind that 25 times
There’s more behind that “practice 25 times” advice than just an unthinking “more practice is good, so get a lot of it.”
Here’s what’s behind it…
Speaking
It’s BizDev on steroids, and we’re your personal trainer.
Freelancers’ Show
Welcome to the Freelancer’s Show podcast listeners! Here are a couple things to reinforce what we discussed on the show. Just sign up with your email address, and we’ll send […]
Email styles
A great cartoon showing one of the main differences between executive and associate email styles…
Mindset change
Why the Tips and Tricks is a weekly email series, not a once-and-done ebook.
The Jesse Interviews
Jesse Scinto, our head speechwriter and presentation trainer, is a faculty member at the Strategic Communications department at New York’s Columbia University. So, understandably, we are proud of him and […]
Why we don’t do many one- or two-day trainings
Why we don’t do many one- or two-day trainings We get a lot of requests for one- or two-day trainings, but we don’t do very many of them. Why? It […]
Preparing for “12 Minutes With…”
Equipment: Please use headphones. They don’t have to be fancy; the ones you use with your iPhone are fine. Please use Chrome or Firefox. Sometimes Internet Explorer works for this, […]
Remote Coaching
With today’s technology, we don’t have to be face-to-face.
Speaking before an industry conference next month? Call on us to design your slides and coach you through the presentation.
Meeting with investors in London? Let us guide you through refining your message and designing your collateral materials.
Want to come across more professionally in those quarterly earnings conference calls? Perfect, we can help you with that.
Softening words
Eric Takaha at Franklin-Templeton is a master of using what we call “softening words,” which can come in very handy when you are describing overall trends in a public forum…
Acid test of a good financial speech
How do you know if you’ve written a good financial speech?
Client Communications
Equip your people to break through the barriers of resistance, to influence client decisions more effectively, and to use tested and proven techniques of visual design, communications framing, and neuromarketing.
We help your people focus on your client and transform confusing, cluttered messages into clearer, more impressive, and easier to understand sales tools.
You depend on your people to grow your business. Send them out into the field with the right tools for the job.
Investor Presentations
Markets are most unkind to things they don’t understand. We help you clear up those misunderstandings and represent your company and its ecosystem more clearly.
There’s almost almost always something about your company, or the market in which it exists, that you wish your investors understood more clearly.
Executive Communications
Expanding your markets. Representing your company on panels. Getting board approval for a major initiative. These all require the right presence, the right wordings and turns of phrase.
We edit/improve your speeches, practice your speaking skills, and design a whitepaper you can use in followup inquiries. But if you just want to talk astrophysics or House of Cards, we can do that too.
You’ve invested a lot in yourself, and made sacrifices for years, to get where you are. Don’t stop now.
Message focusing: Six-word story
Even the most complicated message can usually be distilled into a few words. It just takes a lot of work. A LOT.
What do I do with my hands? (Eric Takaha video)
One of the most common questions we hear when people go onto the stage is, “What do I do with my hands?”
Money is especially emotional
One of the best arguments for how people make decisions on emotion, even when (perhaps especially when) they are making decisions about money, is…
The wrong question
If you’re asking how can I speak better English, you might be asking the wrong question.
Method actor approach to communications
Michael Bierut describes not only the method we use, but why we use it, so well I read it and thought, “Yeah, that’s me!”…
You are just a midwife
The fastest way to Death By PowerPoint is to think you are anything more than a midwife to the audience’s dreams.
Pause
I love this article, especially the third tip…
Sometimes…
Sometimes public speaking doesn’t go so well…
Look at your people, not your screen
Stop looking at your computer screen!
And that’s how it’s done, folks!
Don Draper shows us how to do a presentation right. Here, notice three things in particular…
Extracting Previously Embedded Media Files in Keynote
Used a certain media in a previous Keynote presentation but you no longer can locate it on your computer? You can reach out to that file in 5 easy steps.
Jesse Scinto: Presentations Are Not About Informing
A lot of people think presentations are about informing, but here’s the problem with that view…
Jesse Scinto: Commitment Must Be Physical and Public
Listen to Jesse and Matt talk particularly about the importance of audience members making their commitments physical and public, and how we can do that in a presentation.
Jesse Scinto: Commitment and Consistency
Matt and Jesse discuss a chapter from Robert Cialdini’s book Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion, specifically the human desire to seem logical and consistent, and how we can use this natural human desire to persuade our audiences…
Jesse Scinto: The Credibility of Being Human
Listen to this talk to find out about how “When our audience can see that we have flaws, it really helps them identify with us.”
Jesse Scinto: “Progressive Complications” — What It Means
Jesse tells us what “progressive complications” are, where they come from, and how to use them in our presentations.
Jesse Scinto: What Benefit Am I Going to Get?
Often, our clients feel like if they talk about conflict or problems in their presentations, their audiences won’t respect them. It feels kind of risky. We asked Jesse about this. If a speaker takes the risk, what is the speaker going to get in return?
Jesse Scinto: Example of A Story About Corporate Restructuring
Jesse demonstrates how to tell a story about a corporate restructuring.
Jesse Scinto: Using Stories in a Business Context
One of our clients asked us how to tell stories in a business context. Jesse gives a great answer about that…
Jesse Scinto: Complication and Resolution
Jesse describes a more interesting way to structure your information, one that will keep your audience’s attention better.
Why Watch Videos of Yourself
There are a lot of reasons to watch videos of yourself practicing. Watching videos of yourself helps you improve your body language, content, your opening and closing. But mainly, watching videos of yourself helps you get out of your head.
Turkish or English?
It’s a good question: Should I do my training in Turkish or in English?
The best way to answer that question is probably to ask yourself, “What do I ultimately want to be able to do?”
Brevity
Brevity is vital. But one thing that often gets lost is that brevity is not enough.
Why listen over and over
Here’s one thing I recommend: Listen to the same thing, over and over. You want to listen to a 20-minute speech? That’s great. Pick three minutes of it, and listen to that same 3 minutes 5 times. Each time, write down one new thing you heard.
Hands When You’re Sitting
Ever wondered what to do with your hands when you are delivering a speech while sitting down?
Watch this short video for some tips.
Visualize Your Words in a Tag Cloud
Here’s another neat tip for seeing your speech from another perspective: Put it into a tag cloud.
Get them to agree with you first
Sometimes you’re speaking about a hotly-debated topic, something that not everyone in the room agrees with you about. Here’s a tip for those situations: Before you talk about the hot […]
Ira Glass interviews
3 Presentation Ruiners (And How to Deal With Them)
Getting up in front of people and speaking may not always be as easy as strolling in a park on a warm Sunday afternoon. Sometimes, it may feel more like […]
Good First Impression Tips #1
When you connect your computer to the projector before starting a presentation, what does your audience see first? Do they see a neat and tidy computer desktop with a regular […]
The seventh method
In the Fundamentals we mentioned the Curse of Knowledge, and six ways to overcome it. My personal favorite, though, isn’t on that list. It is: #7: Ask questions. Specifically, ask […]
How does this person think?
“How does this person think?” Maybe your audience members don’t know who you are. They might not even care about your subject. But they probably want to know how you […]
Are you sure you want to use that picture?
Yesterday I saw this ad in the subway station… At first I thought, “Oh, that’s such a pretty picture there on the screen… fish, water, blue, nature, sun, how nice!” […]
The Joe Black Chair
Sometimes our clients ask us to sit in on their “real life” presentations. We love opportunities like that. Seeing our clients operate live, “in the wild,” helps us do our […]
Slow down
The other day someone asked me for advice. He had wanted to give a speech that would last about 4-6 minutes, but instead the speech went for almost eight minutes. […]
Your speech will never be the same twice
You know the saying, “You never cross the same river twice”? That applies to speeches too. The other day I was speaking about my walk across Turkey. Because of a […]
Three questions
When you start preparing a presentation, don’t you dare start by opening PowerPoint. Mull over these three questions first: Who are you talking to? What do you want them to […]
Dealing with fear
There are many ways of dealing with fear. Here are two of them: 1. Conquer your fear Try to wrestle your fear to the ground. Try to beat it. Try […]
Fear makes bad things seem more real than they are
A couple years ago there was a woman who walked from Spain south to Morocco, and then east across Tunisia, Libya, and Egypt, then north into Jordan, and then into […]
Stories happen in the listeners’ heads
The Tipping Point, by Malcolm Gladwell
“The Tipping Point is the biography of an idea.” What is the idea? The idea is that “[i]deas and products and messages and behaviors spread just like viruses do.” In […]
The edge and the center
There are different ways to see the world. One of them is “What can I do on the edge?” Another is “How do I get to the middle?” Before you […]
Some examples of Stage’s formatting…
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Vivamus laoreet sodales nunc, porttitor vehicula nisl elementum eget. Sed feugiat tristique tellus ac cursus. [highlight]Duis nec leo at enim egestas tempor […]
A Google story
Some years ago I heard a story about Google. I forget the details, but the gist of the story sticks with me, and I think of it often… In Google’s […]
First, Break All The Rules, by Buckingham and Coffman
I threw this book across the room. Couldn’t read more than a third of it. Why? I’m no statistician, but, if I understand correctly, analyzing large amounts of data (which […]
If you can’t explain it simply…
If you can’t explain it simply, you probably don’t understand it well enough. Students come to me often and say, “I want to use more complicated sentences, like a native […]
The Dip, by Seth Godin
The upshot: If you want to get to the high points, you’re going to have to push through the low points. Most people don’t push through the low points, so […]
The Black Swan, by Nassim Nicholas Taleb
The upshot: Sometimes big, disruptive things happen, and they can’t be planned for, because you don’t know what they’ll be. They will end life as you know it (or as […]
Resonate, by Nancy Duarte
Do not look for a summary of this book. In my opinion, this is one of those books you should either submit to, allowing it to change the way you […]
The Cluetrain Manifesto, by Doc Searls and others
The upshot: Marketing is a conversation. It is a two-way exchange between people, not an opportunity for you to shout at your customers.
How to be a Presentation God, by Scott Schwertly
The upshot: Blah blah blah, a bunch of stuff. When you are preparing a presentation, segment your audience. Blah blah blah, a bunch more stuff. That one part, the reminder […]
No visual aids
Transcript: I recommend, for the first 10 speeches, no visual aids at all, no slides, nothing. We’re there in Toastmasters to learn how to connect with the audience. We’re there […]
Why practice 25 times?
New Service: Test My Presentation. You send us your presentation, we suggest how you can improve it. Click here for more info. Pro Tip: Use this service once a month, […]
Channeling Don Draper
One of my favorite scenes from Mad Men comes at the end of season 1, when Don pitches Eastman Kodak using a slide show from his own life… There are […]
Who is your audience? What do you want them to do?
These are the first questions I ask my clients when we are preparing a presentation. They are obvious questions. It is so easy to answer them quickly, forget the answers, […]
Keep your answers short
Q&A (questions and answers) is a great way to break up a speech and make sure you and your audience are thinking in the same direction. However, I often see […]
Call your audience
Ken Robinson is one of the most popular speakers in the TED community. But it’s not because he’s doing most of the things speech trainers tell us we should do. […]
Talk to the dog
The other day, I was helping a client with a presentation. He was an engineer for a solar power company, and he was going to introduce his company to some […]
Why do I have to practice 25 times?
People ask me for advice on how to speak better. When I tell them they have to practice 25 times, their eyes glaze over. They don’t want to hear it. […]