Say what?
When she won the Oscar this year, actress Melissa Leo made the mistake of dropping the F-bomb as part of her speech on live television. Tip: Prior to walking into a room or onto a stage, practice your spiel.
Category: Speaking
4 lessons from stand-up comedy
Steve Cody, a public relations consultant who blogs as The Repman, says he’s learned four things about good communication from practicing stand-up comedy: 1. Courage builds courage. 2. Timing is (almost) everything. 3. It’s not just what you say, but how. 4. Humor works like a magnet.
Add aphorisms to your bag of tricks
Aphorisms are reams of wisdom packed into little sayings. They come in
handy during meetings and speeches. Heres a sampling.
handy during meetings and speeches. Heres a sampling.
Grammar Repair Shop: If only this phrase would ‘go missing’
Problem: I’ve been hearing and reading the phrase “went missing” lately. It’s frequently in the media and sounds terrible! Is this phrase grammatically correct? — Joyce Prosser, Administrative Assistant, Saint Anselm College, Manchester, N.H. The phrase is grammatically correct, at least according to British diction-aries, and most people do un- derstand what it means. But […]
Grammar Repair Shop: ‘Which’ or ‘that’?
A reader asks: “Is there a hard-and-fast rule regarding ‘that’ and ‘which?’” One way to figure out when to use “that” versus “which”: Take a look at the whole sentence, and then decide whether the word will introduce an essential or nonessential clause. “That” introduces clauses that are essential to understanding the sentence’s meaning, while […]
Grammar Repair Shop: Is it just ‘me’?
One reader asks: “Please clarify the use of the word ‘I’ when using a pronoun with another name, such as: ‘These are the vacation schedules for Joan and I.’ Do you use I or me?” Whenever you’re unsure of which pronoun to use in a situation like this and don’t have time to dig into […]
Let your audience see you as a leader
Even if you’re in a routine staff meeting, it’s essential to speak as confidently as top executives do. Take your cues from some of today’s leaders.
Grammar Repair Shop: Passive resistance
People tend to overuse the passive voice because they think it’s more professional. In truth, readers prefer active sentences for their more direct and engaging tone. How can you spot a passive sentence? Three telltale signs: 1. Something happens to the subject of the sentence. Example: “The report was written last week.” 2. It contains […]
Grammar Repair Shop: Tips for avoiding 4 common word goofs
Should it be affect or effect? They’re or their? If you haven’t confused these words when writing, you’ve probably seen others mix them up. Here’s how to make the right choice, when it comes to the following commonly confused words: 1. There/their/they’re. Example: There/Their/They’re meeting always runs long. Answer: Their. How to remember: “Their” contains […]
Grammar Repair Shop: Saying it again and again
Avoid repeating yourself by watching out for the following tautologies: phrases that—put simply—say the same thing twice. 1. advanced ahead 2. at this point in time 3. basic fundamentals 4. brief in duration 5. both together 6. cooperate together 7. enclosed herein 8. free gift 9. important essentials 10. just exactly 11. merge together 12. […]