Great book for authors. Will immediately improve your presentations and book signings.
The Exceptional Presenter is a complete book that offers a lot of helpful tips for just about every facet of public speaking. It is written for business presenters primarily, but is equally valuable for teachers, preachers, or first time public speakers. The chapters are laid out well, the formulas are simple enough to implement immediately, and you will find at least one tip that will improve your speaking abilities.
Chapter 4 has some great tips on organizing your speech. The author will show you how to craft a 60 second introduction that helps you focus the entire presentation. This chapter includes a worksheet to guide the speaker and help them create a great presentation. Be sure and check out the 60/20 Rule here as well.
Chapter 5 is entitled Passionate, and it is one of my favorites. I have been guilty of speaking with the \”T-Rex Posture\” that the author warns against, and there are plenty of practical tips to improve your posture, inflection, and pacing in this chapter. Just following the advice in this chapter would help speakers that I hear each week improve 100%.
The following chapter discusses engagement, and the author gives 11 helpful tips on engaging the audience. Again, rather than just tell you what to do, the author instructs readers on easy ways to practice these skills throughout their day.
There really isn’t much not to like about this book. It’s easy to read and gets right to the point. The only thing I wish had been fleshed out more was the organization of content, but that is small complaint. Once you factor in the helpful advice on how to practice multiple times a day and the presentation sheets provided at the end of the book, this is an outstanding work that will improve your speaking abilities. Highly recommended for anyone who speaks publicly, especially those who are just starting out.