ID Speakers.com

Rickey Henderson Wows with Induction Speech

2009-07-27T09:21:00.002-04:00

Nice story on the induction speech given by now-Hall of Famer Rickey Henderson. For those not in the know, he stole more bases than any player in the history of professional baseball.

Snippet and link:

When Rickey was a youngster and learning how to get a good lead, play cat-and-mouse with the pitcher and steal bases during his first year in the Minor Leagues (1976) his coach was longtime baseball guru Tom Trebelhorn.

When Rickey wanted to polish his admitted speaking deficiencies, he went to school. That might be hard to believe, but that's what he did in the days leading up to the induction.

For the past two weeks, he attended two summer classes at Laney Community College in Oakland.

The courses? Public Speaking and Introduction to Speech, both taught by Earl Robinson, a former Major Leaguer with the Dodgers (1958) and Orioles (1961-63). Robinson even went to Rickey's home some nights to help him polish the speech.

"It was great," Henderson told me in a quiet corner two hours after Sunday's induction. "He kept telling me to slow down. You know, I tend to cut off my words in a sentence and we worked on that. And he kept stressing, 'Slow down. Slow down.' You know I talk very fast, and Earl said I had a habit of talking about something, go off it and not know how to come back."

http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20090726&content_id=6067970&vkey=perspectives&fext=.jsp&c_id=mlb

--John
www.idspeakers.com

Million Dollar Cancellation Fee for Corporate Meeting

2009-07-24T10:00:00.001-04:00

This little snipped from Hospitality Net blew me away about the perception of "excessive indulgence" in the corporate meeting world. Check this out and link to full story about the state of the event planning industry

Perception of politically incorrect excessive indulgence is not going away.
The “perception” problem with corporate groups meeting at high-end resort destinations appears to be not going away soon. I had a conversation recently with a senior sales and marketing executive of one of the most revered trophy resorts. He told me about a financial institution client that had booked the resort every year going back to the 1970s and had just cancelled their 2010 meeting despite having to pay nearly US$1 Million in cancellation fees.

http://www.hospitalitynet.org/news/4042256.html

--John

www.idspeakers.com

Hotel prices for groups versus everyday travelers are upside down

2009-07-23T10:00:00.000-04:00

I have to admit that I found this article by Sarah Clarke of The Orlando Sentinel to be fascinating. I can't imagine that this type of pricing can be sustained.

Snippet and link follow:

Most of the nation's top 25 hotel markets are slashing the rates they charge everyday travelers, while the prices paid by large groups and conventioneers have fallen just slightly. As a result of this recession-fighting tactic, groups that used to get discounts on high-end hotel rooms for their annual meetings or trade shows are now paying more than walk-in customers for those same rooms.

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/business/orl-cfbcover-room-rates-072009072009jul20,0,1263556.story

--John

www.idspeakers.com

GOP Whip Honing Speaking Skills for White House Run?

2009-07-22T09:00:00.000-04:00

From the Washington Post "Sleuth" Mary Ann Akers...Shows how important public speaking is to elected officials.

Further fueling speculation that House Republican Whip Eric Cantor is mulling a bid for the White House, new federal election reports show the Virginia Republican recently spent big bucks on speech coaching.

The No. 2 House GOP leader paid $7,697.25 for the services of ace speaking coaches Roy and Jeanette Henderson -- more specifically, one of the husband-wife team's Podium Master seminars. The date listed for those services was May 28, according to the Cantor congressional campaign's most recent mandatory filing with the Federal Election Commission.

More here: http://voices.washingtonpost.com/sleuth/2009/07/_further_fueling_speculation_t.html?hpid=politics

--John
www.idspeakers.com

Washington Women in Public Relations public speaking workshop July 27

2009-07-21T16:49:00.002-04:00

I like public relations (that's my full-time gig) and I like promoting public speaking (part-time gig). The two are meeting today, and I will be careful not to "cross the streams."

Washington Women in Public Relations presents Denise Graveline, a speaker coach who will speak on the topic "Step Up Your Speaking: Be an Eloquent Woman" Monday, July 27, from 12 noon to 2 p.m. at the National Cable & Telecommunications Association, Suite 100, 25 Massachusetts Avenue, NW, in Washington DC (metro: Union Station).

http://www.examiner.com/x-2835-DC-Marketing-and-PR-Examiner~y2009m7d21-Washington-Women-in-Public-Relations-public-speaking-workshop-July-27

--John
www.idspeakers.com

Great Relationships Are the Key to Great Events

2009-07-21T09:00:00.000-04:00

Nice article from Successful Meetings by Kathy Cattoor.

Here's a little bit and a link:

Creating a great event necessitates ongoing communication and interaction between the sales department and the meeting planner that may continue well after an event has taken place. With companies restricting travel budgets and the number of destination meetings being reduced, it is more important than ever for both planners and salespeople to stay engaged with each other through personal interaction.

http://www.successmtgs.com/mimegasite/articles/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003992660

--John

www.idspeakers.com

Boosting Your Confidence in Presentations

2009-07-20T10:00:00.000-04:00

Great intro to this piece on Boosting Your Confidence in Presentations:

How is it that normally secure, confident, outgoing people can feel so nervous about giving a presentation? A recent survey of the top 10 things people most dreaded showed Public Speaking as top of the list closely followed by Death! Presumably if you were asked to give a eulogy at a funeral you would prefer to be in the ‘box'.

http://buyersteps.ulitzer.com/node/1036747

--John

www.idspeakers.com

World Record Breaking Public Speaker Shares Tips

2009-07-17T10:00:00.000-04:00

If you want to be a speaker, this guy offers some good motivation. Snippet and link follow.

“The key of a good speech is to tell it as a story,” said world-renowned public speaker TJ Walker to a selective audience of media personnel, corporate leaders and foreign ambassadors in the International Immigrants Foundation building.

http://www.theepochtimes.com/n2/content/view/19683/

--John

www.idspeakers.com

Michigan Club Takes Fear Out of Public Speaking

2009-07-16T10:00:00.000-04:00

Here's a nice local piece from Michigan on a public speaking club.

There are few things that drum up as much fear, wobbly knees and sweaty armpits as accepting an award, delivering a eulogy or even (gasp!) making a PowerPoint presentation to the boss.

The Northern Macomb SpeakEasy Club is helping to quell those public speaking terrors by offering supportive and informative advice to anyone who is faced with a podium, lectern or just a small group of colleagues.

http://www.sourcenewspapers.com/stories/071209/loc_story6001.shtml

--John

www.idspeakers.com

Australian Reality Show about Public Speaking

2009-07-15T10:00:00.001-04:00

As I resist an intro that involves the word "mate," I simply offer up a snippet and link to a proposed reality TV program in Australia about public speaking.

``Strictly Speaking aims to bring all the fun of dancing or cooking or singing to public speaking.''

http://www.news.com.au/perthnow/story/0,21598,25773856-5005368,00.html

--John

www.idspeakers.com

Ten tips to help improve your public speaking

2009-07-14T10:00:00.000-04:00

Nice article by Jack Wallen.

"In the business world, speaking effectively is a must, but for many the thought of speaking in public makes their blood run cold. Long-time actor Jack Wallen shares some tried-and-true techniques to take the edge off your nerves and make your delivery smooth."

http://resources.zdnet.co.uk/articles/comment/0,1000002985,39669783,00.htm

--John
www.idspeakers.com

University of Buffalo Announces Speaker Series

2009-07-13T10:00:00.000-04:00

Great speakers here, and I have a soft spot for the town of my birth:

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- The University at Buffalo has announced its 23rd Annual Distinguished Speakers Series, which will run Sept. 16 through April 24.

Speakers will be former United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan, former British Prime Minister Tony Blair; bestselling author, television personality and astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson; political satirist Bill Maher; distinguished novelist and poet Margaret Atwood; Los Angeles Times columnist and author Steve Lopez; and provocative American intellectual, author and champion for racial justice, Cornel West.

More here: http://www.buffalo.edu/news/10235

--John

www.idspeakers.com

Eco-conscious Event Planning Company Donates to California Shores

2009-07-10T10:00:00.000-04:00

Eco-conscious Event Company walks its "Green" Talk. A newly launched green event planning company, EcoWithin Event Services, announces it will donate a portion of its event profits, from July 1, 2009 to December 31, 2009 to Save Our Shores a nonprofit organization dedicated to marine conservation.

Link: http://www.prweb.com/releases/2009/07/prweb2607674.htm

--John

http://www.idspeakers.com/

Getting over anxiety with public speaking

2009-07-09T10:00:00.000-04:00

Tips From a Seattle PI blog and link:

Some of the most brilliant public speakers started out with the most fear.

I've found that focusing on these four beliefs help most clients alleviate anxiety over public speaking.

1) A belief in your product or service so strong it overrides the anxiety.

2) A belief that you're the perfect person to be presenting these particular ideas and suggestions.

3) A true desire to help and empower someone else.

4) A well-thought out presentation that influences your target audience to take action.

It's easy to let thoughts of fear enter in before giving a speech. Use your will power to put more attention on beliefs that will help you give a powerful and effective presentation.

http://tinyurl.com/lf5t62

--John

http://www.idspeakers.com/

Event Planners Lose Commissions as Meetings Shrink

2009-07-08T10:00:00.001-04:00

From yesterday's NYTimes:

When meetings or conferences are canceled — a relatively common occurrence in these financially difficult times — hotels collect a fraction of the money they were expecting, and participants lose the chance to network or gain knowledge about their industry.

But one group of hospitality professionals is literally watching its livelihood go down the drain as corporate events are pared to the bone — the corporate event planners hired by companies to book and coordinate meetings.

Link: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/07/business/07meetings.html?hp

--John

www.idspeakers.com

Become a great communicator

2009-07-07T10:00:00.001-04:00

From Salt Lake Tribune

Snippet and link:

How does one connect with an audience?

People want to listen to someone who is interesting, relaxed and comfortable. In routine conversations that we have every day, we have no problem being ourselves. Yet too often, when we stand up to give a speech, something changes. We focus on the "public" at the expense of the "speaking." To be an effective public speaker, you must do just the opposite -- focus on speaking and let go of the "public." Begin by having a conversation. It is also important to remember you are not the most important person in the room.

http://www.sltrib.com/business/ci_12720681

--John

www.idspeakers.com

Featured Video: Like John and Like Kate Plus Like 8

2009-07-06T15:30:00.002-04:00

For the record, I enjoy reality TV, but I have always thought the John and Kate show was drivel. Today, I am inaugurating a featured video and decided to forgo the masters and show "like" what is "like" wrong with "like" so many people's speech.

Here is the link to a great post by L. Steven Sieden at Examiner.com. Check it out.

http://www.examiner.com/x-7311-Cultural-Trends-Examiner~y2009m7d3-Kate-Gosselin-is-no-longer-Kate-the-Great-And-she-is-clearly-like-not-a-good-speaker-video

--John

http://www.idspeakers.com/

Public Speaking Cash a Reason for Palin Resignation?

2009-07-06T10:00:00.000-04:00

Nice piece in Reuters suggests a number of reasons why Sarah Palin might be leaving office. Here's one:

* She can make some money. Leaving her job would allow Palin to take a job in the private sector or take advantage of her popularity to bring in cash as a public speaker, author or talk-show host, possibly still making a run for national office.

Here's the link: http://www.reuters.com/article/sarahPalin/idUSTRE5624VW20090703

--John

http://www.idspeakers.com/

Vogue’s New Event Planner ‘Didn’t Even Plan Her Own Engagement Party’

2009-07-02T13:19:00.003-04:00

For some reason, I love this headline. Link to blog post from New York Magazine follows:

Vogue’s New Event Planner ‘Didn’t Even Plan Her Own Engagement Party’ -- The Cut: New York Magazine's Fashion Blog

--John

www.idspeakers.com

Nice piece on Sought-After Event Planner

2009-07-02T10:00:00.000-04:00

Here's a nice piece from 27east on a sought-after event planner. Excerpt and link:

And that’s why East Enders in the know call Ms. Katz when they are planning a memorable party at home. As one of the most sought-after event planners here and in Manhattan, Ms. Katz, who spends part of the year at her vacation home in Remsenburg, continues to deliver hundreds of “good things” each year.

With a of team of nine employees, including many family members, Ms. Katz’s Gourmet Advisory Services plans parties for every stage of life, from bar mitzvahs to weddings to retirement parties. Her events range in size from house parties for 80 people to corporate gatherings with guest lists numbering in the hundreds.

http://tinyurl.com/ltsohn

--John

Public speaking seminar in Cypress, Calif. July

2009-07-01T10:00:00.001-04:00

Here's a link to an interesting public speaking seminar.

http://tinyurl.com/n32vmt

Details:

Many of us are required or asked to give presentations in class, at work, or at social events, yet we are too fearful or lack the knowledge to give a presentation effectively and confidently. By understanding the fear and by offering exercises in a safe and positive growth environment, the published author of "31 Tips to Becoming an Effective Presenter," will gently guide you in developing a positive attitude towards public speaking, transcending your presentation and speaking fears and becoming confident in presenting to others. You may even learn to enjoy giving presentations.

Location: Cypress College
Room SCE200/223
9200 Valley View St
Cypress, CA 90630

Date: Thursdays, July 9 to July 30

Time: 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm

For more info or to enroll: http://schedule.sce.cc.ca.us/course.php/200905//3CC/ENCO/520

--John

www.idspeakers.com

Public speaking tip: Get to the point

2009-06-30T17:52:00.000-04:00

Nice piece in the Newark Star Ledger. http://tinyurl.com/l66cct

--John

Conquer Public Speaking

2009-04-07T17:20:00.002-04:00

4/7/09 -- Here are two good articles from CIO Magazine on public speaking. Check them out.

http://tinyurl.com/c64yms

http://tinyurl.com/c8fpsh

--John

Week #1 Rocked As Well

2009-03-06T09:00:00.002-05:00

3/6/09 - Our first full week in operation at IDSpeakers.com was a great success. We hit our goals for total number of speakers registered, and we converted nearly 40% of visitors into registrants for our e-mail distribution of speaking opportunities. Big thanks to Twitter and LinkedIN.

We distributed our announcement release and posted a how-to video/screencast available on our new YouTube Channel.

Thanks to everyone who has visited the site and signed up. Now go tell all your friends!

I have reposted the video demo because I like it.

--John

www.idspeakers.com

Can you have a “Blood Feud” on Twitter?

2009-03-04T09:00:00.006-05:00

3/4/09 - Yesterday was an interesting day. The guys from Speakersite called me to very politely suggest that they didn't want me to promote IDSpeakers.com as a service provider on their site – even though they allow such things. No big deal really as I had only registered a few days earlier and had only spent a few minutes browsing their site.

However, the worm turned when I was checking our Twitter account and noticed that Speakersite seemed to be “following” many of our followers. Seemed a little too coincidental, so I went to their Twitter page and checked who they have started following recently, and the first 200 or so (to the tweet exactly) are followers of IDSpeakers. Should I be surprised?

Speakersite has what I believe to be a completely different biz model to our (only one-week-old) site, but I guess they like our marketing ideas.

Until yesterday afternoon, I didn’t consider them to be a competitor, but now:

IT’S ON…LIKE DONKEY KONG! (Wanted to say that for some time.)

--John

P.S. My connections on LinkedIn are private!

IDSpeakers.com Official Launch News Release

2009-03-03T14:00:00.000-05:00

WebWire | Press Release Distribution
IDSpeakers.com Launched to Connect Organizations with Speakers
WEBWIRE – Tuesday, March 03, 2009

Contact Information
John P. David
Founder
IDSpeakers.com
305-255-0035
john@idspeakers.coom

MIAMI (March 3, 2009) – A new Web site designed to connect speakers with organizations was launched today. IDSpeakers.com is a free web-based service that matches organizations with public speakers and speakers to organizations.

Speakers can join the weekly e-mail distribution of speaking opportunities while all organizations – from coffee klatches to Fortune 500 companies – can register to find speakers. Any organization or enterprise who is seeking a speaker can use IDSpeakers.com to find the perfect match.

“Our speakers include everyone – from amateurs who are just starting-out to high-flying motivational professionals,” said site founder John P. David. “We encourage anyone who wants to stand-up and talk – about their products, services, ideas or even themselves – to give us a try.”

The Web site simply and easily connects speakers to organizations:

• Those seeking speakers use the speaker opportunity form to enter the category of the speech or presentation along with a brief description of what is required of the speaker.

• The speaker request is then e-mailed to the site’s list of speakers.

• Potential speakers then review the e-mailed opportunities and reply to the requesting organization directly.

• The site is free for both speakers and organizations.

Site organizers are encouraging event and meeting planners, professional associations, trade-show organizers, community organizations, service clubs (Kiwanis, Rotary, etc), chambers of commerce, student groups or anyone that regularly or just occasionally needs speakers to use the service.

IDSpeakers.com maintains at blog at http://www.idspeakers.blogspot.com and also actively uses Twitter (http://twitter.com/IDSpeakers), Facebook (http://tinyurl.com/ct4yz2) and Friendfeed (http://friendfeed.com/idspeakers) to update speakers and organizations on the site’s latest news. A demo video/screencast is available on the site’s YouTube Channel: http://www.youtube.com/idspeakers.

For more information, visit www.IDSpeakers.com or contact John P. David at 305-255-0035 or john@idspeakers.com.

How to Find a Speaker Video/Screencast Debuts

2009-03-02T09:00:00.003-05:00

3/2/09 -- We just completed our how to find a speaker video/screencast. It is available through our YouTube channel http://www.youtube.com/IDSpeakers and you can view it below as well.

Let me know what you think.

--John

Need to Find a Speaker? Read this.

2009-02-27T13:08:00.003-05:00

2/27/09 - Below is a link to the full text of a good article on how to find a speaker. Here's a synopis as well:

"Choosing the right speaker for any social event is always tricky, with a balance having to be struck between who the speaker is, what the speaker is saying and how they are delivering the content.
"First, you must consider the audience of the event. If you have a bunch of high school kids who you need to keep entertained, then finding someone with an excessively dry or verbose speaking style will certainly do you no favors.
"Second, you have to consider the interests and general belief system of the audience, as well as their general comprehension level.
"Subject matter would appear to be the key consideration, but is only one of many things.
"A speaker has to engage his or her audience, he or she must be able to reach out and invite them to take a journey.
"References help, as does having seen them before. Talking to them beforehand about the ability and expectation of the crowd helps, too."

Here's a link to the whole article: http://www.articlesbase.com/ask-an-expert-articles/on-finding-the-right-guest-speaker-770129.html

--John

www.idspeakers.com

Day One Rocked!

2009-02-26T09:52:00.004-05:00

2/26/09 - Well I don't think I could be any happier about day one of IDSpeakers.com. We had a bunch of speakers sign up for our e-mail alerts, beating my very modest goals. I'm keeping the number under my hat, but I was really surprised that the conversion rate of visitors to sign-ups was more than 40%. I'm not kidding!

So, we need help spreading the word because I think we might be on to something.

We are making a few adjustments to the main sign-up page. Some nice folks at the LinkedIn Public Speaking Network gave me suggestions to that end.

And needless to say, I think Twitter is amazing for our site. If you are not following us on Twitter, please do so at http://twitter.com/idspeakers.

--John

Launch Commit

2009-02-25T08:54:00.002-05:00

2/25/09 - IDSpeakers.com is officially open for business. We are calling it a beta for now, but we are all systems go. Sign up for the e-mail blast or enter your speaking engagement today!

--John

We Cleared Legal

2009-02-23T17:05:00.003-05:00

2/23/09 - Today was a good day. We cleared legal and now have our copyright and terms of use approved. That was the last puzzle piece and now web guru Sharon has to fit them all together. We will then be read to launch.

I'm calling it a soft/beta/ease into the marketplace launch. Thinking the next day or so.

--John

Inching toward beta launch

2009-02-20T10:50:00.000-05:00

We have made some great strides. The site format is done and the copy has been tweaked (or is it tweeked). The back-end software works and everyone who has seen the site likes it.

We have created a facebook fan page (need some fans), a twitter page (already have a couple followers -- gotta love early adopters) and the blog is integrated. So what's the hold up? Legal, of course. My brother the lawyer is working on the terms of use, and I can't bug him too much because he is being paid in beer and chicken wings. As they say in Jamaica: Soon come.

--John

Beta version of IDSpeakers coming soon

2009-02-11T21:52:00.000-05:00

2/11/09. You are currently looking at the birth of a social media Web site, and right now it's an "ugly baby." You know...the kind of infant that only its mother could love. Have no fear, we will launch a cute and happy, baby version soon.

--John