Recent Articles in Resources
April 2, 2024
Poem to Help Your Public Speaking: April Love
Resources , The Buckley Experience , Poems to Read Aloud
From the poet who gave us "days of wine and roses" and the first writer to use the word "soccer," some lines you can read aloud to improve your public speaking.
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March 4, 2024
Spring Forward with a Poem to Help Your Public Speaking
Poems to Read Aloud , The Buckley Experience , Resources
Send a shout out to spring and improve you public speaking, with this poem by Marion Strobel to read aloud.
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February 15, 2024
Think Fast, Talk Smart: A Podcast about Communicating
Resources , Business Communication , Seen|Read|Heard
Looking for another great resource to inspire better communication? We're liking this podcast from Stanford University's graduate business school!
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February 5, 2024
Poetry to Help Your Public Speaking: Byron's Walk in Beauty
Poems to Read Aloud , Resources , The Buckley Experience
Delivering poetry aloud will enhance your public speaking. This month, try some romantic lines from the controversial star of England's Romantic movement.
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January 3, 2024
Attracting and Retaining Young Talent: Etiquette training can be key
Etiquette , Business Communication , Resources
More companies are finding that an investment in employee soft skills - including etiquette - can help them improve performance and achieve important goals. See why it works on multiple fronts.
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January 2, 2024
Poetry to Improve Your Public Speaking: Lady Speyer's Enigma
Poems to Read Aloud , Resources , The Buckley Experience
A concert violinist turned poet, Leonora Speyer captivated audiences and captured the Pulitzer Prize. Read her lines out loud to improve your speaking.
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December 26, 2023
Spokesperson Update: Little Library Advocate is All Grown Up
Public Speaking , Resources , Seen|Read|Heard
At eight years old, Madison Reid delivered an impromptu message about books that made a big impression. Where is that powerful little speaker today?
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December 21, 2023
Books for Speakers: A Dictionary of Gestures
Resources , Gestures & Body Language , Speaker's Bookshelf
Most presenters we know are keen to improve their gestures, body language, and other nonverbal communication. Here's a book that can open your mind to the possibilities!
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December 3, 2023
Poem to Read Aloud: The Christmas Carol Challenge
Poems to Read Aloud , Resources , The Buckley Experience
The tune may be burned into your holiday brain, but finding another way to deliver the lines can improve your public speaking. We provide "Good King Wenceslas" for you to read out loud.
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October 2, 2023
A Poem to Help Your Public Speaking: October's Poet of Love & Fame
Poems to Read Aloud , The Buckley Experience , Resources , Vocal Delivery
While we don't know much about popular songwriter and poet Fannie Isabelle Sherrick, we do know reading her lines aloud can help a speaker out!
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September 12, 2023
Media Training: Alternatives to 'no comment'
Media Training , Resources
Don't let the movies lead you astray: Saying "no comment" is not the smart response to a reporter's question. Here's what you can do instead.
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September 5, 2023
Poem to Read Aloud: Helen Hunt Jackson Celebrates September
The Buckley Experience , Poems to Read Aloud , Resources
Celebrate September with a perfect poem for polishing your diction and learn more about the fascinating woman who wrote it.
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August 14, 2023
Everything is Communication: Dining Etiquette
Etiquette , Resources , The Buckley Experience
Our ease in business social settings can say a lot. In this post-pandemic, casual dining world, how can you brush up on basic table manners? We've got some ideas!
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August 3, 2023
Poetry to Improve Your Public Speaking: A Puritan Poet's Love Poem
Resources , Poems to Read Aloud , The Buckley Experience
When is a love poem an act of defiance? When a woman in Puritan New England dares to write it. Read these familiar lines by Anne Bradstreet out loud: You can enhance your phrasing and marvel at her boldness in putting them down.
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July 3, 2023
Poem to Read Aloud: Dorothy Parker and the Well-Placed Pause
Poems to Read Aloud , Resources , The Buckley Experience
Why of course an acclaimed wit would know how to deploy the punch of a well-timed pause. Practice placing yours by reading some lines from Dorothy Parker out loud.
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June 1, 2023
Limericks to Help Your Public Speaking: Lear for comic timing
Poems to Read Aloud , Just For Fun , The Buckley Experience , Resources
Reading poetry out loud is a great way to enhance your presentation skills. See how Edward Lear makes it a lot of fun, too.
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May 1, 2023
Poem to Read Aloud: Philosophy by the Couplet
Poems to Read Aloud , The Buckley Experience , Resources
Isabella Whitney defied convention and became the first Englishwoman to write and publish secular poems. So don't be a noddy! Read her lines this month, improve you phrasing--and have a bit of fun.
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April 3, 2023
Wordsworth and Nature: A poem to read aloud
Resources , Poems to Read Aloud , The Buckley Experience
The poet associated with Romantic literature, a love of nature, and England's Lake District has inspired Taylor Swift. This month, let him inspire your public speaking, too!
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March 6, 2023
A Poem to Help Your Public Speaking: Dialogue and Diction
Poems to Read Aloud , Public Speaking , Resources
Sara Teasdale was the first woman to receive the Pulitzer Prize for poetry. This month, read her lines aloud to experiment with expressive dialogue - and to give your diction a workout.
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January 2, 2023
Poems to Read Aloud: Christina Rossetti
Poems to Read Aloud , Resources , The Buckley Experience
Learn more about the gifted poet Christina Rossetti and read her lines out loud to improve your phrasing and timing.
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December 2, 2022
Poem to Read Aloud: The Seductive Christmas Wreath
Resources , Poems to Read Aloud , The Buckley Experience
Seems mistletoe isn't the only holiday greenery to inspire the romantic imagination. Celebrate the wreath - and improve your public speaking with this poem to read aloud.
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November 1, 2022
Poetry to help your public speaking: Ruth Muskrat Bronson
Poems to Read Aloud , Resources , The Buckley Experience
This writer, teacher, speaker, and national leader used her voice to advocate for Native Americans. Read one of her poems out loud to inspire your public speaking.
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October 3, 2022
Poem to Read Aloud: Enhance Your Storytelling Skills
Poems to Read Aloud , Resources , Public Speaking , The Buckley Experience
This popular children's verse provides a great vehicle for developing more animation in your delivery. This month, try reading aloud about the sailors in the wooden shoe.
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July 3, 2022
Poems to Help Your Public Speaking: Inflection and Emily Dickinson
Poems to Read Aloud , Resources , The Buckley Experience
Questions can be a great tool when presenting, a way to get your audience thinking. Here's a poem to help you practice the many ways you can pose one.
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June 6, 2022
Three techniques for telling your story in a job interview
Business Communication , Three Things , Resources
See how techniques we teach in media training and Q&A coaching can help you demonstrate why you're the person they need to hire.
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June 2, 2022
A Poem to Help Your Public Speaking: Hart Crane
Poems to Read Aloud , Resources , The Buckley Experience
Our founder believed reading poetry out loud improved your public speaking. This month, we provide a poem by Hart Crane.
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May 2, 2022
Poetry to Improve Your Public Speaking: Delight in Disorder
Poems to Read Aloud , Resources , The Buckley Experience
Seize the day, gather the darling buds of May and improve your public speaking with some irreverent help from the poet Robert Herrick.
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April 1, 2022
A Peach of a Poem to Help Your Public Speaking
Poems to Read Aloud , Resources , The Buckley Experience
Reading poetry aloud improves your phrasing and inflection. How is this poem from D.H. Lawrence a great one for practicing the rhetorical question?
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March 3, 2022
Books for Speakers: ‘Making Numbers Count’
Speaker's Bookshelf , Resources , Presentation Tips
As we often say to clients, "no, the numbers do not speak for themselves." Here's a book that looks at how you can make the data you present more accessible for your audiences.
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March 1, 2022
Poem to Read Aloud: Hardy's 'Before Marching'
Poems to Read Aloud , Resources , The Buckley Experience
Reading poetry out loud can help you expand your range as a speaker. This month, we provide a contemplative poem by Thomas Hardy.
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February 3, 2022
Poem to Read Aloud: Anne Spencer's Carnival
Poems to Read Aloud , Public Speaking , The Buckley Experience , Resources
Reading poems out loud improves public speaking. Here's one by Harlem Renaissance poet Anne Spencer.
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January 3, 2022
A simple tool to improve presentations & interviews
Public Speaking , Presentation Tips , Resources
Not all communication can--or should--be scripted. How can you make your point and minimize the fluff that comes with speaking off the cuff? Here's one simple way to capture what's going on, so you can improve on it.
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January 1, 2022
Poem to Help Your Public Speaking: 'Hope' for a New Year
Poems to Read Aloud , The Buckley Experience , Resources
Reading poems out loud can help you make your vocal delivery more dramatic. Here's a sonnet from a poet whose life and work inspired Jane Austen and Charles Dickens--with drama to spare.
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November 22, 2021
Public Speaking Fears: Look for the Helpers
Strictly Speaking , Public Speaking Fear , Resources , Speaker's Bookshelf
Feeling nervous? Our founder says focusing on the right audience members can help you find your confidence AND make audience support go viral.
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November 15, 2021
Public speaking training: The right approach for you
The Buckley Experience , Public Speaking , Resources
Would you benefit from a class? Or is one-on-one coaching a better fit? Some thoughts on how to choose training that meets your needs.
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November 3, 2021
Poems to Read Aloud: Browning's Duchess
Poems to Read Aloud , Resources , The Buckley Experience
Reading Robert Browning's dramatic monologues out loud can help you find greater range in your vocal delivery. Here's a favorite, plus the story of the duchess who inspired the poem.
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October 6, 2021
Public Speaking Podcasts: Checking out ‘It Was Said’
Public Speaking , Resources , Seen|Read|Heard , Significant Speeches
Influential athletes like Billie Jean King are the focus of season two of 'It Was Said.' More on this podcast series about speeches and why you may find it helps you think about your own public speaking.
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October 2, 2021
Paul Laurence Dunbar: Poem to read aloud
Poems to Read Aloud , Resources , The Buckley Experience
Paul Laurence Dunbar's poetry inspired Maya Angelou (and the title of her autobiography). Here's his light-hearted poem about autumn to inspire your public speaking.
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September 5, 2021
Poem to Read Aloud: A Muse for Working People
Poems to Read Aloud , Resources , The Buckley Experience
Elizabeth Hands, who worked as a domestic servant, challenged assumptions with her poetry and witty insights. Read one of her poems out loud to improve your public speaking!
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August 3, 2021
Poem to Read Aloud: Casey at the Bat
Poems to Read Aloud , Resources , Public Speaking , The Buckley Experience , Just For Fun
Comic timing, drama, gestures, and a sneer that curls the lip: Improve your public speaking in every department by reading baseball's favorite poem out loud.
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July 5, 2021
Poem to Read Aloud: Jean Toomer's 'Storm Ending'
Poems to Read Aloud , Resources , The Buckley Experience
Trapped somewhere by a summer thunderstorm? Read this poem out loud, enjoy the beauty, and improve your public speaking.
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June 1, 2021
Poem to Read Aloud: Louise Bogan
Poems to Read Aloud , Resources
Intense emotion in the confines of formal poetry? Louise Bogan's work is a great tool to help speakers work on timing and cadence, so here's a poem by the United States' first female poet laureate for you to read out loud.
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May 5, 2021
Calm Public Speaking Nerves: Let's talk about self-talk
Public Speaking Fear , Presentation Tips , Public Speaking , Resources
Are you talking yourself out of succeeding and into a serious case of breathlessness and shaky knees? Whether you're going on stage or on Zoom, change your pre-presentation self-talk and see what happens...
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May 3, 2021
Poems to Read Aloud: From The Poet-Orator-Park Ranger
Poems to Read Aloud , Resources , The Buckley Experience
Reading poems out loud can improve your presentations. Here's a poem from an award-winning public speaker and wildlife guide, whose life was as interesting as his verse...
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April 21, 2021
Voice of the Speaker: Pace and Tempo
Vocal Delivery , Strictly Speaking , Public Speaking , Resources
Your pace can project confidence. Your tempo can cue an emotional response in audiences. Our founder holds forth on how to use both when presenting so that you orchestrate better vocal delivery.
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April 1, 2021
Poetry to Help Your Public Speaking: The Sweet Spring of Thomas Nashe
Poems to Read Aloud , The Buckley Experience , Resources , Public Speaking
Put some spring in your diction with lines from an Elizabethan troublemaker who appears to have known how to have a little fun...
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March 17, 2021
Voice of the Speaker: Power of the Pause
Strictly Speaking , Public Speaking , Resources
One of the most powerful ways to use the voice in a speech is... to stop speaking? Our founder describes the dramatic potential of a well-timed zip of the lip.
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March 2, 2021
Poems to Help your Public Speaking: Emily Dickinson welcomes March
Poems to Read Aloud , Public Speaking , Resources
While a popular new TV series invites you to reimagine America's favorite reclusive poet, we invite you to improve your public speaking with these sassy lines. Watch out, April!
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February 4, 2021
Poems to Read Aloud: A 19th Century Celebrity and Her Secrets
Poems to Read Aloud , Resources , The Buckley Experience
The sort of colorful character you'd expect to find in "Bridgerton," the celebrated poet L.E.L. provides a few jaded lines about love that can help your public speaking.
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January 5, 2021
Poems to Read Aloud: Benjamin Franklin's January
Resources , The Buckley Experience , Poems to Read Aloud
Did Ben Franklin know that reading poems out loud could improve public speaking? Did you know that Benjamin Franklin wrote poetry? Get 2021 started with his lines for the first month of the year...
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December 16, 2020
Rhetorical Device of the Month: Anacoluthon
Rhetorical Devices , Resources , The Buckley Experience , Just For Fun
Want to seem as if you're making your presentation up as you go along? Turns out, rhetoric has a word for that.
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December 2, 2020
Poems to Read Aloud: Burns and Auld Lang Syne
Poems to Read Aloud , Public Speaking , Resources , The Buckley Experience
Contemplating a New Year's Eve on Zoom? Make this the year you wow them by knowing all the words to "Auld Lang Syne"--and as you practice aloud, you'll give your public speaking a boost.
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November 2, 2020
Reading Marianne Moore to Improve Your Public Speaking
Resources , Public Speaking , Poems to Read Aloud
Here's an enjoyable way to work on phrasing and timing: Read this poem by Marianne Moore out loud and see if you can capture the elusiveness of "The Jelly-fish."
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October 21, 2020
Public Speaking: Managing a Stutter
Resources , Public Speaking , Presentation Tips , Presidents Day
By talking about his struggles as someone who stutters and how he copes, Joe Biden has brought positive attention and provided encouragement to those who share this public speaking challenge.
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October 13, 2020
Public Speaking Virtues & Vices: Truculence
Virtues & Vices , Public Speaking , Resources , Speaker's Bookshelf , Strictly Speaking
A speaker who is ferocious or harsh, as our founder so eloquently says, "don't win friends." Here's his field guide to truculent speakers--and what you can do to tame them (if they happen to be you).
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October 4, 2020
Sandburg's Jack-O-Lantern: A poem to read aloud
Poems to Read Aloud , The Buckley Experience , Resources , Public Speaking
Reading poetry out loud can improve your public speaking. Here's one by Carl Sandburg that's perfectly suited for the decorative gourd season...
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October 1, 2020
Communication Tips: Making It Clear from Behind the Mask
Public Speaking , Resources
Struggling to make yourself heard from behind the mask? Turns out there are techniques you can use that will also help you improve your public speaking...
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September 1, 2020
Poems to Help Your Public Speaking: Robinson Jeffers
Poems to Read Aloud , Resources , Public Speaking , Travel
Reading poems out loud can help you explore and expand your public speaking delivery style. This month, try "The Stars Go Over a Lonely Ocean" by Robinson Jeffers.
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August 5, 2020
Rhetorical Device of the Month: Diacope
Rhetorical Devices , Just For Fun , The Buckley Experience , Resources , Public Speaking
Dream of having audiences quote lines from your presentations? Maybe this little rhetorical device is just the can of spinach to make your next speech pop...
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August 2, 2020
Nonsense verse to make a point: Reading Sukumar Ray
Poems to Read Aloud , Resources , Public Speaking , Just For Fun
A king who wants to frame his chocolates? A wack autocrat whacking pumpkins with a bat? A read aloud from poet Sukumar Ray can improve your public speaking--and may be just what we need right now...
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July 19, 2020
John Lewis: Good Trouble at the March on Washington
Great Speeches , Significant Speeches , Resources , Public Speaking
Skilled in oratory from an early age, John Lewis was the youngest speaker at the March on Washington. Learn how his fiery approach surprised other civil rights leaders and their last-minute efforts to tone it down...
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July 2, 2020
Poems to Help Your Public Speaking: Bennett and Dumas
Poems to Read Aloud , Resources , Public Speaking , The Buckley Experience
We're inspired this month by the poems of Gwendolyn Bennett AND the real-life swashbuckler who inspired Alexandre Dumas. Here's a poem to read aloud...
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June 17, 2020
What She Said: Speaking While Female Speech Bank
Great Speeches , Resources , Significant Speeches
As TED fans will tell you, reading speeches and watching speakers is a great way to learn and be inspired. Check out a new resource we think you'll like...
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June 4, 2020
Poems to Help Your Public Speaking: Georgia Douglas Johnson
Poems to Read Aloud , Resources , The Buckley Experience
Saturday Salons at her home in Washington D.C. helped her hone her voice and brought together leading artists of the Harlem Renaissance. Read a poem aloud by Georgia Douglas Johnson...
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May 20, 2020
Rhetorical Device of the Month: Zeugma
Rhetorical Devices , Just For Fun , The Buckley Experience , Resources
It's a double entendre that can make your listeners do a double take--which might be just what your message needs! (It can also win you points in Scrabble.) Zoom on over and check it out...
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May 4, 2020
Poem to Read Aloud: A Heap O' Livin'
Resources , Poems to Read Aloud
Because we've all been at home a lot lately, here's a poem from Edgar Allen Guest to read aloud...one that will help you see why droppin' the endin' of your words ain't somethin' you oughta be doin' in your public speakin'...
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April 2, 2020
Poem to Read Aloud: A Shakespeare Sonnet for your Quarantine
Poems to Read Aloud , Resources , Public Speaking , The Buckley Experience
Not feeling up to writing your "King Lear" during the coronavirus quarantine? How about a more modest goal: Read 14 lines aloud and improve your public speaking instead...
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March 26, 2020
Eloquent Women: A Quest to Highlight Great Speeches
Public Speaking , Great Speeches , Resources
If you're looking for examples of great speeches by women, Denise Graveline left us with a wonderful resource. Because it's Women's History Month, we were inspired to bring you her Famous Speech Friday posts...
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March 23, 2020
Our Expert Helps: Homeschool with a public speaking twist
Faculty , Resources , Presentation Tips , Public Speaking , Poems to Read Aloud
New to the school-at-home thing? Want some help? Here are some ways to have more fun, courtesy of Buckley faculty Jana Daley--a homeschool pro, who's also trained young debate champs.
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March 15, 2020
Communicating about COVID19: Resources to help
Resources , Business Communication , Public Speaking
How can you best communicate important messages about the coronavirus to your employees, customers and community? Here are some resources to help:
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March 2, 2020
Poem to Read Aloud: Song of the Moon
Resources , The Buckley Experience , Poems to Read Aloud
Her poems inspired the Harlem Renaissance. They can also inspire your public speaking. Here's one by Priscilla Jane Thompson...
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February 17, 2020
Public Speaking Virtues & Vices: Belligerence
Virtues & Vices , Strictly Speaking , Public Speaking , Resources , Business Communication
Worried that you antagonize audiences? Or perhaps that's your goal! Check out our founder's case for warming up your stage presence and his unconventional steps to get you there...
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February 10, 2020
Paralinguistics: The science behind your presentation skills
Just For Fun , Seen|Read|Heard , Resources , Public Speaking
We give a big thumbs up to gestures in public speaking. Science says there's a reason we're fans of talking with our hands...
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February 3, 2020
Love & Friendship: A Poem to Help Your Public Speaking
Poems to Read Aloud , Resources , Public Speaking , The Buckley Experience , Just For Fun
Reading this one aloud will give your diction and enunciation a boost. It might also improve your friendships!
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January 20, 2020
Public Speaking Virtues & Vices: Honesty
Virtues & Vices , Strictly Speaking , Resources , Public Speaking , Business Communication
"Character is the primary element a speaker brings to the stage. Everything else can be learned," wrote our founder. Get his honest advice...
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December 2, 2019
Poems to Help Your Public Speaking: An e.e. cummings christmas
Poems to Read Aloud , The Buckley Experience , Resources , Just For Fun
Reading poetry out loud can help improve your timing, phrasing and expressiveness when presenting. Here's a poem to accomplish all that AND help you get the season started...
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November 1, 2019
A Poem to Read Aloud: McKay's 'Coming North'
Poems to Read Aloud , Resources , Public Speaking , The Buckley Experience
Poet, novelist, and leading figure of the Harlem Renaissance, Jamaican-born Claude McKay is the source for our poem this month. Read his work out loud to improve your public speaking...
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October 14, 2019
How To: Make Eye Contact
How To , Instruction , Public Speaking , Resources
Sure, most speakers know they should make eye contact. But are you getting the most out of it when you present? Here's what the best public speakers do...
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October 2, 2019
Poems to Help Your Public Speaking: Frost's Two Roads
Resources , Poems to Read Aloud , The Buckley Experience
Was Robert Frost just pulling our leg with his famous poem about walking through autumn woods and making choices? No doubt, reading it aloud can help your public speaking while you contemplate...
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September 30, 2019
Rhetorical Device of the Month: ASTERISMOS
Rhetorical Devices , Just For Fun , Public Speaking , Resources
Verbal tic of a careless speaker? Or smart tactic to make audiences aware that something worth starring and remembering is coming their way? Behold, asterismos...
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September 16, 2019
To Be Repeated: The Stump Speech
Public Speaking , On This Day , Resources , Seen|Read|Heard
What can we learn from a stump about business presentations? How about the power of connecting, the efficiency of creating a consistent message, and the beauty of knowing when to incorporate a twist...
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September 5, 2019
The King’s Speech: New Inspiration for Speakers Who Stammer
Public Speaking Fear , Significant Speeches , Great Speeches , Resources , Public Speaking
Eighty years after Great Britain's king overcame his stuttter to address the nation, his courage still provides inspiration to stammerers...and is helping them change perceptions about speaking in public.
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September 2, 2019
Poems to Read Aloud: Of storms and trees
Poems to Read Aloud , Public Speaking , Resources
Tracking Hurricane Dorian this week led us to poet Amelia Josephine Burr--and some poems you can read aloud to improve your public speaking.
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August 29, 2019
Rhetorical Device of the Month: Antonomasia
Rhetorical Devices , Resources , Public Speaking , Just For Fun
What's in a name? Perhaps a lot more when you employ this rhetorical device in your public speaking. Here's how it's used for good and for evil...
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August 22, 2019
Presentation Skills: Got Charisma?
Public Speaking , Resources , Presentation Tips , Strictly Speaking
It's that quality we struggle to define, yet seems to sparkle in the best public speakers. At The Buckley School, we call it personal magnetism. Here's how you can develop yours...
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August 1, 2019
Poem to Read Aloud: Emily Brontë
Poems to Read Aloud , Public Speaking , Resources , The Buckley Experience
Though famous for giving us "Wuthering Heights," Emily Brontë also wrote 200 poems in her 30 short years. Read one of them out loud this month to improve your public speaking...
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July 29, 2019
Rhetorical Device of the Month: Adynaton
Rhetorical Devices , Instruction , Public Speaking , Resources
What happens when you super-size your hyperbole? You might get a more memorable expression for your next presentation. A look at flying pigs, whistling crawfish and adynaton...
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July 4, 2019
Douglass: 'What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July?'
Significant Speeches , Great Speeches , On This Day , Resources , Public Speaking
On July 5, 1852, Frederick Douglass believed his well-timed remarks would get noticed. It's become one of the most important speeches in American history.
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July 1, 2019
Poem to Read Aloud: I Hear America Singing
Poems to Read Aloud , Public Speaking , The Buckley Experience , Resources
When you tire of hearing America shoot off its July 4th fireworks, improve your public speaking (and soothe your jangled nerves) with these lines from one of America's most influential poets.
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June 27, 2019
Rhetorical Device of the Month: Tmesis
Rhetorical Devices , Resources , The Buckley Experience , Just For Fun
Un-friggin-doubtedly, you’ve used this one before. Here’s why that’s probably a fan-blooming-tastic thing…
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June 21, 2019
Your Big Idea: The Poster Approach to Public Speaking
Public Speaking , Presentation Tips , Resources
What can we learn from a well-designed poster? There's a movement afoot to change how scientists use poster presentations to communicate. The same techniques can work in your presentations...
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June 10, 2019
Public Speaking & Storytelling: Stories to Teach
Resources , Public Speaking , Business Communication , Presentation Tips , Storytelling
Can a story help at-risk teens learn to make better choices? One former L.A. gang member thinks so. Here's how our Buckley coach helped him use his stories to teach and how the same ideas can work for your presentations...
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June 5, 2019
The Eyes of the World are Upon You: Eisenhower's D-day Speech
Significant Speeches , On This Day , Public Speaking , Great Speeches , Resources , Presentation Tips , Presidents Day
On this day, Gen. Dwight Eisenhower recorded a message for D-day troops. Learn more about how this speech came together and the edits that made his words more powerful...
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June 2, 2019
Poem to Read Aloud: Countee Cullen's Rendezvous
Poems to Read Aloud , Resources , The Buckley Experience
"Yet do I marvel at this curious thing: To make a poet black, and bid him sing!" Let those famous lines and others from Countee Cullen inspire your public speaking, with this month's poem to read aloud.
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May 30, 2019
Rhetorical Device of the Month: Metanoia
Rhetorical Devices , Resources , Public Speaking , Just For Fun
Want to contrive to sound more spontaneous in a speech?To make a harsh point without having the audience dislike--nay, kill the messenger? Consider using the "backspace" of rhetorical devices...
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May 14, 2019
Speaking Opportunities: Why You Should Take Them!
Seen|Read|Heard , Public Speaking , Resources
If public speaking is stressful, why should you look for every opportunity to present? Yes, practice makes perfect--but there are other good reasons you may not have considered yet...
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May 7, 2019
Economic Developer: Speaking to Motivate Communities
Public Speaking , Presentation Tips , Resources , Business Communication
How do you convince leaders to take action before a crisis comes to town? Economic developer Crystal Morphis says public speaking is one of her most important skills for helping communities stay open for business...
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May 1, 2019
A Poem to Read Aloud: This one's for the graduates
Poems to Read Aloud , Resources , The Buckley Experience
The author of "The Jungle Book" and "Kim" is also the poet whose lines you'll hear at many a graduation ceremony. Even if you're not giving a commencement address, try reading these stanzas aloud to help your public speaking...
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April 25, 2019
Rhetorical Device of the Month: Anthimeria
Rhetorical Devices , Just For Fun , Resources , Public Speaking
It can bring delight. It can make you wince. You can reject it, even return it. See how this rhetorical device "gooses the English language" as we gift you a look at anthimeria...
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April 12, 2019
On This Day: The Ballot or the Bullet
Significant Speeches , Great Speeches , On This Day , Resources , Public Speaking
The speech he gave on this day is considered one of the top 10 American speeches of the 20th century. Here's what we can learn from Malcolm X and "The Ballot or the Bullet."
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April 3, 2019
On This Day: I've Been to the Mountaintop
On This Day , Great Speeches , Significant Speeches , Resources
The final oration from an inspiring leader and one of the greatest speakers of all time: A look at Martin Luther King, Jr.'s "Mountaintop" speech in Memphis.
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April 1, 2019
Willa Cather's April poems: A Prairie Spring
Poems to Read Aloud , Resources , The Buckley Experience
Yes, "singing and singing, out of the lips of silence," we're convinced reading poems out loud improves your public speaking. This month, verse from a writer beloved and revered for her novels...
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March 21, 2019
Patrick Henry's Death-Defying Oratory
Significant Speeches , Public Speaking , On This Day , Resources
Patrick Henry's best-known speech makes the case for passion, parallel structure, and the power of simple words. But did he really say his most famous line? Or did he ad lib something else?
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March 18, 2019
March Madness: Some Public Speaking Slam Dunks
Just For Fun , Public Speaking , Resources , Public Speaking Fear , Travel , Presentation Tips
March Madness fans are arriving in our neighborhood, hoping to see Zion Williamson, perhaps unaware they could improve their presentation skills while watching the big games...
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March 13, 2019
Rhetorical Device of the Month: Tricolon
Rhetorical Devices , Resources , Public Speaking , The Buckley Experience , Just For Fun
What public speaking technique can bring a certain fullness, roundness, or tension to help your message take off? Try this month's rhetorical device...
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March 4, 2019
Good Panel Discussions: The Moderator’s Role
Panel Discussions , Presentation Tips , Instruction , Resources
Asking questions, introducing panelists, sure--but the real job of the moderator is to represent the audience and work on their behalf. What would Oprah do?
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March 1, 2019
Poetry to Read Aloud: Grimké and 'The Kiss'
Poems to Read Aloud , Seen|Read|Heard , Resources , Public Speaking
The first African American woman to have her play produced publicly, Angelina Weld Grimké also wrote more than 170 poems, including this month's lines for you to read aloud...
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February 23, 2019
How To: Take a Stand When Presenting
How To , Resources , Instruction , Public Speaking
"Be sure to put your feet in the right place, then stand firm," said Abraham Lincoln--great advice for public speaking that we take quite literally. Here's why you should, too...
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February 20, 2019
Rhetorical Device of the Month: Antithesis
Rhetorical Devices , Resources , Public Speaking , Presentation Tips , Great Speeches
Why are we pro-antithesis? Here's how this artful juxtaposition can sharpen your point, challenge injustice, or make hearts soar--and make your words more memorable.
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February 6, 2019
Good Panel Discussions: Tips for Panelists
Panel Discussions , Presentation Tips , Instruction , Resources
You've agreed to take part in a panel discussion. Now what? Dear panelist, here's how to make the most of it...
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February 1, 2019
Poetry to Read Aloud: James Weldon Johnson
Poems to Read Aloud , Public Speaking , Resources
Poet, civil rights leader, teacher, diplomat - the incredible James Weldon Johnson even won a prize for oratory as a college student. This month, we offer one of his poems to help your public speaking...
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January 21, 2019
Questionable Advice Department: Hand out Your PowerPoint in Advance
Resources , Instruction , Presentation Tips , Public Speaking , PowerPoint
Should you give the audience your PowerPoint deck before you present it? Why we question that advice on handouts and what you can do instead...
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January 11, 2019
Rhetorical Device of the Month: Asyndeton
Rhetorical Devices , Resources , Instruction , Just For Fun
No ands or buts, if you use this rhetorical device you can improve the odds that your speech will pack some punch.
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January 5, 2019
Helen Keller's Remarkable Public Speaking
On This Day , Significant Speeches , Seen|Read|Heard , Resources , Public Speaking
We all know Helen Keller as a remarkable person--but how much do you know about her career as a public speaker? On January 5, 1916, 35-year-old Keller spoke at Carnegie Hall...
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January 3, 2019
Good Panel Discussions: Start with Why
Panel Discussions , Resources , Presentation Tips
What makes the best panel discussion? What do moderators and panelists need to know to succeed? We're sharing tips from our experiences, starting with the most obvious and overlooked question: Why?
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January 1, 2019
Poems to Help Your Public Speaking: E.A. Robinson's Cheevy
Poems to Read Aloud , Resources , The Buckley Experience , Public Speaking
"Miniver cursed the commonplace/And eyed a khaki suit with loathing." Add more color to your public speaking with these lines to read aloud from Edwin Arlington Robinson...
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December 21, 2018
Books for Speakers: A biography and a memoir
Public Speaking , Resources , Speaker's Bookshelf , Public Speaking Books
Their public speaking has awed and inspired. Will their life stories give clues to what made their speeches so powerful? We're eager to read two of the hottest books in stores right now...
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December 1, 2018
Poetry to Help Your Public Speaking: Joyce Kilmer
Poems to Read Aloud , The Buckley Experience , Resources , Public Speaking
Most famous for the poem "Trees," Joyce Kilmer did much more in his short life, including writing the poem we're featuring this month for your read aloud practice...
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November 28, 2018
Books for Speakers: All the King's Men
Public Speaking Books , Speaker's Bookshelf , Resources , Just For Fun
As the main character changes, so does his public speaking style. What can we learn about persuasive speaking from a novel? Plenty if it's "All the King's Men."
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November 1, 2018
Poems to Help Your Public Speaking: Gwendolyn Brooks
Resources , Just For Fun , Poems to Read Aloud
She was a Pulitzer Prize winner and one of the most influential poets of the 20th century. She's also helping you improve your presentation skills with this month's poem to read aloud...
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October 30, 2018
Paranomasia: How punny is that?
Rhetorical Devices , Resources , The Buckley Experience , Just For Fun
That queasy feeling you get when you hear a corny pun in a speech? Our rhetorical device of the month diagnosis: Looks like a case of paranomasia.
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October 17, 2018
Presenting to Decision Makers: Tips for a Better Pitch
Resources , Presentation Tips , Seen|Read|Heard , Public Speaking
Presenting to the C-Suite or a promising new client is the opportunity you've been working for. Avoid these common mistakes when you make your pitch...
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October 16, 2018
Questionable Presentation Advice: Walk to Engage the Audience
Resources , Public Speaking , Instruction , Presentation Tips
Walk around the room to connect with the audience? Yeah, we've heard that one, too. Before you step in it bigtime, consider our take...
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October 16, 2018
How To: Ask a Rhetorical Question
How To , Instruction , Resources , Presentation Tips
It's a simple technique for engaging audiences, yet many speakers don't make the most of it in presentations. Here's how to ask rhetorical questions that get you somewhere...
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October 15, 2018
Speaking in Public: Finding & Using Your Natural Strengths
Public Speaking , The Buckley Experience , 30th Anniversary , Speaker's Bookshelf , Public Speaking Books , Resources , Speaking in Public
Understanding your presentation style and making the most of it - The Buckley School's founder on why that's the single most important thing a speaker can do...
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October 2, 2018
Poem to Read Aloud: Edgar Allen Poe
Poems to Read Aloud , Resources , Public Speaking , The Buckley Experience
Reading poems out loud can bring more color and drama to your public speaking. Try these lines from a master of creating that certain mood...
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September 26, 2018
Rhetorical Device of the Month: Dysphemism
Rhetorical Devices , Just For Fun , Resources , Public Speaking
If a euphemism is a substitution that softens an expression, then the opposite of that would be...our latest rhetorical device of the month.
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September 20, 2018
Books for Speakers: Bird by Bird
Public Speaking , Alumni , Resources , Speaker's Bookshelf
"Joy just oozes from this book," writes the Buckley alum who recommends it. You'll also find lots of help for using your stories and voice to bring more life (and humor) to speeches and presentations.
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September 7, 2018
How to: Format a speech text
How To , Resources , Presentation Tips , Instruction , Public Speaking
Simple formatting changes can make it much easier to give a speech from a written text. Here's what you can do to see almost instant results:
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September 6, 2018
Questionable Presentation Advice: Always Repeat Audience Questions
Resources , Presentation Tips , Instruction , Seen|Read|Heard , Public Speaking
Maybe you've heard this tip for handling Q&A sessions after a speech or presentation: Always repeat the question before you answer it. But it's not that simple...
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September 1, 2018
A Poem to Help Your Public Speaking: September Midnight
Public Speaking , Poems to Read Aloud , Just For Fun , The Buckley Experience , Resources
Like a late-night espresso to awaken even the laziest enunciation, we serve up these lines from poet Sara Teasdale to read aloud...
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August 27, 2018
Rhetorical Device of the Month: Anadiplosis
Public Speaking , Resources , Rhetorical Devices , Just For Fun , The Buckley Experience , Instruction
A rhetorical device put to good use by Yoda, Shakespeare, Malcolm X, and Jay-Z: Here's another way to build a powerful statement through repetition...
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August 19, 2018
Speaking in Public: Posture & First Impressions
Resources , Public Speaking , The Buckley Experience , Public Speaking Books , Speaker's Bookshelf , Instruction , Speaking in Public
A too-casual style can send unintended messages, says our founder. His tips for starting well and standing tall in your next presentation...
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August 17, 2018
Books for Speakers: The Writer's Art
Resources , Speaker's Bookshelf , Faculty , The Buckley Experience
"Funny, instructive, and it promotes all the same things we promote...how important language is...not just for writers but for all of us." Buckley director Karen Kalutz makes this book recommendation...
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August 10, 2018
Better Stories for Your Next Presentation
Resources , Public Speaking , Three Things , Instruction , Presentation Tips , Storytelling
Personal stories can bring a presentation to life. Apply these easy-to-use writing workshop tips to bring more life to your stories...
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August 7, 2018
Questionable Presentation Advice: Open With a Joke
Resources , Public Speaking , Presentation Tips , Instruction
When well-meaning public speaking advice goes wrong: Why you might not want to open that can of jokes.
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August 1, 2018
Poems to Help Your Public Speaking: Hardy's August Midnight
Poems to Read Aloud , Resources , Public Speaking , Just For Fun , The Buckley Experience
Delight Potter fans, bee enthusiasts--and improve your public speaking through attention to cadence and timing--with a little help from Thomas Hardy and this month's poem to read aloud.
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July 27, 2018
Rhetorical Device of the Month: Litotes
Rhetorical Devices , Just For Fun , Resources , Public Speaking , Instruction , The Buckley Experience
With hyperbole the likes of which the world has never seen and "double negative" trending, it's not a bad time to explore understatement and the potential of this rhetorical device for your public speaking...
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July 11, 2018
Questionable Presentation Advice: Speak from the heart
Public Speaking , Resources , Seen|Read|Heard , Presentation Tips , The Buckley Experience
Heard some public speaking advice that made you wonder? Us, too. Here's another take on the old "speak from the heart" tip...
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July 5, 2018
Poems to Help Your Public Speaking: The Traveller-Heart
Resources , Public Speaking , The Buckley Experience , Poems to Read Aloud
His poems were made wildly popular by his spellbinding delivery. Who better to provide this month's poem to real aloud?
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July 2, 2018
Books for Speakers: Orators of the American Revolution
Public Speaking Books , Speaker's Bookshelf , Resources , Public Speaking
The public speaking techniques used by Patrick Henry & Co. are remarkably similar to the ones that can work for you today....
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June 28, 2018
Speaking in Public: How to Use a Lectern
Public Speaking Books , 30th Anniversary , Resources , Public Speaking , The Buckley Experience , Speaker's Bookshelf , Presentation Tips , Speaking in Public
A lectern can be a great home base for a speaker, when used well. Reid Buckley provides a professional speaker's tips and perspective from the podium...
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June 19, 2018
Rhetorical Device of the Month: Synecdoche
Resources , Public Speaking , Just For Fun , Rhetorical Devices , Instruction
The rhetorical device we all love using, whether we know it or not: Here's to more colorful public speaking by way of synecdoche!
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June 4, 2018
Poems to Help Your Public Speaking: Diction for A June Night
Resources , Poems to Read Aloud , Public Speaking , Seen|Read|Heard
Her most famous lines are forever connected to the Statue of Liberty. This month's poem to read aloud comes from Emma Lazarus...
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May 9, 2018
Books for Speakers: Help! For Writers
Resources , Public Speaking Books , Speaker's Bookshelf
Even if you ultimately speak from bullet points, writing presentations benefits speakers--because it forces you to work out the very problems this book helps you solve!
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May 1, 2018
Poem to Read Aloud: Edna St. Vincent Millay for May
Resources , The Buckley Experience , Poems to Read Aloud
Reading poetry out loud is can improve your public speaking. To help your cadence and timing, try these lines from Millay, a poet also known for her dramatic performances...
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April 20, 2018
Books for Speakers: Lend Me Your Ears
Public Speaking , Resources , Speaker's Bookshelf , Public Speaking Books
Some people read cookbooks for fun. Buckley coaches read anthologies of speeches. Here's one we think you'll enjoy....
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April 5, 2018
Presentation Advice: The Case for the Simple Word
Public Speaking , Presentation Tips , The Buckley Experience , 30th Anniversary , Public Speaking Books , Resources , Speaking in Public
Thirty years ago, The Buckley School launched its flagship program and founder Reid Buckley published his first book on public speaking. From Chapter 9, here's his multi-syllabled advice for using the simple word...
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April 2, 2018
Poems to Help Your Public Speaking: Langston Hughes & April Rain
Resources , The Buckley Experience , Poems to Read Aloud
Reading poetry out loud is one of our favorite ways to improve phrasing, timing and vocal variation. From writer Langston Hughes, some perfect lines for this month....
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March 31, 2018
Books for Speakers: Woe Is I
Public Speaking Books , Speaker's Bookshelf , Instruction , Presentation Tips , Resources
One of our favorite guides--smart, easy to follow, and full of fun (yes, really) without any of the harmful side effects that caused you to doze off in middle school...
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March 23, 2018
Rhetorical Device of the Month: Enallage
Resources , Instruction , Rhetorical Devices
Should you ignore the rules of grammar in order to make a memorable statement in your next business presentation? Our rhetorical device of the month says it ain't such a bad idea....
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March 9, 2018
Standing Up to Public Speaking Fears
Resources , Public Speaking , Seen|Read|Heard , Three Things , Just For Fun , Presentation Tips
When a hospital administrator wanted to give her career a boost, she had to overcome her fear of public speaking. So she took on an even scarier challenge. Should you?
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March 1, 2018
Poems to Read Aloud: A Wilde Woman for March
Poems to Read Aloud , The Buckley Experience , Resources
She was better known then as the fired-up, justice-seeking poet Speranza...and better known now as Oscar Wilde's mother. Improve your cadence and vocal projection with these lines from Lady Jane Wilde...
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February 2, 2018
Books for Speakers: On Speaking Well
Speaker's Bookshelf , Public Speaking , Resources , Instruction , Public Speaking Books
Oprah's speech at The Golden Globes has our students asking "How did she do that?" Peggy Noonan's excellent book offers some insight...
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February 1, 2018
How Reading Poetry Helps a Speaker: Let Us Count the Ways
Resources , Poems to Read Aloud , The Buckley Experience
Here to help you enhance those dulcet vocal tones, just in time for Valentine's Day: Elizabeth Barrett Browning.
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January 18, 2018
Speaking with an Accent: Love it or Lose it?
Resources , Seen|Read|Heard , Public Speaking
Should public speakers and presenters try to reduce their accents? As "The World In Words" podcast discovers, it's complicated...
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January 5, 2018
Speaking in Public: A Grab Bag of Tips
Public Speaking , The Buckley Experience , Speaker's Bookshelf , Public Speaking Books , 30th Anniversary , Instruction , Resources , Speaking in Public
Reid Buckley launched our school with the Executive Seminar and his first book on speaking. As we mark our 30th anniversary, we're publishing excerpts from "Speaking in Public" each month, starting with his infamous guide to color-coding....
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January 3, 2018
Books for Speakers: Presentation Zen
Speaker's Bookshelf , Instruction , Resources , Public Speaking Books , PowerPoint
PowerPoint. Love it? This book's for you. Hate it? This book is REALLY for you.
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January 1, 2018
Public Speaking Warm-up: January
Resources , The Buckley Experience , Poems to Read Aloud
His poems about naughty children make us laugh, but for January's read-aloud, we're going with "January."
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November 16, 2017
Dial in a win: Secrets to successful phone interviews
Resources , Three Things , Etiquette , Business Communication
After hearing some crazy stories from employers, we turned to our resident interview expert for help...
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November 1, 2017
November Read Aloud: Hope, Feathers & Dickinson
Resources , The Buckley Experience , Poems to Read Aloud
She wrote more than 1,800 poems. Here's one from Emily Dickinson to read aloud.
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October 1, 2017
Better than Pumpkin Spice: October's Read Aloud
Resources , The Buckley Experience , Poems to Read Aloud , Just For Fun
A few lines to help you develop those all-important spooky vocal tones, just in time for Halloween...
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August 14, 2017
Teaching Science to Teens: Lessons for any presentation
Public Speaking , Seen|Read|Heard , Presentation Tips , Resources
When our faculty Jenny Maxwell heard an NPR feature about teaching science, the discoveries sounded a lot like a Buckley primer for good public speaking....
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August 1, 2017
A Poem to Read Aloud: Phillis Wheatley
Resources , The Buckley Experience , Poems to Read Aloud , Public Speaking
In August 1761, seven-year-old Phillis Wheatley was purchased as a slave in Boston. She became one of the most renowned poets of her time. Her "Hymn to the Evening" is this month's read aloud.
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July 27, 2017
Better Answers for Your Next Q&A
Resources , Three Things , Presentation Tips , Instruction
"I know from my own experience," says Buckley coach Jenny Maxwell, "that the more you stand up and practice answering questions, the better you get at it." Here are some tips for your next presentation, drawn from our onsite training with companies...
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July 1, 2017
Kid's-Eye View of Long Summer Days: July's Read-Aloud
Resources , Public Speaking , The Buckley Experience , Poems to Read Aloud
For your poetry practice, we offer lines from Robert Louis Stevenson that remind us of a summer week we spent leading a workshop in Anchorage, Alaska. (And we like this portrait of RLS, painted by John Singer Sargent.)
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July 1, 2017
Declaration of Organization: Help from a Founding Document
Instruction , The Buckley Experience , Resources , Public Speaking Books
Analyzing how The Declaration of Independence is organized can aid your pursuit of happiness as a speaker...
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June 22, 2017
Speaker’s Best Friend: Talk to the Dog
Faculty , Seen|Read|Heard , Just For Fun , Resources , Public Speaking
Inspired by American University's "audience dogs," our Buckley staff evaluate the benefits of practicing speeches with their canines.
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June 1, 2017
Summer Rain: A read-aloud poem for June
Public Speaking , Resources , The Buckley Experience , Poems to Read Aloud
She smoked cigars, won the Pulitzer Prize, and took issue with South Carolina's "obscene" shades of magenta: Amy Lowell is the poet for this month's verse to read out loud.
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May 1, 2017
A Shakespeare Sonnet for May's Read Aloud
Public Speaking , Resources , The Buckley Experience , Poems to Read Aloud
"Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May," writes William Shakespeare in Sonnet 18. It's our selection for your May read aloud.
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April 11, 2017
Poems in your Pockets & Verse for Every Month
Resources , Public Speaking , Presentation Tips , Just For Fun , The Buckley Experience , Poems to Read Aloud
Years before there was National Poetry Month, The Buckley School was encouraging students of speaking to read poems aloud. Here's a little more about how you should and--with some help from Bill Murray--why it can even be fun.
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April 3, 2017
A Great Speaker Gets His Day
Public Speaking , Faculty , Presentation Tips , Resources , Public Speaking Books
Our memories of Winston Churchill, the leader, are tied to those of Churchill, the speaker. While April 9 is his "day," Buckley director Karen Kalutz says there are lessons to use from his speaking all the time.
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April 1, 2017
A Read Aloud to Make You Chuckle
Presentation Tips , Resources , The Buckley Experience , Poems to Read Aloud
Reading poetry out loud can improve your speaking--and when the poet is Ogden Nash, it's also just plain fun. Take a whirl with one of our Nash favorites.
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March 17, 2017
An Irish Poet for March Read Alouds
Presentation Tips , Resources , The Buckley Experience , Poems to Read Aloud
The Buckley School has long encouraged speakers to improve their speaking skills by reading poetry out loud. This month, perhaps you'd like to read this poem from Irish poet W.B. Yeats.
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March 16, 2017
Deliberate Practice for Better Speaking
Resources , Instruction , Presentation Tips , The Buckley Experience , Seen|Read|Heard
What do a great orator of Ancient Greece and the queen of popular music have in common? And how can they help you improve your public speaking? Learning expert Eduardo Briceño says it's all about the power of deliberate practice.
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February 17, 2017
Frederick Douglass and The Columbian Orator
Resources , Instruction , Seen|Read|Heard , Speaker's Bookshelf
It’s rare, but every once in a while we do work with someone who brings along a copy of The Columbian Orator. Frederick Douglass began developing his skills as a speaker by reading this popular 19th century textbook. He bought the book while he was still enslaved, a boy of 12 or 13. It was the first book he'd ever owned.
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February 6, 2017
Welcome to Camden: Kershaw-Cornwallis House
Resources , Welcome to Camden , The Buckley Experience
Lord Cornwallis occupied the space during the Revolutionary War. Union troops occupied it during the Civil War. Now, it’s a Buckley School tradition to occupy the Kershaw-Cornwallis house for a Thursday night banquet during our Executive Seminars.
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January 9, 2017
Make Yourself Bigger?
Resources , Public Speaking , Presentation Tips , Public Speaking Fear
We know audiences read body language. But what signals are you sending yourself with how you use your body? In one of the most popular TED talks of all time, Amy Cuddy explores how you can change your mindset by making yourself bigger.
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December 1, 2016
An app for that? Um...
Public Speaking , Resources , Seen|Read|Heard
Ummo is an iPhone app released by a team of MIT and Harvard students. It promises to track your ums, likes and you knows, to help you get rid of them. At The Buckley School, we’ve long had an app for that, and if you've attended our Executive Seminar, you may, um, know what we mean.
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