You Don’t Know the Gettysburg Address
The Gettysburg Address was not a ceremonial speech, inevitably bound for a marble wall. It was a strategy speech, designed to “convince a very skeptical public in the north that …
Why ‘Executive Presence’ Can Be a Touchy Topic
It’s been a couple weeks since my company finished putting on a virtual seminar called “Executive Presence for Exec Comms Pros,” and I’m still thinking about it. Obviously, teaching about …
Do We Really Need a Course in ‘Executive Presence’? Yes, We Really Do.
The term “executive presence” didn’t exist three decades ago when I first became acquainted with the joys and sorrows of corporate executive communication professionals. But I would have made fun …
An Open Letter to a Proponent of AI-Assisted Exec Comms Strategy
David Armano is a veteran marketing communications agency guy who specializes in digital aspects of comms. Last week I ran across a piece he wrote recommending the AI-ification of exec …
Workmanlike, for the Win
This week, a couple of meditations on writing that works—and how it’s not always the sexiest prose that wins the day. —DM *** When Workmanlike Is Better Than Exquisite My …
Another New Study Advances Another Old Canard About Public Speaking!
Of all the professions where you might expect to find a shadowy gang of shysters, pettifoggers and liar’s-poker sharpers—think horse-trading and used-car dealing—you wouldn’t think public speaking training would rank near the top. …
Speechwriter, Your Client Is a Great Big Fourth-Grader
Every year at the Professional Speechwriters Association’s Speechwriting School, the faculty gets asked: How do I animate and effervesce my wooden, flat speaker? Bring in a speaking coach, we say. …
No, I Don’t Write Speeches
Because I run the Professional Speechwriters Association, people assume I must write speeches myself. I tell them that I actually hate writing speeches so much, I founded the PSA just to …
A New Year’s Note—to the Insiders
A new year’s letter to members of the Professional Speechwriters Association. Figured everyone in the professional rhetoric business could use this, this year. —DM *** Dear PSA Member, Perhaps because …
Rhetrospective 2023: What Leaders Said, How They Sounded (and What We Learned)
Dear Executive Communication Colleague, Readers sometimes question the quotes I include in the Executive Communication Report newsletter, assuming I endorse the sentiments. I ask them to read the regular header carefully—especially …