www.ShiftSpeakerTraining.com

• Intro - Off on the cruise!
  
• BTS Tip: Starting Your Presentation Powerfully
• Article: Should You Be Using Ice Breaker Activities in Your Presentation?
• Joanna Recommends: The ABCs to Increase Your Income from Speaking This Year

Hi!

As you read this newsletter Greg, Vanessa, Tamara and a handful of our Million Dollar Masterclass will be floating somewhere off the coast of Spain!  That’s right- it’s that time of the year when we lifestyle business owners all jump on a MASSIVE cruise ship and head off for two weeks of fun, relaxing and inspiring business conversation over Moet!

Our Cruise Ship - Its huge!!

So I have to admit to you- I am writing this newsletter from London before I leave! I’d love to bring you live news feed from the ship, but to be honest I daresay we’ll be having too much fun.

I may update twitter, so if you’re not yet following me make sure you do!

Now, even though I’m on holiday it doesn’t mean you have to compromise on your weekly dose of great video tips and useful articles to keep the momentum in your business.

So enjoy!

Cheers,

p.s. Can you believe this ship has an ice skating rink on it?! What will they think of next?  I’ll be loading up with photos and videos from on board- so watch out for our December 16th issue which will have an update from “all aboard”.

Starting Your Presentation Powerfully

You have 30 seconds to capture the attention of your audience. If you miss this, you can still make it up, but you have to work like crazy in order to do it.

Here are 4 ways you can capture your audiences attention at the start of your presentation.

1. Ask questions. eg. "Who here would like to make more money by a show of hands?"
2. Wow them with statistics. Use a statistic in your niche that blows people away as soon as they hear it
3. Use humour. I recommend only doing this if you are actually funny
4. Send them straight into an exercise. This will take the pressure off you and gets them engaged.

Should You Be Using Ice Breaker Activities in Your Presentation?

When you are delivering an effective presentation, you have around 30 seconds to engage your audience and capture their attention.  If you miss it in the first 30 seconds, you can get it back, it just takes a whole lot longer!  And it’s hard work.

There are four different ways that I teach to capture attention in your presentations and the first of these is “Icebreaker Activities”.

Why Should You Use Icebreaker Activities?

I love Icebreaker Activities in my presentations because I’m generally pretty lazy!  If I can get my audience to get themselves energised and engaged, it sure beats having to be “spectacular” myself!

Here are 5 reasons I love breaking the ice with an activity:

1. For better or for worse, people are judging you the second you're on stage.  So you can either be absolutely fabulous, or you can use the vastly untapped resource of your audience to shift focus.
2. By using an Icebreaker Activity this gets attention off you.  The crowd are now focused on one another, and are judging each other rather than you!
3. An activity like this not only breaks the ice but also increases energy and fun in the room.  I love it when people come back form Icebreaker Activities because they are smiling, happy and laughing.  They will usually be more polite with their fellow audience members than they will be with you!
4. All this means you don't have to work so hard to capture attention and engage your crowd. Phew!
5. It allows audience members to build rapport with one another.  And of course if they have fun, that rapport will then be crossed over to you!

So use some kind of an Icebreaker Activity when you first hit the stage.  It really will make your life that much easier.

In next week’s newsletter I’ll give you a few examples that you can model.

Would you like to use this article on your website or in your ezine? You can, as long as the information below stays intact.

About the author:

Dr Joanna Martin

Dr Joanna Martin is an internationally acclaimed speaker and sought-after educator who has taught over 40,000 people on three continents.
Today, she trains entrepreneurs and professionals alike in key communication, leadership, and presentation skills. With her partner Greg, through their business, Shift Lifestyle they provide strategy and support for business owners who want a lifestyle, not just a living.

For more information go to: www.ShiftSpeakerTraining.com

If you need a speaker for your upcoming events, please contact our office.

Joanna's travel arrangements for the next 6 months:

• London: September 19th - 23rd November
• Floating Success Seminar: 23rd November - 6th of December
• USA 6th December - ?
• London 6th of January- 28th January
• Australia: 28th January- end of March

If you require international travel, we are open to this.  Please contact us at info@shiftlifestyle.com or call our office to discuss.

Upcoming Events

Here's where you can see me live...

• 9th February, 2010: Nationwide Networking Melbourne, Australia
• 19th - 21st March, 2010: Presentation Profits Intensive Melbourne, Australia
  

“The ABCs to Increase Your Income from Speaking This Year”

 As a preview  to the Presentation Profits Intensive in Melbourne, Australia in March 2010, I'm running a free webinar series- chock full of the usual generous gems I enjoy sharing.  Each month for the next 4 months we'll be focussing on a different crucial building block of you successful speakng business. 

Our next call is on the  10th of December, but with the silly season starting, now is a great time to register for the series if you haven't already. Why not start your New Years resolutions early and make 2010 your year to inject presentation profits into your business.

Register for the ABCs webinar series

Opportunity International Australia provides people living in poverty with access to basic financial services – including small loans, savings accounts, insurance and business training. These services are know as microfinance, and they assist people who wouldn’t usually qualify for regular banking services because they have no form of collateral or formal identification.

Here’s how it works…

By helping a mother to buy a sewing machine to start a tailoring business or a father to buy seeds to plant a vegatable garden, small loans enable people in poverty to earn an income and provide for their families. 97% of loans are paid back, so the cycle can continue for years! Each successful business feeds a family, employs more people and eventually helps to empower a whole community.

Did you know that for only a $200 donation you can help one family start a business and employ one other person? This one loan once paid back can be used again and again. Many of us spend more than that on a night out with friends and once that money is gone, it’s gone!

Find out more about Opportunity International and how you can make a difference by visiting their website:

www.Opportunity.org.au