A Gem on public speaking from Now, Discover Your Strenghts

I'm in the midst of reading Now, Discover Your Strengths by Marcus Buckingham & Donald O. Clifton, Ph.D. The purpose of the book is to point you to your themes - your natural talents that can be built into strengths, but also included is a fascinating overview on brain development. And escalating the book to one of my favorites are the little gems of information spread throughout. The point of this post is to share one of those gems with you.

Public speaking is a talent. To some it comes easily, but to others it can be a struggle. One of the best assets a public speaker can have is being able to tell a story, or to weave several stories together into one cohesive speech. Here are some steps, taken from Now, Discover Your Strengths to help you build your presentation storytelling skills.

1. Write down any story or fact or example that resonates with you.
   
2. Practice telling it out load. Listen to yourself actually saying the words.
3. These stories will become your "beads," as in the beads of a necklace.
   
4. All you have to do when giving a speech is string your beads in the appropriate order, and you will give a speech that seems as natural as a conversation.
   
5. Use 3-by-5 cards, or a clipping file to keep adding new beads to your string.
   

That's the gem that I wanted to share with you; I hope you'll find it as useful as I do. And if you're curious and have read Now, Discover Your Strengths, my themes are: Relator, Adaptability, Empathy, Individualization and Input. What are yours?