Attack Of The Bear
by Michael Powers
She talked about it; she dreamed about it, she never let it go. This was how a friend of mine regarded her fear of coming across a bear when we would go hiking in the wilderness areas of Idaho. Her character is strong in all other ways. She is kind, hard working, intelligent, prosperous and loving. But when the word “bear” crosses those ears of hers, she turns to Jell-O. In other words, her life is somewhat Un-Bear-Able!
We were hiking last spring in the Coeur d’Alene mountains going for a 10 mile excursion to visit one of the beautiful alpine lakes that are plentiful through out this part of Idaho. We packed a lunch, threw on our backpacks and set off for a glorious day of exercise and becoming one with nature. My friend, however, was nervous and carried a canister of bear spray (kind of like pepper spray only for bears) with her just in case. I assured her that bears were harmless in this area. Only black bears roamed the woods here…no grizzlies I told her. Yet she was set out to believe that a bear was a bear and in her mind, they were all very very bad.
After about an hour of vigorous hiking we sat down for a minute to take a drink of our water and take in the natural beauty that surrounded us. SNAP! went a tree branch just up the trail and there it was…everything she ever imagined in her worst nightmares was in front of her. It was, you guessed it, a big black 10 foot growling snarling bear! Actually, that is how she remembers it. It was actually a small female black bear just crossing the path about 50 yards in front of us. My good friend screamed, grabbed a hold of me and started to shake. I joined in with the screaming part because the first thing you do when you come across a bear is make a lot of noise to scare it off. So I figured, what the heck, I might as well scream too to make her feel better.
Well, the bear scurried off, my friend almost fainted and I laughed till I cried. I gave her a few minutes for her heart to slow down from it’s 160 beats a minute and then I calmly and gently said to her, “You see, bears are not going to hurt you”. She calmly said to me, “We got lucky this time buster”. Well, needless to say, this experience did not help her fear of bears but only increased the intensity of her phobia.
We still go on hikes together and now my friend is more at peace in the wilderness like never before. No, she did not get over her extreme terror of bears. No, her dreams have not stopped. No, she has not made peace with this precious animal. When we returned to our city dwellings after that last hike, my dear loveable sweet caring friend immediately called up a shooting gallery, enrolled in a class to learn how to shoot a gun, and now carries a pistol on her side whenever we roam the hills and valleys of bear country (just in case, she says). My friend feels less nervous and seems to enjoy our hikes like never before. Me, I feel sorry for the poor bear.
Michael Powers is an internet marketer and entrepreneur who has owned and developed his own businesses for over 10 years now. Mike has two websites, http://www.clearwatercabinliving.com (cabin living resources) and http://www.solidbeginnings.com , which offers tools and resources to help individuals with credit problems.
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Cultivating Organic Humor
by Jay Speyerer
Humor is a funny thing. Everyone thinks they have a sense of humor, but not everyone is right. You can be an effective speaker even if you don’t have a sense of humor, as long as you don’t try to fake it. The audience can always tell.
On the other hand, if you have been blessed with a good sense of humor, that isn’t enough to be a speaker; you also need a sense of timing. A sense of humor allows you to see the funny aspects of everyday life and the funny relationships between unrelated things. A sense of timing lets you talk about them in a funny way.
We all know what’s funny, but we laugh at wildly different examples. One theory says that some nationalities are funnier than others, but I don’t buy it. I’m German by ancestry and I’ve been known to be amusing, even though you’d probably be hard pressed to come up with a good example of German hilarity. Sure, we have lederhosen and yodeling, but they don’t count because we were serious about those. You might ask how on earth we could be serious about such cultural oddities. I answer with another German tradition: beer.
When aspiring speakers ask me if they can open their presentation with a joke, I suggest that they use humor instead. The term ‘joke’ hits me as being stand-alone and unrelated to a topic or theme. Effective humor is always organic, blending seamlessly with the topic and the audience.
Are isolated jokes funny? Sure they are. The vaudeville comedian Henny Youngman was famous for his disconnected one-liners. “My wife dresses to kill. She cooks the same way.” But funny isn’t the only criterion; for humor to work within a presentation, it has to be effective, appropriate, and supportive of the topic. You know - organic. Unrelated one-liners don’t fit the definition. Besides, being able to tell a joke does not necessarily mean you have a good sense of humor; maybe you just have a good memory.
Organic humor is most effective when it’s woven into a story. But for the humor to work along with the point of the story, you really have to know the story. Really know it. REALLY. Pittsburgh radio personality and storyteller Jack Bogut says that a good speaker practices a story until he gets it right. A professional speaker practices a story until he can’t get it wrong. For any story - humorous or otherwise - to be effective, it must be told properly and flawlessly, and timing plays a major role.
This assumes you’ve mastered the basics, such as structure (beginning, middle, and end), progressive disclosure (what details you reveal and when you reveal them), and judicious use of dialogue and description. But it also includes minute details like the choice of language and the rhythm of the words. It isn’t only poetry and song lyrics that have rhythm; so do prose and the spoken word.
Let’s say you want to make a specific point using a humorous story as an illustration. Here’s one for you. The state of New Mexico recently unveiled (if that’s the right word) a series of public service announcements for the tipsy male from an unusual source: the urinal. Talking urinal cakes will spout messages in a female voice, such as the following: “Hey, you! Yeah, you! Having a few drinks? Then, listen up! Think you’ve had one too many? Maybe it’s time to call a cab or call a sober friend for a ride home. It’s sure safer and a hell of a lot cheaper than a DWI! Make the smart choice tonight. Don’t drink and drive!”
(I don’t know what you would illustrate with this story; that’s your problem.)
The article I read didn’t say how the talking urinal cakes are activated and I don’t want to know. But a Department of Transportation spokesman is quoted as saying that the device is a great idea because it’s guaranteed to get “ten or fifteen seconds of undivided attention.” Wait a minute. If you’re in a bar restroom and you can take care of business in ten or fifteen seconds, well, you’re just not doing your part. And there’s another problem. If the poor guy is really swacked and he’s in there all by himself and suddenly hears a woman’s voice coming out of the urinal … that could really throw off his aim. Worst case scenario: there’s a whole bank of urinals, each with its own babbling deodorizer, all being used at the same time. The cacophony could drive a man to drink.
Notice that each of my comments on the story ends in a one-syllable word. That isn’t essential every time, but it’s more effective. Find an amusing story in the newspaper or notice something funny at work, and then see what else it makes you think of. How much funnier can you make real life?
While Henny’s one-liner would not fit into a speech or presentation, it offers some valuable examples of structure and rhythm. This joke has two parts, the setup and the snapper. “My wife dresses to kill. She cooks the same way.” The setup has six syllables and the snapper has five, making only 11 syllables in the whole joke. And every word but one has only one syllable. That’s tight and economical writing.
Let’s try it another way: “My wife dresses to kill. You could say the same thing about her cooking.” It makes the same point, but not as well. Too many words and too many syllables. Plus, the second sentence doesn’t match the staccato rhythm of the first. In my bad example, I waited until the final word to reveal what is being compared to dressing, and that can be effective. But cooking has one syllable too many. Pay attention to the rhythm. A one-syllable word has more punch, especially if it’s the last one.
Many audiences expect a presenter to attempt humor. If the presenter is not a professional speaker, they’re also expecting the attempt to be lame. Surprise them.
Jay Speyerer has been a writer, a speaker, and an educator for more than 30 years, successfully helping people achieve their communication goals in memoir writing, e-mail, cross-cultural communication, and presentation skills. Want to communicate better? Find out how at his web site: => http://www.jayspeyerer.com
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What Causes Vocal Hoarseness?
by Lynda Stucky
Did you know there is a correlation between physical fitness and vocal health? Vocal sound begins with a complex and dynamic interaction of various muscles in the vocal tract. A good exercise program increases cardio-respiratory endurance, muscular strength, flexibility and coordination. These benefits (especially endurance and flexibility) contribute to more efficient use of energy during speaking and singing by reducing tension and increasing airflow for breathing. But you still might be experiencing hoarseness if you don’t take care of other factors that can create vocal problems.
Vocal hoarseness occurs for a variety of reasons. Here are 16 examples with explanations of vocal abuse that may cause hoarseness or vocal fatigue:
Coughing/Throat clearing — When you cough or clear your throat, you are slamming your vocal cords together very hard. If done frequently, you may become hoarse, raspy or breathy because your cords have become swollen. There is a method for coughing and throat clearing that isn’t hard on the cords that is especially effective for people who clear their throats or cough out of habit.
Excessive speaking during an upper respiratory infection — Since we are talking about coughing and throat clearing, it is highly likely that you are experiencing a cold. If so, it could mean that there is excessive mucous drainage which adds to the irritation of the vocal cords. This is a good time to take a rest from your speaking. Giving your cords a break will be very beneficial!
Grunting (as in weight lifting) — If you lift weights on a regular basis, you may be abusing your vocal cords. Weight-lifters slam their vocal cords together for the resistance needed to lift heavy weights and then grunt at the same time. This activity, repeated over time, may damage the vocal cords because the slamming together of the cords can cause a callous to build up, thus changing the mass of the vocal cords. This may result in a change in pitch and/or create vocal hoarseness.
Excessive talking — Anyone who likes to talk frequently and also abuses the vocal cords by doing any of the other behaviors listed here, will most likely experience vocal fatique (the voice wears out by the end of the day), hoarseness or have a complete loss of voice.
Talking in noisy environments — We all tend to speak louder in noisy environments and frequently speak at a higher pitch when talking loudly. This combination hurts the vocal cords.
Talking with excessive tension — Imagine holding a tight fist all day. What do you think your hand will feel like at the end of the day? Tired? Sore? This is what happens to your voice when too much tension is present.
Smoking cigarettes/marijuana — This one should be obvious…the smoke that passes through the vocal cords on their way to your lungs is extremely drying to the entire vocal tract. If you smoke, quit!
Speaking/singing in smoky environments — Second hand smoke has been shown to hurt people almost as much as taking puffs yourself. Consume a lot of water if you are performing or working in a smoke-filled room.
Drinking alcohol — Alcohol is dehydrating and will rob you of your fluids. See the next point on drinking water.
Not drinking enough water — Most experts recommend 8-10 glasses to stay well hydrated and keep your vocal performance edge!
Inadequate breath support — Good breath support is essential when it comes to voice projection and maintaining good vocal health. Make sure you are using diaphragmatic support and not shallow breathing. Poor breathing technique is a common problem among speakers.
Reverse phonation — To do this you must be speaking while inhaling. Think of gasping or certain types of sighing or even heavy sleeping. Some kids may talk like this for fun too! There may be an occupation that may use reverse phonation such as a clown. But, it isn’t a good practice over the long term.
Abusive laughter — Too high of a pitch, laughing with reverse phonation, or too loudly are the things that people can do wrong while laughing.
Yelling/Excessive habitual loudness — Yelling, like throat clearing and coughing, slams the vocal cords together. Too often we also talk at a higher pitch when we get louder. This combination is hard on the vocal cords and over time, will result in hoarseness. Speaking too loudly over time will also hurt your vocal cords.
Inappropriate high/low pitch — If you speak with a pitch that is too high or too low from the optimal place in your pitch range, you will experience hoarseness. Often times, individuals try to produce and maintain a pitch that is too low for their pitch range.
Hard glottal attacks — The habit of building up pressure below the vocal cords and releasing the air abruptly on words that begin with vowels is called hard glottal attacks. Say “I” sharply and forcefully and then say “I” with a silent “h” in front of the “I.If done correctly, the resulting sound will be very different. When the vocal cords are chronically brought together forcibly, the result is hoarseness.
If you are hoarse and still not sure why, schedule an appointment with a physician or an Ears, Nose and Throat Specialist to find out if there is a physical problem.
Copyright (c) 2008 Lynda Stucky
If you need assistance identifying or eliminating a vocally abusive behavior, seek help from a professional!
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How to have happy customers, great testimonials and increased sales
by Melina Abbott
Gaining feedback from your customers - both positive and negative is one of the most valuable things you can do in your business.
However I know that many businesses struggle with contacting their customers and asking for honest feedback about their products or service. For example:
- You may be afraid of negative comments even though in your heart you know you are doing a good job.
- You may not have time to telephone each customer and ask them for feedback.
- You may be getting lots of positive comments from satisfied customers and be confident you are doing a good job (so you feel you don’t need a structured process for it)
- You may not care what your customers think about you and your business. Yes - there are businesses out there that don’t care - and if they do, they certainly don’t show it. Be honest, haven’t you contacted a company only to be left feeling “do they really want my business?” You wonder why they are in business at all.
- Perhaps you do have a customer feedback form with questions and tick-boxes which you post to customers and maybe get a small percentage back.
Whatever you feel about getting feedback from your customers I recommend you include it as an essential part of your sales process. Why? Several reasons:
1. You will find out whether or not you have some unhappy customers. Most customers - especially in the UK - rarely complain. We’re a shy bunch - we don’t want to make a fuss. We will simply walk away - and never buy from you again (unless we really have to). By asking for feedback you find out what it is we are unhappy about - so you can do something about it.
2. You get an opportunity to put things right. For example I once used a local garage to fit a new exhaust to my car. It was never quite right - and I kept meaning to take it back but never got round to it. Had they called me to check everything was ok - after all I was a new customer to them - I’d have told them and they could have fixed it.
As it is - I have never been back - despite the fact they offer extra services such as a courtesy car and they are local.
3. It shows you care - you will stand out from the crowd. Your customers will feel good about you and your business - and will be more likely to refer you to their friends. After all they know you will not let them down if anything does go wrong
4. It is an opportunity to get in touch with them again - without being pushy.
5. If they have positive comments you can use them as testimonials on your marketing materials
6. You may pick up some great ideas which you’d never thought about offering in your business.
Happy customers, increased sales, great market research, fantastic testimonials - is that worth a couple of hours each week? I’d say so. Make it an essential part of the sales process. Ensure you include open questions so you really get a sense of their experience - and listen out for negative feedback as well as the positive.
One of my clients actually told me that getting feedback was the most valuable thing he got from working with me - and he’s got a page of great testimonials on his website.
If you’d like to attract more new customers to your business - download Melina’s Free report - The 7 Deadly Marketing Mistakes and How to Avoid Them - at http://www.businessbyresults.co.uk
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Top Ten Tips for a Successful Motorcycle Tour
by Alan Liptrot
You chose a country that you thought would suit you, you carefully packed your luggage and your maps, you meticulously planned the route, but still the holiday is a disaster. What more could you have done to ensure the success of the tour? Here are the top ten tips for motorbike touring.
YOUR BIKE
It sounds obvious, but you’d be surprised how many people set off on a long tour without making sure that their bike is in the best possible condition it could be. Having your motorcycle serviced before a long tour could save days of heartache, especially if you are planning a trip abroad. In some countries,garages aren’t always as motivated as you are, when it comes to getting your bike back on the road. Sometimes, the whole holiday can be taken up waiting for repairs. Don’t forget to carry spare bulbs.
YOUR CLOTHING
Make sure you have the right clothing. Even in summer months there is a possibility that mountain roads can be subject to inclement weather. It could be forty degrees or it could be less than ten, and it’s a guessing game that you would be wise to avoid. This is when a guided tour with a luggage-carrying back-up vehicle comes into its own. Another advantage of a back-up vehicle is the access to water if it does become very hot.
DON’T BITE OFF MORE THAN YOU CAN CHEW
Don’t try and cover too much ground in one day. Many people who set out on their own, forget to allow time for refreshment stops. There’s nothing worse than arriving at your planned destination in a state of exhaustion, then quickly eating and climbing into bed. A few consecutive days of this will see you wanting to ditch your bike and catch a bus. Be reasonable with your itinerary.
RIDE WITHIN THE LAW
Is it a race or a motorcycle holiday? Another downer that could happen whilst on tour, is being pulled by the local police and hit with a huge speeding fine, and in some countries I mean huge. Always, but always respect the traffic laws and speed limits, and this applies if you’re touring in your own country too.
PLAN YOUR ROUTE SENSIBLY
When planning your route, make sure you go somewhere interesting. It’s all very well spending the day on fantastic country roads, but when you wash up in that one horse town and you’re sitting in a bar all by yourselves, you’ll wish you’d put a little more thought into the route. Again, if are travelling with a guided tour, someone else will have done all the homework for you.
WHEN ARE YOU GOING?
What time of year are you planning to take the tour? Bear in mind, especially if you are travelling to a mountainous region, that even when the sun is shining on the coast, it can snowing in the mountains. In summer, you’re probably going to be fine if you remember to carry the right gear, but be careful in spring and autumn, or you may just have to pack a snow shovel.
DRINKING?
I know that you’ve been set free and are determined to enjoy yourself, but believe me (here speaks the voice of experience), it’s no fun crawling to your bike with a raging hangover, a mouth that feels like a monkey slept in there and a splitting headache. For your own sake and the sake of the people you are travelling with, go easy on the booze.
HOW ARE YOU?
We’ve talked about the condition of your bike, but what about you? You owe it to yourself to feel as well as you can during your tour. I’m not talking about launching into some kind of marathon training before you embark on your trip, but the better you feel, the more you’ll enjoy yourself, so if it means shedding a few pounds, it’s well worth it. Besides looking after yourself, it’s also a good idea to keep an eye on your travelling companions during the tour. It’s always worth asking how someone feels, especially if you know them well and feel they’re not quite on the ball.
DON’T FORGET YOUR CAMERA
You’re in an incredibly beautiful mountain pass, the high peaks have a coating of pure white snow punctured by the most graceful pines you’ve ever seen, and guess what; you forgot you camera. This scenario is not as uncommon as you might think. Before you set off, and I don’t mean in the hour leading up to departure, make a list of all the things you’re likely to need on your trip. I know you want to travel light, but you can always cross things off the list, but you can’t magic them out of thin air once you’ve started.
FRIENDS
This could be the most important one. Go with friends who’ll understand when you get lost, tired or irritable. Better still go with a specialised tour company.
Alan Liptrot is the founder of Motorbike Tours.co.uk The Company offers guided motorcycle tours in Spain, Portugal and Morocco.
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