Increase Your Impact as a Speaker and Presenter
July 30th, 2018
Now that Russian interference in the US election has been clearly established, many are concerned about the implications for democracy. But universities and researchers should be paying attention to another contributing factor to Hillary Clinton’s loss. By all objective criteria, she was more experienced and more knowledgeable, less narcissistic and less impulsive. She was also […]
read more...Are students universities’ most effective means of mobilizing knowledge?
Master Media Engagement
February 4th, 2016
I’m sitting in a restaurant with my friend Frances. (Note that this blog post was originally published pre-pandemic.) A longtime print journalist and frequent guest on radio public affairs shows, she is knowledgeable, articulate and funny – in both of Canada’s official languages. At the moment, however, she’s on the verge of turning down an interview […]
read more...Are you uncomfortable calling yourself an expert?
Increase Your Impact as a Speaker and Presenter
February 15th, 2015
How often are you rendered comatose by a presenter at the front of the room who commits one or more of these completely avoidable offences: 1. Failing to have curated content that would fit into the time allotted? 2. Failing to have considered the interests of the audience in selecting material to present? 3. Failing to […]
read more...Do you Engage Audiences (or Render Them Comatose)?
Improve your Writing
November 8th, 2013
Hanging out with teenagers can be an enlightening experience. Last week, I participated in a panel discussion convened by MediaSmarts, “Canada’s centre for digital and media literacy” and a repository of fabulous resources for teachers, parents and kids. The teenagers present from across Canada asked really smart questions, many of which betrayed both deep scepticism […]
read more...TL;DR – advice to ignore, but implications to heed
Improve your Writing
August 13th, 2013
Let’s say you have a graduate degree and/or 20 years of experience in your field, and you’re used to speaking or writing for people who are similarly well-informed. Chances are you sometimes find it difficult to translate your knowledge into sentences that engage a lay audience. But whether you’re writing a newspaper commentary, or speaking […]
read more...2 words to make your writing more accessible
