Last weekend my wife and I attended Hay House’s 3-day I Can Do It! seminar at the Sands Expo here in Las Vegas.  The last time I went to this seminar was in 2004, and I absolutely loved it both times.  In fact, I would have to say that this was the best seminar I’ve ever [...]

Many people think the best way to open a speech is with a joke, and in some situations that can work well, as long as you aren’t merely retelling an old joke your audience has heard before.  The best speakers incorporate abundant humor throughout their speeches.  In the Toastmasters International speech contest, it’s common for a [...]

A great idea I learned from weight training is the concept of progressive training.  Progressive training means that you keep gradually increasing the weights you lift (over a period of weeks, months, and years), so you always experience a high degree of challenge in your training.  In broader terms progressive training means changing various aspects of your training [...]

The self-help industry is frequently criticized for being poulated by scam artists who overpromise and underdeliver.  Is this a valid criticism?  Let’s take a deeper look into the dark side of self-help. False promises One of the biggest problems in the self-help industry is that promoters make false promises.  They promise hugely unrealistic results, as [...]

If you want to expand your horizons and try new things in life, the strategy of immersion is one of the best ways to do it.  Instead of merely dipping your toes in the water, immersion means you dive in head first.  This isn’t a strategy that appeals to the timid; however, with a sufficient [...]

Can humor skills be developed?  Yes, absolutely. I’ve had a strong sense of humor since I was a child.  I would sometimes get in trouble for making witty commentary in class, causing the room to bust out laughing.  In fact, I still do this today in group situations.  But this always came to me as a natural [...]

I had a great time at the motivational seminar yesterday. While I can’t share a full day’s worth of information in a single blog entry, I’ll share some of the highlights and the things I learned. The seminar took place in the Mandalay Bay Events Center, a gigantic indoor stadium with a raised speaking platform [...]

As you may already know, over the past year and a half, I’ve been working hard to build my speaking skills to a professional level. I’ve also been creating a mountainous volume of original content on personal development, much of which you can access for free via this web site. Based on the feedback I’ve [...]

Tomorrow I’m going with some friends to a Get Motivated motivational seminar at the Mandalay Bay hotel here in Las Vegas. Speakers include Zig Ziglar, Steve Forbes, Peter Lowe, Tom Hopkins, Michael Powell, Joe Montana, and Rudy Giuliani. I’m especially looking forward to seeing Zig Ziglar speak. I’ve heard his audio programs and read his [...]

One of the best pieces of advice for improving at public speaking is to videotape yourself and then watch the video, looking for ways you can improve. This technique is commonly used by the best speakers in the world. But this idea can work for any kind of performance, not just public speaking. If you’re [...]