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Category: Public Speaking

Public Speaking Workshop: open to all this October

Posted on September 6, 2018October 1, 2018 in Public Speakingby Scott Berkun

For years now I’ve been quietly teaching public speaking workshops in-house at corporations and organizations and doing private speaker…

How To Be a Better Speaker – The Short Honest Truth

Posted on May 24, 2016April 1, 2021 in Public Speakingby Scott Berkun

For any skill, the only way to improve is through practice. This is not the same as reading or…

The Importance of What You Say

Posted on December 9, 2014January 31, 2021 in Public Speakingby Scott Berkun

People laugh when I tell them I’m a professional speaker. They assume at first that I’m some kind of…

Why I Loved Webstock & What Organizers Can Learn

Posted on February 21, 2014June 9, 2015 in On Tour, Public Speakingby Scott Berkun

Last week I had the pleasure of speaking for a second time at Webstock in Wellington, New Zealand. Natasha…

Q&A from Toughest Public Speaking Situations

Posted on January 28, 2014November 6, 2019 in Public Speakingby Scott Berkun

I did an entire presentation on How To Overcome Tough Presentation Situations, based on Confessions of A Public Speaker. If…

What are the toughest public speaking situations?

Posted on January 9, 2014January 28, 2014 in Public Speakingby Scott Berkun

On Tuesday 1/28 I’ll be doing a free, live webcast (register here) about public speaking, hosted by O’Reilly Media.…

How To Handle A Heckler

Posted on January 6, 2014February 28, 2015 in Public Speakingby Scott Berkun

It’s rare to get heckled when giving a lecture, yet it’s a top fear for many people. My own…

When Is Something Worth Teaching?

Posted on January 4, 2014January 25, 2021 in ask berkun, Public Speaking, reader's choice, Writing Wellby Scott Berkun

This month I’m posting every day, picking the top voted reader question and answering it. With 37 votes, submitted by Andrew…

How to present well without slides

Posted on December 19, 2013January 12, 2016 in Public Speakingby Scott Berkun

If you were having an important conversation with a friend at a restaurant, would you pull out a projector…

Updated: Speaking checklist for great talks (Printable)

Posted on October 30, 2013August 7, 2020 in Public Speakingby Scott Berkun

Here’s the best checklist for ensuring sure your presentation is as great as it can be. There’s a lot…

Why hats and iPads are speaking mistakes

Posted on May 6, 2013March 7, 2017 in Public Speakingby Scott Berkun

I spoke at TEDXDepaul last month and it was a fantastic event. The organizers Daniel Gurevich and Matt Helbig did a…

Why I sit in the back row at conferences

Posted on April 1, 2013October 31, 2013 in conferences, Public Speakingby Scott Berkun

Clay Hebert recently posted on the The Best Conference Hack, which is simply sitting in the front. As a frequent…

Blame the speaker or the organizer?

Posted on March 19, 2013March 19, 2013 in Public Speakingby Scott Berkun

Linda at Cook for Good asked me about Godin’s recent post Communication is a path, not an event: The other…

Advice for speakers bored with their own material

Posted on February 11, 2013February 25, 2013 in General, Public Speakingby Scott Berkun

A basic rule offered in Confessions of a Public Speaker is to pick material you care deeply about, since…

How to Run a Good Workshop

Posted on January 28, 2013August 20, 2020 in Public Speaking, Teaching/Trainingby Scott Berkun

Workshops are hopeful things. They’re sold on so much promise, but that promise is often dashed as students discover…

How To Write A Good Bio

Posted on January 23, 2013January 22, 2018 in Public Speaking, Writing Wellby Scott Berkun

Many good people write bad bios for themselves. Anyone asking you for a bio, or reading it, wants you…

The Best Books On Public Speaking

Posted on January 22, 2013August 12, 2015 in Public Speakingby Scott Berkun

A feature of some of my books is a ranked bibliography. I rank books that I read while doing…

Great talk: Life on a Möbius Strip

Posted on December 28, 2012December 28, 2012 in Public Speaking, storytellingby Scott Berkun

One reason I rarely get excited about TED talks, although I do enjoy many of them, is I’m drawn…

99 second presentations

Posted on November 28, 2012March 28, 2017 in Public Speakingby Scott Berkun

A running joke in the world of presentations is: how short can they be? They used to be an…

What I learned from Powerpoint Karaoke

Posted on November 20, 2012February 9, 2018 in Public Speakingby Scott Berkun

Everyone has fears about regular public speaking, but what if you have to present someone else’s slides? And see them…

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Scott Berkun is the author of nine popular books on creativity, design, leadership and public speaking. You can hire him to speak or follow him on LinkedIn and Facebook.

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Scott's Awesome Books

Why Design Is Hard

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4_5 Stars

"Concise, breezy, yet filled with excellent strategies for succeeding when the world is tilted against you.” Michael McWatters, VP Product Design for Max/HBO

How Design Makes The World

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4_5 Stars

“Nobody’s better at explaining how the world really works than Scott Berkun.” – Jeffrey Zeldman, co-founder of A List Apart

The Dance of the Possible

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5 Stars

"You'll find a lot to steal from this short, inspiring guide to being creative. Made me want to get up and make stuff!" - Austin Kleon, author of How To Steal Like An Artist

The Ghost of My Father

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4_5 Stars

“Thought-provoking read, and highly recommended…” – Thomas Duff

The Year Without Pants: WordPress.com & the Future of Work

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4_5 Stars

“If you want to think differently about entrepreneurship, management, or life in general, read this book.” — Tim Ferriss

Mindfire: Big Ideas for Curious Minds

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4_5 Stars

“The ideas contained in the essays are persuasive and it’s a fun, well focused read. ” — Simon Moore

Confessions of a Public Speaker

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4_5 Stars

“Berkun tells it like it is… you’ll gain insights to take your skills to the next level.” — Tony Hsieh, CEO Zappos.com

The Myths of Innovation

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“Berkun sets us free to try and change the world.” — Guy Kawasaki

Making Things Happen: Mastering Project Management

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“Highly recommended for CEOs, project managers, and hackers alike.” — Matt Mullenweg, Founder WordPress.org

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About Scott

Scott Berkun is the author of eight popular books on creativity, leadership, philosophy and speaking (more about Scott's background).

You can hire him to speak, ask him a question or follow him on Twitter and Facebook.

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