It’s that time of year again, when Randy Ford and I sit down and share the best and worst of speaking from the year. We share our own wins and sins, along with those of other speakers. The DNC took place in Chicago, so, of course, we had to pick on the public speakers in our hometown.

Writing a pitch can be difficult, but something my good friend Derrick Wolbert passed on to me was to make them lean back in their chairs. What he meant was, you want them to be in awe. This visual stuck with me and I believe it sets a great goal for anyone preparing to give a pitch.

I’m a huge fan of icebreakers. They get the audience talking or moving. They also help the group get to know each other a little bit. Now, I’ve heard from some people, “I hate icebreakers!” If that’s the case, it’s because you’ve only been shown the wrong ones - the icebreakers that are tiresome or not very well-thought out. I’m here to correct that!