Image A Year From Now

As we head into Super Tuesday, it’s too early to predict which presidential candidate will ultimately become the Democratic nominee. But there’s one candidate using a rhetorical tool worth noting. 

Whether on the debate stage or in a town hall, Pete Buttigieg encourages people to think about a specific day in time – whether in 2020 or 2024 – when we’ll elect a new president. Here’s what Mayor Pete said to a packed house at an Iowa rally: “Imagine a year from now when the sun rises over Cedar Rapids and Donald Trump is not president.” It was one of his biggest applause lines of the night. 

Mayor Pete often follows up this line by asking audiences to really visualize it: “Think about it. The sun’s coming up that day over a country that’ll be even more divided than we are today, even more torn up over politics, even more exhausted from fighting than we are right now.” 

If you offer your audience a future they genuinely want, they’ll help turn your vision into a reality.

MSNBC reporter Katy Tur asked Mayor Pete directly about this rhetorical technique. He explained, “Part of why I ask people to visualize that day is not only that it’s a day we’ve got to work hard to bring about, but also to realize that a lot of our problems will be with us on that day too. This isn’t just about the nominee who can defeat Donald Trump. It’s about the president who can lead us through the era that’s got to come next … it is our chance to set a different course ….”

Now, giving folks a glimpse of the future isn’t a new rhetorical strategy by any means. As my fellow speechwriting colleagues have rightly pointed out, President Lincoln used it in the Gettysburg Address calling for “a new birth of freedom.” Many presidents since then – notably Reagan and Obama – have used it masterfully as well to describe a bright future ahead. 

Nor is this technique just for politicians. It can be used in any persuasive talk on just about any topic and any length of speech.  It is, in fact, the fourth step of Monroe’s Motivated Sequence, a framework developed by Professor Alan Monroe of Purdue University in the1930s: 

• Step one - grab the audience’s attention. 

• Step two - describe a problem. 

• Step three - offer a solution. 

• Step four - help the audience visualize the future. 

• Step five - call to action. 

(You can learn much more about Monroe’s Motivated Sequence here.) 

The fourth step is vital. If you can help your audience “see” or imagine your solution, you’ll have a better chance of them getting up from their chair and actually doing your call to action. Opening their checkbooks. Calling their Senator. Signing your petition. Offer them a future they genuinely want and they’ll help turn your vision into a reality.

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For more examples of helping your audience visualize the future, watch President Reagan’s famous “Morning in America” ad. In it, he paints an optimistic portrait of life in America (i.e., low unemployment, low inflation). He then assures voters things will stay that way, if he’s elected. Another example is President Obama’s aspirational refrain that we’re not made up of red states or blue states … we’re the united states.

Reach out if you’d like to talk more about persuasive speaking or if your organization is looking for a public speaking trainer. Looking ahead, I’m heading to Washington, D.C., in March to offer speechwriting training to a large federal agency. I’d love to come to your organization as well. You can reach me at rose@rosespeechwriter.com.

[PS – In case you’re wondering … no, I’m not necessarily backing Mayor Pete. I just appreciate his steady use of this time-tested rhetorical tool.]

What We Can Learn from Brad Pitt: Three Tips for Telling Jokes

Welcome to 2020! This year, I’m changing my monthly blog to include speech critiques as well as tips for public speaking. Let’s dive in with Brad Pitt’s remarks at the Golden Globes. Here’s what worked … and what could have gone better.

At the Golden Globes, Brad Pitt won Best Supporting Actor for his role in “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.” He spoke for two and a half minutes without notes. He seemed sincerely grateful for the honor and paid tribute to iconic actors who’d come before him: Al Pacino, Joe Pesci, and Tom Hanks. 

After this great start, Pitt rambled a bit, listing “thank you-s.” Then at the end, he shared two jokes back to back. 

The first involved a nod to Leonardo DiCaprio. Pitt described LDC saying, “He’s an all-star, he’s a gent and I wouldn’t be here without you, man. I thank you. Still, I would have shared the raft.” 

This was a bit of inside baseball from the movie Titanic. Unfortunately, Pitt’s timing was off. He rushed too quickly from acknowledging DiCaprio one moment, then launching his punch line the next. As a result, the audience was slow to pick up on the joke, if they got it at all. (The joke is explained more here). 

Three tips for telling jokes – and that’s no laughing matter.

Pitt’s second joke was a bigger hit. He set it up by saying, “I want to say ‘hi’ to my folks because … hey.” Pitt paused again, then added that he’d hoped to bring his parents to the Golden Globes, but ultimately decided against it. It’s awkward to invite my mother, he explained, because (drum roll) the press assumes he’s dating anyone he’s standing next to. 

This joke worked for two reasons. First (and I love this part), it showed his humanity. Even the rich and famous like to show off for mom and dad on tv. 

Pitt’s body language made the joke a success. Watch his delivery at 2 minutes in. After he said, “hey,” he just stood there—arms open wide, shoulders square to the camera. He smiled and smiled. After rushing the first joke, Pitt looked relaxed, confident, and fully in command of the room. And he was!  

The audience applauded loudly and clapped him off the stage as he shared a final, sincere request for people to be kind to one another. This was a nice, albeit brief, capstone to his speech.

Tips on Humor

Jokes can fall flat for any number of reasons. Here are a few tips I’ve learned after 15-plus years as a speechwriter.  

1) Timing is everything. One of the main reasons jokes fail is not enough set up. In other words, the audience needs more time to visualize the scene. A penguin and priest walk into a bar, order shots of whisky and down them. Great! Now let it sink in. The scene is funny in and of itself and, heck, you just might get some mileage out of the set up alone – a chortle, a snort, a smile here or there. My point is to take your time. A pause goes a long way. Make sure folks are with you, before launching into that big punch line.

2) Play it safe.  It’s not worth offending someone or alienating an audience member just for a laugh. Never use racist, sexist, or vulgar humor. Ever. Instead, the safest approach is self-deprecating humor – with one caveat. The first words out of your mouth shouldn’t cut yourself down. Apologizing for yourself right out of the gate tells people you’re not worth listening to … so they’ll heed your own words and tune you out. 

3) Know your audience.  I once wrote a joke for a room of Russians and it royally flopped. They sat there, stony faced. Not a single chuckle. Honestly, it was crickets! Fortunately, my boss at the time (then the Secretary of Defense) kept rolling. He later laughed off the experience, but I learned an important lesson. Do your homework. Be sensitive to other cultures. And if you’re not sure if your joke will fly for non-native speakers … skip it.

Update: After I wrote this blog, I came across this article in The Guardian in mid-February. In it, Brad Pitt talks about his acceptance speeches at both the Golden Globes and Oscars. He said he didn’t hire a speechwriter, but instead put in some good ‘ol fashion hard work. Nice job, Brad. It certainly paid off!

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For more tips on using humor in your next speech, check out this blog, this blog, or drop me a line. Reach out too if your organization is looking for a public speaking trainer. At the end of last year, I did gigs in Washington, DC, Phoenix, and Colorado Springs. I’d love to come to your home town. You can reach me at rose@rosespeechwriter.com.

Formatting Tips: The Final Step before Your Speech

I’d like to kick off my December blog by thanking you, my readers. I hope you’ve found my public speech hacks helpful over the last 12 months. In 2020, I’ll continue to provide speaking tips, but I’m also going to include short reviews of speeches. I’ll look at what works – what felt compelling, what moved us to action – as well as what could have been done better. I hope you’ll continue to follow me and share my posts from time to time. 

For today’s blog, I’ve decided to answer a question that I’ve been asked many times before. It’s not the sexiest topic but it’s the final step in making sure your delivery comes off smoothly. 

How Do You Format a Speech? 

The right format is the one that brings out the best in the speaker. Some people prefer Calibri 22-point font, single spaced. Others opt for larger font, double spaced. Use the format that’s right for you. 

If you’re not sure, here’s a starting point:  Verdana 24 point with 1.5 spacing and 1-inch margins.  My speech formats look like this which – to invoke the holiday spirit – is formatted to Bill Murray’s transformative moment in Scrooged, based on Dickens’ A Christmas Carol:

What Else Do You Need to Know about Formatting?

1. Number all the pages in case they get out of order on the podium or worse, you drop the speech. (I’ve seen it happen. Not pretty.)

2. Never bleed a sentence from one page to the next. Turning the page is a simple act but, when you’re nervous in front of a hundred people, it becomes oddly enough more complicated. Avoid orphans and you’ll avoid stumbling.

3. Leave the bottom third of each page blank. This prevents speakers from looking down too much (i.e., putting their forehead on the podium). The result is better eye contact.

4. The speech you write is called, “Remarks as Prepared.” The speech you actually give is called, “Remarks as Delivered.” These distinctions are helpful if you’re sharing your speech with others. The press, for example, will often request the former so they can get a jump on drafting their story before your speech. Then they’ll use Remarks as Delivered to confirm the quotes used in the speech.

5. If you don’t want anyone to scoop you, write “Embargoed Until Delivery” in the header section at the top. This will (in theory) prevent anyone from posting it until you’ve given your remarks. If this isn’t necessary, use the header to note which version of the speech it is. Example: Semi-Final Draft, 12.25. 19.

Looking for a trainer to improve your team’s communication skills? In the last 2 months, I did just that in Washington, DC, Phoenix, and Colorado Springs. I’d love to come to your city in 2020. Reach out anytime at Rose at rose@rosespeechwriter.com.

Welcome 2020! Next year, I’ll put a new spin on my blog by taking on speech reviews. See you then! [Photo Credit: Jamie Street on Unsplash.]

Are you Communicating in the Right Direction? Find out from TED’s Director of Speaker Coaching

Communicate in the ‘right’ direction by focusing on the audience: find out what’s on their mind before writing your content. [Photo credit: Nick Fewing]

Last month I was at Georgetown University speaking at a day-long Speechwriting School hosted by the Professional Speechwriting Association. I kicked off the program by talking about the importance of understanding your audience. In other words, not only exploring audience demographics, but diving deeper by asking the hard, messy questions:

• What do they genuinely care about? 

• What are they excited about?

• What are their red flag issues? 

Since then, I’ve come across another great way to think about your audience, courtesy of Briar Goldberg, TED’s Director of Speaker Coaching. She emphasizes communicating in the “right” direction. What’s that? Hint: it has to do with the ABCs of public speaking, Audience Before Content. I encourage you to read her short article, “Before Your Next  Presentation or Speech, Here’s the First Thing You Must Think About.”

Want to learn more about audience analysis? Read my blog and reach out anytime. – Rose at rose@rosespeechwriter.com.

A Tremendous Whack: Hitting the Key Message of Your Next Talk

Churchill said, “If you have an important point to make, don’t try to be subtle or clever. Use a pile driver. Hit the point once. Then come back and hit again. Then hit a third time – a tremendous whack.” [Photo Credit: Arthur Osipyan]

I love this quote by Churchill: “If you have an important point to make, don’t try to be subtle or clever. Use a pile driver. Hit the point once. Then come back and hit again. Then hit a third time – a tremendous whack.” 

As a speechwriter, I often think of this quote when I’m talking with a client. The speaker, often a CEO, VP, or Executive Director, and I are usually sitting around a small, wooden table in his office. We’re discussing an upcoming speech and the conversation frequently ping pongs in a thousand directions – with at least as many ideas. 

As the meeting begins to wrap up, I know my big moment is coming. I usually say something like this: 

“All that’s great material. I’ll sort through it and figure out how to structure it, so we can build a persuasive argument. But just so I understand … what do you actually want them to remember? After you finish talking and the audience applauds, what is the single most important idea that you’re trying to convey here?”

I keep asking this same question in different ways. Pushing for a clear one-liner because the reality is this. It’s the only thing the audience is going to remember. At dinner that night, people aren’t going to recall the four points he made or the three stats he shared. If the speech was decent, they’ll remember one key idea.

What big speeches do we remember? There’s Churchill in 1940 saying, “we shall never surrender” and JFK in 1962 with, “we choose to go to the moon.” There’s Nixon’s Checkers speech about keeping his dog and Carter’s 1977 speech about the energy crisis (yo, put on a sweater). More recent examples? Who can forget Michelle Obama’s line, “When they go low, we go high” and Greta Thunberg’s shaming for the climate mess we’re leaving the next generation.

In the end, I believe every great speech is driven by a single, governing idea. So what does that mean for us?

The Take Away

The next time you’re preparing to give a talk, figure out the “money line.” I won’t kid you – it’s tough to capture in a few words. But once you do, you’ll have a governing principle that will organize the rest of the speech. You’ll preview the main message in the intro. You’ll gather different types of evidence to address it in the body of the speech. And if all goes well, you’ll restate it with conviction in the conclusion, driving it home, as Churchill suggests, with “a tremendous whack.” 

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Looking for more info on how to identify the main idea? Check out this blog on the “headline test” and reach out anytime. – Rose at rose@rosespeechwriter.com.

The Neuroscience Behind Storytelling

Why tell a story? Because of the chemicals it naturally releases in our brains.

When people tell a moving story, our brains release cortisol and oxytocin. [Photo Credit: Paul Zak video, “The Future of Storytelling”]

In early November, I’m participating on a panel at a medical conference in Phoenix. The topic of the panel is storytelling. While preparing, one of my peers introduced me to a terrific video by Paul Zak. It explains – in 5 min no less – the neuroscience behind storytelling. 

A professor at Claremont Graduate University, Zak is the founder of the Center for Neuroeconomics Studies. His video on storytelling is well worth your time if you’ve ever questioned its value. Once you watch it, you’ll know the answer. An emphatic “yes!” 

When people tell a moving story, our brains release cortisol and oxytocin. As the video explains, cortisol helps us focus our attention while oxytocin is associated with care, connection, and empathy. These two chemicals not only make stories memorable, but they cause people to take action. In this case, people who listened to a compelling story donated more money than people who didn’t. 

And that’s the catch: you must tell a compelling story. In other words, a description of an event is not a story. Nor is a laundry list of facts. Stories build up to a point of tension at their climax and, as Zak explains, often follow a universal story arc. He offers an example in the video or you can follow the story structure that I outlined in this blog by providing a setting, showing a struggle, and offering a solution.

Either way, telling a great story is required to release cortisol and oxytocin. Once you’ve done that, you, as a speaker, are more apt to move people to action.

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Looking for someone to talk about storytelling in your organization? Or someone to improve public speaking at your office? Click here for more info and reach out anytime. – Rose at rose@rosespeechwriter.com.

Storytelling 101: Three Elements for Compelling Stories

Statistics and data won’t move your audience to action – but stories will. [Photo Credit: Annie Spratt]

I worked for a CEO once who didn’t know how to tell a story. She was scary smart, an inspiring leader, and capable in just about every other way. She successfully made dozens of complex, high-level decisions day in and day out. 

But telling a story? Not in her wheelhouse. 

How Did I Know?

I realized my client wasn’t a storyteller the night before she was scheduled to address about 4,000 employees. We were having a private rehearsal in a huge, hotel meeting room. I stood about 15 rows deep from the stage, coaching her for the big day.

She started off strong with a captivating intro. She quickly nailed the timing of the slides and she avoided the podium, using the space around her effectively. And despite the vacuous room, she practiced making eye contact around the room, looking at three Audience Anchors in the left, right, and center of the room.

Then she hit a wall. I had a copy of her bullet points, so I looked down at them. They said, “Tell story about playground.” The CEO began like this:

“A long time ago, my father took me to a playground. I was young, really young. One section had monkey bars that moved on a track.  You held on and sort of swung, hand over hand, from them. I was scared to cross.” 

Then the CEO stumbled, exhaled, and began talking about the competition facing her company this quarter. 

“Wait,” I thought. “What happened? Did you cross the monkey bars? What did Dad do? What about the other kids?”

I knew we had a problem. The description she had shared wasn’t a story and she’d missed a golden opportunity to connect. I called a time-out in the rehearsal and together we fleshed out that long-ago day: her standing there, facing scary blue monkey bars, and in retrospect, explaining why this story was relevant to her audience.

What Makes a Story?

Telling a story is challenging for some, overwhelming for others. That’s why I like to draw on Ty Bennett’s book, The Power of Storytelling. In it, Bennett breaks down stories into three simple elements: 

• Set Up

• Struggle

• Solution

Set Up – Give the audience some context. In this case, I asked the CEO a few simple questions about her story: what grade was she in? What city was she in (and even better, what was the name of the playground)? Was it snowing, rainy, or sunny? Was the playground empty or full of laughing kids?

Struggle – What was she afraid of? How the monkey bars slid along a rusty track? Their height? The dirt below? What did she physically feel at the time (shaky legs, shortness of breath)? Did she say anything to her father or just balk, refusing to move?

Solution – What happened in the end? Did her father gently talk her across or threaten her to cross? Did the kids in line push in front of her? Did she turn back and climb down? 

After ending a story, I often add an “off ramp” in a speech. By that, I mean explain why the speaker shared the story. In this case, what was the connection between the little girl’s challenge years ago and the competition the company faced today?

In this case, the CEO’s story ended with another little girl showing her how to cross the monkey bars. The speaker then used the story to talk about employees sharing their expertise with one another, something their competition happened to be doing really well.

When you’re giving a presentation, stories don’t have to be long or difficult or overly intimate. But they must have, as a minimum, three elements to succeed. And when a good story lands, you’ll know it. Among other things, they fire up the mirror neurons in your audience, helping them envision – and feel – what you’re trying to convey.

Don’t get me wrong. Data, statistics, examples, and other forms of concrete evidence will help you back up the main point. They should be integrated into your remarks where appropriate. But they rarely, if ever, create the kind of emotional connection with other people that stories do.

Looking for another great example of storytelling? Watch Abby Wambach’s 2018 commencement at Barnard. Her opening story about the ESPYs has a clear set up, struggle, and solution (plus a smooth off ramp!). Thanks & please reach out anytime. – Rose at rose@rosespeechwriter.com.

Block Your Talk

 In previous blog posts, I've addressed the Speaker's Triangle and three common mistakes by speakers using slides. This month, I want to offer another installment on using the space you're given for a presentation. What if you're stuck behind a long table or massive podium? What are best practices for speaking on a stage? And what should you do if there's simply no room to maneuver? 

 The Elegant Hack offers some helpful answers using theater terms such as "blocking."  Read on to learn how you can use space more effectively during your next presentation.

 Do you want to become a more compelling speaker? Reach out at rose@rosespeechwriter.com.

Block Your Talk

You’ve written a great talk, you’ve made your deck (or not!) and you’ve practiced. But have you considered how you’ll move while speaking?

First, you have to know what you are walking into. You’ll perform in a space that consists of a stage, a room with four walls, a floor full of seats, and a ceiling. All of these elements affect your performance. It is critical to check out the space before you give a talk, preferably 24 hours before.

The stage may be raised or low. Sometimes it’s just an empty bit of floor in front of the chairs for the audience.

It may have nothing but a stand for your laptop or full of tables and chairs.

My talk at GDC was set up for panels, and although I spoke alone, I was trapped behind a long set of tables with a podium in the middle of them (Like Stone Librande in the photo below).

I had checked out the space the day before, I was prepared to be stuck there. I knew I could move to the right of the podium, unblocking more of my body and reducing the distance to my audience, and I had found the blind spots where the audience couldn’t see me.

If you are being videotaped, you also need to find out how much you can move and stay in the camera’s view. I put tape down at the UX Lausanne talk so I knew what the edges of the stage were.

Blocking

From “Director’s Homework” Ian Barry’s script copy with blocking and shot notes. Source: Elegant Hack

Blocking is a theater term. It refers to a plan for how an actor will move during the script. It’s particularly critical for ensemble scenes, but a theater director will make sure every actor knew exactly where they stand and how they’ll move for the entire script. It’s also used in filming movies and tv shows, as shown below.

Sketch of a speaker leaning on his podium. He looks comfortable, at least.

New presenters often cling to the podium, as if letting go would mean floating off into space.

Intermediate speakers pace. Perhaps they have heard they should get out from behind the podium and are trying to move normally. But let’s be honest, not much is normal about being on stage. With tons of nervous energy and no plans for what to do with it, speakers end up pacing like a caged jaguar. This, understandably, can make the audience anxious.

Experienced presenters walk around purposely, not continuously.

Consider your movement as part of the presentation. If you have three points, pick three places on stage you’ll give each point, and use your transition to a new spot as a subtle message to the audience you are transitioning to a new idea.

You don’t want to be a crazy person, pacing from one end of the stage to the other. Your movements should be purposeful and thought out.  I’ve seen some great talks where areas of the stage represent logic and emotion, and the center is the set up for the talk, the balance.  Or you can just walk the simple triangle I’ve demarcated above, in order to reach out to different parts of the audience. You don’t have to overthink it, just move occasionally and with purpose.

When you arrive at your point, plant yourself.

Planting

When I say plant, it means stand in a way that keeps you still, without shifting your weight, rocking or leaping into another round of pacing.

Play with both. You may find just moving a foot slightly behind you, and turning it makes you much more stable.

I recently taught a course that had a unit on presenting. One of my students planted more comfortably and firmly than anyone I’ve seen. It turns out she had studied ballet, and had a variation of third position she used unconsciously. I’ve adopted this now for my planting. Left foot forward pointing where you are looking, right foot behind it at a slight angle. It’s a stable way to stand and it prohibits rocking as well as pacing, yet allows you to move forward easily when you are ready to make a point.

My previous way to plant was from yoga, and it’s still a go to. It’s called mountain pose. Stand with both feet directly under your hips. If you are rocking or swaying, your feet may be too close or far apart.

Next, sit in. This is a tai chi term for allowing your hips and legs to hold your weight in a stable pose. Often people (especially women) tend to sway back with hips tilted forward pushing the stomach and butt out. This makes you look fat. But if that’s not enough to dissuade you, I can warn you it’s also unsteady.

Tuck hips in and lift up your breast bone straightening your spine. Roll your shoulders back. You can imagine a string at the top of your head pulling you up. Practice this every morning (preferably followed by ten minutes of sun salutations) until you can slide into it naturally.

It’s important to practice standing so you are comfortable. Everyone asks, what should I do with my hands?

Let them fall loosely to your sides, then raise them when you have an appropriate gesture to emphasize a point. Practicing Mountain Pose will make letting your hands just be much easier.

You can see a perfect Mountain Pose plant in this TED talk by John McWhorter. In fact, he plants so completely, he’s almost eerily still.

When rehearsing, if you find yourself pacing, try mountain pose, then move into the modified. See what stabilizes you.

As a side benefit, if you take up yoga/tai chi, it will reduce back issues and curled shoulders brought on by our computer centered lifestyle. A bit of yoga is good for your body as well as your stage poise.

Using the Speaker's Triangle: How to Avoid Blocking the Screen

In my last blog post, I talked about three major mistakes people make with PowerPoint and how to avoid them. Today I’ll discuss using the space between the screen and audience more effectively via the Speaker’s Triangle.*

What’s the Speaker’s Triangle?

The Speaker’s Triangle is an area between the slides and audience. It’s on one side of the stage with the screen on the other. The space shouldn’t overlap with the projected image at all. (In other words, don’t move into the line of sight — like this picture. That projects the slide on your face and blocks it. Big no-no’s.)

Instead, stand in one of three spots in the Speaker’s Triangle. Where? It depends on what you’re saying.

Where Should I Stand?

The Speaker’s Triangle – Use the stage more effectively by standing in one of these three spots, based on the type of material you’re presenting.

• Position #1 is closer to the screen than the audience.  Stand here when you’re talking about detailed material on the screen, such as a graph or map. Don’t face the screen, but gesture to the axis or location you’re addressing.

• Position #2 is half way between the screen and the audience. Speak from this spot for the majority of your presentation.

• Position #3 is closest to the audience. It’s a great place to tell a story or share something that’s meant to have a significant emotional impact. It’s also the best spot for answering questions during Q&A.

Common Questions
Q: Why should I spend most of my time in the middle of the Speaker’s Triangle?

A: Position #2 is a neutral spot. Being too close to the audience for the entire talk (#3) can come across as overbearing. It also eliminates the chance for you to move forward and “disclose” something personal or heartwarming. On the flip side, being too close to the screen (#1) suggests you may be relying on your slides too heavily (or worse, you’re anxious and therefore standing really far away from the audience!)

Q: What if the stage isn’t configured this way?

A:  You can still use the three general principles of the Speaker’s Triangle. The most important take-away for your presentation is to plan ahead. Before you start talking, know where you want to stand during different parts of your speech. Again, let the substance of the material guide you (or send me an email … I’ll help too).

Q: What if I need to get to the other side of the stage?

A: You can’t really. You shouldn’t walk behind the screen (ever) or across the front of it, projecting images on your face. If you’re doing Q&A after your presentation, my advice is to turn the slides off. Speakers rarely reference or need them during Q&A so frankly, they can become a distraction. With the projector turned off, you can move freely to the middle of the stage. Or better yet, you can move to the side of the space, depending on where the Q&A mics are located in the audience.

*PS - I came across the term, “Speaker’s Triangle,” about 5 years ago. If you know who coined the term, please let me know.  

Thanks and I’d love to hear your stories about stages and slides. – Rose.  rose@rosespeechwriter.com.  

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