We don’t know how lucky we are!  

Those of us who were born in countries where the primary language is english, that is.

You see, in many parts of the world english has to be painstakingly taught word by word in high-school rather than the way we learned from our parents or other family members around the same time we learnt to walk.

Despite that early advantage - I strongly suspect that many of the guests at Princess Takamodo’s recent Tokyo garden party spoke better than the majority of we  Aussies, Brits or Americans!

Why would that be so?  

Because the Princess is the honorary patron of the All Japan Inter-Middle School English Oratorical Contest and in honour of the 61st Event she’d invited the competition’s 100 judges plus company sponsors to the official residence of the late Prince Takamado in Minato Ward, Tokyo.   

It was a very big ‘do’ indeed!

And yes, you read the number correctly.  This is the 61st year in a row that all of Japan’s Inter-Middle School students took part in what for them is an extraordinarily difficult competition to find the best english speakers.

What amazes me is that the Japanese Royal Family, scores of businesses not to mention all those Japanese kids put so much effort into doing something that should be second-nature for millions of kids in western nations - and yet so many Aussie, American and British children speak so badly!

I hear howls of despair from many CEO’s and other employers “about the way young people mumble rather than talk” and about “how hard it is to encourage employees to speak clearly and communicate effectively”.

It’s crazy because it would make such a difference to their career prospects - not to mention their pay packets!

So the next time you hear someone murdering ‘the Queen’s english’ - tell them to hurry up and catch up with the latest generation of Japanese entrepreneurs and get some tips to speak better - or get left behind!

‘Arigato’ to all my Japanese friends!

Kx

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We’re all affected by the weather to a degree (pun intended!)

Temperature, wind, sunshine, cloud, rain…. they all affect how we feel at any given moment.

I went out shopping late yesterday afternoon - a major event in itself ‘cos frankly I don’t go shopping!… but I said to my wife Kaye - “I love this weather!” (you might describe it as dark and grey and miserable).. and she laughed and said “that’s what you said yesterday when it was sunny and not a cloud in the sky!”

Ok… so I lied right? - Well I don’t think so because I guess I’ve started to say “I like… or  “I love…” no matter what or how I feel about any situation.

You see, depression is such an ugly word. It can be brought on by a chemical imbalance in the brain, a life-threatening or personal situation and it can be (often) brought on by ’self talk’ - we THINK we hate grey rainy weather so let’s make sure the world knows about it and complain - let’s ‘make an issue out of it’! - LET’S BE A VICTIM to the situation.

Of late I’ve really tried hard not to make an issue out of any situation. Good bad or indifferent I’m trying REALLY hard to just accept the situation, look for ways to get back up if things are going down or simply ‘keep the moment alive’ if things are going my way.

I’m betting my ‘added positivity’ will see me through some of those days we all have from time to time.

So to you I say make a determined effort to “be happy - rain hail or shine”.

Take care - Brian

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The most famous female in the world has gone off the boil. Pun intended!

Susan Boyle’s 15 minutes of fame which started when she wowed British TV show judges on the ‘You’ve Got Talent’ program continues – but quite possibly for all the wrong reasons.

Dubbed by some in the media as ‘the 48 year old Scottish virgin’ Susan made a second appearance on the show and just managed to squeak through to the finals.

I say ‘squeak’ because although Susan sang the chorus of her chosen song beautifully – she’d already lost her audience when her voice cracked and quivered as she sang the opening bars!

Oh dear! - What went wrong?

Poor Susan had been enjoying world-wide fame and adulation after she ‘shocked’ audiences by daring to have the voice of an angel hidden in a decidedly chubby figure under hideous hair and eye-brows more suited to a footballer than a lady!

People everywhere enjoyed the surprise of being ‘wrong’. You see we’d all made up our minds that she could never possibly sing when we first saw her waddle out on the UK stage. But then she hooked us in with that amazing voice.

It’s the kind of opening ‘wow factor’ that all presenters try to achieve.

And yet – as scientists have repeatedly discovered – we humans have an inbuilt measuring stick that we use to judge people. We can’t help ourselves. There’s even a scientific breakdown on HOW we do it – and it all happens within the first micro-seconds of seeing and hearing someone.

This time round there was no pleasant surprise – instead when Susan’s voice cracked it somehow seemed more in keeping with her less-than-flattering spinster image.

Poor Susan.

It’s hard not to let fear tighten your throat or nervousness constrict your breathing whether you’re competing on a TV talent show or simply about to make a really important phone call. But it’s not impossible.

There are some very easy steps to help anyone overcome those things so both their voice and their manner shout “I’m confident”.

Hopefully Susan will get a hold of those handy tips before her next appearance!

Take care… Kaye

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I’ve now learnt how to ‘wake up and be happy’ every single day!

This daily routine for me started about 12 months ago - where I simply wake from a good nights sleep (achieved by not taking ANY problems to bed with me or having too much food or drink before bedtime) - then I simply open my eyes, get straight up and put BOTH feet on the floor and say to myself - “I am SO HAPPY with my life” or sometimes I say “THANK-YOU UNIVERSE for allowing me to be so happy!” (or if you are more religious than me you can thank your God)

Do this EVERY day and I guarantee you will start the day in a better frame of mind.

You can learn more in my new e-book ‘Take This Job & Shove It!’

Take care… Brian

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E-book and audio by Brian Pickering - Narrated by the author

Take This Job & Shove It! - by Brian Pickering

The brand new E-Book plus BONUS audio narrated entirely by the author.

* …your life reads like a TV script - with a perfect partner, angelic kids, spotless house, a 5-minute commute without any traffic jams to the perfect job alongside caring and empathic workmates and a boss who gives you bonuses to pay for your regular exotic holidays… then get back to the fairy-tale you came from!

The rest of us don’t have lives like that and the more we try to grab onto that kind of a fantasy the worse we feel. Time for a reality check and you might be pleasantly surprised how well your life currently stacks up against those supposedly living the high life. And in the areas where things aren’t so great-well, as you’re about to discover, change is much simpler to put into practice than most people think it is. 

No matter where we stand in life right now, an awful lot of people are simply not very happy. Most of us are in denial about all kinds of things. Our relationships, our jobs, our families or ourselves! 

So what can we do about it? – PLENTY! – but you have to WANT to make changes. 
You have to WANT to step back and take a good look at your life and you have to stop and THINK about who you are and what you are.

The first 100 orders also receive a FREE MP3 audio version via Secure Server   FREE SAMPLE Chapter - Audio   Download link available after purchase Got a question or problem? -  CONTACT ME: brian@seveneasysteps.com.au

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SAMPLE CHAPTER  from the Free Bonus e-book when you buy;
***   ‘Speak Better - FAST!… in Seven Easy Steps’ by Kaye Browne. ***
________________________________________________________________________________________________
WHY WE HEAR BUT WE DON’T LISTEN - by Brian Pickering

I’ll be honest up-front… I have a VERY short attention span when it comes to speeches. Unless they grab me in the first 30 seconds or so, I’m outta there… mentally anyway!

Boring monotone voices are the worst for me.

As a kid I developed a keen sense of listening to the radio. Mostly radio plays and the latest rock ‘n roll music taking the world by storm. Then later listening to far away voices via the short-wave radio (with all its whistles, crackle and pop)

That fascination with sound prompted a move to London and a job as a  music recording engineer at Island Records Studio where I learned how to listen from the very best. Producers Glyn Johns (Rolling Stones et al) Brian Humphries (Pink Floyd) and musical arranger Paul Samuel-Smith (London Symphony Orchestra etc) were among the amazing mentors  who taught me how to listen to the many subtle differences  in music.

Whether its rock,  rap, classical or any genre you need to be able to train your brain to tune out unnecessary clutter so you can listen closely and understand what you’re listening to, to get the desired end result. 

So, how do you learn  HOW to listen?  How do you help your audience hear and understand what you’re trying to tell them?
The good news is that there’s a handful of very easy steps – seven in fact – that you can start using  right now that will guarantee your message is not only HEARD, but UNDERSTOOD – or ‘listened to’ by your audience.

Hearing Vs Listening
But first let’s look at the difference between hearing and listening.

Parents of young or teenage children would be very familiar with this phenomena.
You’re talking to the child giving some instruction or request and looking for a response but you may as well be ‘talking to a brick wall’, right?

Or perhaps your man is engrossed in watching a game of late night footie and you ask in your nicest non-confrontational voice “don’t forget to take out the garbage dear” (yeah ok – no worries!).

And it’s not just kids, teens or football loving blokes either…

Although they will all deny it categorically, females can also have trouble ‘tuning in’.  Have you ever wondered who is actually ‘listening’ in that group of ladies having lunch at the next table when all of them appear to be talking at the same time? (Ok – let’s not go there - but you get my very tongue-in-cheek meaning I hope!)

In fact getting we human beings to LISTEN – getting us to PAY ATTENTION is actually an advertiser’s worst nightmare. There’s  so much of it in our faces every day, in newspapers and magazines, television and radio, on billboards and vehicles - is it any wonder we all start to ‘TUNE-OUT’?
This is why advertisers and their agencies are always looking for ways to ‘grab our attention’.
The same is true for anyone making a speech, doing a presentation or even going for a job.

Clever Advertising
Just recently there was a very clever radio and TV campaign starring comedienne Julia Morris.

The ads were all very well written and recorded - a series of three or four of them I think - with Julia cutting across other people who are trying to sell her something which she obviously is not the least bit interested in.
That particular ad campaign grabbed a lot of attention. But did it actually get across the message to ‘buy brand X breakfast cereal?’

Well – it certainly grabbed my attention which is no mean feat because  I know I tune-out of ads most of the time.  That’s probably because I’ve written and produced several thousand ads over the years as a radio producer.

But I guess if I was ‘in the market’ for breakfast cereal and saw the brand mentioned in the supermarket then I’d probably try it at least once – and THAT’S all the advertiser wants you to do. At the end of the day they have succeeded in getting their message across. You’ve listened and ‘taken that message on-board’ – they win.

And YOU can win too – getting YOUR message across to the listener.
But you need to understand a few of the ways we listen first.

________________________________________________________________________________________________
You can download the entire e-book FREE when you buy;
***    ‘Speak Better - FAST!… in Seven Easy Steps’ by Kaye Browne. ***

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Seven Easy Steps To Speak Better – Fast!  - by Kaye Browne

The brand new E-Book plus BONUS audio narrated entirely by the author with examples.

Hi, I’m Kaye Browne…

Like most people – I hated having to speak ‘publicly’ when I was younger – and yet I’ve made a career out of speaking on TV and radio and lecturing in Journalism, PR and presentation skills.

Crazy – right?   Not at all when you know the tricks of the trade to feeling comfortable when you speak – and these are waiting for you right now in my ‘Seven Easy Steps To Speak Better – Fast!’

This e-book is the result of many people asking me to help them with some practical advice – and fast - because they had to make an important phone call to a prospective employer, or they had to front an interview panel, or maybe they had to present their ideas to a business meeting.

They felt sick with nerves – certain they were doomed to failure.  

Understandable fears but unnecessary.

Anyone CAN and WILL sound much more confident than they really feel if they just do a few key things (7 of them actually) so that when you open your mouth a nice, mellow, confident sounding and interesting voice comes out and your audience tunes in.

That’s what you want – and that’s what you WILL get with my  ‘Seven Easy Steps to Speak Better – Fast’.

 (The only exception is my dog Matisse in the photo who has just two sounds - snoring and WOOF!) 

The first 100 orders also receive a FREE MP3 audio version PLUS… Timely tips to help you improve the way you are heard $35.00+ TOTAL VALUE!!  via Secure Server   Download link available after purchase Got a question or problem? -  CONTACT ME: kaye@seveneasysteps.com.au

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* Take This Job & Shove It!  - NOW AVAILABLE
Finding happiness day to day without really trying

 
* Can We Do It?  Yes We can 
Steal Obama & other master orators’ best speaking secrets

* Words Worth Their Weight 
What works and what doesn’t. Writing for sound versus writing for reading – why it’s better not to be a writer!

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