We are pleased to announce that our keynote speech will be given by Professor Diana Taylor.

Professor Taylor is the founding director of the Hemispheric Institute of Performance and Politics at New York University. She has published widely in the fields of Latin American and U.S. theatre and performance; performance and politics; feminist theatre and performance in the Americas; Hemispheric studies and trauma studies.

Comment at end

8th October, 2009

I thought I’d better write something, as soon as I can recall what Mr Cameron actually said.

David Cameron running for office, or so I understand

Erm …

Ah well, that’s one way to keep me quiet.

P.S. Others’ thoughts on Cameron’s keynote speech

ISSUES AND HOW TO PICK THEM

EDITOR’S NOTE. We here reproduce the expurgated version of Miss Allen’s famous keyhole speech, in which she laid down the gauntlet to the major parties and defied them to pick it up without stooping. The complete version, including the juicy parts and printed on the best issue-paper, appears in the Congressional Record-Express, on sale by your local Congressman.

The speech follows.

Ladies and Gentlemen, and no corny cracks:

The splendid introduction of your Toastmaster, which was too glowing, I fear, for poor little me, reminds me of a story which I wish I could remember. But I couldn’t tell it in the dialect anyway, so I will just say that as I look out upon this sea of shiny faces I am uplifted, and also pinched in at the waist.

This is the greatest night of my life. How glorious it is to be here among my friends, for you are my friends, at least until election, in this fair city of _______, the garden spot of the great _______. (APPLAUSE.) I can say in all truthfulness that when last I tire of the mad whirl of modern life and want to find a place to die in, this is it.

I stand before you tonight a simple, plain woman–(GROANS.) which is not my fault, but the Westmores can’t take me till tomorrow. And anyway, is this an election or a popularity contest? I’ve often wondered.

You are probably just as anxious as I am to find out what I stand for, but it isn’t so easy.

If I knew what the Republicans and Democrats are going to promise, everything they offer could go for me too. But a certain well-known bookie, whose name must remain confidential until I find it out, has written my that the other parties are holding off just so they can pattern their keyhold speeches after mine.

So I am awake to the danger of holding my convention first. I fully realize that every promise I make, the Republicans will double and the Democrats will redouble. They think this will make me vulnerable, but they don’t know I have some tricks up my sleeve, along with a box of raisins to munch on while I’m waiting for the returns to come in.

A keyhole speech is very simple, especially mine. First it states the issues. An issue is just a difference of opinion, which is why we put erasers on horse races. And as I always say, as long as we have issues, we can’t have everything. Second, the speech goes on to attack the present administration and show how it has ruined the country. Then it goes on to attack the other candidates and show how they’ll keep it ruined, and generally builds up a warm and friendly atmosphere.

Unfortunately, I don’t know exactally how the present administration has ruined the country or how the other candidates are going to keep it ruined–I hardly know how I’m going to handle it myself.

But we all realize that what this country needs is plenty (GIGGLES) and even though it’s impossible I’ll be glad to do it. Today we are facing many crises that are creasing our faces with worry. Today millions of people are living who will never do it again. Millions are being born for the first time–and millions are doing nothing because it’s the best offer they’ve had this week. (LAUGHTER. Miss Allen knocked over the water pitcher.)

It is for these people and many others that the Surprise Party is conceived and desecrated, founded upon the principle that everybody is just as good as anybody else, even though they aren’t quite so smart. My platform is a definite answer to the Republicans and Democrats, as well as the New dealers, before they say anything–and if they say it anyway, that will be time enough to think of a better answer.

My opponents (BOOS) ask for a sound government. What do they think they’ve got now, or don’t they listen to their radios? They ask me what I am doing about the two-dollar dollar, what am I doing about providing old age for people with pensions, and what am I doing next Friday night. They must think they’re Clifton Fadiman! (DEEP SILENCE. Drop the gag from the next speech.)

But I accept the challenge. I say without fear of contradiction that I not only stand four-square for free speech, but my brother is busy right now inventing a telephone that works with soap slugs. I stand for the conservation of wild life: when I am elected night clubs will close at ten o’clock. I stand for a cleaner administration: no Senator who can’t hit his spittoon on his first try truly represents the aims of my party, even if he does claim that he tried to bank his shot off the cracker barrel. I stand for a lot of other things, too, but what working girl doesn’t. (OVATION. Jack Benny just came in.)

This used to be a government of checks and balances. Now it’s all checks and no balances. But I have a cure for that. I’ll sign all checks with invisible ink, or better still, sign them “A Friend,” so nobody will be embarrassed. And if the deficit still seems too high, I’ll sign it again, starting a half-tone lower.

Do you know of anyone better qualified than me for this high office? If so, don’t delay. Write or print his name clearly on your cuff and send it, together with the tops of two ballot boxes, to the nearest laundry. I may make mistakes, for I am only human (PAUSE, while ten delegates scribbled notes and handed them to the ushers) but whenever one of my policies fails I will be the first to admit it, though perhaps not by much.

So wake up, America! Your country needs me and I can be had. Let’s all pull together and make these United States the grandest place in this whole country. I see a vision. A glorious vision. A united people, marching forward shoulder to shoulder, giving their all for the common good, working while I whistle. (WHISTLES.)

And in conclusion, let me say only that if I have overlooked anything that will make this country of ours a better place to live in–I thank you.

BACK TO TABLE OF CONTENTS

What a FUCKING FANTASTIC day — most of you who follow this blog will have gotten an e-mail if you’re on the SOGC list with an update on the antics of Amy (Synthetic), Matt (ucosty), Ben (missingo) and myself (Jaytee).

I got to see the Carmack. the Carmack. Jesus fuck, the star struckedness is off the charts!

I was so shaking with orgasmic delight I couldn’t take a clear photo

Actually we were too far away for my piece of fucking shit IXUS 40 camera. Expect better pictures when I can ambush missingo or ucosty.

We got to check out a completely new and unreleased trailer of RAGE, and we saw the new Wolfenstein’s launch trailer. Wolfenstein is a game I’m looking into buying – but I don’t expect it to take off too much on the charts; but who knows really. Return to Castle Wolfenstein ended up being a cult classic in multiplayer – eventually leading to Enemy Territory.

I’ll update more – I’m so wasted as something ridiculous happened during the Carmack keynote – which I’ll write about tonight. (later arvo for you aussies)

For a closer: Epic t-shirt.

Sfrutta le opportunità di mentoring, networking e business development fornite dalle associazioni e individui partecipanti nell’iniziativa. Cogli l’occasione per entrare in diretto contatto con l’ecosistema imprenditoriale unico della Silicon Valley.

Scarica la documentazione per partecipare (scadenza 25 agosto!)

Ecco importanti appuntamenti a breve:

• 17 settembre milano (politecnico) presentazione di “The Gym“, cioè il lab in Silicon Valley dove staranno un periodo le imprese selezionate

• 6-7 novembre milano (Corriere della Sera) VentureCamp con presentazione dei Business Plans e keynote speech di un *nome di spicco* dell’innovazione tecnologica mondiale.

Mind the Bridge foundation è una organizzazione senza fini di lucro, nata in California su iniziativa di Marco Marinucci (Business Development manager @Google, Mountain View) con lo scopo di creare uno sbocco in Silicon Vallley per le migliori start-up italiane.

L’iniziativa, giunta alla terza edizione, è molto selettiva, ma proprio per questo è un’ottima occasione per quelle aziende innovative nate in Italia e alla caccia di possibilità per diventare global.

Contenuti realizzati in network collaborativo con:

• Massimo Carraro

Congratulations Central High Schools class of 2009.  It was an honor to speak at your grad. ceremony and a pleasure to shake so many of your hands as you got your diploma’s.  Best of luck in whatever you do next.  I’m sure I’ll be seeing most of ya’ll around the way soon…

The lights were on… that’s for sure.

Seriously, this was nerve racking and amazing  - Thanks for the opportunity to share in your moment!

Felix

This last Thursday I was a judge for the UCLA Entrepreneurship Tradeshow and the keynote speaker for the event was one of my favorite writers Ben Casnocha author of My Start-Up Life. I’ve heard a lot of successful entrepreneurs speak before and I was expecting Ben to speak about similar things but WOW I have to say his keynote speech was one of the most inspirational talks I have ever seen and I wanted to share his talk with everyone. Here is the transcripted outline of what he said:

Ben started off by reciting the words from the “Think Different” video

My favorite quote from that video: “People who are crazy enough to think that they can change the world are the ones who do.”

Then Ben talked about the 2 main philosophies or life paths
1. The Textbook Approach to Life or Path of Least Resistance – Go to a good college, get good grades, get a good paying stable job, climb the corporate ladder, live happy, and have a successful predictable life.
2. The Throw out the Textbook to Life or Hard Path – This is where you take your own blank book or canvas and try to paint a picture that uniquely fits you like a glove. In this path you don’t follow the status quo and you take on opportunities that interest you and experience the journey of life.

Then Ben proceeded to make 3 main points in his talk:

Point #1
What does Entrepreneurship mean? The common answer is it means starting a company but that is only one small piece of entrepreneurship. Entrepreneurship is much more broad that starting a company, its more of a life philosophy than a business one. In short it’s being the CEO of your own life.

So what traits do entrepreneurs tend to have in common? There are 4 of them:
1. Impact – know your ideas/beliefs are going to affect others
2. Love to Screw Around – Don’t respect the status quo and you don’t strive for a 4.0 GPA (The average GPA of self made millionaires is a 2.6 GPA)
3. Optimism – Entrepreneurs tend to be relentlessly optimistic. Its good to have a bit of self-delusion that you can personally change and affect reality.
4. Persistence – The only universal “trait” of successful entrepreneurs

Point #2
Entrepreneurs have a relentless commitment to self-improvement in all mental, spiritual, emotional, and physical aspects. Ask yourself did I go to bed smarter than when I woke up?

Here are 4 things can you do to improve yourself:
1. Improve your soft assets – these are relationships, knowledge, and connections.
2. Creativity – Recognize that you are creative even if your not “artistic”. Humans are the most creative creatures on the planet and its important to recognize the interplay of the left and right brain.
3. Opportunities – The best way to find opportunities is to shut up and listen, and expose yourself to randomness.
4. Mentors – The worst thing is to go up to a potential mentor and ask, “Will you be my mentor?” It is like going up to a new acquaintance and asking “Will you be my friend?” Instead seek out potential mentors, don’t ask them to be your mentor, develop your relationship for the long term, and realize a deep connection will not happen in weeks but in years. And never be afraid to ask out a person to coffee to learn from them and pick their brain.

Point #3
The most important point is ACTION. 99% of people bitch about problems and the other 1% do something about them and learn by doing is the absolute best way to learn.

Ben collected these 4 quotes to inspire him to action:
1. “We regret the things we don’t do more than the things we do”
- Mark Twain
2. “We have a strategic plan and its called doing things”
- Herb Keller
3. “Blame Nobody. Expect Nothing. Do Something.”
- Bill Parcells
4. “But I think it is very important for you to do two things: act on your temporary conviction as if it was a real conviction; and when you realize that you are wrong, correct course very quickly.”
- Andy Grove

The 3 main takeaways from Ben Casnocha’s Keynote were:
1. Think like an entrepreneur
2. Commit yourself to self-improvement
3. Start NOW

Recommended Book: Power of Full Engagement
Recommended Blog: Overcoming Bias

Wednesday, December 10, 2008
CSPAN.org

Homeland Security Sec. Michael Chertoff delivers one of the keynote speeches at a conference on Cyberspace and National Security. Other speakers include Deputy Sec. of Defense Gordon England; NSA’s Central Security Service head Army Lt. Gen. Keith Alexander; and Provisional Air Force Cyber Command head Maj. Gen. Bill Lord. The Armed Forces Communications and Electronics Assn. hosts this conference examining cybersecurity.

Watch the video…

The hottest inauguration party in Portland is going down in the Pearl at Bay 13!  The party is hosted by Point Z Studios and will feature a keynote by yours truly, broadcast of Obama’s inauguration speech, and hot local entertainment.  Proceeds go to worthy causes and the cost is very reasonable for one of the most hip and enjoyable spots to be for this historic celebration!

Space is limited, so if you want to join us, please book your tickets TODAY at www.pointzstudios.com.

I had a speaking engagement last week and I love to share other people’s input on tips that they picked up from what they heard me say.

1.  Clear off your desk at the end of every day. 

2.  Make purging a process and a way of life.  Schedule a file clean out day at least once a year.

3.  Reserve time to plan.

4.  Organize phone numbers so they are handy.  Get a scanner.  (email me if you want us to scan them for you, an inexpensive service to get you caught up, anne@strategizeandorganize.com.)

5.  Do what serves you today.  80% of our results are from 20% of our efforts.  Are you wasting 80% of your time?

6.  If you can do it in 2 minutes, especially responding to e-mail, do it!

7.  When it comes to all that mail, have a specific landing zone.  We all know where the silverware is, why not have a specific area for the mail.

Have a productive day.  Remember, things don’t cluter, we clutter!  Anne

Courtesy Public Speaking Wiki: This young man looks a bit uncomfortable?

What is the #1 fear Americans try to avoid everyday? It is not flying, not going to the dentist, not heights, nor is it reaching 30 without a wedding ring. The #1 fear for Americans is public speaking. We hate to stand up and voice our opinions in front of people. This is odd considering the “loud Americans” tag we carry throughout Europe when people think of our countrymen.

The following information will provide a strategy for overcoming the fear of public speaking and it will illustrate the benefits of creating a workshop.

Workshops: A Strategy for Beginning Public Speakers

A great strategy to overcoming your fear of public speaking is to create your own workshop. A workshop allows the creator a far easier path as a beginning foray into public speaking:

Benefits of Workshops for Creating Confidence in Your Public Speaking

1. Participation: The majority of a workshop is speaker-audience participation. This allows the audience to interact and create content for the speaker. In turn this takes some of the pressure off the speaker

2. Memorization: Unlike keynote speeches or seminars which require large blocks of information memorization, workshops only really require that an introduction and setup be memorized

3. Notes: It is perfectly acceptable for the workshop facilitator to browse and refer to their notes while presenting their material.

Workshops are a creation of your own which become a tool for both you and your audience. The original idea is to create a tool which will deliver your “value” give. The Randy Pausch “head fake learning” value is that you learn about yourself, your ability to overcome obstacles, and your willingness to put yourself “out there.”

Benefits of Creating Your Workshop

1. Research makes you smarter. When you create a workshop you usually perform research

2. Writing your workshop becomes content for your blog or newsletter

3. Establish your public speaking platform

4. Instant exposure for you and your message

5. Opportunity to receive testimonials

7. Opportunity to receive Linkedin.com recommendations

.

Introduction

Prof. Giuseppe Tondello, Prorettore per rapporti con le imprese, Università di Padova

Dott. Andrea Berti, Area trasferimento tecnologia, Università di Padova

 Dott. Francesco Peghin, Presidente Confindustria Padova

Dott. Roberto Furlan, Presidente CCIAA Padova

Dott. Silvio Grignaschi, Senior Architect, IBM

Presentation of YoutToBiz program 

Prof. Moreno Muffatto, Università di Padova

Keynote speech

Dr. Shailendra Vyakarnam, Director, Centre for Entrepreneurial Learning,

Judge Business School, University of Cambridge, UK

Panel

Shailendra Vyakarnam, University of Cambridge

Pietro Busnardo, Innogest Sgr

Adrian Burden, Singular-ID

Knowing that I love all things birdy, a few years ago, a friend gave me a small birding book called Birding Babylon: A Soldier’s Journal from Iraq. Originally written by Sergeant First Class Jonathan Trouern-Trend during his time north of Bagdad as an online journal, parts were later published.  I found it fascinating to read of the war and the birds he was seeing.

He is going to be giving the keynote speech at the Meadowlands Festival of Birding this Saturday, Sept 13th.  I am looking forward to hearing what he has to say and maybe to get my book autographed.

Are you going to the festival?  Maybe I’ll see you there.  Sigh. If I don’t get lost.

Mark Warner, former Virginia governor and now Senate candidate, delivered the 2008 Democratic National Convention’s keynote speech. I believe one simple word can adequately describe the entire keynote affair: Boooooooooooooooooooorrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrring!

Where did the Democrats find this guy? Could he have been any more uninteresting and dull? Could he have been any more inarticulate? The entire speech was a collection of stating the obvious and explanation of the irrelevant. Every point he made came at the end (and at the expense) of some long story about his personal accomplishments.  Yaaaaaaaaawwwwwwwwwn!

I still remember Barack Hussein Obama’s 2004 DNC keynote speech. Yes, his middle name is Hussein and Republicans’ attempt to use that as a smear tactic is destined for failure. The Democrats, on the other hand, should not be so sensitive to hearing Hussein in recitation of Obama’s name. Ignore it completely and the childish behavior will go away by itself. By the way, those of you Republicans who attend Church on Sundays and use Hussein as a derogatory term the rest of the week DO know that you will have to answer to God someday, don’t you?

Anyway, regardless of what you think of Obama or his platform, you must admit that his 2004 DNC speech was articulate and energizing. Did Obama convey an earth-shattering message then? No! No one does. That’s not the point. Most keynote speeches (Democrat or Republican) are uninteresting for 2 reasons. First, many keynote speakers are in desperate need of a remedial public speaking class. Second, keynote messages are so heavily coated with party-line rhetoric that the message cannot come out for air. The only thing that matters is how the speech is delivered. Obama excelled in 2004, and Warner failed in 2008.

Watch both speeches if you want.

Perhaps this is a great time to revisit Barack Obama’s 2004 Democratic Keynote Address. It was one of the most inspiring speeches ever given at a Democratic Convention. 

Networking Keynote Notes

Intro: How many speakers have you listened to who have begun their presentations with a joke? The obligatory, in their mind, joke. The joke meant to build rapport with the audience while providing a human element to the otherwise stiff speaker–that joke.

I AM NOT GOING TO TELL YOU A JOKE. I am a bad joke teller but I can tell a story

Instead I am going to help you network the right way by:

1. Describing the #1 biggest mistake most people make when networking

2. Offering the best method to win new networking relationships

3. Saving you time by helping you measure your aptitude

But first I will offer you a yarn to contemplate. . .

Superman vs Batman: The Story of Two Super Heroes

Intro: Imagine you are at a networking event in hopes of meeting a great connection and suddenly Superman walks up and launches into his pitch:

SM: “Hi, I’m Superman I own a Security Firm”

* “I’m faster than a speeding bullet”

* “More powerful than a locamotive”

* “Able to leap tall buildings in a single bound”

“Here’s my card, my cd, my dvd, my newsletter, and the number to my agent–when will you be calling?”

You: (Meanwhile you are thinking to yourself) “My Security firm is ‘Batman’ “

“My guy has an employee- Robin, Customer Support Rep- Alfred, and a Call Center–the Bat Phone”

“My guy drives a really cool car, flys the Bat Copter, and he even has a boat!”

“With Batman I don’t have to deal with Jokers, Riddlers, or Cats!”

“And Batman has a beautiful home office–the stately Wayne Manner”

“This other guy is HOMELESS he even has to dress in a phone booth!”

“Why would I even consider changing firms? Especially considering that Kryptonite problem!”

—————————————

There you have it in a nutshell: networking is NOT launching into a hard sell sales promotional piece about you.

Stay tuned tomorrow as our fragile business networker describes the #1 Method To Networking Relationship Success

Same Bat Time, Same Bat Station!

Pick for keynote speech shows Obama’s focus on Va.

By NEDRA PICKLER, Associated Press Writer 10 minutes ago

HONOLULU – Barack Obama chose Mark Warner, Virginia’s Senate candidate and former governor, to deliver the keynote address at the Democratic convention, underscoring Democrats’ all-out effort to win the Southern state for the first time

The move announced Wednesday also raises questions about the prospects of Obama choosing Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine as his running mate.

Warner is to speak on Aug. 26, the second day of the convention in Denver, while the yet-to-be-named vice presidential nominee is slated to address delegates a day later on Aug. 27.

REST OF ARTICLE