Review: Learn to capture attention
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 06 26, 2013
I've never been a great public speaker. Reinoud van Rooij's Grab 'Em is not the only book that I've read in my quest to improve, but I think it is the best. Some of the others were dry and unpersuasive, whereas in this short guide the author's expertise jumps off the page.Grab 'Em is split into two parts: basic skills and fine-tuning. The basic skills are relatively generic: how to build rapport, deal with questions and make a logically structured presentation. All of the principles are backed up by tangible examples--these are good questions, these are bad, etc. The fine-tuning includes competent use of PowerPoint (not everyone's cup of tea, is it?), how to prepare an auditorium and how to manage the inevitable distractions and problems.Since I'm shy, I found the sections on latecomers, noise and chatterboxes in the audience particularly helpful. I once thought that the ability to handle this kind of problem was confined to extroverts, but I feel as though I've improved a lot since I picked up Grab 'Em.