Blog posts

How to Make Your Presentation Memorable: The Sticky Secrets

Submitted by Jack Milner on July 22, 2024

My daughter showed me a short film of herself talking to camera from a few years ago. It was from when she was going through a really tough time and it instantly brought back a wave of memories and emotions in one very powerful hit. 

Does Humour Have a Place in Business?

Submitted by Jack Milner on July 1, 2024

“Does humour really have a place in business?” 

I remember going through agonising contortions of worry when setting up my speaker business Free Your Funny freeyourfunny.com. Is this a real business solution, or is it a solution looking for a problem. It took lengthy coaching (therapy) with renown speaker consultant Maria Franzoni, to convince me that freeing an organisation’s funny was crucial to not just their communication, culture and creativity, but also the well-being of their people.

The Power of Humour on Mental Health

Submitted by Jack Milner on June 24, 2024

My teenage son’s school quite rightly priorities the mental health of students and staff. They are enlightened and genuinely care. But even then my son will roll his eyes at the solemn dullness of it all. This solemnity when discussing mental health is seen across most  organisations, not just in the discussions but also in the treatment.  And it’s bad for us. Of course we must take the subject seriously but not if that gravitas is at risk of turning off the very people it’s aimed at helping. 

How to Use More Humour in Your Every Day Communications

Submitted by Jack Milner on May 28, 2024

This morning I received an email from my excellent website provider, Ready Steady Websites. The previous day they’d offered a free masterclass on May 12th.  Realising their mistake they immediately sent this follow up. 

“You may have noticed the email we sent yesterday said that Ekaterina's masterclass is on 12th May. Now, she's got a lot of skills but time travel probably isn't one of them. The masterclass is actually on 12th June.”

Laughing All the Way: How Humour Secretly Reduces Employee Turnover

Submitted by Jack Milner on May 23, 2024

Think back through your work day. Have you laughed today? What did that laughter do for reducing stress, for your connection with colleagues, or for your energy? The answer I’m guessing, is pretty positive. 

The truth is that laughter in business can be a game changer. While humour at work might appear to have little relevance to organisation’s success, it actually plays a crucial role in keeping your employees happy and sticking around. 

Why we sometimes need to share our dark side

Submitted by Jack Milner on July 11, 2023

I was working with a client once (no not the guy in the picture) who was just a lovely, lovely, lovely man. And guess what, when he presented, he came across as simply lovely, lovely, lovely... smiled loads, light and fragrant almost and... minimal gravitas.

He was super bright, and his organisation saw him as a future leader.  However, he didn't get many opportunities to present and so shine to the wider senior leadership team. In truth this lack of gravitas was the reason why, and of course the fewer times he presented, the less confident and more smiley he became.