Category: presentation

meditation, presentation, speaking, story, yoga

Beginning: How to Tell Your Story

Christa Avampato

“Have something to say, and say it as clearly as you can. That is the only secret.” ~ Matthew Arnold via Quotes4Writers

On Tuesday, I’m speakingĀ and giving a short presentation at Jericho Project, a nonprofit whose mission is to “catalyze change that enables homeless individuals to discover their strengths and lead remarkable lives.” They are having a health fair for male vets and asked if I could explain how yoga and meditation could be a benefit to them.

I was procrastinating on preparing this presentation – this is a new population for me and I want so much to help them understand how valuable this practice can be for them. I had several false starts and then found this quote from Quotes4Writers as I was toddling through Twitter. I was letting my desired outcome for the presentation get in the way of the process of preparing it. As I written about before, we are entitled to our actions and efforts, not the results. What I needed to do was just take Matthew Arnold’s advice: decided what I wanted to say and then say it as clearly, and succinctly, as possible. It made the whole journey of preparing this presentation easier.

The finished product: Jericho Project Presentation

I’ll let you know how Tuesday goes!

creativity, determination, frustration, learning, Life, loss, luck, mistakes, presentation, producer, television, trend

Step 199: Why I Hate Reality TV Shows With Elimination Rounds

Christa Avampato

I have a hard time watching reality TV, especially when elimination rounds are involved. I get nervous for the contestants as if I’m on the show myself. I never knew why until my brother-in-law recently shared his view on these shows: “You don’t get judged on the body of your work; one mistake and you’re gone.” This is a horrible lesson to reinforce in our society.

Real success comes from trying a lot of different ideas, taking risks, and learning from failures as well as achievements. To support the idea that one false move means you’re down for the count is just plain dumb. Real life isn’t like that, making the idea of this kind of “reality” TV anything but.

My brother-in-law had an idea: why don’t we let all of the contestants stay until the end and have the judging be on the full season of work, not just one dish, one task, or one song? Have the weekly winners actually win something extra. Let people learn from their weekly mistakes, and actually see what they do with what they learn. That would be a reality TV show worth watching.

corporation, passion, presentation, speaking, work

What’s the difference between being preachy and passionate?

Christa Avampato

I understand that there can be a thin line between preaching and speaking passionately. Barack Obama is a brilliant example of someone who has mastered the art of speaking passionately without becoming preachy. A friend of mine was just telling me about a meeting he was recently asked to join because of his expertise on humanitarian relief work. Mind you, this topic was the topic of discussion. He is marvelously articulate and speaks with such authority and passion that it is fully understandable how people will walk to the ends of the Earth for him.Ā 


After he finished his two minute discussion on the role of humanitarian relief work in several hot-button areas of the world right now, there was dead silence from his boss. I should interject here that he is far more educated and personally vested in this cause than she is, despite the fact that she has seniority. He makes her look good without fail, on every project, and she has often publicly taken credit for work he has done.Ā 

At this meeting, rather than thanking him for his point of view, she responded by addressing the group with, “well, not that that information has anything to do with the issue at hand…” Actually, it had everything to do with the issue at hand. His boss was irritated that he had a more articulate, and opposing view, than the surface comments she was making. What’s more my friend is far more genuine than his boss, she knows this, and is unable to level the playing field with him. She closed the conversation saying, “well, I think we’ve had enough preaching for one day.” So ludicrous, it’s laughable…

And that started me thinking about the difference between preaching, which often has a negative connotation, and articulately addressing an issue with passion. It comes down to whether the person speaking is talking to hear himself talk and or if he is educating and sharing his point-of-view with his audience. Preaching has a lot of shallow dazzle and speaking with passion has dazzle plus substance. With all of my friend’s energy and enthusiasm, my advice to him was to move on to someplace that appreciates and rewards him for everything he has to offer.Ā