Book Review of "Will Public Speaking Be The Death Of You?"

Reviewer: Jacqueline Hamilton. District 69, Area 6 Governor 2006-2007

Stephen asks you questions that need answers, gives you some of his own experiences in life to illustrate the point and then gives you practical advice as you progress along the path to becoming an effective, more professional public and private speaker.

The first half of “Will Public Speaking Be The Death Of You?” deals with you … who you are, what you believe, what you hold as true and good and right. It explores why you accept these ideals to be true and evokes many a question about your own sense of reality? Stephen definitely encourages you to look beyond our own social conditioning and starts us on the process of learning to think for ourselves.

The second part of Stephen’s book explains to us the tools we need to speak with confidence and success. Tools enabling us to be of value, not only to our audience but to be true to ourselves as well. Stephen guides the reader through the more complex issues required of today’s great speakers – the reality of communication, the power of words and language … and, I think, the most important element of all, our own vulnerability.

My own eyes have been opened to the fact that without being vulnerable, open and undefended to others, you cannot give or receive; you are in effect, a closed book. To put on a mask and hide you away cannot result in an effective speaker. The best case scenario is that you may be able to get up on a stage and give an adequate speech but the truly memorable communicators open their hearts and minds to each and every individual they have contact with. So, whether it’s on a stage in front of a thousand people or chatting to friends, you want to be outstanding and unforgettable … this is what Stephen James Outram offers you ... if you are ready to accept it!

Reading “Will Public Speaking Be The Death Of You?” was certainly a life-changing experience for me. I know you will find it equally as challenging and certainly as rewarding!