Wonderful
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I work as a speechwriter and I have this book close by every day. It's definitely not a work you read from cover to cover, but everyone should have a copy for the day they have to do a wedding speech or a presentation at work.
Monkhouse distils a lifetime's worth of experience into 208 pages. Little gems like, 'It's easy to tell right from wrong. Wrong is more fun.' or 'I warned the Chairman that I wouldn't have time to prepare a speech and he told me to say something off the top of my head, so - here's a short talk on dandruff.'
A lot of speechmaking is about regurgitating entertaining nonsense. You can make a patchwork quilt of Monkhouse's lines and it will work on an audience. Never trust what you think is funny yourself until you've had about ten year's experience.
The book also gives strategies for dealing with nerves and preparing your talk. The book has chapters on openings, closings and lots of longer anecdotes for the golf club or Rotary dinner.
Remember when Monkhouse lost his famous comedy books? Well I reckon this one has much of his best material.
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A must-have for all presenters
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This books is easy to read, and is packed with hints and tips that really work in practice. I train and coach business presenters, and I recommend it to my clients. I use some of the techniques and one-liners in my own presentations, which has added to their effectiveness. The use of real life examples, quotes, and anecdotes makes this a thoroughly useful resource. A good companion to this book would be Knockout Prsentations by Diane DiResta, as it gives more detail than Bob Monkhouse's book on how to structure a good business presentation. I thoroughly recommend 'Just Say a Few Words'.
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A fitting tribute to a marvellous man!
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The beauty of this book is that, upon picking it up, it is instantly readbale and enjoyable as an insight into Bob Monkhouse whilst, at the same time, providing you with witty anecdotes, skills and styles of comedy/speeches. The irony only comes when you start repeating parts of it and relating certain joke styles to people that you realise how effective it truly is. Whilst hideously dated in parts (bits refer to Thatcher and jokes on that theme), there is advice on how to update jokes like that with ease. Buy it if you are ever thinking of giving a speech to a congregation of friends, family, businesses etc. but not to the United Nations. Enjoy!
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