Missing Link

Have you ever had the honour of watching someone presenting on stage and you're like, "damn, that could legit be a robot". Something feels off and it's not just your brain that switched off a few seconds into the presentation. Why does this happen? And how do you prevent this from happening to you? Discover all the juicy secrets here -  https://lnkd.in/dF9Y6pyx

Do you use slides or not? And if you do what's your slide policy you holdheld yourself to. Let me know in the comments. I'm a slide guy, I feel they add a dimension to my talks, but I also use them for the benefit of the audience, that's what this quick video is about...

It's NOT about YOU! We’re living in a ME, ME, ME era where algorithms know us better than we know ourselves. All these social media platforms serve up content that feeds our egos and keeps us scrolling. But here’s the deal: when it’s time to present—whether it’s pitching to VCs, leading a team, or selling your product—you’ve GOT to flip the script. If you don’t get that YOUR story doesn’t matter—THEIRS does, you’re setting yourself up for a presentation flop. Focus on what your audience cares about and you’ll drive the action you want every time.  That's why our tried and tested Action Framework for effective presentations kicks off with "Reason to Care". (I know right, so simple) Learn more about that in this little blog I wrote -  https://lnkd.in/eT74bMeQ We've got a sneaky limited-time offer in there that's perfect for anyone with a high-stakes presentation coming up who doesn't want to risk it falling flat. But it is sometimes best to have dessert first, so here's your "skip the queue" card: - https://lnkd.in/eAY_avCR

When is the right time to start a business? Look, I get that there's nuance here. If Bill Gates had tried to start Microsoft two years earlier the business may never have gotten off the ground, so timing plays a part. However for most of us we're not holding back because we're waiting for the perfect time to launch from a market point of view, but because of something far more personal: Fear. We mask this fear with stories that we sell to ourselves. Question: What stories were you selling yourself before you pulled the entrepreneurial trigger? Or what stories are stopping you from doing it now? Starting a business is hard, it will always be hard. It won't be any easier if you wait. And like the saying goes: "What's the best time to plant an oak tree? Ten years ago. What's the second best time? Today." We are living in a liminal space in which there are gaps to be filled and problems to be fixed. Maybe it's your time.

🔥 BRAG POST 🔥 MY TEAM IS BETTER THAN YOURS! Thanks to the awesome customers we collaborate with, for recognizing and acknowledging the level of impact and smarts my Team brings. Kevin Dike, our Head Trainer at Missing Links' Presentation and Communication Academy is in the spotlight this Month! In truth, he should be in lights every month. Every time Kev is in the room I get only good news 🔥 and if you have ever had the chance to be in his training room you know he leaves NOTHING on the table. If Kevin were on Trip Advisor he would have a ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐

🎥In this week's episode, Will Ockenden and I sit down with public speaking expert and self-entitled Mischief Maker, Richard Mulholland, founder of Missing Link. Rich has authored three books titled Legacide, Boredom Slayer, and StorySeller. During our chat, Rich imparted his knowledge on how to make the perfect presentation and even shared his unique thoughts on "how to suck less," which I found quite amusing. He also shared his reasoning for leaving Cape Town and moving to the Isle of Man and a rather interesting lockdown fail story that's definitely worth a listen. 👇 If you're looking to improve your public speaking skills and avoid marketing mistakes, be sure to check this one out. #marketingmistakes #publicspeakingtips #presentations

You’ve seen the headlines: “PowerPoint is dead” or “No more Death by PowerPoint.” They’re all wrong. PowerPoint aint dead! As a presentation coach, I've done countless autopsies on failed presentations. The cause of death? Never PowerPoint. The emergence of all these AI presentation software's is cool and it’s never been easier to make pretty-looking slides, but that’s never been the reason presentations have flopped. Your slides are not the presentation. You are! Bad presentations are never made better by pretty slides. Pretty slides enhance good presentations. Rich proves this point in the latest Lead Loud vid you should 100% check out here - https://lnkd.in/dpfnEJeM, what is killing your preso? Cos it ain't PowerPoint, and a fancy AI presentation software is not going to fix it. All answered here - https://lnkd.in/d3ac_Z_F

Did you watch Scott Galloway's brilliant new #TED Talk? If you didn't, watch that first - it's way more important than this video. If you did though, and you want to know what I believe is the SECOND BIGGEST LESSON that you can take from it, well my friends, then this is the video for you... #presentation #publicspeaking

This just popped into my feed again, and it is still - by a long way - the video I had the most fun making: "How to deliver a talk like a Peaky Blinder" https://lnkd.in/dXMme2b7

🏦💸On selling your business... I don't use the term, "I'm a fan of x person" very often, I admire many people but fandom is a different thing. That said I am a long time unapologetic fan of Jamey Stegmaier from Stonemaier Games. I love how he thinks about things, and particularly the way he engages with his audience. This admiration holds true even when I disagree with him about something (see the first comment for a recent post we seem to somewhat disagree on). I just read his post entitled The current state of mergers and aquisitions (2024) and believe that it's required reading for entrepreneurs considering selling. Jamey writes about his industry (hobby boardgaming), but the lessons, specifically in the section "questions for yourself" are applicable to all. I particularly resonated with this: "Will the deal let me do more of what brings me joy with no regrets? An acquisition offer is both a good opportunity to consider what you enjoy the most about your job and what the acquiring investor values in you (i.e., what they hope you will continue doing for years to come)." We considered selling Missing Link - Presentation Powerhouse a few times in the past. However I always ended up keeping it, partly because of the great advice by Mike Stopforth (I never forgot our "ATM" convo bud), and partially to do with joy and identity. Being a long time member of Entrepreneurs' Organization I see a lot of mates that post the sale of their businesses, struggle with an existential crisis of idenity. I realised years ago that my surname was not Mulholland, but actually "from Missing Link" (Mc Missing Link if you like). People would often introduce me as Richard Mulholland from Missing Link, or informally as Rich from Missing Link. Missing Link is me, I am Missing Link. Some would say that that is a bad thing, but that is very much dependant on their expectations of their businesses, and their desires as entrepreneurs. The victory condition for companies isn't aquisition - unless of course it is. Mine, is to have fun and make money in that order (except when we're not making money, in which case it's hard to have fun so we need to fix that first). What's yours? And what was your a-ha moment from Jamey's post? PS. Jamey Stegmaier I wish you posted your blog posts and articles here too. I think they have broad application to entrepreneurs outside the hobby and I'm sure you could dual post with zero frictoion using a plugin of sorts. Just a thought.