Public Speaking Coach

BECOME THE SPEAKER AUDIENCES WANT TO HEAR

What if?  What if your next presentation closed that big deal or if it secured agency funding? What if the next personal story you told inspired your organization to new heights? What if your key message engaged conference audiences? And so forth?

What difference?  What difference could that “right [blank]” mean to you and your organization?

Hello. My name is Ira Koretsky (bio). I am the founder and CEO of The Chief Storyteller®. I have been in the world of public speaking since I was in high school. I was the morning announcer, public relations officer for the Jazz Band, and a New York State debate champion finalist. For the latter, there were just 26 of us from the entire state. A life-long foundational lesson came from our debate coach and our storytelling coach, Mr. Height. He stressed… and made us appreciate… the power of effective stories and appreciate the power of effective public speaking. They went hand-in-hand. Lessons from Mr. Height, along with countless others over my career, along with plenty of bumps and bruises earned on my own, have made me a much better public speaker, storyteller, and communicator (customers, success stories, testimonials).

I designed the Public Speaking Coach program for professionals, trainers, and speakers. The Public Speaking Coach program helps you become the type of speaker you want to be. AND helps you become the type of speaker audiences want to hear.

Become the type of speaker you want to be. AND become the type of speaker audiences want to hear

A DIFFERENT KIND OF PUBLIC SPEAKING COACH

I’m a different kind of public speaking coach. I call myself a 1-on-1 coach consultant. I blend the best of my experience and expertise from being a professional speaker, consultant (communication and marketing), adjunct professor, and trainer.

I am an adjunct professor at the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business, where I earned my MBA. In my course, Enterprise Communications, I teach about 70 honors students in public speaking, data storytelling, communication, and business storytelling. Their final is a five-minute, TED-Style Talk. Students pick their topic, develop engaging presentation visuals, craft a compelling narrative told through the eyes of a personal story, and teach us something new, as all good TED and TEDx speakers do.

Based on our current priorities and progress, sometimes I am your coach, sometimes your consultant, and sometimes your professional trainer. I assume the professional trainer role when you need to build, hone, or maintain your public speaking and storytelling skills. I draw from more than 100 written and verbal Smart Exercises developed by The Chief Storyteller® team. My favorite public speaking Smart Exercise is Treat Everyone Like a CEO™. It is the number one Leadership and Strategy Exercise on YouTube, with more than 200,000 views.

FLEXIBLE & CUSTOMIZED COACHING

I continually develop and refine our Smart Exercises, tools, and frameworks. And I continually refine our public speaking coach engagement approach. Since 2002, when I started The Chief Storyteller®, I have found co-creating your engagement structure for our meetings, works best. We can meet once a week, twice a week, once a month, etc. The structure is based on your goals, timetable, milestones, and availability.

ACHIEVE YOUR PUBLIC SPEAKING GOALS

As your public speaking coach, what are your goals for public speaking? To be a …

• Better public speaker or trainer?
• More inspiring leader?
• Better motivator of people and teams?
• More effective with your board?
• More confident communicator?
• Memorable speaker at All-Hands Meetings, Town Halls, and ERGs?
• Persuasive data storyteller?
• Excellent conference moderator or panelist?
• Or ???

I will help you achieve your public speaking goals.

Sometimes we will revise presentations and stories. Sometimes we will brainstorm and strategize. Sometimes we will collaborate. Sometimes you’ll do exercises. Sometimes you will practice. Sometimes you’ll share your activities and the results. Meetings are a combination of in-person if you are in the Washington, DC area and Zoom video.

I work with leaders and experts, individually and in groups. For groups, the Public Speaking Coach engagement blends training with coaching.

Whatever we do, my approach as your Public Speaking Coach, is to ensure you achieve your personal and professional goals, in your own authentic way.

Achieve your personal and professional goals, in your own authentic way

Why Us? Key Differentiators

When it comes to differentiating factors, these are the ones that make us really stand out.

1. First and foremost, we emphasize storytelling, the oldest and most effective form of communication
2. I’m an active practitioner of what I coach. To date, I have delivered more than 540 keynotes and workshops, inspiring more than 38,000 people in a dozen countries
3. I’m an adjunct professor of public speaking, data storytelling, and storytelling at the University of Maryland Business School for nearly a decade
4. Coaching is hands-on (“coaching consultant”)
5. Receive practical and proven learning materials such as frameworks, tools, worksheets, and tip guides — all designed to be immediately applicable and easy-to-use
6. Benefit from more than 50 learning modules
7. Benefit from more than 150 Smart Exercises™
8. We use improvisational humor like television’s Whose Line Is It Anyway? in our coaching to improve information retention, participant enjoyment, and impact. I performed in over 1,000 shows with ComedySportz
9. We “get you.” I am a techie at heart, having started the computer club in high school. I won a science fair. I was a CIO of an Army hospital. I worked for three managed web hosting companies
10. I nudge and push you to be better, helping you achieve your personal and professional goals

Public Speaking Coach Learning Modules

There are more than 30 Public Speaking Coach modules. The modules cover public speaking, A to Z. Here are some example Public Speaking Coach Modules:

VIDEO CLIPS OF IRA KORETSKY SPEAKING

COACHING SUCCESS STORIES / PAST PERFORMANCE