As a Stand Up Comedian channeling my talents, improvisational skills and performance accrual into my speaking business, I have acquired wisdom from performance arts that are apropos to the speaking business.

(1) Know your audience! When crafting your speech or presentation know everything you can about the audience you will address. This involves researching the company, the demographic of the audience, what time you will be on (morning versus evening audiences are DIFFERENT!)

(2) Know your material. The audience expects you to in essence lead them. Lead them with your professional and knowing grasp of your subject matter.

(3) Do not expect to win over everyone with your great speech! Stand Up Comedians know beforehand that not everyone may be receptive to their material. Yet, a Comedian knows how to control an audience, continue to move forward with their material, and to connect with those in the audience that do get their message!

(4) Learning to move through your material or speech is NOT ignoring the audience. A Stand Up Comedian will instantly make adjustments in their material to meet the needs and personality of a particular audience. As a speaker, you ‘read’ your audience and make adjustments in how you present your material!

(5) ATTITUDE is everything! The audience gains confidence in you the moment you walk out onto the stage. HOW you walk to that mic, podium or lectern BEFORE you open your mouth determines how the audience will accept or connect with you. More important is the connection! Make them want you! Make that audience want to be like you!

(6) Along with attitude in coming on stage is CONTROL! A Stand Up Comedian, a good one, comes on stage and CONTROLS the stage, it is their DOMAIN! In taking control of the stage the comedian, lets the audience know that they are in for a remarkable experience. They make the audience feel safe.

The stage should be your domain, your home, your place of comfort.

(7) To make the stage your domain, take lessons to improve your performance. Take acting lessons, improvisation lessons, theater lessons. Observe performers in action and take what you need to improve your stage performance. Go to open mikes and just get up and try to make a joke or just talk to the audience. Stage time is everything! For an example outside of comedy, take Tiger Woods. Mr. Woods, a naturally gifted golfer still takes lessons to improve his game!

Freebies:
(a) Do auditions! Auditioning whether for a play, movie, theater production or whatever makes you think ‘conciseness’ in getting YOUR persona (and your message) across quickly. Auditioning makes you think on your feet! You have to deliver yourself, BE yourself and who you really are, usually in three to five minutes depending on the requirements of the audition.

(b) A manager at The New York Comedy Club once observed me looking glum in the club. He immediately told me to smile because I am in show business! YOU, as a speaker are in Show Business! Smile! Radiate like a star! Make people want to connect with you by the aura you create!

Apparently, I can’t count…YOUR bonus!

Carmen Electra made her name a few years back as a big party girl who loved to have a lot of fun. Since then she has played a lot of small roles in films and television shows and has become a big celebrity and a major icon especially in Hollywood. We have seen her acting skills develop in to high class and well respected.

Here are Carmen Electras best acting performances:

1. Cheaper By The Dozen Two. She played a very good house wife in this comedy. She was very funny and arrogant at the same time, depicting her character very well. She was made to act like she was a trophy wife making Steve Martin very jealous.

2. Scary Movie four. Playing Holly was very funny. She was sending up the opening scene from Scream which she does very accurately. She also had numerous cameos in other scary movie comedy send up films, which ended being very successful.

3. Epic Movie. This was my least favorite role I thought she was in. As she was not as funny as the other comedy send up movies. And the role was similar to what she had done a lot before. It showed that she needs to go in to other areas of acting such as drama or horror.

Carmen Electra has developed in to a very good actress. She needs to stop being in all these comedy roles and take up some thing more serious. She may not get good money for it, but she has a lot of potential as an actor and she may develop in to a great actress who ends up winning big awards and respect.