*Click here to see video highlights of this presentation.

A special thank you to Dani Ticktin Koplik of dtkResources (and to my friend and new ICF-NY president, Terry Yoffe) for inviting me to present at the Bubble2Boardroom career fair and networking conference at the New York Athletic Club on Friday (Jan 6, 2012.)

It was an honor to join an impressive roster of guest speakers which included superstar marketing and social media guru, Ted Rubin, as well as Michelle Tillis Lederman, author of “The 11 Laws of Likability.”

My presentation entitled, “Turn Up Your Power Dial…and Kick-Start Your Confidence” introduced our patented BigBlueGumball Power Dial model to the public for the very first time, along with a number of other tools, tips and techniques including “BigBlueGumball’s 5 Quick Tips for Boosting your Confidence":

1. Build on your PAST SUCCESSES (eliminate that negative "self-talk")
2. Leverage your STRENGTHS (don’t dwell on your weaknesses or limitations)
3. Make every experience a LEARNING OPPORTUNITY to build upon
4. Seek out FEEDBACK (it’s a gift!)
5. “ACT AS IF” (believe in yourself...if you don't, who will!)

For more on the Power Dial, Building Your Confidence, Influencing or any other related management, leadership, or communication-related topic, please feel free to email me anytime at todd.cherches@bigbluegumball.com.

Like most businesspeople, you're probably spending more time in meetings than getting any actual work done.   

But does it have to be this way?

To find out how to make YOUR meetings more productive and succesful, check out this article in "Success Magazine" where you'll find BigBlueGumball's very own, Todd Cherches, featured. 

After all, wouldn't YOU like to be as joyful as the people in this stock photo of "young, good-looking business people high-fiving each other"?

We are very excited to announce that Todd has been invited by Top Gun, Allison Hemming, to be a featured blogger on her company's website, The Hired Guns.  

The Hired Guns is an innovative talent agency (and a great careers resource!) that represents "the best of the digital creative class."  

Todd's monthly column will focus on "the power of visual thinking and learning."

Check out his first post to learn what a "Visual Bio or Visual Resume" is...and how you might create your own to stand out from the crowd!

Good stuff....

At BigBlueGumball... we have a dream... that one day... everyone... will recognize the power of visual communication.

As communicators and presenters, we all recognize the power of words.  What is often overlooked though, is the added impact that visuals have on an audience.  The power of visuals not only comes from the things we see, but also from the things we hear.  When Martin Luther King, Jr. told us that he "has a dream," he painted his dream for us using vivid language, metaphor, and tone that automatically turned our minds into a canvas for our imagination.

Last week, Todd and I had the opportunity to be guest presenters for VizThink NYC.  Through a series of interactive exercises including VizProvization, VizBiz Pictionary, and sketch-noting, we explored the power of visual communication, and unleashed the power and creativity that existed in all who attended. 

VizThink events tend to attract incredibly creative, talented, insightful, and friendly people from around the globe, which always makes each event a fantastic experience.  Last week's event drew people from as far away as Sweden, California, Westchester, Long Island, and the Upper East Side...!

To more fully engage in the experience, please check out the following links:

VizThink.com (event write-up)
http://vizthink.com/blog/2011/04/02/the-power-of-visual-communication

Pictures on Flickr
http://www.flickr.com/photos/merrybrain/sets/72157626408290350

Visuals For Change (blog post with sketchnotes)
http://www.visualsforchange.com/blog/2011/03/31/vizthink-nyc-presents-the-power-of-visual-communication-with-bigbluegumball/

Present Your Story (blog post with sketchnotes)
http://www.presentyourstory.com/blog/2011/4/5/vizthink-nyc.html?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter

Special thanks to VizThink, MJ Broadbent, Ray DeLaPena, Amanda Lyons, Nolan Haims, and Liquidnet.

Last week, VizThink NYC hosted another fantastic event for the visual thinking community.  As always, I'm thrilled to be a part of the VizThink NYC crew, and thrilled to be associated with such great people. 

Here are a few excerpts from the post-event recap:

No, the picture on the right is not from some ritualistic cult ceremony or a crazy torture experiment…it is from the February 2011 VizThink NYC event entitled “Drawing for Thinkers Workshop” led by guest presenter Liz Burow.......

“Draw like a robot…or a caveman” were among the mantras for the evening, as participants honed their skills to increase effectiveness and confidence to communicate ideas, visualize problems, and create stronger human connections....

For the full event recap, please check out the post on the VizThink blog:

http://vizthink.com/blog/2011/03/01/drawing-for-thinkers/

And please let us know if you'd like to be informed of upcoming events...!