Ellen Dunnigan

About Ellen Dunnigan

Ellen Dunnigan founded Accent On Business in 2001 specializing in public speaking, communication skills, and executive presence for leaders in business. She has 25 years of experience with professional and nonprofessional speakers in healthcare, media, politics, engineering, sports, and other industries. Ellen’s coaching in speaking skills gives established and emerging leaders greater confidence and credibility. Her leadership programs in accountability, alignment, difficult conversations, and organizational communication have helped leaders expand their influence. Ellen is known for her practical “how to” style.

Heartfelt and Memorable Holiday Toasts

bottle-217176_1280There is no better time than this year’s office party to let your colleagues know how much you appreciate their hard work and great attitudes. Ellen Dunnigan, public speaking coach at Accent On Business, offers our annual tips on providing memorable toasts at the holiday office parties.

 

Give Thanks

Thank individuals for their contribution to the company. If your group is small, mention each person individually. In larger firms, thank teams or departments who succeeded in special initiatives or projects. Thank your partners and alliances, especially if they are sponsoring your company celebration. Be as specific as possible in your “thank you”, for example, “Thank you, Susan, for keeping us organized and managing our project calendars”. (We call this the “Power Thank You”.)

 

Share Successes

Share specific kudos about your team members with their spouses. You know, it doesn’t get much better than hearing that all […]

Winter Voice Care

Regularly use your voice at work? If your voice tires frequently, or you’re experiencing seasonal laryngitis, here are some tips on keeping your voice in tip-top shape:

Make Memories by Using Stories

make-memoriesLast week I attended the Women’s Business Conference held by the National Association of Women Business Owners. There is tremendous sponsorship by very large corporations for this conference, and the speakers they sponsored were visionary leaders and “doers” at the highest levels. At this stage in my career, I respect better-than-average business leaders, yet I’m not readily impressed with the better-than-average business leader. What impresses me are the remarkable leaders, the highly intentional visionaries, the humble and resolute leaders. I was delighted to meet and listen to several such leaders. While I heard plenty of facts and figures, statistics and lessons, I would have to consult my notes for all of those interesting and important details.

You know what I’ve retained in my brain that I will use over and over again? Their stories! I learned about resilience and strength from

Steps to Giving a Winning Speech

Giving a great speech is never easy, but often quite fun. Speaking can be a frightening thing for most people, and once you learn how to channel that anxiety, the world can open up for you. Whether you’re giving a short speech during a monthly meeting, training routine information, or giving a presentation that promotes you or your business, what you say and how you say it can help you get noticed and be influential. Here are five tips that will make a big difference in your presentation style.

No Apology Necessary!

“Ladies and gentlemen, I must apologize up front if my speech seems unprepared or disjointed. I have been traveling abroad most of this month and have had little time to plan for this speech. None the less, I hope you will find some nuggets of gold in my disjointed thoughts.”

See Yourself as You Want Others to See You

Earlier this week, one of my public speaking clients mentioned to me that she would like to work on her “presence” before the audience as well as her actual presentation. I probed a bit deeper, asking her to describe exactly what it was she wanted to project; how was it that she wanted others to see her?

Nixing Public Speaking Nerves

“I can hear my heart pounding in my ears, my mouth feels like it could dispense cotton balls at any moment, my hands get cold and clammy, and I’m dead certain everybody within ten feet can hear my knees knocking together.”

What Does Your Voice Say About You?

Creaky Voice What’s that creaking sound? Oh, it’s your voice! You probably haven’t even noticed you are speaking that way because everyone around you is speaking like that, too. “Vocal fry,” as medical professionals call it, is becoming a growing phenomenon in the United States, especially among young women. It is characterized as, “irregular vibrations in the vocal cords”.  Many experts believe that vocal fry began in pop culture and thus has become a “cool” trend in speaking styles.  However “trendy” vocal fry might make you sound, it has been proven to leave nothing but negative effects.

A recent study conducted by Duke University researchers and published in the journal of PLoS ONE found that not only can vocal fry cause damage to your vocal cords but it is actually perceived as less professional, and can affect the likelihood of an employer’s decision to […]

Toasts To Remember

champagne-237239_640Wedding season is upon us. The summer air is perfect for weddings and that means toasts to the happy couple! Are you a best man, maid of honor, or a parent that raised the bride or groom? Then get ready to brush up on your public speaking skills because you will be writing your toast before you know it! Speaking in front of a whole banquet hall full of people may seem overwhelming, but a few helpful tips might go a long way:

  • Start with a story – something you remember and would be fun for all guests to hear.
    • Keep the story short – no more than 1 minute (about 225 words)
    • Try humor if you are funny.  If you’re not, don’t try to be (it usually doesn’t work well).  If you do use humor, keep it clean!
    • […]

The Power of One Great Question

One great question can elicit useful answers, move a relationship to a higher plane, or propel a business solution. The following tips can make you a more strategic communicator and get you noticed for your thought leadership.

best questions blog pic

  • Ask open-ended questions that stimulate thinking. Typically, these types of questions begin with “How” or “What do you think about…”  Note: too many “why” questions can make one sound confrontational.
  • Ask for the individual’s own ideas. This empowers the  person and makes him/her feel valued
  • Ask Interpretive Questions; “ what do you think about…?”
  • Dig Deeper. Instead of asking a leading question (“You think that was the best decision, don’t you?”), ask a deeper question, “Why do you think that?”
  • Start with what you understand, followed by what remains unclear. “I understand that we’re in a risky economy, but I think I […]
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