The 7 Deadly Sins of Public Speaking (Flashback Friday #4)

On Fridays, we dip into the article archive and emerge with one of the most memorable articles. We’ll dust it off, shine a light on it, and consider it from a new perspective.

Today’s Flashback Article

This week, we head back to September 2009, when we described the 7 deadly sins of public speaking:

1. Sloth: failing to prepare for your speech or presentation
2. Envy: believing that great speakers are born with their skills
3. Lust: quelling your nerves by picturing the audience naked
4. Gluttony: believing that more words/slides/facts/numbers is always better
5. Greed: speaking over your allotted time
6. Wrath: rigidly reacting to problems and losing your cool
7. Pride: placing yourself ahead of the audience

This article was a fun one to write, and the response over the years has been tremendous. I regularly get feedback from readers who report that they witnessed another speaker committing these sins and suffering because of it (embarrassment, not death).

Read the article, and let me know whether you find these sins to be deadly or not:

• The 7 Deadly Sins of Public Speaking