Last modified on December 22, 2011 by Brad Phillips

The Best of 2011: Your Eight Favorite Posts

I’ve written more than 250 stories this year. With the exception of the blog’s most loyal readers, I’m guessing you’ve missed some along the way.

So I went back and compiled a short list of the most popular posts from 2011.

I hope you enjoy some of the posts you may have missed. And thank you very much for spending some of your time on the blog!

1. The Worst Media Disasters of 2011: Who committed the worst media gaffes in 2011? There was steep competition, and as hard as they tried, neither Charlie Sheen nor Herman Cain made it to the top of the list. Here’s the list, with video.

 

2. 12 Things 1980s Music Can Teach Public Speakers: I’m a 1980s music geek. So I looked for an excuse to write a presentation training story featuring some of my guiltiest 80s pleasures. This one took about eight hours to write. I enjoyed every second. Here are 12 cheesy songs from the 1980s – and what they can teach you about public speaking.

 

3. Seven Rules To Remember When a Crisis Strikes: These seven tips may seem straightforward – but hundreds of companies, organizations, and government agencies ignore them every day.

 

4. Nine Things New Spokespersons Need To Know: I’ve often wondered – if I had just ten minutes to prepare someone for their first television interview, what would I tell them? Here are the nine things I believe every new media spokesperson needs to know.

 

5. The Five Most Common PowerPoint Mistakes: We’ve all seen those speakers – the ones who fly through 100 PowerPoint slides in 20 minutes. This article will help you avoid being that person. Here are the five most common PowerPoint mistakes – and how to avoid them.

 

6. Why There’s No Such Thing as a “Personal” Facebook or Twitter Account:  If you spend enough time on social networking sites, you’ll see thousands of profiles with this disclaimer: “The views expressed here do not represent those of my employer.” Nonsense! For practical purposes, there is no difference between your personal accounts and your professional ones. Here’s why.

 

7. Five Reasons Journalists Lead Miserable Lives: Reporters face more pressures than ever before, and it’s no wonder that many of them are exhausted, overly-stressed, unresponsive, and curt. This article looks at five reasons reporters lead “miserable” lives – and what you can do to make their lives easier.

 

8. Five Reasons The Reporter Didn’t Quote You: You just finished a media interview. You think you nailed it. But when the story comes out, your name is nowhere to be found. Few things frustrate media spokespersons more than providing the reporter with loads of information only to be omitted from the final story. Here are five reasons the reporter may have dropped you from the story.

 

Note to readers: For the first time since beginning this blog in August 2010, I’m going to take a week off from the blog next week to catch my breath. I’ll be back on Tuesday, January 3rd. In the meantime, thank you for reading. I wish you and your family a happy and healthy holiday season!