Blog Articles

By Diane Ripstein

What’s New With You?

by Diane Ripstein • May 20, 2019

Your Default We all have what I call a Default Communication Style. It’s the most natural and intuitive way in which we present. It’s normal and expected. We don’t have to think much about it. What’s Your Counter-Intuitive? When you want to ratchet it up a notch (or two), the quickest way to sound more [Read More…]


Why Am I Procrastinating?

by Diane Ripstein • April 10, 2019

Coming Clean Here I am a procrastinator. Why? Well, let me just Google it, read several articles about the causes and symptoms, talk to colleagues about their own challenges, make myself a cup of tea, graze lightly for some edibles, and find more first-person procrastination pieces to mull over. “Attention Week” in the New York [Read More…]


It’s a Balancing Act

by Diane Ripstein • March 13, 2019

The Spring Equinox is right around the corner. Hearts in New England are starting to beat a little faster as we sniff Spring’s arrival. The Equinox brings equal light and dark. Day and night are balanced, which is highly unusual and only happens twice in an entire year. Perfect Balance is Unusual in Nature It [Read More…]


You’ve Gotta Have Heart!

by Diane Ripstein • February 12, 2019

Damn Yankees was a hit 1950’s Broadway musical, later a movie, about a desperate fan who makes a bargain with the Devil, so that the Washington Senators baseball team can beat the Damn Yankees and win the pennant. (Hmmm, no comment here, please, about New England sports fans.) The show had fabulous singing and dancing. [Read More…]


Diane in Action:
Stage Manage Your Environment

by Diane Ripstein • January 24, 2019

There Really Is a Stage Door that leads backstage in every theatre. This separate entrance is reserved for the cast and crew, who make the magic happen. Without these pros doing their jobs backstage, the audience doesn’t get the experience they’re paying for out front. The Real Work Happens Behind the Scenes and as speakers, [Read More…]


This Little Light Of Mine

by Diane Ripstein • December 11, 2018

This little light of mine, I’m gonna let it shine. This little light of mine, I’m gonna let it shine. This little light of mine, I’m gonna let it shine. Let it shine, Let it shine, Let it shine! Originally Penned for Sunday School Students in the 1920’s by Pastor and music teacher Harry Dixon [Read More…]


Can’t See the Forest for the Trees?

by Diane Ripstein • November 14, 2018

Full Disclosure I’m a city gal who has not spent a whole lot of time in forests, but the forest/trees analogy is a great way to think about structuring presentations. So just for fun, let’s reimagine the “forest for the trees” in a modern cityscape, as in this photo of a downtown intersection. What Should [Read More…]


Diane in Action: Ask Questions!

by Diane Ripstein • October 3, 2018

Twenty Questions was a classic game show, first on radio and then TV, in which panelists had to guess an item by asking up to twenty questions. Developing really good questions, that helped define what you were trying to find out, was a winning strategy. Today’s Video: How to Use Questions (2:40) Create Your Own [Read More…]


On Your Mark, Get Set, Go

by Diane Ripstein • September 12, 2018

You know that adrenalin-inducing, off-to-the-races feeling right after Labor Day, with the grown-ups back at work and the kids back at school? There’s Something About the beginning of September. As soon as the temperature abruptly changes overnight (New England!), all the action items I’ve put off come racing back into my brain cells. I Feel [Read More…]


Learning From the Greats

by Diane Ripstein • August 8, 2018

In an era of how quickly you can do anything (“Now! 30 Minutes to Master fill-in-the-blank”), it’s helpful to step back and look at the Long View. We may live in an instantaneous culture, but real wisdom comes from experience. And lots of it. The Wisdom Years I spoke recently with Glenna Salsbury, a Grande Dame and [Read More…]