What Others Say

Present Your Way to the Top

Even Lincoln would have been impressed! Steve Forbes, President & CEO, Forbes Inc.

Present Your Way to the Top is full of practical insights that will help anyone deliver presentations that connect with audiences. This is not a book of abstract theories. David Dempsey gives us guidelines that have been tested and proven. It’s a great investment. United States Senator Bob Dole, Washington, D.C.

If you know your next public speech will be drop dead wonderful, this may not be the book for you. But should you belong to the remaining 95% of the world, David Dempsey's Present Your Way to the Top is full of easy to absorb, readily read ideas that will stay with you. Guaranteed applause at the end of your next talk. Gerald Grinstein, CEO, Delta Air Lines, Inc.

From cover to cover, Present Your Way to the Top delivers on its promise to make anyone a more powerful and persuasive presenter. David Dempsey’s real world experiences and proven tips show you exactly how to get the bottom-line results you want from a business presentation. In my opinion, he is the Public Speaking Expert for no-nonsense executives. Peter Schwarzenbauer, President & CEO, Porsche Cars North America, Inc.

Present Your Way to the Top is a great resource! This excellent book shows you how to speak in a way that will cause audience members to sit up and listen. It demonstrates how to have a meaningful heartfelt, conversation that connects with your audience, how to standout in today’s cluttered, speaker-filled world. Every speaker would benefit tremendously from reading this book and applying its principles. John R. Alm, Former CEO, Coca-Cola Enterprises, Inc.

With my busy schedule, I appreciate that David Dempsey has organized this book into quick, easy-to-read tactics for improving public speaking. I have found many informative and entertaining suggestions in Present Your Way to the Top. James C. Kennedy, Chairman & CEO, Cox Enterprises, Inc.

Present Your Way to the Top is a superb tool for any executive who wants to influence, persuade, and inspire every audience! It provides a precise blueprint for crafting and delivering an outstanding speech that will have your audience members sitting on the edge of their seats. The writing is engaging, the information is insightful, and the organization is excellent. The resources and Web sites listed are a great bonus. Any speaker would benefit enormously from reading and applying the advice in this book. It is an essential book for every leader. Jack Guynn, President & CEO, Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta

David Dempsey's book, Present Your Way to the Top, written with wonderful humor, takes you on a journey of building a dynamic presentation. It is packed with invaluable lessons for all speakers and shouldn't be missed. Dr. Ken Blanchard, Co-author of The One Minute Manager® and The Secret

The communication ideas and insights in Present Your Way to the Top are exceptional. My executive team and I speak around the world to a variety of audiences (customers, prospects, employees) and in a variety of venues (Town Hall meetings, investor calls, large user conferences, sales meetings). We have worked with David for several years in his dual role as a speechwriter and presentation skills coach. He utilizes all the battletested principles discussed in this book to help us craft and deliver dynamic messages— presentations that truly make us stand out. These techniques and his approach have produced excellent results for Infor. Jim Schaper, Chairman and CEO, Infor

With Present Your Way to the Top, Dempsey gave me an actionable roadmap to rapidly transform my own presenting style…as well as my clients. This is not a book about theory: you’ll see a profound and positive impact the very next time you speak in public. Claudia Patton, President, Southeast Region, Edelman

This book shows you how to prepare and deliver better talks and presentations than you ever imagined. When you follow its advice, you will look and sound like a star. Brian Tracy, Author of Maximum Achievement and The Psychology of Selling

Many people do not understand the importance of communicating clearly. David Dempsey’s book, Present Your Way to the Top, is packed with numerous personal tales from the trenches and great ideas that he has learned through his lifelong experience in the speaking arena. Garry Betty, President & CEO, EarthLink

Present Your Way to the Top teaches every speaker how to craft and deliver a passionate message. Marc Hebert, Chief Marketing Officer, Virtusa Corporation

For several years, David and his team have coached and trained many senior executives of Siemens, including me, so I have a unique perspective. I know from first-hand experience that his recommendations for creating and delivering exceptional presentations outlined in Present Your Way to the Top work and most importantly, produce results. They will help any executive deliver more engaging, persuasive presentations. What really distinguishes his approach is that the advice he offers has been tested and proven in the most important arena of all: the real world. This is a treasure trove of great ideas. Scott Macdonald, Vice President, Siemens Industry, Inc.

Clear, honest, precise and consistent communication is the ultimate tool for effective leaders and essential in captivating presentations. Present Your Way to the Top is a virtual toolbox of useful suggestions and guideposts to help you become the best, most effective communicator possible. John Schuerholz, Executive Vice President & General Manager, The Atlanta Braves

I am always looking for books that will help me be a better communicator. I really liked this book. David is proving himself tops in the field of speech making and you need to read it. Bobby Bowden, Head Football Coach, Florida State University

When Dempsey was a young trial lawyer, his knees once wobbled so violently during his summation to a jury that he overheard them dub him “Jell-O Boy.” In Present Your Way to the Top he describes the presentation wisdom he has learned since then that has helped him to become a professional communication skills trainer and coach. By detailing the minutiae involved in great presentations, including essential tips for conquering question-and-answer sessions, his professional advice can take the anxiety and uncertainty out of any presentation. Soundview Executive Book Summaries

There's a reason most people are afraid of public speaking: They're bad at it. Really bad. They're either paint-drying dull or, worse, embarrassing. And many of those who are comfortable with public speaking are nowhere near as good at it as they think. (Yes, we're talking about you.) Since we're not likely to convince everyone to sit down and shut up, the next best thing would be to get them to read Present Your Way to the Top! Author David Dempsey, who learned public speaking as a trial lawyer and university professor, offers step-by-step advice to help you stop boring us to tears. Accounting Today

Read More

Legally Speaking

Legally Speaking is not a fix for trial lawyers who cannot speak well or do not want to work hard. However, lawyers who are motivated to improve their trial presentations can profit from the principles it describes...[it is] a ‘go-to’ source summarizing the dos and don’ts of presentations (including openings and summations) [and] a godsend for all trial practitioners-especially those without the experience, or the ego, to believe they already know everything. TRIAL Magazine

Unlike many ‘how-to’ guidebooks-which often put the ‘less’ in lifeless prose-David J. Dempsey’s Legally Speaking provides a lively blueprint for successful oral presentations anywhere from the courtroom to the boardroom….Legally Speaking is also a comprehensive guidebook replete with an extensive bibliography of useful books, websites and other sources of material for improving presentations….There may be that fateful moment that shapes your career, and you’d be best served by knowing the 40 Principles. Lawyers Weekly USA

[This] book is a blessing for anyone interested in improving their public speaking technique, whether the arena is a packed courtroom or a tiny conference room. Who will gain from reading Legally Speaking? Everyone. As Dempsey notes, the purpose of his book is to ‘…teach attorneys and aspiring attorneys how to communicate with power, passion and persuasion.…’ He has skillfully accomplished his goal. New Jersey Lawyer

Legally Speaking is packed with important lessons for anyone who wants to be an influential speaker. These valuable principles and resources should be used in all legal arenas, from the office to the courtroom to the capitol. Governor Carl E. Sanders, Troutman Sanders, Atlanta, Georgia

Every law student and trial lawyer should be required to read this book. It is that practical. Senator Saxby Chambliss, Washington, D.C.

[Legally Speaking] is incredible, an inspiration to those who believe they know what they are doing, and a beacon for those who do not. I cannot think of any kind of lawyer who would not profit from it….[Legally Speaking] is a great book, Michael D. Jones, Esq., Kirkland & Ellis, Washington, D.C.

The advice in this book is superb and the writing sprightly and witty. I would recommend it to all litigators and to all others who want to become better and more persuasive speakers. Jerome J. Shestack, Esq., Past President, American Bar Association

Legally Speaking should be read and studied by every lawyer who engages in trial practice. It touches and defines all of the major issues and problems that frequently occur in the area of forensic oratory. [This book] is exceedingly well done. Bobby Lee Cook, Esq., Cook & Connelly, Summerville, Georgia

I found Legally Speaking to be very informative and would recommend it as a helpful resource to anyone called upon to speak-whether as a lawyer, a businessman, or a leader in any area of life. The ability to communicate through the spoken word is more important now than ever. Legally speaking would make an excellent textbook to teach communication skills while at the same time being an entertaining read. Judge Griffin B. Bell, King & Spalding, Atlanta, Georgia

Legally Speaking is both entertaining and informative. I highly recommend it to everyone seeking to improve their skills as a communicator, a leader, and a lawyer. United States Senator Bob Dole, Washington, D.C.

I love this book! Everything you thought you knew, need to know, forgot, need to do, and don’t, is in here. I have never seen the secrets (and not-so-secrets) of persuasion presented so clearly, succinctly, and in such an entertaining manner. Thank you for this public service to lawyers…. Elizabeth J. Cabraser, Esq., Leif Cabraser Hermann & Bernstein, LLP, San Francisco, California

The book is great! It is an essential reference for every lawyer whose living depends upon the ability to persuade. The principles of communication which you review are critical to effective advocacy. Young and veteran lawyers alike would do well to study the book carefully and review it routinely before every important presentation. Judge John J. Goger, Superior Court of Fulton County, Atlanta, Georgia

[Legally Speaking is] well written and compelling, with many great ideas that would be helpful to any professional. Robert Alan Kindler, Esq., Global Head of Mergers & Acquisitions, J.P. Morgan, New York, New York

Legally Speaking provides helpful techniques that are beneficial to every trial attorney. There is an art to delivering a powerful jury presentation and the advice given by Mr. Dempsey helps to create a framework for litigators to follow. Legally Speaking is an excellent resource for anyone who has to make a presentation. Willie E. Gary, Esq., Gary, William, Parenti & Finney, Stuart, Florida

Every lawyer could learn something helpful about public speaking from Legally Speaking, and most lawyers could learn a lot. David J. Dempsey presents useful, practical guidance on how to prepare for and deliver an effective presentation. Remarkably, this is the rare how-to book that is a pleasure to read, either all at once or in small, entertaining, easy-to-digest pieces. Charles A. Rothfeld, Esq., Mayer, Brown, Rowe & Maw, Washington, D.C.

David Dempsey’s Legally Speaking provides every lawyer useful tools that most lawyers do not learn either in law school or even after years of practice. Alan C. Mendelson, Esq., Latham & Watkins, Menlo Park, California

David’s 40 Principles contain both lots of material that took me 40 years to figure out and other things I never did. This is quite a good book and should be useful…to virtually all advocates. Robert N. Sayler, Esq., Covington & Burling, Washington, D.C.

Legally Speaking is both helpful and inspiring. Judge Leah Ward Sears, Supreme Court of Georgia, Atlanta, Georgia

Legally Speaking is an important book for all litigators - young and old alike. I have found it to be very helpful and practical. I think it is particularly useful in preparing persuasive opening and closing statements. Jerold S. Solovy, Esq., Jenner & Block, LLC, Chicago, Illinois

David’s book provides invaluable tips and resources for lawyers, leaders, executives, and anyone truly concerned about making their presentations invaluable and memorable. This book is very helpful for anyone doing public speaking; one may argue that it would be malpractice for a trial attorney not to have reviewed it. Mark O. Hiepler, Esq., Hiepler & Hiepler, Oxnard, California

Legally Speaking is concise…enjoyable to read and hits the mark. It is a wonderful resource even to the experienced speaker. I will look to its lessons and tips again and again. Larry W. Sonsini, Esq., Wilson, Sonsini, Goodrich & Rosati, Palo Alto, California

Legally Speaking is an excellent resource for all attorneys, litigators and non-litigators alike, regardless of how much experience they have speaking…there are hundreds of tips, checklists and ideas attorneys can immediately implement to significantly improve their presentations….The author clearly understands the issues that attorneys confront when speaking. I enthusiastically recommend Legally Speaking! Lisa Blue, Esq., Baron & Budd, P.C., Dallas, Texas

Legally Speaking is a good read for lawyers seeking to improve their communication skills. It provides a host of valuable tips and does so in a practical and highly entertaining manner. Richard E. Wiley, Esq., Wiley Rein & Fielding, LLP, Washington, D.C.

Great book! Every good trial lawyer must be a good communicator. David J. Dempsey’s Legally Speaking is a must read for beginners and seasoned advocates alike. The chapter on visual aids alone is worth the price of the book. Thomas William Malone, Esq., The Malone Law Firm, Atlanta, Georgia

Reading Legally Speaking is like digging for gold for persuasive nuggets. Whether it is reaching a judge or jury, these tips are extremely valuable. Mary E. Alexander, Esq., President, Association of Trial Lawyers of America, San Francisco, California

In a world where we are increasingly overloaded with information and the amount of time to sort through it seems ever to diminish, the ability to connect with our audiences carries a premium. Mr. Dempsey gives lawyers a coherent game plan for rising above the din and clutter. His advice is detailed, practical and actionable. Thomas Hale Boggs Jr., Esq., Patton Boggs, LLP, Washington, D.C.

Read More