Carpe diem

Let's say you're a junior executive in a large company. One day your boss comes to you and tells you she has to make a twenty-minute talk to a group of customers and wants you to write it for her. Or maybe she has a conflict that day and wants you to pinch-hit and deliver the speech. What do you do? Well, you can arrange to break your arm so you can't write. Or tell her that your grandmother is planning to die soon and the funeral will be on the date of the speech. But broken arms are painful, and grandmothers can die only so many times.

Or, you can accept the opportunity gratefully to pinch-hit for the boss as a writer or speaker or both. If you do a good job, you'll not only earn the gratitude of the boss, you'll enhance your prestige in the company. And if you continue to accept and seek out speaking opportunities, your poise, your self-assurance, even your standing in the company and in the eyes of your colleagues will increase. So will your mastery of other skills that are important in business and professional life.