The best 19 Presentations & Public Speaking books

1
How to Talk to Anyone

How to Talk to Anyone

Leil Lowndes
92 Little Tricks for Big Success in Relationships
4.2 (1,719 ratings)

What's How to Talk to Anyone about?

How To Talk to Anyone (1998) is an indispensable guide to improving your conversations and becoming more graceful and effective in your social interactions – no matter the situation. Leil Lowndes offers readers a treasure trove of techniques and tips that will help any socially awkward individual gain more confidence in workplace environments, meetings, their private lives and at parties.

Who should read How to Talk to Anyone?

  • Businesspeople who want fantastic working relationships
  • Readers looking for better ways to communicate with their partners
  • Awkward folk who’d like to improve their social skills

2
Win Every Argument

Win Every Argument

Mehdi Hasan
The Art of Debating, Persuading, and Public Speaking
4.2 (55 ratings)

What's Win Every Argument about?

Win Every Argument (2023) is a guide to the art of argument by one of the world’s most combative debaters: journalist, anchor, and writer Mehdi Hasan. Drawing on ancient theories of persuasion, neuroscientific theories of cognition, and the rhetorical tricks of contemporary politicians, Hasan reveals the secrets to winning arguments in today’s post-factual world.

Who should read Win Every Argument?

  • Natural-born arguers and debaters
  • Anyone interested in the art of persuasion
  • Public speakers and politicos

3
The 16 Undeniable Laws of Communication

The 16 Undeniable Laws of Communication

John C. Maxwell
Apply Them and Make the Most of Your Message

What's The 16 Undeniable Laws of Communication about?

The 16 Undeniable Laws of Communication (2023) addresses the fear of public speaking. It offers tried-and-true techniques that can transform any beginner or average speaker into a trusted and effective communicator.

Who should read The 16 Undeniable Laws of Communication?

  • Anyone trying to improve their communication skills
  • Speakers addressing anyone from small groups to stadium crowds
  • Leaders and organizers looking to inspire their teams

4
Talk Like TED

Talk Like TED

Carmine Gallo
The Nine Public-Speaking Secrets of the World’s Top Minds
4.6 (315 ratings)

What's Talk Like TED about?

In Talk like TED (2014), you’ll learn about presentation strategies used by the world’s most influential public speakers. Author Carmine Gallo analyzed more than 500 TED talks to identify common features that make these talks so influential and appealing.

Who should read Talk Like TED?

  • Anyone interested in founding a start-up
  • Anyone interested in giving effective, memorable presentations
  • Anyone who wants to learn how to sell themselves better

5
The Charisma Myth

The Charisma Myth

Olivia Fox Cabane
How Anyone Can Master the Art and Science of Personal Magnetism
4.2 (347 ratings)

What's The Charisma Myth about?

The Charisma Myth (2013) defies the popular notion that charisma is inherited, arguing instead that everyone can cultivate their own charisma, and in doing so can have a more positive attitude, find more success, and handle obstacles more successfully.

Using wide-ranging examples of charismatic people, from state leaders to CEOs to employees, the book also outlines the different styles of charisma and how to practice demonstrating each, and offers some useful tools and exercises with which to improve their psychological well-being.

Who should read The Charisma Myth?

  • Anyone who wants to know what constitutes charisma
  • Anyone who wants to learn how to become more charismatic

6
Presentation Advantage

Presentation Advantage

Kory Kogon
How to Inform and Persuade Any Audience
4.6 (293 ratings)

What's Presentation Advantage about?

The Presentation Advantage (2015) gives you the strategies you need to connect with your audience and get the results you want. Presentation happens everywhere from the boardroom to a first date. How you present yourself has everything to do with how much success you’ll achieve.

Who should read Presentation Advantage?

  • Anyone hoping to advance their career
  • People nervous about public speaking
  • Marketers, managers, and entrepreneurs

7
Good Arguments

Good Arguments

Bo Seo
How Debate Teaches Us to Listen and Be Heard
4.6 (345 ratings)

What's Good Arguments about?

Good Arguments (2022) is one part memoir, one part guide to the art of speaking. It introduces us to the thrilling and eccentric subculture of competitive debate and distills its secrets into timeless principles for effective communication. If we can only learn to disagree better, it argues, we can improve our relationships and revitalize our democracies.

Who should read Good Arguments?

  • Couples who want to communicate more effectively
  • Introverts who want to climb out of their shell
  • Anyone who wants to speak more persuasively

8
The Art of Rhetoric

The Art of Rhetoric

Aristotle
Uncover Persuasion and the Principles Behind Oratorical Skill
4.6 (391 ratings)

What's The Art of Rhetoric about?

The Art of Rhetoric (4th century BCE) is a practical manual on the art of public speaking and persuasion. Written almost 2,500 years ago, The Art of Rhetoric remains one of the most incisive and comprehensive studies on rhetoric ever written.

Who should read The Art of Rhetoric?

  • Amateur orators who need to prepare for an upcoming speech
  • Businesspeople who frequently speak in meetings
  • Anyone who has an interest in the classics of western thought

9
Communicate with Mastery

Communicate with Mastery

J. D. Schramm with Kara Levy
Speak With Conviction and Write for Impact
4.5 (148 ratings)

What's Communicate with Mastery about?

Communicate with Mastery (2020) is a practical guide for senior leaders wishing to improve their communication skills. It provides actionable advice and useful strategies to become an influential speaker and a compelling writer.

Who should read Communicate with Mastery?

  • Business leaders
  • Entrepreneurs
  • People who want to improve their communication skills

10
The Presentation Secrets of Steve Jobs

The Presentation Secrets of Steve Jobs

Carmine Gallo
Master the gold standard for presentations
4.7 (125 ratings)

What's The Presentation Secrets of Steve Jobs about?

The Presentation Secrets of Steve Jobs (2009) explains how any presenter can be as convincing and inspiring as the legendary Steve Jobs. From planning to rehearsal and delivery, Carmine Gallo details the anatomy of a great presentation.

Who should read The Presentation Secrets of Steve Jobs?

  • Anyone who holds presentations at work, school or in their free time
  • Communication professionals who want to engage their audiences more fully
  • Anyone who is interested in Steve Jobs’s presentation techniques

11
Storyworthy

Storyworthy

Matthew Dicks
Engage, Teach, Persuade, and Change Your Life through the Power of Storytelling
4.2 (241 ratings)

What's Storyworthy about?

Storyworthy (2018) explains how to craft a story for maximum impact. From intriguing beginnings to satisfying endings and everything in between, these blinks provide simple and effective tips and techniques for engaging your audience and bringing entertainment, authenticity and immediacy to your storytelling.

Who should read Storyworthy?

  • Anyone wanting to improve their storytelling skills.
  • People looking to get better at public speaking.
  • Shy wallflowers wanting to brush up on their communication skills.

12
Pitch Anything

Pitch Anything

Oren Klaff
An Innovative Method for Presenting, Persuading, and Winning the Deal
4.3 (231 ratings)

What's Pitch Anything about?

Pitch Anything (2011) introduces a unique, new method for pitching ideas. Through psychology, neuroscience and personal anecdotes, Klaff explains the tactics and techniques needed to successfully pitch anything to anyone.

Who should read Pitch Anything?

  • Anyone whose job involves selling products or ideas
  • Anyone trying to raise money from investors
  • Anyone interested in a method of persuasion based on neuroscience and psychology

13
Pitch Perfect

Pitch Perfect

Bill McGowan and Alisa Bowman
How to Say it Right the First Time, Every Time
4.2 (81 ratings)

What's Pitch Perfect about?

Pitch Perfect presents advice and principles that can help anyone to communicate more effectively. It teaches you how to present an argument or story with confidence, in a memorable way, and how to make your points with more precision. The author introduces seven principles that will help you to use exactly the right tone in both your professional and private life.

Who should read Pitch Perfect?

  • Anyone who wants to improve their presentation skills
  • Anyone who wants to communicate more effectively in their professional life
  • Anyone who wishes to become a better conversationalist

14
Get Hired Now!

Get Hired Now!

Ian Siegel
How to Accelerate Your Job Search, Stand Out, and Land Your Next Great Opportunity
4.3 (210 ratings)

What's Get Hired Now! about?

Get Hired Now! (2021) provides a step-by-step guide to finding a job and getting hired. It covers how to find the right job vacancies, write a first-class résumé that gets past the robots, dress and perform well at interviews, and how to negotiate that job offer!

Who should read Get Hired Now!?

  • Job seekers looking to up their game
  • Anyone who needs to know how to write a fit-for-purpose résumé
  • Interviewees who want to ace their job interviews

15
As We Speak

As We Speak

Peter Meyers and Shann Nix
How to Make Your Point and Have It Stick
4.6 (75 ratings)

What's As We Speak about?

Whether you want to speak more effectively at business meetings or deliver a memorable school presentation, As We Speak (2012) outlines the proper techniques to win over an audience in a matter of seconds. You’ll learn how to move and talk with purpose and get your message across.

Who should read As We Speak?

  • Anyone preparing for an important presentation
  • People looking to improve communication skills
  • Students or professionals nervous about public speaking

16
Lead with a Story

Lead with a Story

Paul Smith
A Guide to Crafting Business Narratives that Captivate, Convince and Inspire
4.2 (80 ratings)

What's Lead with a Story about?

Lead with a Story (2012) teaches you how to enhance your skills as a great leader by harnessing the power of storytelling. By taking examples from one of the most successful companies in the world, you’ll learn how to craft a great story that motivates people and modifies their behavior.

Who should read Lead with a Story?

  • Leaders of all kinds
  • Anyone who wants to be better at motivating others
  • Anyone who finds his or her coworkers dozing off during presentations

17
Brief

Brief

Joseph McCormack
Make a Bigger Impact by Saying Less
4.5 (74 ratings)

What's Brief about?

Brief (2014) is a guide to having more impact and influence by saying less. These blinks show the reader the power of brevity in the information age, explain the barriers to being brief and give helpful instructions on how to improve your communication while saving your own time and everybody else’s.

Who should read Brief?

  • Anyone interested in improving their communication skills
  • Those wanting to grab the attention of others
  • Business leaders whose ideas need to stand out

18
Pitch Like Hollywood

Pitch Like Hollywood

Peter Desberg and Jeffrey Davis
What You Can Learn from the High-Stakes Film Industry
4.1 (171 ratings)

What's Pitch Like Hollywood about?

Pitch Like Hollywood (2022) uncovers the secret ingredients behind the successful techniques used to pitch films and TV shows in Hollywood. Luckily, it doesn’t matter what industry you work in – the principles behind the Hollywood pitch can be universally applied. By harnessing the power of storytelling and the psychology of persuasion, you can pitch literally anything to anyone.

Who should read Pitch Like Hollywood?

  • Founders looking to up their pitching game
  • Film buffs curious as to how things get funded in Hollywood
  • Anyone who suffers from stage fright

19
Don't Take Yes for an Answer

Don't Take Yes for an Answer

Steve Herz
Using Authority, Warmth, and Energy to Get Exceptional Results
4.5 (85 ratings)

What's Don't Take Yes for an Answer about?

Don’t Take Yes for an Answer (2020) identifies why some people consistently achieve career breakthroughs, while others struggle to reach their potential. By adopting an attitude of continual self-improvement and learning three crucial communication skills, you can achieve exceptional results, regardless of your field.

Who should read Don't Take Yes for an Answer?

  • Ambitious employees who are trying to land promotions
  • Underdogs seeking a breakthrough
  • Aspiring advocates who want to inspire others

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