English Presentation Skills Coaching

Very well. See above.

It is an absolute pleasure to write a letter of recommendation for Elizabeth Appleby whom I have know since January 2006.  Elizabeth was an outstanding instructor who taught in our ESOL (English to Speakers of Other Languages) Department at the New Haven Adult Education Center.  Ms. Appleby taught the advanced level of ESOL, pronunciation classes and initiated a class entitled ?Now You?re Talking: Idiom Acquisition Through Theater?.  All of her advanced classes integrated listening, speaking, reading, and writing.  A variety of techniques to encourage critical thinking skills, correct syntax, and vocabulary acquisition were used.   Her use of theater techniques in her classes encouraged her students to be totally engaged.   The students responded positively to her compassionate nature as well as her excellent sense of humor.  

In whatever class Elizabeth taught, her communication skills helped her be the dynamic and effective teacher she is.  Ms. Appleby has a genuine and deep felt love for her students and her profession.  She was always willing to share her expertise with her colleagues.  Elizabeth attended teacher workshops and always searched for materials and techniques to meet the needs of each and every one of her students.

As the ESOL Facilitator, I enthusiastically recommend Elizabeth Appleby. You will find her to be a tremendous asset to your program. 

Carol Hornreich, ESOL Facilitator, New Haven Adult and Continuing Education

  She is a extremely competent English teacher and awesome, cheerful person. Her class was very popular among my colleagues. It was a fun time where international students could practice everyday situations they were struggling with and improve the communication and interpersonal relations.  I liked her teaching skills so much that I reached out to her when I needed to upgrade my presentation skills later in my career. During her class we discussed and troubleshot every difficulty and obstacle a foreign speaker and professional could meet on the path. I got lots of useful advice, tips and examples that allowed me to become a more confident and natural presenter. While talking over and practicing certain situations, Elizabeth helped me not only with English itself, but also with the body language that have made my talks much more professional. 

 I really enjoyed the class and with my whole heart I recommend Elizabeth to every  professional willing to improve his/her public speaking abilities.  

In January 2015, I was asked to give two talks at an industry trade show at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. Each talk would be for 400 people. . This was an important business opportunity. I had two months to prepare ? and a lot riding on the outome. I met with Elizabeth Appleby about twelve times over the next eight weeks. She was incredible. She provided enormous guidance regarding the actual content, the look and feel of the PowerPoint presentations, and the A thru Z?s of preparing for a successful pubic speaking experience. Elizabeth was excellent at tailoring our sessions appropriately. She was direct, encouraging and clearly an experienced coach / teacher. I knew early in the process that I was in very capable hands. Both talks went better than I had hoped for. Everything that Elizabeth had taught me about the process ? from how to enter the stage, to where to stand in relation to the podium, to the nuances of voice inflection, and when to pause and how to inject humor all came together like magic. Not only did I realize a spike in my business after the talks, I have been asked to return next year and speak again! The two months I spent with Elizabeth is one of the best investments I have made in my business. She played a crucial role in helping me face the daunting challenge and has helped cultivate speaking skills I can use going forward. If you want one-on-one coaching for public speaking ? you can stop looking, you have found the person you need! An absolute five-star experience. Michael Rosman, The Corporate Caterer

In January 2015, I was asked to give two talks at an industry trade show at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. Each talk would be for 400 people. . This was an important business opportunity. I had two months to prepare — and a lot riding on the outome. I met with Elizabeth Appleby about twelve times over the next eight weeks. She was incredible. She provided enormous guidance regarding the actual content, the look and feel of the PowerPoint presentations, and the A thru Z’s of preparing for a successful pubic speaking experience. Elizabeth was excellent at tailoring our sessions appropriately. She was direct, encouraging and clearly an experienced coach / teacher. I knew early in the process that I was in very capable hands. Both talks went better than I had hoped for. Everything that Elizabeth had taught me about the process – from how to enter the stage, to where to stand in relation to the podium, to the nuances of voice inflection, and when to pause and how to inject humor all came together like magic. Not only did I realize a spike in my business after the talks, I have been asked to return next year and speak again! The two months I spent with Elizabeth is one of the best investments I have made in my business. She played a crucial role in helping me face the daunting challenge and has helped cultivate speaking skills I can use going forward. If you want one-on-one coaching for public speaking — you can stop looking, you have found the person you need! An absolute five-star experience.Michael Rosman, The Corporate Caterer

After my first visit with Elizabeth, I realized I needed to do a lot more than practice. I needed to reconfigure my entire approach to interviewing and relearn the fundamentals. Thus, prior to conducting any mock interviews, Elizabeth and I went back to the basics. She taught me how to sit in my chair confidently, talk clearly and slowly, and control my non-verbal language (I.e., maintain my composure and not show nervousness when asked a question that I didn't readily have a good answer to). After I began to gain a grip on the fundamentals, Elizabeth worked to transform the content of my interview responses.  The end results were astonishing. After working with Elizabeth for a few weeks I could not believe how much I had come along in my interview capabilities, both in the quality of my responses as well as the delivery... I felt incredibly confident walking into my interview and throughout the interview because I felt prepared for both the expected and unexpected (e.g. interruptions, awkward silences, unforeseen questions...etc).  This allowed me to do very well in my interview and ultimately get accepted to HBS. I strongly believe that I would not have performed well in my interview and thus not gotten into HBS had I not worked with Elizabeth so I cannot recommend her enough. She shows both professionalism and authenticity in equal measure and  I'm confident that she could help just about anyone ace an interview!

Elizabeth has helped me tremendously with interviewing and public speaking and the results came quite fast! She has helped me to gain more body and mind awareness, which has not only empowered me to respond better to stressful situations like interviews and public talks, but has also improved the quality of my interactions with friends and family. Being a physician who is around a lot of caring individuals, I can say without any hesitation that she is one of the most empathetic individuals I have ever met. Elizabeth, thank you so much for everything!