The French artist, Van Gogh, painted a portrait of himself. We can look at the picture and see the color of his eyes, the shape of his nose, and the color of his skin. What we can't see is his character, his education, his interests, and his values. If we were able to have a conversation with him he would paint a different kind of portrait of himself. His speech and thought patterns would reveal much about him, and he would paint a portrait of himself with every word he spoke. You also paint a portrait of yourself with every word you speak. What kind of portrait do you paint? When we meet people for the first time we want to make good impressions. The manner with which we speak influences our listeners. Sentence structure, grammar, adjectives, adverbs, and tone all have a bearing on the way we speak. Our choice of words also helps shape first impressions.

1. How Do I Communicate?
2. Like, You Know, Okay?
3. Conversing With a Celebrity
4. My Most Embarrassing Moment
5. Loosen Up a Little
6. Relax Before You Speak
7. Eliminating “I”
8. Important Phone Calls
9. Detailed Introductions
10. Death of a Conversation
11. Starting Conversations
12. The Interview
13. Communication Styles
14. Happy Talk
15. Filibusters
16. Can’t End It
17. Stop! End It Now
18. A Double Hanging
19. Mud Slinging
20. Gossip Galore
21. The Dangers of Gossip
22. Effects of Gossip
23. Impressive Vocabulary
24. #$!%@ # Profanity!
25. Dangerous Topics
26. Warning Signals
27. What Did You Say?
28. Offensive Sounds
29. Sick in Bed
30. Not So Comforting
31. Being Compassionate