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“Gene Griessman visited our organization this week. He received the highest ratings our members have ever given a speaker. He is spectacular. His opening one-man play is better than any evening at the theatre, and the following two-hour discussion on leadership is filled with wisdom, energy and inspiration.”              
--Bill Peterson, Chairman, The Executive Committee, Saskatoon, Canada

"In my 12 years as an association executive I've never seen a speaker better at holding the audience's attention."  --Hugh J. Rushing, Executive Vice President, Cookware Manufacturing Association.

"We thank you for your unbelievable performances - both as Abe Lincoln during our welcoming dinner and then again when you delivered the keynote address to the delegates the following morning.  You truly were the highlight of our 25th annual convention"--Edna Sendish Peters, Executive Director, International Beverage Dispensing Equipment Association

"Thank you for bringing a valuable message of leadership and perspective to the crew of the ABRAHAM LINCOLN and delivering it in an exceptionally resonant and relevant fashion. I personally derived great benefit and enjoyment from your messages and teaching."
--Captain C. Andrew McCawley, Commanding Officer USS ABRAHAM LINCOLN

Dr. Gene Griessman is an internationally known for his presentations on change, leadership, and communication. He has spoken at conventions and annual meetings and conducted seminars all over the world.  As actor and playwright, he has performed his one-man play on Abraham Lincoln at Ford's Theatre and before large audiences at the Georgia Dome and the Ice Palace. He has conducted exclusive interviews with U.S. Presidents, famous actors, sports figures, business leaders, and Nobel Laureates

Winner of the Benjamin Franklin Award and the Kay Herman Legacy Award, he often appears on television and radio, and his award-winning productions have aired on WCNN and on TBS.  He is a member of the Television Academy of Arts & Sciences.

His book TIME TACTICS OF VERY SUCCESSFUL PEOPLE is now in its 28th printing. THE WORDS LINCOLN LIVED BY: 52 TIMELESS PRINCIPLES TO LIGHT YOUR PATH focuses on the achievement secrets that Lincoln used to become successful. It's in its 8th printing.  Other titles include the audio book THE INSPIRATIONAL WORDS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN, the CD, LESSONS FROM LEGENDS (Winner of the 2006 JPF "Best Educational Album) and "Lincoln's Wisdom",  the training video LINCOLN ON COMMUNICATION and the book 99 WAYS TO GET MORE OUT OF EVERY DAY.

Dr. Griessman has taught at the College of William and Mary, North Carolina State University, Auburn University, Tuskegee University, and Georgia Tech. He has served as Fulbright professor at the University of Islamabad in Pakistan, as consultant at the National Agrarian University of Peru, and as a visiting researcher at the University of New South Wales in Australia.

He has been listed in WHO'S WHO IN AMERICA and WHO'S WHO IN THE WORLD for many years. Griessman is a member of the Television Academy of Arts and Sciences..

Two Great Abraham Lincoln Programs...
LINCOLN LIVE: THE WIT AND WISDOM OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN! 

As performed on the stage of Ford's Theatre and aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln, this riveting one-man portrayal will move your audience to tears and laughter. As original background music plays, laugh at Lincoln's humorous stories, thrill to his great speeches, and learn powerful lessons about success from the 16th President.  It’s like having the America's most beloved President personally visit your organization. Learn More

ABRAHAM LINCOLN: HOW TO LEAD IN TIMES OF CHANGE
"The most fantastic program I have ever experienced on leadership. I was completely engaged every minute of the program. "
--Susan Bixler, CEO, THE PROFESSIONAL IMAGE

Lincoln will share his wisdom with your people about how to get through tough times, how to lead when there's no roadmap, and how to communicate more effectively.  This program includes memorable excerpts from the acclaimed one-man play “Lincoln Live” that's been performed at historic Ford’s Theatre, the Georgia Dome, the Ice Palace, and aboard the USS ABRAHAM LINCOLN, plus numerous conventions, annual meetings, and conferences.  Author and actor Gene Griessman, Ph.D. appears in costume, in character as Lincoln. 

The second part of the program is an optional seminar that can be scheduled immediately following the Lincoln presentation or later in your meeting. In this seminar, Dr. Griessman shows how the principles from the Lincoln presentation can be transformed into specific tactics and strategies that today's leaders can start using immediately.  He reveals communication techniques used by actors and professional speakers, and by Lincoln himself, and shows how to use them in real-life situations.

Griessman draws on years of studying Lincoln, plus his exclusive one-on-one interviews with the best-known leaders of our time, including Ronald Reagan, Ted Turner, Ray Charles, Mary Kay, Sandra Day O’Connor, Aaron Copland, Tennessee Williams, Helen Gurley Brown, Frank Borman, Paul “Bear” Bryant, Hank Aaron, and scores of other leaders from the worlds of business, science, sports, and politics.  Griessman—who was on-camera host of “Up Close,” which aired for years on TBS, and has written numerous articles in major publications and books on high achievement—offers insider information about many of the personalities you have read about or seen on television or in the movies. 
 Learn More

SOME OF OUR MOST POPULAR PAGES
Abraham Lincoln Quotes
Abraham Lincoln Photographs
Abraham Lincoln on Ethics
Theodore "Teddy" Roosevelt quotes and commentary on leadership style
The Lincoln-Roosevelt Connection
Remarkable Similarities between President Abraham Lincoln and  Benjamin Franklin
Index to other articles and associated websites

Books and Videos By Gene Griessman
Inspirational Lincoln Quotation Book.  Commentaries on Lincoln's most important words. 
"There have been a small number of books published which attempt to collect in dictionary form the more noted words and remarks of Abraham Lincoln.. However, Gene Griessman has put together an entirely different publication.  Although it often quotes Lincoln, the theme is actually to inspire and motivate its readers to make an attempt to imitate the immortal Sixteenth President.  In this, Prof. Griessman has done a superb job.  His book is outstanding...."  Wayne C. Temple, Ph.D., Illinois State Archives; review in The Lincoln Herald.
 THE WORDS LINCOLN LIVED BY.  CLICK HERE TO ORDER

Gene Griessman's Lincoln Live performance before an audience of 25,000 at the Georgia Dome. More...        CLICK HERE TO ORDER

Over 200 time-saving tips from very successful people
Time Tactics Of Very Successful People.  More...
CLICK HERE TO ORDER

"One of the very best videos/DVDs ever made.  It's a classic like 'Gone With the Wind.'"  More...  Click here to order
   Brad McRea  THE SEVEN STRATEGIES OF MASTER PRESENTERS

Lincoln's Wisdom
"Gene Griessman's historically accurate, poignant, and entertaining presentation of Lincoln vividly captures the many facets of our greatest, most humorous, and wisest president."
--Michael Burlingame, author of Abraham Lincoln: A Life

A CD learning system you will use again and again and give as a gift to friends, colleagues, and your school's library.
Over 2 1/2 hours of information you can start using immediately. 
Now you can hear what audiences have experienced at Ford's Theatre, the Georgia Dome, the Lincoln Memorial and the USS ABRAHAM LINCOLN--unforgettable lessons from America's wisest President...plus new bonus material.  You'll hear the Gettysburg Address, Lincoln's final words, and many more parts of the beloved one-man play, plus segments that are not often performed for public audiences. Click To View and Print Table of Contents
   "Griessman has done a masterful service in rendering Lincoln's colossal
    wisdom of leadership to contemporary leaders..."
    --Warren Bennis, Ph.D. On Becoming a Leader
CLICK HERE TO ORDER    Price: $ 39.95 
LINCOLN SPEAKS TO LEADERS: 20 POWERFUL LESSONS FOR TODAY'S LEADERS FROM AMERICA'S 16TH PRESIDENT

What if Abraham Lincoln’s personal thoughts, together with a legendary sports executive’s practical application lessons, could be at your fingertips and ready on a moment’s notice?
Gene Griessman and Pat Williams have teamed up to create a unique book, offering wisdom from America’s greatest president pressed into the framework of contemporary leadership lessons that cut right to the heart of issues faced by today’s leaders—questions of integrity, identity, self-improvement, communication, success, and how to build a lasting legacy.

"Modern Americans could have not better role model, and Lincoln could have no more enthusiastic and persuasive interpreters than Gene Griessman and Pat Williams."  --Harold Holzer, Co-chairman, U.S. Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission

"What a novel concept!  A top Lincoln interpreter teaches us valuable leadership principles, and a top sports executive offers his advice on applying them in our daily activities.  This book will have a major impact for a long time."  --David Pietrusza, Author of 1960--LBJ vs. JFK vs. Nixon

CLICK HERE TO ORDER   Product ID: 7

Contact Information: 404-256-5927
abe@presidentlincoln.com  www.presidentlincoln.com 

LINCOLN ON CHANGE
"IF YOU'RE PLANNING TO MAKE A CHANGE, GIVE SERIOUS THOUGHT TO HOW PEOPLE WILL REACT"
An article by Gene Griessman, Ph.D. reprinted from The Achievement Digest (TAD)

Lincoln had an uncanny ability to predict behavior.   For example, when he was President, he told one of his associates how every member of Congress would vote on a particular bill.   To make the point, he wrote down what their votes would be.   Sure enough, when the votes were tallied, Lincoln was on target for virtually every vote cast.  

How did he do this?

No magic or superhuman powers were involved.  Lincoln used resources that are within the reach of anyone, and with a bit of practice, you can use them effectively, too.

In general, behavior can be predicted in terms of a person’s interests, group identity, character, and unconscious needs.  Entire books have been written on this subject, but here’s a brief overview:

Interests  Interests have to do with one’s own benefit or advantage; the focus is on the basic question, “What’s in this for me?”  If you’re trying to predict a person’s (or a group’s) behavior, evaluate whether they will experience profit or loss, pleasure or pain from the outcome.  Lincoln dealt mainly with politicians and lawyers, who habitually make these kinds of calculations.  However, the approach is not foolproof because humans are more than human calculators.  People sometimes behave irrationally—that is, they do not behave in their own best interests.  So, you will have to include more than interests to become good at predictions.

Group Identification.  What groups do the individuals belong to or identify with?  Do they think of themselves as Republicans or Democrats, liberals or conservatives, Christians, gang members, labor or management?  Sociologists call this “reference-group behavior.” Ralph Waldo Emerson, a contemporary of Lincoln whose work Lincoln knew about, wrote:  “If I know your sect, I anticipate your argument.”  Lincoln certainly took political affiliation (i.e. “sect”) into the aforementioned calculation.   You can see this principle at work by looking at the party affiliation of the votes that are cast for particular bills in Congress.  Whenever there is a deviation from sect affiliation, the decision will usually be based on interests.

Unconscious Needs.  Sigmund Freud discovered that behavior is sometimes neither rational nor irrational, but arational.  Lincoln, of course, lived long before Freud, and did not use this concept as such in his predictions.   But if you want to become a skilful forecaster, be aware that some behavior will seem to come out of nowhere.  The source may be memories of experiences that are buried in the individual’s unconscious mind—buried, but not dead.

Character.  Is the individual basically honest or dishonest, industrious or an idler, kind or a bully?  An honest man may yield to temptation, but a dishonest man will look for it.  An industrious man will take pride in his work.  An idler will take pride in avoiding work.  A kind man may be unkind, but regret it; a bully will be unkind and enjoy it. 

Simply put, character is a blend of genetics and deeply rooted habits.  Emerson wrote: “I suppose no man can violate his nature….A character is like an acrostic or Alexandrian stanza; read it forward, backward, or across, it still spells the same thing.”   Lincoln’s character was well known.  Lincoln was Honest Abe.   He got this name because people learned that if you dealt with Lincoln, you were dealing with an honest man.   

If you want to predict behavior, do what Lincoln did, and observe carefully to see if the person is basically honest or deceitful, a giver or a taker, diligent or careless.  Once you understand a person’s character, you will seldom be surprised by their behavior.

One quick story about character.  Once there was a scorpion that wanted to cross a river.  Seeing a frog, the scorpion asked the frog if he could ride on his back across the river. 

“I can’t do that,” replied the frog, “because if you rode on my back, you would sting me and I would die.”

“Why would I sting you?” answered the scorpion.  “It is not in my best interest to sting you.  If I stung you, we would both drown.”

“That’s true,” said the frog, who then allowed the scorpion to climb on his back.

In the middle of the river, the frog felt a sharp sting in his back.

“Why have you stung me,” screamed the frog in pain.  “It is not in your best interest to sting me.”

Replied the scorpion:  “Because it is my nature to sting.”

LINCOLN ON CHANGE
EXCERPT FROM LINCOLN SPEAKS TO LEADERS, by Gene Griessman and Pat Williams, and Peggy Matthews Rose

ABRAHAM LINCOLN: “When I was young, I read a book that most people read in my day, but few read today—Pilgrim’s Progress, by John Bunyan. It’s a classic that tells the story of a lonely, resolute traveler who struggled with temptation, overcame despondency, and reached his goal. Pilgrim’s Progress became a metaphor for my life.

Great religious leaders have long taught that if you truly want something, you should act as if the object of your desire is already on its way to you. For example, if your goal is to become a lawyer, visualize yourself as a lawyer, and you will be well on your way to achieving that dream. Seeing it happen is the way to make it happen.

During the war, I wrote a personal letter to a college student who was a friend of my son Robert. His grades were bad, he was discouraged, and he was considering dropping out of college. In that letter I said, ‘You cannot fail if you resolutely determine that you will not.’”

PAT WILLIAMS: “This is a message I believe in wholeheartedly. I’ve seen it happen time after time after time. Why do homerun hitters drive the ball into the bleacher seats? Because they see it happen before the wood connects with the leather…

Jim Brown, the legendary Cleveland Browns running back, was the first athlete I ever heard talk about visioning this way. The night before games he would think about what he wanted to accomplish, picture it as if he’d already done it. When game time came, his mission was already half accomplished. Because he’d seen himself successful, the doing of it was simply the living out of history. 

Mark Price, who is among the greatest free throw shooters in NBA history, constantly visualized the ball going into the basket in advance of the games. After repeatedly playing the scene over and over in his mind, by game time it was all automatic.”

--Adapted from Chapter Six: “Success Comes From Within”   (Gene Griessman and Pat Williams with Peggy Matthews Rose, Lincoln Speaks To Leaders: 20 Powerful Lessons For Today’s Leaders From America’s 16th President. Elevate/Advantage: 2009)  Pat Williams is a legendary sports executive who is executive vice president of the Orlando Magic.

LINCOLN ON COMMUNICATION AND LEADERSHIP
THE POWER OF EXTEMPORANEOUS SPEAKING 
An article by Gene Griessman, Ph.D. reprinted from The Achievement Digest (TAD)
  
“Let all speakers who 'wing it' prepare for a painful crash.  There are more winds that harm speakers than help them.”
--Gene Griessman

“Extemporaneous speaking should be practiced and cultivated,” Lincoln wrote.  “It is the lawyer’s avenue to the public.  However able and faithful he may be in other respects, people are slow to bring him business, if he cannot make a speech.”

When Lincoln spoke of extemporaneous speaking, he did not mean making totally unprepared speeches.  Few speakers can trust the moment or their wits alone for a good speech. Very, very few. 

Years ago I knew a woman who had a brief career as a keynote speaker.  Several times she boasted to me that she never gave a prepared speech.  She told me the audience deserved something new every time.  She liked to believe that it was a good thing that her every utterance was something new, something never heard before, never thought of before.  I sometimes thought that she had never thought of some of the things she said before she said them.  So they were new to her, too.       

For a while she was in demand because she was a high-energy speaker, witty and intelligent and well informed about corporate life. 

But she relied entirely on her wits, and the moment.  Gradually she acquired a reputation for comments that showed poor judgment.  Clients became nervous because they never knew what kind of speech they would get.  Sometimes it would be brilliant.  Other times a failure. 

Today she is out of the speaking business.

I know another speaker who took a different path.   He is witty and intelligent and well informed too, but he prepares carefully-- even when he gives an announcement at a local meeting or introduces a relatively unknown guest speaker.  

“You never know who’s forming an opinion of you,” he once told me.  “I never have been able to understand how a professional speaker could get up unprepared and ramble and make ridiculous mistakes.”  Not surprisingly, this speaker is in demand year after year.

In case you’d like to acquire the reputation for giving great extemporaneous speeches, here’s a checklist of what to do if you are called upon to make a short presentation.  (A keynote presentation has somewhat different rules; I’ll discuss that in a later issue.)

One.  Know what your opening sentence will be.  If it is witty and short and tested, good.  If not witty, then short and tested.

Two.  Create a script, if not on paper at least in your head.  Know the main points that you need to cover—when, where, and why it’s important if an announcement.  Who the speaker is, what are his/her credentials, and why his/her message is worth hearing if an introduction.  If you are called upon to acknowledge or recognize people, for god’s sake prepare a list in advance.  You will almost certainly omit someone important if you don’t.

Three.  Know how you will conclude.  When you are getting up to speak, have in mind how you will end.  For the short presentation, the close is more important than the beginning.  Don’t just trail off or abandon control with Q & A.  If you do Q & A, keep back something strong for your conclusion-- a thought-out sentence or quote or a very short and apt story to illustrate your point.

Lincoln observed those rules.   We know because some of his notes that he used in the courtroom have been preserved.  Lincoln would prepare a rough script—how he would open, illustrations he would use, points he would make, and how he would conclude. 

Moreover, Lincoln spent a lifetime acquiring material that he could plug into his speeches—ready-made modules to fit the moment.    He memorized poems and Bible passages.  He immersed himself in newspapers and books and written sermons.  He knew thousands of jokes and humorous stories and even carried a joke book with him so that he could adapt traditional stories to local situations. 

Lincoln spent hours, sometimes years preparing for his "extemporaneous" presentations.