In today’s environment, to be an effective leader you must be an effective communicator. The two go hand-in-hand. Whether you are the CEO of a company, the director of a division, or the pastor of a church, you must be able to write and speak well if you are going to maximize your influence.

More than ten years ago, when I was a marketing executive, I attended a week-long, “Copywriters Bootcamp” in Del Ray, Florida. The experience was invaluable. We listened to lectures, wrote headlines and advertising copy, and then read our work aloud to the group.

I have been using Evernote for a couple of years now. I use it to manage meeting notes, store blogging ideas, and file interesting articles I read on the Web. It has basically become my electronic brain. However, unlike my aging brain, Evernote provides near-instant recall.

Recently, I started using it to manage the raw components of my speeches. I have seen a lot of different systems for this. One of my authors, who is also a popular public speaker, once showed me his system. It contained literally thousands of 4″ x 6″ cards, arranged alphabetically by topic.

Today is Martin Luther King Day in the United States. On this day we celebrate the life and work of one of the greatest leaders the world has ever known. I want to take a few minutes and reflect on what is commonly referred to as his “I Have a Dream” speech.