Archive for July, 2009
An Easy Step by Step Approach To Preparing An Effective Speech
Once you have decided to give a speech, you are faced with choice between delivering an impromptu speech or taking the time to prepare for it.
Not many people are suited to impromptu speaking (although sometimes it is unavoidable), and usually the most effective public speaking comes from thorough preparation. Thorough preparation also builds self-confidence.
Here is an outline of the steps for developing a successful speech:
1. Know your subject.
2. Ask yourself the question: How can I help the audience?
3. Before preparing a speech:
(a) Think about it for several days,(but don’t take too long
(b) Research – books, newspapers etc
(c) Ask questions – organizers, experts of the filed etc
4. What kind of a speech are you going to make?
(a) Impart information.
(b) Persuade.
(c) Inspire.
(d) An after-dinner speech.
5. The main steps must be:
The opening.
Creation of interest.
Creation of confidence.
The body of the speech (which will be sub-divided into several steps or main points).
The close.
6. Write down the sub-heads which will apply to each step.
7. Cut out information of little importance.
8. Devise a good opening sentence for each point.
9. Illuminate each point with one, some or all of the following:
(a) Use statistics to prove your point.
(b) Present facts to prove your point.
(c) Give an historical fact in an interesting way
(d) Tell an anecdote.
(e) Tell a funny story.
(ƒ) Give an analogy.
(g) Give a quotation.
(h) Recite a poem or part of a poem.
10. Remember these guidelines:
Statistics—make them interesting.
Quotations—make them relevant.
Anecdotes—consider using a personal story .
I believe this blueprint can help anyone develop an effective public speaking speech or presentation. In the posts that follow I will expand on the points to further explain the steps.
Public Speaking – How to Read Your Speech And Be Effective
When reading your speech it is difficult to be effective because it is difficult to connect with the audience. Your head is bowed, so there is no eye contact and it is difficult not to read it in a monotous tone.
I just came across this advice about how you can read your speech in an effective and interesting way. It is by Albert Tack. I hope you find it useful to help deliver your speech successfully.
Rules for Reading a Speech
I am against a speech being read, but when it is essential to do so, the following rules should be adhered to:
1. Practice continually reading aloud from a book, until you are able to
memorize a few passages ahead. This will enable you to look up, continue speaking, and then return to the reading matter without losing your place.
2. When you can read from a book in an entertaining manner, then practice with your speech.
3. Remember, the ideal is to be able to read aloud in a conversational manner. To do this means that there must be pauses, inflections, emphasis . . .
4. When preparing your manuscript, underline those passages which you wish to emphasize. A full stop is not sufficient to denote a pause. Use several stops, or dashes.
5. Although you are reading from a paper it is as well, sometimes, to repeat a sentence. Underline those sentences which you wish to repeat. Practice, practice, practice reading your paper to others, until this conversational technique has been acquired. If you don’t do this, you will most certainly bore your audience, however brilliant your paper may be.
6. Vary the rate of your reading, otherwise you will sound monotonous.
7. Use gestures. You can only do this by acquiring the ability to look away from your paper. Gestures made while reading look out of place.
8. If possible, ask questions. It will break the monotony of reading. Even a rhetorical question is better than no question at all, because this brings into line the “wanderers.”
9. Speak a little louder than usual. People who read from papers are apt to drop their voices.
10. Don’t try to justify the fact that you are reading the speech. There is no need to apologize or to give reasons why you are doing so, instead of speaking extemporaneously.
Speech reading in an interesting way is difficult. It is worth persevering as you will be more effective in conveying your ideas to your listeners. Do you have any views on reading your speech? Do you think it should be avoided if possible as Albert Tack suggests?
For more information on effective speaking please visit http://www.SelfConfidentSpeaking.com to receive a free preview of The Art Of Great Conversation
Public Speaking – 5 Effective Speech Closes
There are many different ways that a speaker can close their speech. An effective speaker chooses the close that is best for the purpose of their speech and best reflects their personality.
Here are 5 closes that have proved effective in closing speeches:-
The Fear Close
Fear is a powerful emotion and can be used very effectively to achieve your purpose. Be careful to use it in a “positive” way – moving people from something that is bad for them to something that will be positive for them.
The speaker details the negative consequences of ignoring the speaker’s advice to “frighten” them into taking their advice e.g. – preventing heart attack, preventing crime, etc.
The Alternative Close
As the name suggests the audience is given a choice between two types of action. The speakers preferred action is spoken about in positive terms, while the alternative is portrayed in a negative way.
Foe example, in a political speech, the speaker may end their speech as follows: “will you take a gamble on unproven policies or are you going to continue to move forward with the party that has delivered on its’ promises.
The Question Close
A question at the end of a speech will mean the audience will remember it. They will go away trying to think of an answer to it. If it is given earlier in the speech the audience will probably have forgotten about it by the end.
The Give-Away Close
This is effective and commonly used where you are “selling” something e.g. subscriptions, donations, products etc. A discount or a bonus is given away if the listener takes a certain action. Combining it with a time deadline or a limited quantity will create greater urgency.
The Story Close
Stories can be effective in any part of the speech. To be truly effective the story needs to relevant and interesting. The best stories include a human interest element and contain some drama, suspense and action.
The close of the speech plays a vital role in leaving the audience with the right of impression. Many speakers use only one close because they become comfortable with it. An effective speaker uses the close that is most effective given the situation.
For further information please refer to my previous posts:
Effective public speaking closes
How to Prepare Your Conclusion
Effective Closes In Public Speaking
Just as openings are important in getting your speech off to a positive start, the closings of your speech are important so you leave the audience with a great impression of you and your speech.
Like openings there are a number of ways that an effective speaker can close their speech. An effective speaker will use the ending that is the most appropriate for the circumstances and their personality.
Because of this there are only few generalizations that apply;
(1) It should be relevant to the speech
(2) Brief
(3) And should come as a surprise
When a speaker is nervous they may apologize and then give a closing a signal such as;
And finally I must tell you
Here is a final story
One last word
I guess you have heard enough of me. You’ll be please to know I’m just about to finish but…
Closing signals like these are a problem for a speaker for 2 reasons
(1) The audience start to focus on what will happen after it’s over
(2) Speakers have a habit of carrying on
I think many times a nervous speaker continues because once they have said they are about to finish, some of the pressure comes off because they now can sit down at any time. Their confidence returns because of this.
This post helps with what not to do when closing your speech. In my next post I’ll give some examples that an effective speaker can use to close their speech.
So, my tip for today is - do not give closing signals. But, if you do, finish up quickly.
Public Speaking – 5 Effective Openings
An effective speaker will choose an opening that fits the circumstances and their personality. There are many different ways that a speaker can start their speech. And there are only 3 general rules in selecting an opening
(i) Keep it brief
(ii) Keep it relevant
(iii) Keep it interesting
With that in mind here are examples of 5 effective ways that a speaker can open their speech:
Funny Story
This is an effective way to start if you can tell stories and you have a good story to tell. The story should be memorized because (a) humor is difficult to get across when read and (b) if you stumble over the punch line you lose the opportunity. If the story falls flat, move on as if you didn’t expect a laugh anyway.
The Casual Beginning
This is always an effective way to start speech. The audience does not realize you have started and you are into your speech straight away. As the speaker stands up they look over at their neighbour and says “I just saying to “Y” that it is plain to see you are all very interested in ….” And off you go.
Open With A Question
Use a question that makes the audience think and gets their attention. The question should be interesting and not to commonplace. A question like “Do you know what do of the week it is?”, does not ask enough of the audience to get them thinking. However, a question along the lines of “Have you ever played intercollegiate football on a muddy field during a cloudburst?”, will get the right audience interested.
Opening With Facts
This beginning gets you straight into your speech. However, facts can be boring. Try to add some interest when stating your fact. For example, starting your speech with “26,000 birds died along this stretch of coast this year because of oil spills” is ok. But a better way is to express this fact is “Oil spills are a killer and a very painful one at that. It is estimated that 26,000 birds died in agony, along our coastline this year because of this killer.”
Use A Quotation
A relevant quotation will get the speech off on the right note. The quote is given first and is followed by the reason for quoting it. It is easy to find suitable quotes either by traditional means or through the internet. Although they are easy to find an audience is impressed by a speaker who knows them off by heart.
There are other many other openings that can be used such as stories opening, empathy opening, shock opening etc. The type of opening used is dependent on the situation and the speaker. To become a more effective speaker, try out a variety of beginnings rather than sticking to one tried and tested opening.
My previous post on openings in public speaking discusses the importance of them in getting started on the right note.
Open Your Speech In An Effective Way
People consider openings to be important for special occasions and events. They will think about them for weeks to get the right words, e.g. when the young man is going to propose or when the employee is going to their boss to ask for a raise.
In the same way a good opening is important in public speaking. Many public speakers are aware of this but will use the same standard opening to every speech. An effective speaker will use a variety of openings depending on the type of speech they are giving.
There are a variety of openings that can be used but here are a few to be avoided;
1. Thanking too many people
Too many speakers bring in too many names when beginning their speech. It is unnecessary. The fewer names used the better.
2. Apologizing for speaking
Make it a rule to never apologize about your speech. It starts the speech off on a negative note.
3. A long introduction
Keep the introduction brief. Too long and the audience will wonder if the speech is ever going to start.
When starting your speech begin in a low key manner. Many speeches that start with a bang then fizzle out as the momentum can’t be kept up. It is much better to start off in a low key manner and build up the momentum through the speech.
There are many different ways that a speech can get started. It doesn’t matter which opening is used as long as it is relevant to the speech, it doesn’t take too long and it starts the speech on a positive note.
My next post will include some ways that effective speakers have used to opening speech the right way.
Public Speaking and Private Conversation
Successful public speaking today is like private conversation with more people present. The objective is to successfully convey your ideas to your listeners. The ideas and message being conveyed are of the important thing, it is no longer a fine art to be struggled with and mastered by only a few talented individuals.
Picture the situation where 2 people are in conversation and one person is talking and the other is listening. Other people are attracted to the conversation and the person talking is now speaking to a group, in effect the person is now effectively speaking in public.The speaker will raise their voice so they can be heard but will continue in a conversational tone which is the most effective way to present.
With public speaking really being private conversation with more people involved it is now “easier” for the ordinary person to become an effective speaker. The only real difference between the two is that there is less interaction with the listeners in public speaking than in private conversation.
In the book The Art Of Great Conversation there is a great quote that indicates how related public speaking and private conversation. The quote is “The same instincts that make men turn and listen to the articulate individual in private conversation, make them turn and listen to public speakers.” An implication of this is that by improving skills in public speaking it improves performance in day to day conversation and other speaking interactions.
Also the skills and knowledge attained through public speaking can be practiced in private conversation and vice versa. For example if you are to present on guinea pig care, you could discuss guinea pig care in day to day conversation. In this way when you are delivering your speech you are merely extending your conversation on the topic. Secondly, you could try out some of the anecdotes or stories you have so you get used to telling them and you also can gauge reaction to them. Thirdly, if you have been working on the sound of your voice you can use day to day conversation to listen to your voice to note improvement and any areas that may need some more work.
Public speaking and private conversation are closely related and by developing your skills in one area it is possible to quickly apply them to the other and experience improvement.
Please leave your thoughts in the comment box below, I would welcome you thoughts. Thank you.
Confident Public Speaking
Speaking with confidence is very important to being truly effective in your personal and business life. Acquiring skills in public speaking can also help in gaining confidence in day to day conversation.
However, there is a stumbling block for many of us. It is the fear of public speaking. But in overcoming that fear it helps with our everyday communications, such as speaking to groups, presenting at work, social gatherings, family discussions, interviews etc.
The skills attained from public speaking such as preparing your speech and presenting in a clear and effective way are the same skills required to being effective in other speaking situations.
Speaking with confidence comes from making the decision to make the first step. The first step need only be brief, you may only give your name and position or something similar and the first bud of confidence will appear. With careful nurture that first bud will bloom into a truly confident speaker.
I have made a number of recent posts on how to speak with confidence:
How to use your voice to speak with confidence
How to use your body language to convey confidence
The importance of preparation and preparation in confident public speaking
Eric Dana Hansen in a comment to my post on how preparation and practice build confidence made a great suggestion on how meeting the audience before you speak can help with overcoming the nerves.
Nerves, jitters or fear felt about speaking in public probably never goes completely away. This is a good thing! As many experienced speakers mention the feeling before they start to speak. However, the feeling is usually not as strong and they use it s a motivation to deliver their best.
Speaking with confidence comes from doing, practicing, preparing and learning the techniques of confident and effective speaking. Most people have the ability within them to become confident public speakers and in conversation. It starts with the decision to get started.
For further information on speaking with confidence please visit http://www.SelfConfidentSpeaking.com to recieve a free preview of The Art Of Great Conversation
How to Use Your Voice to Speak With Confidence
Your voice is vital to the success of the delivery of your speech. When “nerves” come into play there is a tendency to talk too fast, too quietly and your voice to be high pitched.
Before you start take a few deep breaths to steady the nerves, smile and look up and out at your audience. Adopt a posture as described in my previous post on speaking with confidence. The posture conveys confidence and it helps you to feel more confident and this will be reflected in your voice.
Start out slowly, but not too slowly that it drags. Talk in a conversational manner as you would a friend in conversation. Enunciate clearly but don’t be too precise.
To help in the first few moments when you feel the pressure, have your first few lines memorized, so you don’t have to think too much while you get going.
There are other voice bad habits that can detract from effective public speaking, such as a monotonous drone, nasal twang, a strident voice etc. To discover if you have any of these record yourself while speaking and work on improving any that you find.
Almost all of us have the makings of a good voice if we take the time to improve the quality of it.
Many voice faults (including those caused by nerves) can be remedied by reading aloud. Put feeling into the reading aloud practice, reflecting the emotion conveyed by the words, experiment with words that convey hatred and compare it with words that convey love and compassion.
By using deep breathing to relax, taking a positive confident stance, committing the first few lines of your speech to memory and starting out slow your voice will be steady and convey confidence to the audience. You will be on your way to speaking with confidence.
Practicing reading aloud a variety of materials with feeling will help remedy most faults and help you become a more effective speaker in public speaking and private conversation.