Art Of Great Speaking

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=David_F._James

So, you have the MBA degrees and the 15 year experience to back it up? Yet, you still lack the ability to communicate ideas to colleagues, juniors or your CEO? If the answer is yes, you’re not alone. Too many people in the corporate world lack effective presentation skills and this keeps them back from fully conveying brilliant ideas to others. Improved presentation skills can help you deliver more concise and passionate presentations that are not endlessly monotonous, irrelevant and non-persuasive.

The Reasons Behind Poor Presentation Skills
One of the main causes for less than impressive presentation skills is the fear of public speaking. Few of us relish the idea of standing up in a room full of people and conveying a message or idea to them. Unfortunately, most people, instead of polishing their presentation skills, opt for the use of fancy PowerPoint tools to substitute for the anxiety they feel while presenting to an audience. Such tools are no doubt important, but they cannot be used in place of preparedness, research, or enthusiasm for the topics of presentation. These tools are, at best, useful for adding value to an already well prepared presentation.

How You can Improve Your Presentation Skills
All audiences cannot be addressed in exactly the same way. In some cases, an audience may be favorable to you, in many others, they may be distrustful. The same standardized presentation will not work for all cases. Different presentation skills need to be used relative to the audience you are presenting to.

For a truly, effective presentation, making eye contact with your audience is a must. Whether it is a small group or a larger audience, creating and maintaining some degree of eye contact will help the audience connect with the presenter and dissolve any feelings of discomfort they may have. The most successful speakers constantly move about on the stage to engage their audience. Movement is a time tested method for conveying your ideas with emphasis. Your physical posture should be confident and full of energy and enthusiasm.

Equally important is your passion for the product or idea you’re selling. Audiences are quick to gauge when you are not sincere about your message. In other words, if you don’t believe in it yourself, you will never be able to convert others to your way of thinking regardless of the flowery prose or slick slides that you use. Learning the secrets of the best presentation skills will enable you to convey the benefits of your product or message to the members instead of giving them a whole lot of information about something they may not necessarily have any interest in. Honing your presentation skills will help you to better connect with your audience which will create a better chance of convincing them of your message and converting them to your point of view.

These are just a few ways by which you can better your presentation skills. You can benefit immensely from presentation skill training programs and seminars. They will help you overcome the any presentation issues that you may have and will pave the way toward a more successful career.

Michael Jeffreys is the president of Seminars on DVD, a premiere provider of video based training for businesses and individuals, featuring renowned experts and speakers. Learn more at: http://www.SeminarsOnDVD.com.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Leon_Van_Der_Walt

Author: Anne Warfield

In order to improve communication with others you need to make sure you are always conveying that you respect them as a person. Sadly, I must say I often see this trait missing especially between employees and managers.

Here is a quick test that will help you know if you always convey that you respect the other person. Give yourself a point for all the ones you do consistently.

1. You bring pen and paper to meetings and take notes to show your interest and the importance of what is being said.
2. You respond to all phone calls and emails within 24 hours even if it is only to say you will not have an answer until later.
3. You sit up with your shoulders back, plant your feet firmly and make eye contact during meetings and discussions.
4. With management, you appropriately challenge ideas always looking at what can be done to improve things. You never challenge by saying things are “stupid,” “won’t work,” or by rolling your eyes.
5. You realize that bottom line your job is to support upper management in reaching the company’s vision. Therefore, you take it upon yourself to look at what you need from your manager in order to do your job better taking full responsibility for your job.
6. You do not interrupt while others are talking.
7. During arguments or heated discussions you repeat back what you think the other person said before you say your piece. That way you avoid misunderstandings or reading in to what the other person said.
8. Any disagreement you have with a person you take straight to him/her rather than gossip about it behind their back.
9. When listening to a person you make eye contact 70% of the time.
10. You believe that people are trying to do their best.

Score:

9-10 points You really try to make everyone you come in contact with feel valued. You are probably targeted as a leader and someone that people look up to.

7-8 points You will be respectful of those you feel deserve it but sometimes may be seen as not a team player. People may see you as “hot or cold.”

6 or less You probably come off as a person with a “chip on their shoulder.” People are more likely to take what you say negatively because they feel you don’t respect them so they are not going to want to respect you. I recommend that you look at whether you are in the right workplace for you or if you need to find an environment where you can show a greater degree of respect for others. Life is too short not to be happy at work.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/presentation-articles/am-i-communicating-with-respect-10-steps-to-communicating-respectfully-2454559.html

About the Author

When people want to know how to say the right thing at the right time, they call Anne Warfield. As the leading Outcome Strategist, Anne helps people negotiate, present, sell and lead by managing perceptions, since perceptions become reality. She does this by showing you how to speak so people WANT to listen to you.

The first thing that run through your mind right after you assigned to give a presentation is: how can I structure my presentation in an appealing manner so that it looks efficient? and the second question that follows soon after is: “how can I convey my presentation’s purpose in a way that appeals my audience?

So, the first thing to consider even before you jot down any word is to pursue the following three-steps-approach to guarantee a great presentation in all its aspects.the followings are the same course of action that professionals use in every piece of their prizewinning presentations.

1) Plan

Many public speakers exaggerate in focusing in the content of the presentation while ignoring the audience which is a part and parcel of the whole process.so, giving the addressees their natural part of focus is the one factor that either fail you or make from you a successful presenter. You wonder “how can I achieve that? ». An accurate response would be to answer the next basic questions:

-who is going to be in the audience? -Their background,age,sex? -How can I sell them into my arguments? -What is this presentation intended to do? -What do they want to hear about ? -What specific topic do they want to focus on more? etc

So, by finding the precise responses to them,you will be able to understand more and more the people whom you are talking to and consequently get them agree upon whatever you said.Another thing to pay a close attention to is : “does the occasion have any special prerequisites that may be peripheral to the presentation?”.You should plan the presentation so as everything fits according to the desired presentation’s outcome.

2)Organize

Inappropriate cloths,poor grammar,out-dated stories and dirty jokes may be an easy-to-bear flaws by the audience however,the only thing that could not be overlooked by the listeners is a terribly organized presentation.Bad organization is one of the rare flaws that the viewers cannot put up with as the efficacy of the massages will be damaged tremendously.conversely,the effectiveness of the message can be considerably increased by clear and plausible organization .Organization is such a powerful tool that keeps the audience’s attention focused on what you have to say.here’s a quick tips on how to keep the speech organized.

-start with an outline -give a quick hint on the structure your presentation will follow -open with your body with an attention catcher. -Lay out your major point to be crystal clear,to the point,cohesive,and convincing. -Be as simple as you possibly can as simplicity is what everybody tends to. -Watch out time,otherwise you’ll end up with a sleepy audience.and -Always remember less is more.capture the gist of the presentation in one short statement.

3) Deliver

After planning and organizing,we have reached the delivery stage which all what you’ve done built upon.all what you’ve prepared up to this point is worthless if you don’t manifest it at the stage.As we said,your foremost concern is your audience,so how could you come to impact them to the point that they give literally their full attention?.Studies have shown that the opening and the ending are the most impressive parts of the presentation,therefore, the key here is to focus on them,right?

The first impressions given to the audience about you could lead to an entirely different outcome if no first impression has done.so what you need to do here is to identify the charisma and credibility in the people you meet or see in the television,observe the way they stand,sit,talk,react and gesture,these are what make whatever they utter impressive regardless of how important it is.Take a pen and a paper and write down what do they have in common.here’s what you may find out :

-they stand tall with a straight back,keeping their shoulders relaxed. -Holding eye contact with the audience reinforces their messages. -walking while they are talking,this adds a sort of dynamism to their presentations. -They keep the speed of presentation at a controllable level. -they take as much as space as they possibly can,making their movement wide,upward and outward…etc. All in all,you need to keep yourself vivacious,enthusiastic and passionate through the presentation.Don’t be hasty to start or to finish as these parts are the most memorable parts of all the presentation.If everything is done as it should be ,Congratulations enjoy your applause.

SIMON GARMAH is an executive Communications Consultant and Coach. He is president of Lifestyles Communications, Inc. which helps individuals communicate in the new global and virtual world. His website is http://public-speaking-tips1.blogspot.com