Art Of Great Speaking

For most people, public speaking is a challenge, but even once you’ve mastered the techniques, and the part about just getting up there, you’re work isn’t done.

The most common mistake I find in clients I coach about presenting is failing to grasp this concept: When you’re giving a presentation, you’re not talking about XYZ, you’re communicating to a group of individuals. Arrive early before your presentation and visit with the individuals as they arrive. You’ll find out all sorts of things you need to know that can help you stand out among presenters. Everyone knows their topic — or should, and know how to give a presentation (or should), but it’s knowing how to work the particular and unique group in front of you that gets you asked back, gets you business, and builds your reputation.

The 15 minutes you spend mingling, make the difference! (And BTW, don’t rely on what you were told about this group. It’s rarely reliable, and it isn’t specific to your needs. Find our for yourself.)

1. Find out why they came. Ask questions such as “What brings you here?” WHY questions are never good to ask. People don’t know, and/or it raises defenses. Any other personal information you can gather will make your speech more effective, and also gives you hints as to which of your services and products (you do have the “table in the back” set up, don’t you?) they’d be most likely to need and to buy.

2. Find out what they expect you to talk about. You’ll be surprised!

3. Get first and last names to use later in your presentation, and occupations if you can. You’ll be able to work this into allusions and metaphors. For instance, I often talk about optimism and I give examples about how to attribute negative events. With information, I can give examples particularly relating to their fields of work.

4. Ask questions about their organization or group. Later you can work this into your talk and it will help build relationship.

5. Find out who the officers are in the group. Mentioning their name later on will bring cohesiveness to your talk and involve your audience.

6. Find out where they heard or read about the presentation. You need this for marketing.

7. Step back and tune into your instincts to get the ‘feel’ of the group. Are they introspective, annoyed about a common issue, friendly with one another? Is it high energy or low energy? You can adjust your presentation accordingly – wake them up if they’re asleep, soothe them if they’re agitated.

8. Watch to see who the real leaders are. They’re often not the official leaders. They are the “influencers” who will get you invited back or not.

9. Check out the introversion/extroversion scale. This will tell you how to manage interactive exercises. Introverts are less likely to want to participate, likely to prefer the partner they came with, less eager to respond to questions out loud, and dislike stating the obvious. Extroverts will participate more eagerly, but may be harder to manage and keep on-task.

10. Listen for clues as to who’s good at what, and what fields they’re in. You may need help with the projector. You may have to manage the person who has a Ph.D. in the field you’re talking about. You may pinpoint the extrovert who’ll be enthusiastic about answering a question or when you need a volunteer.

11. Get the local newspaper and check on what’s going on in their location. Better yet, talk to your cab driver on your way from the airport. I once arrived to give a talk in Seattle right after a number of firefighters had lost their lives which had stunned the community. The cab driver told me all about it, and I was able to, (1) resonate with the audience, and (2) work many examples into my talk.

Know your subject, know how to present, and most of all, know your particular audience.

Susan Dunn is a career and marketing coach who helps clients promote themselves and their products in creative, affordable ways. Internet marketing a speciality. Visit her on the web at www.susandunn.cc .

One of the things that public speakers fear the most is losing the attention of the audience. When the audience drifts off into daydreams, it can be difficult to bring them back. How do you keep them from drifting off in the first place?

The key to grabbing and keeping the attention of your attendees is to involve them – to make your presentation interactive. Your purpose may be to market your business, to persuade them to buy your product, to persuade them to save the world. But if you’re not involving them, paying attention to their needs and interests, you’re going to lose them, and they won’t come back.

Here are some pointers for incorporating interaction into your presentation, and keeping the audience focused on you and your message.

Pointer #1: Start with a question

You may or may not have had the opportunity to gather information on your audience in advance. Whether or not you’ve researched your attendees, it’s always effective to start off with a question or series of questions. Some questions I’ve asked of past groups include:

“How many people in the room exercise every day? How many people would like to exercise every day?” I made a note of the people who said they exercised every day and came back to them later to have them share how they fit exercise into their lives.

“How many of you have ever felt so angry you wanted to hit someone? How many of you actually did hit someone when you were angry?” This question was used to illustrate the point during a domestic violence presentation that, even though we sometimes may feel angry enough to hit someone, most of us don’t.

“On a scale of 1-10, with 10 being the highest, how many of you rank your public speaking skills between 10 and 7; how many between 6 and 4; how many between 3 and 1?” This one helps me get an idea of how the audience members perceive themselves as speakers and whether my content should lean toward basic or advance.

Your question can also be humorous, to start off the seminar with a giggle. The important thing is to get the audience involved from the start. There is also a benefit to you in asking questions; you learn more about your audience, their interests and their needs.

Pointer #2: Use icebreakers and energizers

The purpose of icebreakers is to warm up the group, help them get to know each other and to create a bond and a positive atmosphere within the group. Energizers are to get people moving, thinking and re-energized, especially after lunch!

If you think back to some of the icebreakers you’ve done at seminars and conferences, you might be rolling your eyes right now. After all, not everyone wants to interact with her or his neighbor, and some icebreakers are intrusive and even embarrassing. The last thing you want to do is to make your audience members feel uncomfortable.

However, icebreakers done well are useful and fun. In addition to helping the audience members get to know each other, it also helps you get to know them. This is a great boost at an event where there is networking scheduled, or where part of the purpose is for the audience members to learn more about each other. Depending on the size of the group and the purpose of the seminar/training/workshop, different icebreakers will be effective.

Easy icebreakers can involve nothing more than one audience member turning to a neighbor and sharing a piece of information. I keep a tin filled with questions on strips of paper to be handed out in smaller groups. Some of the questions: “If you could choose a new name for yourself, what would it be?” “What did you eat for breakfast this morning and who prepared it?” “What is your favorite time of day, and why?” More complicated icebreakers involve games, scavenger hunts, and physical activities like the “human knot” that probably everyone on the planet has had to disentangle at least once!

Here’s a site with a great list of icebreaker games and websites. http://www.wilderdom.com/games/Icebreakers.html

Pointer #3: Break the audience into pairs or groups

At some point, you may require the audience to do an activity that requires more dialogue. Breaking the larger group into pairs (also called dyads) or small groups allows them to have a private discussion, which then can be shared with the larger group.

Some people are not comfortable talking in a group. Some people talk more than everyone else, monopolizing the speaker. Breaking into groups encourages your audience to dig deeper into the topic while giving everyone a fair shake at participating.

Pointer #4: Ask for input

This is a great way for you to learn from your audience, and for the audience to learn from each other. Adults have a lifetime of experience and knowledge to share, and in a learning situation, it’s especially important for adults to contribute to the learning process. Personal relevance and the ability to apply learning to real-life situations are more important to adults than someone else telling them what’s important to know.

Bring a flip chart or overhead projector and ask the audience for their input. Write down their words and use them in your presentation. Make sure to note new ideas or concepts that might fit into a future presentation.

Allowing audience members to share some of their own experiences and expertise makes the process more relevant for them, and creates a richer experience for everyone involved. Incorporate interaction into your talks, and you’re unlikely ever again to lose an audience member to daydreams.

About The Author

Lisa Braithwaite is a public speaking and presentation skills coach based in Santa Barbara, California. Find your voice and regain your confidence with public speaking coaching! Sign up for my newsletter and find out about my free consultation by visiting http://www.coachlisab.com.

We present to shift the audience’s perspective. We want to sell… we want to educate… we want to motivate.

None of this can happen until you awaken your audience and get their attention.

How to awaken your audience:

Surprise them. Attention is captured by the unusual. Do Something Different! When the audience knows what you are about to say, or how you are about to say it, they’re ahead of you. Gradually their minds move on to something else.

Ways to awaken your audience:

Catch the audience off guard by sweeping them into active participation. Employ a dramatic gesture at an unexpected moment. Reveal an interesting prop, or use an object in the room in an unusual way. Tell a story about an experience you had that reveals something personal about you. Move with a sudden dynamic burst. Release a sound from your voice heretofore unheard. Make a percussive sound by clapping, stomping a foot or hitting your hand on a table. Use an unusual facial gesture. Tease the audience. Stop and be silent.

GESTURE

We communicate with all kinds of gestures. Whether hailing a taxi or blowing a kiss, the meaning of the gesture is understood accurately and quickly.

Actions Speak Louder than Words

Early on we learn that a person’s body often speaks more truthfully than their words. If the speaker’s behavior does not align with their words, which do you trust?

Imagine someone talking to you about an important topic. Imagine how much they would communicate if at just the right moment they:

Blushed Blinked Yawned Looked away Started shaking Instinctively we know to trust body language above spoken words. People carefully arrange their words to put their best foot forward; less frequently do they successfully monitor their physical behavior.

STILLNESS

Often, the most important movement is its complete absence: calm, powerful stillness. Unfocused extraneous movement decreases your power and credibility, and can distract the audience from your message.

When you are not making a gesture or movement that supports your missive:

Choose stillness.

When you can confidently stand perfectly still in silence, the audience tends to interpret is as power and control.

GESTURE, MOVEMENT AND STILLNESS

Tips to Successful Use of Gestures, Movement and Stillness

Be Selective

Craft gestures to match your key points. Don’t use the same gesture over and over. Avoid walking and talking (or your movements may obscure your words). Larger movements are best done before or after a point, while gestures can be used before, during or after speaking.

Be Specific

Practice more precise and differentiated movement. Don’t just generally wave your arms. Chose dynamic, specific movements and gestures that elucidate or emphasize what you are conveying.

Be Surprising

Use varied rhythms and move at unexpected moments to gain maximum audience alertness. For example, don’t always gesture at the end of a sentence or point.

Be Still

Practice the power of stillness. Don’t fidget. Don’t wander. Don’t rock nervously back and forth. Stillness is extremely powerful, especially when contrasted with purposeful movement.

Be Subversive

Whatever gesture patterns you establish, mindfully break with them and create an ongoing variety of gestural expression.

The Henderson Group trains and coaches business professionals in the art of communication and presentation through our experiential methodology. Since 1990, The Henderson Group has helped Fortune 500 companies worldwide improve employee productivity and business results through the development of communication skills. You can find us online at SpeakFearlessly.net and HendersonGroup.com or Attend A Workshop

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