Art Of Great Speaking

If a fast or rushed speed of delivery in public speaking can tire an audience. (see my last post)

In contrast a very sluggish, dragging type of delivery will certainly motivate a listeners’ focus to go elsewhere, or the audience may say mentally, “Seriously, speaker, let’s go! I’m way ahead of you.” There is a reasonable medium pace of speaking in keeping with a speaker’s personality and the character of his speech.
A sing-song rhythmical delivery, beginning or closing all sentences on the very same pitch level, or raising the voice at the finish of statements may become monotonous habits. These tendencies can be avoided when a speaker talks as though he were having a lively, interesting chat with his audience.
Recording a lengthy speech and listening thoroughly to the recording will reveal any tedious speaking patterns. A speaker should invite other listeners to discover the monotony, as well. Then he should get active and put more vocal shades into his tone of voice, making certain he speaks in a conversational tone.
Speech that is far too precise or too exacting will destroy the purpose of effective oral communication because this practice calls attention to words and sounds instead of ideas. Such speaking may weary or disgust an audience. A speech trainer, or anyone else, who holds final consonants like he owns them, or who makes an apparent conscious effort to speak carefully may actually cause listeners to desire he’ll trip his tongue sometime.
However, loose, careless talk, or perhaps the use of inappropriate slang in his speech may draw attention to his manner of speaking instead of to the ideas he expresses. This careless speaking habit could also label him as being a lazy individual who would not use very much energy to find fascinating speech material for any audience.
We can have an informal, folksy speaking style, if we wish, without using lazy diction. Or we are able to be formal and “businesslike” without being starchy or “nasty nice.” Either way time invested studying the meaning of words and how to articulate them is worthwhile.

To sound more interesting in public speaking it is about reviewing how you sound and then taking action to improve any areas that may need some attention . It is in this way that we get better. An important element of this is having the information to know what to do. By signing up to my blog on the right you can receive tip information on better public speaking direct to your in-box.

Following on from my last post on using variety in public speaking, how much “force” do you have in your voice.

Observe this statement: “The policeman stopped me and said, ‘Pull over to the curb, Junior!’” When stating this a speaker could boost the force when he or she quotes the policeman, and thereby get variation in the force of his speaking. Some speakers, however, will make a daunting policeman appear as if he were a floor-walker in a trendy department shop.
In public speaking, when relating conversations, use direct quotations – use the exact words each character said, as opposed to to expressing indirectly what was said.
For example, a speaker could say, “Bill said that he had a toothache.” But using these words would not give the opportunity to put variety in vocal tones nearly so well as if the speaker had said, “Bill yelled, Oh-h-h, Oh-h-h-h! This tooth is killin’ me!”
A speaker doesn’t need to be an actor to do this. All he or she has to do would be to make each character speak in his or her own words and manner, to alter his voice naturally and as well as he can to mimic each character. This often gives one a chance to get variety in force, rate and pitch. It also allows an audience a restful chance to hear several words spoken in a tone which is somewhat different than the one typically.used by the speaker. A speaker who is fairly good at mimicking characters may use this skill to add fascinating variety to his speaking.
For practice, say this, “We stopped at a cabin. A feeble old man came to the door and said, ‘Good morning, strangers. What can I do for you?’ ”
As you speak the old man’s words, “Good morning, strangers. What can I do for you?” is your voice slow, rather high-pitched, and without much force?
Now say, somewhat as a rough sailor would speak, “My name is Barney O’Day, and I can wipe up the deck with any man, I can!”
Does this seaman speak faster, deeper, with much more force compared to feeble old man?
Imagining those two characters sounding alike is difficult, yet some speakers would make them sound exactly alike. Of course all speaking will not consist of such vivid contrasts as just indicated, although every speech will offer you possibilities to vary vocal rate, pitch, or force.
If you want more information on how to use your voice in public speaking, please sign up to my blog by using the box on the right and have tips on how you can speak with more conviction and get the benefits from being an effective communicator.

In public speaking the pace or speed of your speaking is important, especially the variety of it

Read the sentence below silently. Then read it aloud, trying to picture with your tones, face, and body language exactly what took place:
The ancient automobile chugged as though each turn of the wheel could be the last. But slowly, very slowly, it crept up the mountainside.
It reached the top and then began down. Faster, and faster, and faster, it went. On and on it rushed just like a blurred black streak to the turn at the foot of the mountain. Then suddenly the automobile swerved from the road and crashed into a big tree!
While you speak about the trip up the mountain your rate of speaking will certainly be slower than once you talk about the sprint down. This demonstrates an important aspect of variety, change of rate, or variation in speed during a speech.
When an idea calls for a change of rate, vary the speed of your speaking, not robotically, obviously, but in keeping with the natural concept of the idea that is being expressed. When you talk about a fast thrilling game of football, make the players move with your voice and manner. But if you talk about idle sheep in a field, naturally your voice is going to be lazy and slow. It is as fundamental as that, but many speakers totally neglect this important principle of variety and say everything at about the same rate.
When you say, “The car crashed into a tree!” make it sound like a crash, nothing like a kid peeling a banana. This is another essential kind of variation in speaking – force, or lack of it.

I’ll be writing more in my next post about variety in public speaking to capture the audience’s attention. If you want to learn more about speaking with confidence please check out the resource here: speaking with confidence

My previous post on public speaking voice was about don’t be boring. In this post here is tip to help put more feeling into your public speaking voice.

Speakers can put restful variety into their speaking by thoroughly feeling the ideas they express, and by willingly letting this feeling show freely in their tones.
Seeing mental pictures of expressed ideas will help a speaker put expressive color in his tones. For practice, say, as you toss an imaginary handful of feathers into the air, “Light as feathers.” Mentally see the light feathers fluttering in the air. Feel and show the lightness in your tones and speaking manner.
Now say, “Heavy as lead,” as you mentally see yourself seriously struggling to lift a big- bag of lead. Suit your bodily action to the thought as you say the words. Do this several times. As you say these words is your vocal tone different than it was when you said, “Light as feathers?”
Say “smooth” and make it sound smooth. Say “rough” and and notice the difference.
A speaker once told about the wash rag his mother used on him when he was a child. He paused and then said, “ROUGH,” as if a garden rake was being pulled over his face. Although this was only a simple thought, the speaker’s manner of expressing it gave variety to. his tones. It was very effective.
The tragic fact is that some speakers show no variation of feeling in their tones. They say everything alike. We are all too familiar with that type of talking.
Lively tones spring from a lively interest in life. So many effective speaking habits stem from that basic principle of being deeply interested in what we say and having an eager desire to share this interest. Will a speaker who is highly enthusiastic and excited about his subject ever speak in monotones? How could he?

To help you:- take an interest in life and practice using your voice to reflect what you are saying you will have a more interesting public speaking voice without thinking when in front of an audience.

Here is another great way to make your speech sparkle.

Still another way to make speech vivid or colorful is to use exaggerated pictures, or hyperbole.
For instance, a businessman said in a speech, “I thought this family was poor, but when I walked into the house the first thing I saw was a television set as big as that piano!”
Of course, he knew, and his listeners knew, that the television set was not half as large as the upright piano to which he referred. But making this comparison was far more impressive than simply saying, “When I entered the room I saw a big television set.” And this type of exaggeration is ethical in public speaking because it is not really an attempt to deceive an audience.
Another speaker, when talking about a gossiping woman said, “Her tongue was so long she could sit in the parlor and lick a skillet in the kitchen!”
Still another remarked, “The restaurant was so crowded that when a man bent over to tie his shoe, a waitress slapped a table-cloth and four plates on his back before he could straighten up.”
Ridiculous? Yes. But it vividly supports a point, and adds interest to a speech which might otherwise be dull.
Also understatements, such as, “Her mouth looked like a button-hole that had been washed in alum,” or, “I could have stuffed his toothpick body into my shirt pocket and have had plenty of room to spare,” may add color and interest to a speech.
All figures of speech should be chosen with care and used only when and where they aptly fit the situation or speech theme. They should never be “pulled in by the ears,” misused, or over-used. Rather, they should be used as verbal salt to season a speech and make it palatable for listeners’ minds.

I hope you have found this series on adding interest and color to your public speaking through similes and exaggerations useful. Let me know if you’ve found it useful,