Speak to be heard: make your public speaking effective
by Grant Fairley
We’ve all suffered through painful speeches and presentations. In some
corporate presentations, it seems like the speaker spent thirty minutes in a
freezer before they came out to communicate their corporate announcement or
product launch. As they stiffly chatter out their information, the audience
braces itself to hear a cold presentation.
Great public speakers have a number of natural advantages that include
personality, the quality of their voice, an awareness of their audience and a
sense of drama in their presentations. This combined with excellent content and
experiences make them the great communicators that they are.
If you are like most people, you don’t aspire to be a great public speaker.
You just want to get it over with. As Jerry Seinfeld pointed out, people are
more afraid of public speaking than they are of death. So, what if you need to
be able to do presentations to keep your climb the corporate ranks, add value to
your organization or to just get past the dread of that part of your life.
How you prepare your presentation is important. If you clog your text with
many big words that are not needed to communicate your ideas or meaningful to
your audience, you’ve just made it difficult to succeed. Similarly, don’t use
words that you can not naturally pronounce. Remember, you can always issue a
written statement that is very eloquent and beautifully written but beautiful
writing does not always translate into beautiful speech. Written presentations
and oral presentations are different.
So, what to do?
Use words of different sizes – that will make it more naturally interesting.
Say the following sentences aloud to hear the difference:
“It is my considered opinion that any decision that advances this kind of
conclusion is clearly misguided.”
or…
“I am sure that this decision will take us in the wrong direction.”
They both communicate the same idea, but the first is very formal and includes
many unnecessary components that force the listener to be a biologist as they
try to “dissect the specimen”.
It is helpful to memorize your speech. Audiences are usually much more
impressed by a speaker who speaks without notes – if he or she speaks well. Even
if you are not at that level, memorizing will give you more confidence in your
presentation. Sometimes you will need to choose your words carefully and will
have to read your words to be legally precise in an announcement. Even in this
kind of speech, memorizing your text creates a more powerful delivery.
Here are some simple ideas that you can have alongside your note as your tip
sheet to more effective speech:
- Fast & Slow – Vary the speed of your presentation. Speed up and slow down.
You don’t want to be a train that is rattling along at the same pace.
- To & Fro – Engage your whole audience. Look from side to side moving your
head as well as your eyes. It is a way of acknowledging that everyone in the
room is important and is noticed.
- Deep & Shallow – Change the depth of where you look. Concentrate on those
closer to you and those further away. Try to cover your whole group rather than
having your eyes fixed on a single point at the back of the room.
- High & Low – Change the pitch of your voice. Leave that monotone behind and
allow your voice to go up and down. Raise it on positive and exciting points.
Lower your voice on more serious statements or to emphasize concern.
- Stop & Go – It is OK to pause at major points. This allows the audience time
to pause too. The pause is not long – maybe just a couple of seconds but it
creates a break for you and the listener.
Beyond these tips, taking a course is always a good idea. There is nothing
like presenting in a safe place where you can receive valuable feedback and
criticism. The role-playing of doing and hearing others speak is very useful.
Most people can gain insights into making a few adjustments that will improve
your confidence and effectiveness.
Another helpful idea is to start paying attention when others speak. Like a
judge at a competition, think about not only what the person is saying but how
she or he is communicating. What are the things that they do to make it easier
to understand them or to be engaged in their message? What are they doing that
distracts you or turns you off? It may make the next boring corporate
presentation more interesting… at least you’ll know why it was boring!
Finally, there is nothing like experience. Like most of our fears – they
start to disappear as you face them. If you have something worth saying – speak
in a way that you will truly be heard.
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