Public Speaking And Presentation Skills
All the world's a stage
And all the men and women merely players.
---
Shakespeare As You Like It
Shakespeare knew his stuff - even when it came to public speaking! Hang on, they didn't do much public speaking in those days - and yet his words "all the world's a stage" applies to public speaking and presenting.
Ahead of his time, I'd say.
The nature of business today presents increasing opportunities for people to speak in front of others - maybe a small group, maybe large - and you've got three choices - avoid it, just do it, or do it well, really well. That's where public speaking training is important.
It is just like a stage performance in so many ways. That's why I use my experience as a former actor and television drama producer as a professional speaker.
Just like the actor, there are 5 P's to work on:
Planning and Preparation
Performance and Presence
and finally comes a plause
(You don't know what a plause is? Actors love it - so do speakers.
It comes when you've finished and if you've done really well it can be quite loud!)
As part of the first of the P's, you should think carefully about the who, what, why, where and how -
- Who are the people I'm speaking to?
- What is their common interest?
- Why are they coming to the presentation?
- Where will I be giving the presentation?
- How can I leave them with a message they will remember?
You should add another What in there: "What is the heart of my message". In other words, what do you want to achieve out of this presentation. Is it to convince them to buy your company's new product? Is it to have them inspired by your challenge of climbing the mountain? Is it to challenge them to rethink how they deliver customer service?
So think about your audience - and see the presentation from their position.
Like any journey, when you are preparing a presentation you need to know where you are going and what you want to achieve.
If you speak for an hour and they take three things away that they will implement in their lives, that's great. If you speak for 20 minutes and they remember three things and make one significant change in their lives - or place orders for your new product - you've done really well.
Here's another example (there's lots, actually) of my television producing experience as a professional speaker and presenter: a successful speech, like any good story, or book or film must have three components in the structure. A beginning, a middle and an end.
In your presentation, structure it so that you paint pictures. Most people think visually and you will make more effective contact with them if you can paint a picture with words as part of your presentation. Allowing your audience to create pictures in their mind from the words you speak, enables them to focus on what you are saying, and not be so easily distracted by their other thoughts.
Then, like the actor, its time to rehearse your presentation, go over it and go over it - 10 times, maybe more. Then - throw it away. Well, all right, you don't have to do it literally, but actually, throwing it away forces you to use your mind and not the script.
Then, again, like the actor, be aware of your voice - the way you say the words, the clarity and diction is important.
'Vocal colour' is also important. (Yes, another acting technique).
Don't worry, its not about a particular colour - I'm not saying your voice is red or green. The term refers to a number of components which make up the texture....the colour ... of your voice. It includes pitch, tone, intonation.
And then you create presence in front of your audience - we may even call it Charisma, and yes, you can create Charisma.
Voice - body language - performance - charisma - delivering a presentation where the message stays after you've finished speaking - Yes, it can be a challenge for some but when you do it well, it's very rewarding.
Click here to find out how you can learn all you'll need to know to make a successful presentation - particularly if you want lots of the 5th P
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