Public and Professional Speaking
The ability to speak effectively to small or large audiences is a vital competency for manager and leaders and yet this competency is often lacking.
As a Certified Professional Speaker myself, I have spoken to thousands of people over the years and experienced the first hand what to do and what not to do with an audience. As an executive coach I have trained and coached hundred’s of managers who were previously tongue tied to connect with the audience and deliver their message effectively; so allow me to share with you a secret of public and professional speaking:
There is no such thing as an audience
The biggest mistake that novice speaker make is to imagine their perspective audience as critical or hostile. Creating this mental picture of a group united in their disapproval of you will create a state of anxiety in even the strongest of heart.
Accomplished speakers realise that an audience, small or large, is made up of individuals just like you. Each individual has needs and wants and can change their state from boredom to curiosity. If you connect to their needs and wants and create a sense of curiosity they will be on the edge of thier seats.
So the first key to successful public or professional speaking is to break down your audience into a group of individuals and preferably know what it is they want before you deliver your topic.
Most of the work in speaking is not the speech itself but the research and preparation before the speech. Only speak “off the cuff” if you know your topic backwards and know exactly who you are talking to.
As you present make eye contact, smile and imagine you are having a conversation with a group of friends or colleagues. Will it still be nerve wracking? Perhaps but the only way to get better at it is to practice at every opportunity. Remember, as we move up through an organisation, we are paid less for what we do an more for what we influence others to do. Speaking in public is a core competency for influence.
If you are interested in professional speaking training or coaching please contact us.
August 28th, 2009 at 6:51 am
[...] have posted previously about public and professional speaking and last week I was training a group of young professionals in the art of presentation [...]
February 23rd, 2010 at 6:07 pm
Absorbing piece. Presenting and public speaking is such a problematic issue for many people that any kind of assistance to help people today the best way to overcome their anxiety will be enormously valued. Might wish to make use of this specific post on the new public speaking blog I’m creating. Please let me know if this is doable. Thank you, Jane.