Business and Finance

Having read Jane Andrew’s article entitled Public Speaking is Acting, I wanted to take this opportunity to tell you why the best public speakers are not acting: they are communicating.

Acting requires memorization of a script that has been marked by the actor; i.e., pause here, smile there, increase your volume, etc. In teaching public speaking, I emphasize not marking the script because I don’t want a rote delivery.

The beauty of public speaking is that your audience often determines how your material will flow; and, good public speakers know how to work with good audiences. Anecdotes or jokes may be added on the spur if the audience is highly receptive; whereas, if the audience is unresponsive, many speakers will drop some material and move in a different direction.

In that respect, good public speakers are thinking throughout their entire delivery because they are communicating. They are not trying to be someone other than themselves. They understand and value their own individuality. And, they talk to their audience just as if they were having a conversation in their living room.

Continue reading ‘Why Public Speaking is not Acting’ »

Ask yourself these questions: Do you enjoy speaking in public? Do you have knowledge that others would want you to share? Can you talk about your business without turning it into a sales pitch? If you answered “yes” to all three, then this article is written just for you!

There are a variety of civic organizations – Kiwanis, Rotary, Lions, Sertoma – that are continually seeking new, unique information to be presented at their meetings. Church groups, Chambers of Commerce, business associations and networking organizations also seek experts in their field. The list goes on and on. Though few pay for their speakers, you are usually warmly welcomed and appreciated for giving your time. And, of course, there is most often a breakfast, lunch or dinner provided.

Continue reading ‘Will Speak for Food’ »

Having read Jane Andrew’s article entitled Public Speaking is Acting, I wanted to take this opportunity to tell you why the best public speakers are not acting: they are communicating.

Acting requires memorization of a script that has been marked by the actor; i.e., pause here, smile there, increase your volume, etc. In teaching public speaking, I emphasize not marking the script because I don’t want a rote delivery.

The beauty of public speaking is that your audience often determines how your material will flow; and, good public speakers know how to work with good audiences. Anecdotes or jokes may be added on the spur if the audience is highly receptive; whereas, if the audience is unresponsive, many speakers will drop some material and move in a different direction.

Continue reading ‘Why Public Speaking is not Acting’ »

When invited (or ordered!) to give a presentation or a speech, most of us think that what comes out of our mouth during that 5, 10, or 45 minute delivery is the ‘piece de resistance’ when in fact, without proper preparation, it may be a disaster.

I liken good preparation to the 5 Ws of good investigative work, much like good journalism. Before you even prepare that speech or presentation, it is important to know who, what, where, when & why.

1. To Whom will you be speaking? The type of group you will be addressing will effect how you will speak to them. Talking to seniors in high school is different than talking to a group of insurance brokers. Your language will be slightly different as will your style of delivery. Knowing your audience means knowing their reason for attending your presentation.

2. About What will you be speaking? While this may seem obvious, such is not always the case. Let’s say for example, you are a botanist and your mother at the retirement center wants you to give a talk to her gardening club. Giving a more generalized talk about perennials and annuals, for instance, is going to be of much greater interest to these retired senior citizens than discussing plant biochemistry.

Continue reading ‘The 5 Things You Must Do Before Opening Your Mouth to Speak’ »

We all know that a picture is worth 1000 words.But, do we really convert a picture into 1000 words? Do we pick up the right picture that equals this number of words?

Studies conducted all over the world show that integrating visual aids into presentations can dramatically enhance the effectiveness and the efficiency of a given presentation by up to 50%. So you can see the unfair advantage that a presenter who uses visual aids over the one who does not. Massive difference, right?

With all that being said, we must bring into the table the fact that most of today’s presenters misuse these graphics; therefore, screw everything up and consequently, instead of boosting up their presentation’s effectiveness, they reduce it to the nadir, by getting less or no impact on the audience.

The above reason brings us to what this little article is written for? Simply put, to help get the most out of your presentation using visual aids as the experts in this game do. So the followings are some tips that if put into practice can produce the desired outcomes.

Continue reading ‘The Art of Public Speaking: Visual Aids and Graphics’ »

ublic speaking or speech-making is one of the many things that is most commonly feared tasks as it requires to stand up in front of strange people trying to convince them to make a purchase if you are in the marketing arena, or simply adding something to their knowledge in a given area.Actually, there are many factors involved in determining the amount of success you receive out of performing such task. Looking comfortable, confident and relaxed are among these factors, though it’s a bit hard to achieve theses characteristics at the podium, but it’s always possible with an on-going rehearsal. The following are down-to-earth and easy-to-implement techniques that can maximize your potential to an incredibly public speaking performance:

1) Devote some time to understand the nature of your audience. what make them want to attend and listen to whatever you have to say, what are their expectations, hopes and the result that they reap out of their attendance. It should not escape your notice the importance of learning about their background about the subject matter so as to eliminate all what they know for time’s sake.

Continue reading ‘The Art of Public Speaking: How to Influence Your Audience’ »