CHAMPION STRATEGIES – PUBLIC SPEAKING WORKSHOP – February 24, 2020
As you craft your speech outline, think about who you are delivering the speech to and keep that in mind as you write. You are delivering the speech for them, not for you.
Work from a detailed outline
While it might sound easier to write out your full speech and read it word-for-word, this actually works against most public speakers. Instead, you are better off writing an outline and speaking about the topic from the outline, which will help you look more confident. “It allows the language you use to be more natural, it allows your voice to be much more natural and eye contact is better,” Marjorie L. North, a speech pathologist and lecturer at Harvard University, told NBC News.
Start strong
If you are able to start your talk by immediately gaining the audience’s favor, there’s a good chance they will like you throughout the whole speech. So, it’s vital to spend time developing a hook to get them interested quickly. In fact, researcher Vanessa Van Edwards reviewed some of the most popular TED Talks and found that if the audience liked the first seven seconds, they were then predisposed to like the entire talk.
“We found that the ratings overall — who people liked overall and who they didn’t like — matched, whether they’d watched the first seven seconds or the full talk,” Van Edwards told TED. “We think that the brain actually decides as soon as that person takes the stage and begins speaking, ‘You know what? I’m gonna like this talk.’”
Know your audience
As you craft your speech outline, think about who you are delivering the speech to and keep that in mind as you write. You are delivering the speech for them, not for you. For example, if your audience is in attendance to hear a short, informative and professional presentation, save long-winded anecdotes and storytelling for another time. Additionally, you can also solicit feedback from your audience after a presentation in order to improve future speeches.
Make eye contact
Finally, as simple as it sounds, maintain eye contact throughout your speech. Don’t spend much time looking at your outline or looking away from the audience. They will be more engaged if you are looking at them and be more invested in your talk. If you are speaking to an audience online, this can be important, too, so look directly at your webcam to simulate the appearance of making eye contact with viewers.
Make It A Champion day!
