Public Speaking Information

The Ten Habits of Highly Effective Speakers


Successful speakers do not do all the right things all the time. They often take risks and risk bombing. But all top speakers take daily action, to move towards their goals with many adjustments. Here are ten ways to be a highly effective speaker.

1. Have a passion for your subject(s). If you don't care about your topic, who will? Make a list of five topics you love. Choose two and be willing to develop a program you are willing to stay with for at least two years.

2. Be persistent in your quest to be a speaker of excellence. You must be perceived as an expert with expertise. Demonstrate this through your life experiences, research and the way you customize your material for each audience. You are only as good as your last speech!

3. Have the patience to succeed. Is persistence your middle name? Don't expect to be a success over night. Get support, mentors, a coach to help you master your presentation(s). One speaker said, This is a hard business to make an easy living.

4. Speak from your heart. Be authentic. Be vulnerable. Share your mishaps and idiosyncrasies. You won't be perceived as real until you do this. When you are truthful, your audiences will trust what you are saying. Let your message provide hope for your audience.

5. Connect quickly with your audience. You only have 30 seconds to make your connection. So pay attention to your opening remarks. Don't use jokes they may offend people in your audience. Do use short quotations, a funny story that is relevant to your message, a question or two to get their attention quickly.

6. Prepare 24/7 you don't write speeches, you find them everywhere in hotels, from family experiences, in the supermarkets and restaurants. Retrieve them and retell them. Don't lose out on great material because you didn't have your note pad near you. Why not invest in a mini-tape recorder and record ideas as they occur throughout your day.

7. Speak to the ways people learn; auditory, visual and kinesthetic. Know your audience so that you can offer the right mix. Research suggests 40% are visual, 40% are kinesthetic, and only 20% are auditory. If you don't use props or visuals, you will not reach 80% of your audience. Be inclusive and find ways/tools that will speak to 100% of the people in your audience.

8. Support your main points with stories most people delineate their thoughts visually. People learn best from your personal stories. They will also do a better job in retaining your message if you tell them a story. Remember when you were a kid. . .you said to your parents, tell me a story. When an adult hears your story, they are only a step away from their own story. Become a good story teller and watch your referrals and repeat business increase.

9. Make it fun learning is directly proportional to the amount of fun your audience is having laughter is like internal jogging. Inject some humor along the way. The audience wants to lighten up even with serious matters. Reminder---mature adults do not take themselves too seriously.

10. Have a reverence for the work you do. It is a privilege to be on the platform. And with this comes an awesome responsibility to your audience. Speaking is an art and a skill. Tap in to your creativity, your wholesomeness, your playfulness. Live/speak from the inside out.

About The Author

Sandra Schrift - 13 year speaker bureau owner and now career coach to emerging and veteran public speakers who want to "grow" a profitable speaking business. I also work with business professionals and organizations who want to delivermasterful presentations.

Join my free bi-weekly Monday Morning Mindfulness ezine at www.schrift.com/monday.htm; www.schrift.com

Publishing Guidelines: You are welcome to publish this article in its entirety, electronically, or in print fre*e of charge, as long as you include my full signature file for ezines, and my Web site address in hyperlink for other sites. Please send a courtesy link or email where you publish to sandra@schrift.com. Thank you.


MORE RESOURCES:

VillageSoup Belfast

Moro inspires student success
VillageSoup Belfast,  USA - 11 hours ago
It was not until he enrolled in an undergraduate public speaking class at Lehman College: City University of New York that he realized that he had faced his ...


BBC News

Grade levels in public speaking: meaningless
Hot Air, MD - Oct 4, 2008
I expect that many people will try to make something of the CNN report that Sarah Palin spoke at a higher grade level than did Joe Biden during their debate ...
Video: VP Debate A Study In Contrasts WSJDigitalNetwork
Locals say Palin, Biden pass the test Carlisle Sentinel
all 3,297 news articles


RC of Metro Roxas Central's impromptu public speaking contest ...
News Today Online, Philippines - Oct 6, 2008
By JOEL E. CAPUNDAN ROXAS CITY – Rotary Club of Metro Roxas Central sponsored the "Voice of the Youth: An impromptu public speaking contest in plain ...


Toasting to public speaking
The George Washington University The GW Hatchet, DC - Oct 6, 2008
GW Toastmasters is a branch of the 84-year-old Toastmasters International Organization, which is dedicated to improving public speaking skills. ...


Speech club supports region champs
Park Record, UT - Oct 10, 2008
Far away from Hogwarts, the Park City chapter of Toastmasters has been conquering one of the biggest boggarts of all, fear of public speaking, with humorous ...


Public speaking and that awful, sinking feeling
24 Hours Vancouver, Canada - Oct 6, 2008
By LAYNE CLARK I haven't gotten any sleep because all I can think about is a presentation I have to do on an article I don't understand. ...


Lessons give voice to homeless
Calgary Herald,  Canada - 17 hours ago
"Public speaking is one of the greatest fears most people have, even greater than dying," says Williams. "Participating in a debate teaches you to see an ...


Malaysian Is First Runner Up In 2008 Public Speaking World ...
Bernama, Malaysia - Sep 14, 2008
This may be a plus point for them in winning public-speaking contests," the 54-year-old corporate financial training consultant told Bernama in a interview. ...


Learn public speaking with Richmond Toastmasters
Richmond Times Dispatch, VA - Oct 3, 2008
... is a community organization that offers a supportive professional environment for those who would like to improve their public-speaking abilities. ...


Leaf talk: Science project IDs leaves, helps with public speaking
Neosho Daily News, MO - Oct 2, 2008
Students also learned something about public speaking. By Wes Franklin It was a double shot of learning in one class at Neosho Middle School lately, ...

Public-Speaking - Google News

home | site map
© 2006