Or maybe you've decided to run for office, and need to spread the word about what you stand for, and how you will help voters once elected into office.
Perhaps a special occasion or major life event has come up, like a wedding or funeral, and you want to honor the occurrence with a well-crafted, poignant set of remarks with pitch-perfect tone and taste.
Regardless of the reason, this is a big opportunity to spread your expertise, share your knowledge, or otherwise connect with people in a warm, direct manner that humanizes the whole interaction by putting a "face" to what might otherwise read as a cold, lifeless set of words on a page.
Unfortunately, to millions of people out there, coming up with just the right words is a terrifying enough ordeal in its own right, let alone standing up in front of a bunch of people and delivering those words with the intended pacing, tone, and intonation to get your message across clearly.
If the above describes you, then I have some good news: like anything else, delivering great speeches is a skill that absolutely can be learned by anyone from the shyest, most introverted recluse to the most scatterbrained, mile-a-minute extrovert.
This article will briefly focus on the basics of giving a great speech, no matter what the audience or occasion. Future articles in this series will help you rise through the ranks from "total amateur" to "seasoned, witty, engaging public speaker" who will have people beating his door down to speak at various engagements.
The Magic of Low Expectations
Many people out there hate public speaking for a simple reason: it scares them. It churns their stomach in an incredibly primal, visceral way. Let's face it; as humans, we're social creatures. We've been hard-wired to want to gain the acceptance of others to increase our status within the "tribe."
As our tribes have grown from tiny groups of a dozen-or-so to a global community of millions, the stakes of that perceived acceptance appear to get larger and larger. After all, just using common sense, the greater the number of people you fail in front of, the greater the degree of embarrassment that you'll suffer, right?
Wrong!
Nothing could be further from the truth! From the most dry, boring, mandatory continuing education seminar to the stadium filled with people searching for answers about personal development, people want to hear a speech that's engaging, entertaining, and will make them think and take action.
Wrong!
Nothing could be further from the truth! From the most dry, boring, mandatory continuing education seminar to the stadium filled with people searching for answers about personal development, people want to hear a speech that's engaging, entertaining, and will make them think and take action.
Especially in something as "ordinary" as a continuing education seminar, the audience has extremely low expectations. They just want to sit in their seats, check emails, punch the clock, and go home with their credit.
Imagine how pleasantly surprised they'd be if the speaker could deliver an engaging, useful speech that would help them increase sales by 30%, or that gave them useful information that could be used to halve the time they spend on practice management? Now we're talking!
The important takeaway is that even at a conference, people tend to have pretty low expectations of the speakers who will be presenting. Once you realize this, you can use it to your advantage by repeatedly telling yourself that the bar is set so low, it's truly impossible to fail!
The important takeaway is that even at a conference, people tend to have pretty low expectations of the speakers who will be presenting. Once you realize this, you can use it to your advantage by repeatedly telling yourself that the bar is set so low, it's truly impossible to fail!
Think of it this way: remember the most boring speech you've ever heard. Go ahead--take a minute. Visualize just how truly bad it was--maybe it even made you fall asleep.
What happened to that presenter? He didn't die, or get laughed at for the wrong reasons. I'm guessing once the speech ended (and everyone woke up), he probably got a polite, if brief, round of applause, and a speaker's credit he could use to get future gigs.
Even if you bomb spectacularly, no one is going to track you down and yell at you, or otherwise make your life any more uncomfortable than it already is. Worst case scenario, you get the polite applause, and you're on your way.
What happened to that presenter? He didn't die, or get laughed at for the wrong reasons. I'm guessing once the speech ended (and everyone woke up), he probably got a polite, if brief, round of applause, and a speaker's credit he could use to get future gigs.
Even if you bomb spectacularly, no one is going to track you down and yell at you, or otherwise make your life any more uncomfortable than it already is. Worst case scenario, you get the polite applause, and you're on your way.
But best case scenario? You make an instant, long-lasting connection with the audience. You use your expertise and knowledge to give them new insight to whatever topic you've chosen. Your speech is so good that you immediately get a list of new prospects, or have everyone at the wedding or funeral telling you what a great job you did memorializing the event.
When you look at the risk-reward equation that way, it becomes a lot less focused on the "risk" side, and more focused on the "reward" side.
Prepare, Prepare, Prepare
The single best way to get rid of your nervousness about public speaking is to make sure that you know:
1) Your Audience;
When you look at the risk-reward equation that way, it becomes a lot less focused on the "risk" side, and more focused on the "reward" side.
Prepare, Prepare, Prepare
The single best way to get rid of your nervousness about public speaking is to make sure that you know:
1) Your Audience;
2) Your Speech; and
3) Your Message
Completely down-pat. Each of these is non-negotiable. What might be a great speech for a group of high schoolers would probably fall completely flat at an old-folks' home down the street.
Getting these three things right is so important that it will likely take a good amount of legwork. A lot of people don't have the time to figure out how to get their message across to this audience in a coherent, entertaining, and engaging manner. No worries! You can always hire a professional speechwriter to do the hard parts for you.
Still, even if you do hire outside help, you should work with the speechwriter to ensure that you have a good idea of the delivery the speechwriter had in mind, and to make sure that you've practiced the speech several times before giving it to a large crowd.
Getting these three things right is so important that it will likely take a good amount of legwork. A lot of people don't have the time to figure out how to get their message across to this audience in a coherent, entertaining, and engaging manner. No worries! You can always hire a professional speechwriter to do the hard parts for you.
Still, even if you do hire outside help, you should work with the speechwriter to ensure that you have a good idea of the delivery the speechwriter had in mind, and to make sure that you've practiced the speech several times before giving it to a large crowd.
I'll cover each of these more in-depth in future articles.
Nuts-and-Bolts
Are you more comfortable at a traditional podium, gripping the sides to convey authority? Do you prefer to stride around a stage with a wireless mike to harness some of that nervous energy you might be feeling, and turn it into productive energy?
Do you prefer a fully-written-out speech? An outline? A PowerPoint deck? Or are you more comfortable improvising most of your speech, and having short bullet points to keep yourself on track (not recommended for the novice speaker!).
Do you prefer a fully-written-out speech? An outline? A PowerPoint deck? Or are you more comfortable improvising most of your speech, and having short bullet points to keep yourself on track (not recommended for the novice speaker!).
When thinking aloud about the logistics of your speech, I mentioned "comfort" above twice for a good reason: stick to what you're comfortable with! Don't try to be something you're not. Audiences can smell phonies from a mile away. Unfortunately, discomfort tends to give audiences the impression that you're being less-than-forthright with them. The easiest way to combat discomfort is by ensuring that you're as comfortable as can be while on-stage.
The Elusive "Flow"
Really, when it comes down to it, a speech is a long story you're giving to other people. It should have a beginning, middle, and an end, to be sure. But as I'm sure you've noticed by now, the truly great speeches have something more than just "good structure."
The greats connect with their audience because they get their audience. They know what's on their minds at that very moment, what drives them, what worries them, what keeps them awake at night, lying on a damp pillow.
They're able to effortlessly sprinkle in interesting tidbits, anecdotes, and witty one-liners to keep their audiences engaged, and ultimately lead them through the "meat" of the story, and to the ultimate conclusion that this person knows what he's talking about.
The greats connect with their audience because they get their audience. They know what's on their minds at that very moment, what drives them, what worries them, what keeps them awake at night, lying on a damp pillow.
They're able to effortlessly sprinkle in interesting tidbits, anecdotes, and witty one-liners to keep their audiences engaged, and ultimately lead them through the "meat" of the story, and to the ultimate conclusion that this person knows what he's talking about.
They reward that speaker with thunderous applause, scores of kudos afterward, (potentially) more leads and sales, and the overwhelming satisfaction of a job well-done.
More importantly, if you've never received a standing ovation before in front of hundreds of people, I'd highly recommend it. Be warned: it's like a drug. I'm not even kidding; once you start giving engaging, moving speeches, there are few adrenaline rushes in the world like that moment where you realize you've "got" the audience, and have made their day by providing a great speech, and not wasting their time.
Still getting there? No problem! I'm happy to help, however I can. I'll continue providing answers through this series, books, ebooks, and my services, which can all help take your public speaking to the next level.
For now, though, what's the "biggest" speech you've ever given? It can be speaking in front of hundreds of people at a conference, or delivering the eulogy at a loved one's funeral. Or, even something as simple as speaking in front of a Girl Scout troop--for a lot of folks, that can be an even tougher crowd.
Let me know in the comments, and thanks for reading.
D.J. Gelner is a freelance speechwriter. Want to see how he can help you out? Send him an email at dj@djswriting.com, or call him at 314-541-3405 anytime.
Still getting there? No problem! I'm happy to help, however I can. I'll continue providing answers through this series, books, ebooks, and my services, which can all help take your public speaking to the next level.
For now, though, what's the "biggest" speech you've ever given? It can be speaking in front of hundreds of people at a conference, or delivering the eulogy at a loved one's funeral. Or, even something as simple as speaking in front of a Girl Scout troop--for a lot of folks, that can be an even tougher crowd.
Let me know in the comments, and thanks for reading.
D.J. Gelner is a freelance speechwriter. Want to see how he can help you out? Send him an email at dj@djswriting.com, or call him at 314-541-3405 anytime.
