Last week I wrote about overcoming the fear of public speaking. This week’s newsletter is about how to be more engaging and impactful when public speaking.
As a leader, many situations require you to do public speaking, and the more senior you get, the more likely you will need to do it. Like with other skills, public speaking is a skill that can be mastered.
If you reflect on the skills you have developed over the years, some will have been easier to learn than others. But through experience, you have refined those skills to a point where you feel confident about them. You developed those skills and can do it with public speaking too and these tips will help.
Address any self-limiting beliefs you have about yourself first. If you fear public speaking or think you are not good at it and didn’t read last week’s newsletter, read it here. Addressing this will make the rest so much easier for you.
Start with the end in mind
When planning and preparing your talk, think about the objective and the outcome you want your audience to gain from it. Don’t only think about what you want them to gain from it, also think about how you want them to feel.
Visualise that you have finished your talk and what your audience is doing. Are they on their feet giving you a standing ovation? Are they leaving feeling inspired and motivated? Have they gained new knowledge and understanding?
Knowing the outcome you want means you can start to think about how to put together your talk to make that happen.
Engage your audience
You want to keep your audience engaged so regularly read the room and look for signs of disengagement. If you notice that people appear disengaged, shift things up a bit. Altering your tone of voice can bring back people’s attention.
Sometimes when we are tired or low in energy, our voices can become monotone and lacklustre. Having an awareness of this happening to you means you can do something to re-energise at that moment.
Suggestions include asking a question or adding movement, or even altering the tone of your voice. Do not go too overboard with movement because this can become distracting.
When I was a leader in an organisation, I remember going to health and safety training that made me want to sleep. The topic taught was important, but the trainer did not engage the audience. I found it difficult to grasp what was shared and then go back to the office and put it into practice.
A year or so later I attended further health and safety training and expected it to be the same. However, I was pleasantly surprised. It was a different speaker who made it engaging, and interactive. I left feeling inspired to implement the learning.
Educate your audience
For your talk to be impactful you want to impart knowledge to your audience that enhances their understanding of the topic. If they understand the topic, they are more likely to engage and participate.
Having this understanding makes it easier for them to apply the knowledge gained from what you have shared with them.
Providing them with relevant, researched, up-to-date, and accurate information builds trust and credibility in you. Something which is needed if you want your talk to be influential and impactful.
Empower your audience
Interact with your audience and encourage them to participate. Listen to what they say and make them feel heard and understood. People like stories so incorporate stories into your talk. Even the driest of topics can be made engaging and inspiring by incorporating storytelling.
Thinking back to what I mentioned about having the end in mind, how can you empower your audience so that they leave feeling how you want them to feel?
Plan, prepare, practice
Planning, preparing, and practicing are essential if you want to deliver an engaging and impactful talk. Adequate planning enables you to structure your talk and get your key points across clearly. It helps you make sure that you achieve your objective and tailor your content to your audience.
As someone who is introverted preparation is key. It enables you to think about how you can respond to the unexpected, do your research, and gather your facts. Knowing your content will help you to feel more confident.
Practising helps you to refine your message and build your confidence. Video recording yourself with your smartphone and playing it back provides feedback you can use to polish your delivery.
