Public Speaking

Refer our High Quality Management Encyclopedia "Management Universe" at: http://management-universe.blogspot.com/) and refer http://shyam.bhatawdekar.com/ for all the management and leadership literature at one single site.

Also refer: (Presentation Skills)http://shyam.bhatawdekar.net/index.php/2009/12/31/presentation-skills/ or http://presentation-effectiveness.blogspot.com/

Finer Points of Public Speaking

Decide on date, time and city/town of your speech.
Decide on the length of your speech i.e. the duration for which you will speak.
Know your audience well in advance of the actual day of your speech.
Find out what your audience expects from your speech? What are their needs?
Choose an appropriate topic or subject accordingly.
Give your speech a catchy title.
Do good amount of research on the subject and collect authentic and correct information and data. Work out on issues and solutions pertaining to the topic.
Preferably write down the entire speech. Keep the length of the write-up to fit into the time duration of your speech.
Convert the speech into many points and make cue cards. Note down one point on one cue card. Arrange all the cue cards in a sequence and give them the serial numbers.
Decide on the time you will like to give to each point. Write down the minutes you will take to elaborate the point on the respective cue card.
Rehearse your speech.
Sleep well on the night before the day of your speech. Look fully rested.
Look your best on the day of your speech. Good overall grooming is very important.
Look energetic and enthusiastic all the way.
Shave (meant only for man).
You should not smell. Hair should be done tastefully. Nails should be cut. Wash your mouth with a good mouth wash.
Dress appropriately for the occasion. Don’t wear casuals and also, don’t over-dress.
Clothes should be clean, neat and well pressed (wrinkle free).
Clothes should be decent fitting types.
Dress should not be loud and gaudy.
Wear a fresh pair of socks and shoes should be polished.
Reach the venue ahead of time and make sure that the arrangements are as you desired them to be.
Make sure that the microphone and loud speakers are working in case you are going to use them.
If you wish to refer to any video projection during your speech, make sure that the equipment to do so is working.
Present yourself as a confident person as you start your speech.
Believe in yourself. Believe in what you are saying in your speech. Your listeners will tend to believe you that much more.
People have come to listen to you because you are an authority on the topic. So behave like one. Don’t feel shy or apologetic.
Connect to your audience. Let them feel involved. Keep a good level of eye contact with the persons in your audience.
Make the listeners feel that they are the center of attention (and not you).
The language of your speech should be the language the audience understands. Do not use unnecessary jargon. If you have to use any jargon, explain its meaning in a simple to understand language.
Use correct pronunciation and grammar.
For your speech to make the audience spellbound by it, like a piece of music, it should have variety of notes, modulations, tempo, volume level etc. A monotonous speech is sure to make even the most interested listeners to fall asleep.
Right kinds and right timings of pauses and instants of silence, loudness, softness and whispers, fast and slow tempo etc make the main points of your speech stand out and later on, these points are retained and make the desired impressions on the minds of the audience.
You may read out the written speech. But since, normally it is difficult to memorize the entire speech, one has tendency to get their eyes glued to the written speech rather than making eye contacts with the audience and connecting with them.
Therefore, preferably, more effective way is to use the points written on a paper or on the cue cards and elaborate on them in your own words and style rather than just reading out the written speech.
While focusing attention on your audience, make sure that you run your eyes from left to middle to right and then, from right to middle to left and also, from front to back and from back to front. Don’t focus just on one or two persons.
Always address the audience while speaking and do not address an inanimate object like the ceiling or piece of furniture and distant tree or building.
Do not keep pacing or move too much on the stage or the floor and do not keep on dancing on your feet or lean too much on the podium or the table.
Use pleasant hand movements, facial expressions and gestures and other aspects of body language.
Display good sense of humor while delivering your speech. However, never use the adult jokes or toilet humor in public. They are not in good taste.
Apologize if you make a mistake in speaking. Humility is generally appreciated.
All in all, design and deliver your speech such that it leaves an imprint. It should impact and inspire the listeners such that they start pondering over what you have spoken and even take actions to implement the points made out in your speech.

For More Guidance, Assistance, Training and Consultation

Contact: prodcons@prodcons.com

Training in "Public Speaking" and "Presentation Skills" is provided by Prodcons Group's Mr Shyam Bhatawdekar and/or Dr (Mrs) Kalpana Bhatawdekar, the renowned speakers and management consultants and trainers- par excellence, with distinction of having trained over 150,000 professionals from around 250 organizations.

Also refer: (Prodcons Group) http://prodcons-group.blogspot.com/, (Training Programs by Prodcons Group) http://training-development-function.blogspot.com/, (Productivity Consultants) http://productivity-consultants.blogspot.com/

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