Category Archives: Speaking

Out with lectures, In with Engagement

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I taped an interview at WCHL radio today (Watch social media for the interview information). When I was in university I was a broadcast communication major and spent almost all of my time in the radio station.

This was before computers. I was using a board and dials to manage sound and reel-to-reel tapes for emergency announcements.

Things are different today! Computers have made things much easier. If you make a mistake you can just delete it out of the way.

In every area of our lives things have changed. That is true for the demands of public speaking. No longer is it enough to just stand in front of a group of people and lecture for 60 minutes. Your audience wants engagement.

Think about what you are doing when you go into a meeting- you text, you check your email on a smart phone, you check your social media- granted, not the best meeting etiquette and you know it happens.

Take a look around the next time you attend a speech or presentation. How many people have their smart phone out? How many of those folks are actively doing something other than listening to the speaker?

Individuals in the 20’s and 30’s have grown up multi-tasking on the smart phones, never far from the nearest video game or some kind of electronic entertainment. You need to break through all of that noise if you want your message to get through.

I’m sure you know the basics

  • Make sure your topic is of interest to your audience
  • Tell entertaining, emotional stories
  • Start your speech/presentation off with a bang that gets everyone’s attention

What else can you do to engage your audience on an even deeper level?

Instead of thinking of your speech as a ‘speech’ think of it as an opportunity to get to know 10, 50, 500 people and for them to get to know you.

If you shift your mindset you will look at your material and your audience in an entirely new way. To get to know someone you need to engage with him or her. That is the key to today’s audience- engagement.

Engagement pulls them away from their smart phone and helps them to know, like and trust you. All of the other elements of your speech must be there and adding engagement will shift you from just a speaker to a speaker that walks away from every engagement with clients and leverages their time.

When technology fails

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I love my cell phone – from the practicality of email and a calculator to the occasional game of Plants vs. Zombies between clients.

I love my laptop-from the ability to create complex spreadsheets to the ability to have information about the most random fact in just seconds.

I love my autoresponder, shopping cart, affiliate tool- from… Wait.. What?!

I just got a message on my cell phone that clients are not getting their dial in information for a free teleseminar! Technology is failing me!

Most of us have a love affair with technology. On a daily basis it makes our lives easier. It makes a virtual world possible. It is the reason I can work from a home office and focus my time on my clients instead of on things like finding the right office space.

Technology is the instrument that can turn an expert in Podunk Texas into a global sensation. It lets me live the life I want. And when it goes wrong, it goes horribly wrong.

Apparently, there was a failure of one technology to properly function with another technology over the last few days (the products will remain nameless to protect the guilty). For me, that means I lost a few dozen registrations for a free teleseminar. As I was scrambling to get my virtual assistant on the problem I started thinking about the big online marketers- the folks that lose thousands of registrations when a product is down for a 24 or 48-hour period.

How do you come back from that? It’s not the end of the world, although until the issue is fixed it feels pretty rough. Most of the time if you let people know what is happening they will help you. Tell the truth- I had a technology issue, please reregister and I appreciate you willingness to take an extra step.

You can’t do anything about the root cause of the problem. You are at the mercy of the tool owner.

All you can do is recover. Most folks today understand that there really are some technology issues that just cannot be helped. We no longer have control over every aspect of what we use to run our businesses. I can’t fix my computer or my cell phone. I can control how I react to technology failures.

There are so many reasons to get stressed out- why worry about what might happen? I really do hear clients say- ‘Well, I don’t want to do X because it might…’. An asteroid might hit the world tomorrow but I’m not losing sleep over it tonight! Don’t worry about what you cannot directly control.

Do your best to set things up in a smart, forward thinking manner then adjust to what happens. You will find that people are forgiving and understanding of technology issues. Everyone has been there.

You can Learn a lot just Practicing Your Speech

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I have been having information chats with folks about workshops- if they had never done a workshop and could ask an expert anything what would they ask? A friend had in interesting comment, she wouldn’t ask anything. She would want someone to tell her that when she practices she needs to stand up.

She (let’s call her D) knew she should practice what she was going to say- KUDOS! And D did practice. But she practiced while sitting at a conference table. D learned when delivering the information that standing is a completely different energy.

It is. Standing changes the way you project, changes your confidence, and forces you to concentrate more fully on what you are supposed to be saying. Try it sometime. Sit at your desk and read something out loud from the Internet.

Now, stand up, read the same information. Unless you are practiced at speaking dramatically over the phone, I am willing to bet the standing version sounds a whole lot more exciting. You may find yourself gesturing or even moving.

Just standing up to practice takes more energy than sitting. If I am feeling really lazy I will sometimes practices presentations sitting at my desk.  And to really get the feel of what I am saying – to ferret out the gestures and dramatic moments, to find the pieces that cry out for audience interaction, clarification or a whole rewrite- standing allows me to feel every aspect of what I am saying.  It is no longer only a cerebral activity. It becomes visceral.

Shouldn’t speaking be a visceral experience for your audience (or participants)? The more emotionally involved they are the more they will remember, the more engaged they are, and they have an experience instead of just a moment listening to some guy at the front of the room.

How do you practice? (Share in comments)

What do you do when your speech time is cut in half?

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My time wasn’t cut in half- 60 minutes turned into 40.  What do you do?

Here’s what you don’t do

  • Don’t keep everyone late simply because your content is sooooo fantastic they simply must hear it- that is a sure fire way to annoy folks and help them forget all of the positive thoughts they had about you and your content
  • Don’t  *itch, and grip and moan to the audience about how you have to rethink things- they don’t care, nor should they. In a perfect world they wouldn’t even know your time was cut short.
  • Don’t talk really fast just so you can get through it all.
  •  Don’t cut a question(s) short during the Q&A simply because you want to hurry up and get to the fantastic close you’ve been working on for 2 weeks.

Your audience still needs to feel like the most important person in the world while you are speaking to them.  (I said person on purpose- you are having a conversation with each individual audience member.)

This scenario is why it is so important to really know your content. The better you know it the easier it is to think on the fly- remove pieces that don’t impact the overall content while including the most impactful points.

Because you don’t want to overwhelm your audience you should remember to eliminate some points altogether. Instead of putting too much information in to 40 minutes, include fewer points with a clear explanation for each.

Approach each point like you only had 40 minutes to begin with- decide to keep it or jettison it. Maybe you only include 1 story or 1 example instead of the 3 you had planned.

Watch your audience, they will tell you if you are providing too much information too quickly. We have all seen that glazed look (of course, not during a speech WE gave!).  Stop and breathe- maybe you didn’t realize how fast you were going.

The bottom line is even if there is no extension cord for the PowerPoint, the room is 20 degrees too hot and you only have 20 minutes instead of 60 you can still pull off a speech that is valuable to the audience. That really is the goal- providing value. Practice and preparation are the keys to pulling off that great speech in the worst of circumstances.

What to do when your presentation imitates life

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I tell a story about how I first realized that I loved public speaking. It’s not one of those feel good everything went perfectly stories. It is an everything went horribly wrong and yet, I felt exhilarated stories.

In my story the PowerPoint I am using suddenly goes black- no projection at all. Yesterday while presenting to a group of business folks my PowerPoint did exactly that. Stopped working completely. My back was to the screen so I had no idea until someone pointed out that my life was imitating my story.

I had to fall back on the training I received when I first started speaking to successful navigate through the rest of my speech. Too often we ‘forget’ or discount that training because we are ‘seasoned’ or (let’s face it) lazy.

Here are the keys that saved that presentation:

  • Practice, practice, practice – few people like to hear it but practice does get you through the rough stuff, I knew what I wanted to say, when I wanted to say it, and how I wanted to do it, I didn’t need the slides to remind or guide me (Thank you! to the first person that ever helped me put together a presentation!)
  • Know your topic- it is not the same thing as practice. When you practice you include delivery cues, pauses for effect, gestures. Knowing your topic means you know which stories pertain to which point and how, exactly what content you are sharing about a point and what is best left for another day. When you know your topic and your timing you don’t need the event planner to tell you there are only 5 minutes left, you already have that internal clock running.
  • Always bring your notes to the stage with you- written out in long hand, bullet point, whatever works for you. In this case I was moving around the room when I learned the slides were down, but I knew my notes were there. If I needed a reference to continue I had it and there is comfort just knowing you have a backup.
  • Collateral (handouts for the audience)- I always provide the audience with a handout. Generally something they can take notes on. My audience was not left staring at a blank screen with no visual guidance and, in a worst-case scenario, I had something I could use as a reference. Handouts are well worth the extra 10 minutes to create them and the time to print them. They are a great tool for visual and kinesthetic learners.

None of this is rocket science and for those of us that always want to ‘be prepared’ it just makes sense. But when I was early in the process of learning the art of public speaking… I didn’t know what I didn’t know. I am grateful to the mentors that pointed out these simple and relevant strategies.

New Revenue Stream for the New Year

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Who doesn’t want to add a new revenue stream to their business? Sometimes the very easiest thing to do is the one we miss. If you do not get paid for public speaking you are leaving money on the stage.

Are you getting a fee for speaking? Are you even asking for a fee? You are an information expert- that means information is your product. When you share product (information) with an audience you should be paid for giving that product to them.

You devote time and effort to crafting your speech, practicing, and creating collateral just like you put time into working with clients. You should get paid for that time.

Are you? Or do you speak for free all of the time? Are you glad you can share valuable information but resenting the time away from clients and family?

Add a new revenue stream next year by getting paid to speak. The first thing you need to do is ask to get paid. That might be the hardest step.  Have a fee ready go when you ask.

“My standard fee for a 45 minute speech is XXXX.”

If they cannot accommodate that fee they may be able to accommodate another and some organizations will provide a small monetary ‘gift’ as a thank you for speaking. You get to determine if the fee/gift is enough to make it worthwhile.

What if you asked to be paid and the organization said they never pay. Time to get creative. You are still providing something of value. Ask if they have a training budget- perhaps they could purchase some of your books to hand out to participants. You get paid for the books- you get some income from the speech.

Ask if you can set up a table at the back of the room to sell products you or your affiliates have that relate to the speech.

At a minimum, you should receive the name and email of the attendees for your list, a testimonial from the event planner and warm referrals to at least two (2) organizations that would use your services. Put all of this on a signed contract.

Speaking is a business. You deserve to be paid for your knowledge. For more information on getting paid to speak check out 9 Steps from Free to Fee and get a jump-start on adding income to next year.

Build Rapport with Teenagers?

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I find myself asking how I relate to those who are not anything like me? Then I realize that really is not fair.

  • They live in the same country I do
  • They speak English
  • They are all in high school (I was too- 20 years ago)
  • They are teenagers (I was too- long ago)

Maybe we are not that different after all.

It is just perspective- the times are different yet many of their ‘struggles’ as teenagers are the same as mine were. They may not see it that way- I probably wouldn’t have when I was a teenager.

I spoke at a local career day to a group of senior high school students. Building rapport is just as important in that situation as it is for any other speech.  Rapport is an often forgotten piece of public speaking.

Know your audience.  Find ways in which you are similar. Use those similarities and common situations to help illustrate points.  For instance, I was speaking to an English class and had been asked to address how important language and grammar are in my business life. The students don’t necessarily relate to my business life. In addition to that information, I shared a story about a college football player and the impact his language had on the audience perception of him.  That they could relate too – they are off to college or technical school next year and very focused on the whole college experience.

It is easy to speak to your target market- it is the other groups that force you to stretch and push your boundaries. Step out of your comfort zone and build rapport with groups outside of your target market. Stretching those muscles will increase your ability to build rapport with any audience.

6 Tips to Keep High School and Middle School Students Interested in Your Presentation

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You have the opportunity to speak to a group of high school and middle school students! How are you going to keep their attention for 45 minutes?

You know they never seem to be still for a moment and even when they are they are listening to their MP3 player and on their PS3 at the same time. Here are 6 tips to keep your students interested.

  • Use multiple presentation mediums- use audio, video and engage them in discussion all in the same presentation, give them a worksheet to complete, lecture for only short amounts of time, actively engage their brains
  • Keep the content moving fast- that is what they are used to and it will keep them interested, don’t focus on a specific point for too long
  • Talk to them- not at them, not as the all-knowing adult
  • Make sure all of your content takes into account their age and experience level- don’t talk about Jimmy Carter, they have no context for who he was, use content they are comfortable with even if you aren’t completely; be specific about your ideas – the leaps of logic we make they may not only because of the difference in age and experience
  • Be willing to flex with them- they may move in a slightly different direction than you originally planned and that is OK, find the connections and you will get them going in the right direction
  • Ignore the fidgety, attention seekers- there is always one, and as long as they aren’t disrupting the entire group let them fidget and talk to themselves; remember it is not about you, focus on everyone else in the room

I presented to 16 high school and middle schoolers last week and kept their attention. Using all of these tips I listed, we had a productive, rewarding discussion- that worked for all of us. Even Mr. Fidget was paying attention.

Good luck!

The Power of Story

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We all have expertise to share. Story can enhance the power of that expertise. I find some speakers just don’t want to include story in their speeches/presentations or they don’t know how to incorporate story.

If you are on the fence about including story I encourage you to rethink your position. As humans we have shared story since we graced this planet. We used story to share myth, teach survival skills and parables, to share our history and cautionary tales.

Individuals will remember a good, emotional story before they remember facts. They will share that story before they share facts. It is just the way humans’ function.

Here is an example of the power of story. I gave a speech this morning, 5 Tips for a Successful Presentation. I started with a story about my first public speaking experience. The experience was horrible and started me on my path as a public speaking coach.

When we got to the questions many of them were about the story- how would I have done things differently, what were the details of what I did, how did people react.  The audience wanted to learn more and was relating their learning to the story. There were some questions related directly to the content but the questions were split about 50/50, content/story.

I did not expect the story to affect the audience so deeply. It illustrates the importance of story, the impact a story can have. If your audience can relate to the story and if it tugs on their emotions (fear, joy, frustration) story can add a level of intimacy and rapport it is difficult to duplicate.

If you don’t use story try it, if you don’t know how to use story work with a public speaking coach to learn.

What do You Think?

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I launched a survey today. I talk about knowing your audience and this is one of the ways you can do just that.

I want to learn what it is YOU want, what you need to be a more successful speaker or presenter.

This is your opportunity to let me know what kind of content will help you. Complete the survey and you could win a FREE hour of consultation with me. You choose the topic, come prepared with questions and I’ll share everything I know.

The last day to complete the survey is Oct. 25.

Thanks for sharing your thoughts!