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Steve Boyd on line Newsletter SPEAKING
NOTES THAT ARE NOTEWORTHY SPEAKING NOTES THAT ARE NOTEWORTHY Using notes effectively while speaking is a concern of every speaker unless reading a manuscript or speaking from memory. Speaking from notes is by far the most effective of the three methods. Memorization is too time-consuming, and memorizing a speech also puts too much pressure on the speaker. Reading a manuscript should only be done if you have technical information to impart, you don't want to be misquoted by listeners, or you have to give a copy to the press. First, don’t try to hide your notes. Audiences can tell when you are using notes, so make them a part of your delivery. Hold the note card in your hand or put your sheets of paper in an acetate holder; feel free to pick them up to refer to when needed. A lectern allows you to leave the notes there when not using them, or you can even gesture with them in your hands, making the note easy to reference in the middle of an idea. Second, use key words or phrases. Don't use sentences on your notes unless you are quoting someone directly. The key word should trigger the thought you want to make to your audience. If it does not, then it is not a good note. Third, leave lots of white space between lines so that the note is clear to you and easy to see when you refer to your notes. In addition, write notes that are legible to you. I’ve seen many speakers whose notes evidently did not make sense to them because they stumbled over the thought even after looking at their notes. Fourth, practice your presentation using the notes you plan to use in the actual delivery of the speech. You should be familiar and comfortable with your notes. Avoid the temptation to make a new set of notes immediately before you speak. Fifth, anticipate when you will need the note so that you are not looking down as you speak to the audience. Look at your notes when possible as you are pausing between ideas. Thus eye contact is always made when you are presenting your idea to the audience. Eye contact is a mental handshake with the audience; you need eye contact to reinforce the idea as you speak it to the audience. Sixth, use your notes only when necessary. Too often speakers automatically look down at a note after each idea. Only look at your note when you don’t remember what comes next. Notes should be an aid, not a crutch. Remember to nonverbally reinforce a point with gestures or an appropriate pause before looking at your notes. Pauses can be powerful. Seventh, number your notes so that you can easily get back on track if you lose your place or drop your notes. Having them numbered gives you confidence that your notes have continuity. Eighth, color-code your notes so that you can easily pick out your main ideas with one color and support with another color. Perhaps use yet another color for direct quotations. If you follow these suggestions, notes will not be a problem as you deliver your speech. Instead, notes will provide a context to be more self-confident and to have a speaking fluency that will tell your audience that you are prepared and secure in what you are communicating to them. POLISHING YOUR PRESENTATION: Personalization One way to really connect with your listeners is to know your audience well enough that you incorporate a story or other support that relates specifically to them. To do this, interview by phone a few people who will be in your audience and ask for a story from their culture that fits one of the points you are making. They will be honored that you care enough to talk about it in advance. Then you can use the story in your speech and credit that audience member as you tell the story. Another way is to find out what interests a large part of the group and use a metaphor that fits that situation. For example, if the group is really family-oriented, then use a family metaphor. If a group has a medical background, you might use a surgical metaphor. If the group is sports-oriented, then use a sports metaphor. A third way is to ask for recent company or association newsletters and reference from there a success story or event from the organization. Finally, find out what service groups or special community projects the organization supports and use one of those groups or agencies to demonstrate a point you are making. Certainly as a speaker you are called upon to deliver a presentation because you have expertise in an area they want to hear about, so you don’t change the content of your speech each time you speak. You can, however, take your key points and find evidence and illustrative material from the group to which you are speaking that will tailor the speech to that particular audience. You will enhance not only your speaker credibility, but the audience will see the relevance of your material because they recognize how applicable the content is to them. A question I’m often asked is, " How do you deal with the occasional conversation in your audience? " If you speak to enough audiences, you will eventually have a couple of people in your audience who want to talk to each other rather than listen to you. If this happens, don’t panic! At first, ignore the situation. Look toward another part of the room. When you do this, often people around the talkers will make them be quiet. Peer pressure can help a lot. If this does not work, move into their space. This can be a nonverbal admonition that will sometimes quiet them and they will give their attention back to you. Avoid reprimanding them publicly because of the embarrassment to you and the distraction to everyone who is trying to listen to your speech. The rest of the audience will appreciate your poise in being able to ignore the rudeness. BOOK RECOMMENDATION: Author Ridley Pearson A mystery writer I recommend is Ridley Pearson. His mysteries get me caught up in the plot at the very beginning and I can’t put the book down. Often he gives background information in an area I'm not familiar with. For example, his Parallel Lies provides excellent insight into the concepts of super fast trains that might be the transportation of the future. My experience is that you do not need to find the first in the series of mysteries to be caught up in his writing. The speaker's benefit in reading such books is that Pearson provides good models for how to get and hold the attention of an audience. His description of characters and surroundings is riveting and his use of suspense can give you ideas of your own on how to do that in your next presentation. Another benefit to the speaker is that if you get stuck in your preparation of a speech, you can take a break and read a piece of Ridley. You may well find that you've restored the lost creativity needed for continuing with your speech! |
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| Dr. Stephen D. Boyd 31 Winston Hill Fort Thomas KY 41075-1047 Phone: 859-441-6520 | |||||||||
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