What are some of the best advice that a seasoned public speaker can give you?
- Focus on the voice, not the message
- Keep it simple
- Always think of your audience
- Show up to give, not to take
There are so many great public speakers all over the world. Some of them are considered the best because of how powerful and inspiring their presentations are.
Excellent public speakers can be found in different countries all around the world, including the Philippines. Public speaking training is held in almost all parts of the country for budding public speakers but even with the vast knowledge that one can absorb from these training sessions, the magic sometimes comes with the advice from the speakers that was born from their own life experiences.
With that being said, here are some of the best advice that seasoned public speakers can give you.
Focus on the Voice, Not the Message
A common mistake by a lot of amateur public speakers is that they tend to focus too intensely on the message that they are aiming to deliver. Most of the time, less experienced speakers tend to prefer creating their speeches with the intention of giving an excessive amount of information just to show how knowledgeable they are. When this happens, speeches become sloppy and over-saturated with information, not to mention the possibility that the speaker would frantically speed through their presentation in order to cover everything they had prepared.
It’s a common rookie mistake. Whatever the topic of your speech is, it would probably be something many other people are at least familiar with. Your listeners will have likely at least read about it somewhere before because they’re obviously interested in it. For these reasons, it would be best to focus on how you present the information instead on focusing on the depth.
By focusing more on the way you present your speech, you’ll be able to find out what makes you unique. Use your insights and experiences to expand on your message—not only will this enhance your message by some degree, it will also make it shine, and become more relatable for your audience.
Keep It Simple
As mentioned above, you don’t have to necessarily overcomplicate your speech to impress your audience. In most cases, it’s actually the opposite.
A complicated speech will only confuse your audience. With this in mind, the best thing to do is to keep your speech as simple as it can be. It should be something that will be understood by most, if not all, of your audience.
Keeping your presentation simple will bring you three distinct benefits. First, you won’t need to worry about confusing your audience, and more importantly, confusing yourself while you speak. Second, a simple message is easy to share, possibly preventing you from committing small mistakes while speaking such as hedging and forgetting key points. Finally, keeping it simple will make it easier for you and your audience to understand and to relate with one another.
Always Think About Your Audience
A great public speaker will always think about their audience. What do they want to hear? How do they want to hear it? Was the speech understandable and enjoyable for them? These are just some of the questions that you can ask yourself to get into the minds of your audience. At the end of the day, you, the public speaker, are sharing your thoughts and opinions on a subject that your audience greatly cares about.
Making your speech about your audience will not only boost your confidence but also make your speech better since you already have an idea on what you have to say to give your audience a good time.
Show up to Give, Not to Take
More often than not, people use public speaking to present or sell products and ideas, to get people to like their pages on social media, or follow them on such platforms. Most people will see these people and get turned off immediately. As one of the most-watched speakers of TedTalks said, these kind of speakers are “takers” and he says that their audience can see through these people right away. When they do, they get turned off almost instantly.
Public speaking can also be considered a performance. You’ve got a speech that was made in order to cater to an audience. Your main goal is to share with them your ideas while making sure that they are enjoying the experience.
The best public speakers don’t focus on collecting likes or finding buyers for their audiences. They are performers who do speeches just to share thoughts worth thinking over, or courses of action worth considering. The primary satisfaction they are getting from this is knowing that they are able to plant inspiration in their audience.
Key Takeaway
In the Philippines, public speaking training is relatively easy to find. They are very helpful for those who want to step into the world of public speaking, but one of the best things about them is that they are opportunities to learn from the experiences from the speakers themselves. Take note of the advice mentioned above and use them to find the public speaker in you!