Most people hate giving speeches, let’s be honest. With rare exception, most school students are filled with dread before they have to deliver book reports aloud or explain what they did over their summer vacations. This discomfort barely wanes in adulthood, too.
So how do the great speakers of the world—the charismatic tech CEOs, the televangelists, the politicians—get to be so good and make it look so effortless? As you might have already guessed, none of these orators are winging it. They’ve prepared, practiced, and perfected everything from the content of their talks to the style they employ. Even off-the-cuff, impromptu remarks come from ideas they’ve honed and tested dozens of times before. Most of all, perhaps, they do so with a confidence and a conviction that makes them seem like they’re oozing credibility. After all, many speakers are trying to sell you something—and you know this—but somehow they come off convincing and genuine.
Being well prepared, from rehearsing the structure of a presentation or learning the ins-and-outs of the information to prepare for questions, goes a long way. Any person ever given the task of public speaking knows all about the index cards, all about staring at himself in the mirror, all about practicing in front of family and friends. There’s one component of preparation, however, that gets overlooked, as Shep Hyken describes in his article, Three Must-Do’s To Deliver An Amazing Speech, you must “Know your audience”.
Hyken describes quizzing the client about the audience and even mingling with the attendees before the presentation to learn more about them, and how some of what he learns makes it into his speech. This is important for a few reasons: first, you humanize individual audience members rather than seeing them all as an amorphous, intimidating group; second, you get a sense of how knowledgeable they already are; and lastly, you might pick up small tidbits from your conversations that you can call back to during your talk (e.g. “Millie was telling me about how excited she gets when she convinces a customer to accept the extended warranty”).
These three reasons will end up being boons to your speechmaking: you’ll feel more comfortable, know what level you need to speak to the audience at (so you don’t talk over anyone’s head, or down to them), and have genuine ways of relating to individual audience members. Your speeches will be more confident, dynamic, and personal as a result.
You may never like giving speeches, may always feel those butterflies ahead of your talk; but taking the time to know your audience will ensure that you’re competent at giving them, and practice will make perfect—or as close as can be. And that’ll be more than enough.
The ability to hold court with a room or your peers or employees is an important leadership skill. The Brandt Group offers a variety of resources and classes on effective management and organization. Reach out to us today and let’s get started on elevating your presentation skills today.
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