No matter what business you are in, there will be a time when you have to present some ideas to a group, or maybe even make a speech at a wedding or personal event. These ‘rules’ apply to any presentation you have to do, whether it be a keynote address or a small gathering.
If you are a CEO or meeting planner or senior manager it’s important that you pay attention to some of these rules, as your team may be more inspired with this process approach to a presentation. Many times a CEO or manager stands up and wants to inspire the team but fails to do anything except TELL the how passionate they are, yet if you were in the audience listening, you would never realize it!
I became a speaker after meeting Ron Tacchi at the first conference I ever presented. He listened as the MC and when I had finished said “you should be a speaker” and I said “what’s a speaker?” Needless to say he had a lot of coaching to do with me and bless him that he did! For the next 5 years he taught me so many things I rarely hear now.
On top of that I have studied with Michael Grinder (www.michaelgrinder.com) who is an ‘educators educator’; a master of non verbal communication and the process of delivering content so it’s memorable and effective. Michael is a must to study with if you are serious about being a great speaker. So here we go with the ‘rules’!
These ‘Successful Speaking Rules’ apply to any keynote or speaking presentation you have to do any where to any number of people!
1. They have Fun!
Ron (my mentor) drilled into me that if I have fun, the audience will have fun. No matter how serious your content or how professional you need to be, you can always have fun.
2. They connect
It’s a conversation NOT a speech or a keynote. The purpose is to connect! Successful speakers connect to their audience and can even get them to connect with each other! Think about the best speakers you have ever seen. They are the ones who seem to be talking directly to you, that’s a conversation, not a speech.
3. They make people feel good
People don’t remember facts and figures. People will remember how you made them feel. Successful speakers touch hearts with stories and experiences or memories that will make the audience feel some positive emotion.
4. They are ‘themselves’
Forget about your fears and judgments, of how you look and how stupid you sound or if you just made a mistake or if you forgot something, just be real! The more authentic you are in this conversation, the more your audience will relate to you. Our work is to serve others and be useful to them; to give them what they need, not to worry about ourselves!
5. They create an experience
Successful speakers create experiences for people, they don’t just deliver a ‘speech’.
If you can create an environment in which people can feel safe; they feel they can join in and interact (even if they are reluctant); in which they can learn and remember information that is packaged in a way that is memorable; in which they have fun and laugh, where they have an AH HA moment which inspires them to change, then you will be a successful speaker!
To read more tips on successful speaking download the whole article here: 12 Rules of being a GREAT speaker
By Amanda Gore, Zooties!
