Work Out, Speak Out

When I hear the term ‘working out,’ I’m more apt to think of my New Year’s resolution than public speaking. But there’s an important connection between the two. A light work out before you present will discharge that excess nervous energy that will otherwise destroy excellent remarks.

Last year I was working with an executive in the field of health care. I’ll call him “Ed.” Ed had come to me because, a year earlier, he’d frozen up on stage. He said that suddenly, as he glanced at the audience, a steam roller hit him. He couldn’t breathe. A black circle filled his vision. The room telescoped in on itself, growing darker by the second.

Ever since the panic attack, Ed hadn’t been able to present without taking medication to calm his nerves beforehand. He and I worked together for a few weeks. We tested out various coping mechanisms and he made mild progress … but nothing major. That is, until the topic of running popped up in our conversation.  

Ed sat back in his chair, exhaled, and talked at length about running cross country in college. About how much he loved jogging through the woods. About how being an athlete was fundamental to his identity. And about how he’d let the demands of his job – including 40% travel – stop him in his tracks.

[Photo credit: Jenny Hill]

In the end, what helped Ed to not just face the podium, but excel as a speaker was returning to what he loved. He got back to running trails (and back on the treadmill when traveling). The result? Ed said goodbye to his anti-anxiety meds for good.

Now, to be clear: working out is, by no means, a cure all for glossophobia, the fear of public speaking. But discharging excess energy before you speak will help you manage it. You don’t have to run a marathon, but you could walk briskly around the block or do jumping jacks in your hotel room. Don’t try to exhaust yourself. Just do enough to shake off the jitters and channel that energy into your best performance yet.

I love this tip. Has it worked for you? Email me at Rose@rosespeechwriter.com or reach out on Twitter at @RKing_Portland. -- Rose

To Move or Not to Move

I was recently working with a client on a speech and he asked me about moving around the stage: should I walk around up there? How much? And where do I go exactly?

In general, speakers should begin and end their remarks in the center of the stage without any movement. This is especially important during the intro. That’s the precise moment when you’ll be sharing some of the most critical parts of your presentation: the headline of your speech and an overview of what’s to come.  In addition, that’s when the audience is forming their first impression of you. If you move too much (or pace back and forth), the audience will find your movement distracting.

During the rest of the presentation, speakers should be deliberate about walking around on stage. Specifically, I recommend doing so for the following 3 reasons*:

[Photo Credit: Antoine Schibler]

• To Tell a Story – “When I was 8 years old ….” A great time to move closer to the audience is when you’re telling a story. If you lower your voice and slow down your rate of speaking, trust me, you’ll have them in the palm of your hand.

• To Make a Transition – “Fast forward 9 months …” A great time to walk across the stage is when you’re transitioning between major ideas or themes. By doing so, your body language reinforces what you’re saying.

• To Illustrate an Action – “I stepped up to the plate and heard Dad yell ….” Finally, showing an action can make your speech more memorable. In this case, you might step forward and tap home plate with an imaginary bat. Don’t overdo it. You’re a speaker, not an actor. Just a few key gestures will go a long way.

Should you do all three of these techniques? Probably not. Instead pick the one that’s most appropriate for what you’ll be saying and, above all, that’s natural for you. Said differently, there’s no set formula. You don’t want to look like a robot on stage, moving 3 feet to the left then 5 feet to the right. Instead, your goal should be to come across as personable: just one human being trying to connect with another. Movement that’s both intentional and natural can help you do just that. 

*Note: techniques adapted/modified from Washington Post article Nov 2015.

The Spot Light Effect

I use a number of techniques to help people who are nervous about speaking in public. Taking a few deep breaths before stepping behind the podium helps some. Other people rehearse ten, maybe twelve times, becoming so familiar with the material that their jitters fall away. Still others benefit from hearing about the spot light effect, the notion that the audience is probably paying less attention to you than you might think! 

[Photo Credit: Paul Green]

I first read about this idea in Amy Cuddy’s book, Presence: Bringing Your Boldest Self to Your Biggest Challenges. She talked about a major league baseball player who felt self-conscious when he stepped up to the plate. Seeing his face (and batting average!) plastered across the two-story scoreboard made him anxious. Some of my clients have expressed similar feelings when they’re asked to speak in public.

Here’s where the spot light effect comes in. Dozens of experiments show that we generally overestimate how much attention we think other people are paying to us. One of my favorite involves a study in which college students were asked to wear t-shirts sporting a picture of Barry Manilow. Researchers asked them to estimate what percentage of their peers they thought had noticed the embarrassing t-shirts. They said about half. In reality, only about a quarter of their peers noticed the Manilow t-shirts. In some studies, the number was as low as 10 percent.

You can read about these studies here but, in terms of public speaking, two takeaways are worth noting. The first is relax. Chances are the audience isn’t eying you as closely as you think. The second is to remember that you’re competing for their attention. They may be thinking about their daughter at school or daydreaming about their recent trip to Hawaii.  On top of that, they’re probably texting and tweeting. That’s all the more reason for you to prep great material, practice your delivery, and demand their attention with engaging and compelling remarks.

Looking for another, creative way to reduce anxiety? Consider bird songs! Check out Dale Garrett’s blog, “Why Bird Music is Great for Relaxation, Stress, and Anxiety.” In addition, please click here to subscribe to my blog, reach out via email at Rose@rosespeechwriter.com, or follow me on Twitter at @RKing_Portland. -- Rose

Priming

During the holidays, I heard lots of "mini speeches." Last week my father-in-law offered a toast at the dinner table. Yesterday a friend talked about appreciating our time together. Both were beautiful little tributes: kind and heartfelt. The next time you want to say a few words but are holding back, consider a technique called “priming.”

Joe Maggie, a professor at NY University, uses priming to help people under stress. Before doing a nerve-racking activity (like public speaking!), he encourages people to remember a moment when they felt powerful & confident. And to that I'd add this: reflect on a time when you felt good about yourself. Perhaps it was after you volunteered at a food pantry or made chicken soup for a sick neighbor. Maybe it was how you felt after a long run or doing yoga.

By reflecting on a moment when you were your best self, you'll reduce your anxiety about speaking in public. It’s not a magic bullet. It won't quell all your nerves or shake free the stress of everyday life. But it will help you feel more relaxed and confident. Adding a few deep breaths is important as well. Give it a try. When you’re moved by the spirit, “prime the pump” first then share your thoughts aloud. My guess is that your friends and family will appreciate what you have to say.

 

Have a question about your next speech? Email me at Rose@rosespeechwriter.com. If you'd like to learn more speaking tips, please click here to subscribe. Thanks! -- Rose

[Photo credit: Deniz Altindas]

3 Tips for a Killer PechaKucha

PechaKucha, the Japanese word for chit chat, is a presentation of 20 slides, each shown for 20 seconds. (Total time is 6 minutes, 40 seconds). Because the slides advance automatically, the format forces speakers to be concise ... otherwise, they fall woefully behind their slide deck.

What I love about PechaKucha is that it encourages people to get right to the point -- and then move on. We've all heard speakers ramble on stage. They wander down one rabbit hole after another. Often they haven't taken the time to key in on their main ideas before the speech. As a result, their audience struggles to weed out the "tangents" and "asides." Before long, they're tweeting or texting on their cell phone. The speaker has lost them. 

How, then, can you give a killer PechaKucha? 

Tip #1 - LESS IS MORE - Long before you take the stage, you need to know the one or two main ideas per slide that you'd like to share. This takes time and, frankly, it's tough. But if you don't "do your homework," you'll try to cram in too much info. The result? You'll speak rapid fire and you'll lose your audience. You only have 20 seconds for each slide, so you have to be selective. Ruthlessly so. In the end, I encourage you to give priority to the "headlines" you want to share on each slide and, remember, less is more.

Find vivid photos like this one of fireworks in Singapore. My favorite source of pictures is Unsplash. [Photo credit: Nitin Mathew]

Tip #2 - COMPELLING IMAGES - The best PechaKuchas have powerful images. You can find quality, high-resolution photos here or here. These pics are free and have no copyright restrictions. They also have searchable databases so you can find the right picture quickly.  (I love these sites so much, in fact, that I get their weekly emails.) For your presentation, it's fine for some slides to have a single word, short phase, or compelling statistic. But your slides shouldn't be cluttered with text. No bullet lists. No dense paragraphs. No special effects. Instead, I recommend following the slide guidelines used in TED Talks. Essentially, big, moving high quality images that reinforce the point you're making.

Tip #3 - PRACTICE - This format is unforgiving because the slides move ahead whether or not you're ready. In the last PechaKucha I attended, 9 of the 10 speakers fell behind in their presentations. Meanwhile the slides, on automatic advance, surged ahead. Folks on the stage kept glancing back at the screen, flailing their arms, and stumbling on their words. They weren't sure how to get back on track. The audience giggled when the first two speakers fell behind; after that, the joke wasn't as funny. Now, no two speakers are alike, but I generally recommend running through this type of presentation (with your slides) at least 5 times before you deliver it. More if possible. You need to know the main idea for each slide, how to jump forward if needed, and what you're going to do (pause) if you get ahead of your slides.

Want to learn more practical hacks of public speaking? Please click here and scroll down to subscribe. Thanks! -- Rose

Save the Cat!

Save the Cat!

Watch any major blockbuster movie & you'll notice a little trick used by screen writers. The protagonist will do something that's, well, just plain nice. A professor might say "thanks" to an intern. A Dad might hug his son. A teacher might compliment her student. The act is often so subtle that it doesn't register consciously, but it sure does subconsciously! This is the "save the cat" moment. It gets us, the audience, rooting for the hero. It often happens in the first few minutes of a movie. It's a pretty ingenious technique, one that I learned from the amazing book, Save the Cat, by Blake Snyder. 

Your Take-Away

Be nice when you first take the stage. Project the image of someone who's grateful to be there, respectful of the audience, and humble about your abilities (however superhero like). So ...

If the last speaker was great, start by complimenting her. One thing I often do is tell the audience to interrupt me at any time. "This is YOUR session," I assure them. "I want to make our time together as helpful as possible."  In some 10 years of public speaking, I've never once been interrupted by a question.

On the flip side, if things go wrong, don't overreact. For example, if your slides are dorked up, don't belittle the poor IT guy. (Truth be told, visual aids that don't work are your fault ... You should have checked 'em earlier.)  Keep calm, poised, and polite.

The bottom line is this. Don't pander to any audience. Ever. Instead, just remember what your Mama taught you. Play nice. If you keep it simple and subtle, you'll save the cat.

Want to learn more "tips and tricks" of great speakers? Please click here & scroll down to subscribe. Thanks! -- Rose