A Professional Speaker Sets the Tone for the Message

As a professional speaker, everything you do the minute you walk into the room sets the tone for your message. Without even speaking one word, you can determine just how many people you will reach because their engagement to your message depends on you; not on them. You can have a great topic to speak on and great presentation skills, but without communication the passion you have about your topic, none of it really matters!

Go before your audience expecting to make an impact! People aren’t interested in what you know. They want your information for themselves and passion is like the “grease” that lubricates that passage of information! Do you expect that your audience will receive what you have to say? Do you communicate that you’re excited to be there and you’re also excited that they are there as well?

Be mindful of the needs of your audience. As a professional speaker, we can get caught up with our message because you know it’s what your audience needs. The problem with that train of thought is that it leaves one key person out of the equation – your audience member. Prepare yourself beforehand to figure out what your audience may want to know or needs to know and then deliver that message.

Change things up for maximum impact! There are going to be times when you can’t stay stuck to your outline. Learn to improvise and adjust to the needs of your audience. Find ways to engage them as you proceed throughout your message. Do you remember in school that one teacher you had that you could never seem to connect with? Students were falling asleep in class and the teacher still plodded on with their message! How effective is that? Change your presentation and tailor it to engage your audience no matter where they might be! Don’t stay stuck in a routine!

Relate to your audience. Relating to your audience goes beyond just speaking to them. It encompasses everything from the greeting you give, the way you dress and your tone of voice you use to address them. Part of relating to your audience means knowing who they are and what appeals to them. You’ll have to research beforehand who your audience members are. If you do this, you’ll be positioning yourself to be more relatable to them.

Passion is the key that opens their hearts and minds to receive what you have to say! If you’re passionate about your topic, that will come across in your speech by default. Conversely, if you lack passion about your topic, that too will also come across. Do you really believe in what you’re talking about? Do you see the value that you and your message have to offer your audience? When you practice your speech, do you motivate yourself? Just about every professional speaker starts off practicing by looking at themselves in the mirror! Try doing that and take a good look at what you see!

You are the key to a successful delivery of your message. If you want to see results, understand that you set the tone in your meeting and it’s up to you to maintain control of that tone!

How to Deal with a Negative Audience in Professional Speaking

At one time or another, you will have to deal with a negative audience member or group. How do should you handle that kind of situation and still keep a professional appearance? The first goal to keep in mind is that you have a message to communicate and that is your job! Your goal is to bring information to the rest of the group whether or not they want to receive your message. The mindset you should have is that you are well able to communicate that message and you’re going to do it in a professional way. Here are some tips to keep you on track as you deal with a negative audience.

1. Know your stuff. Knowledge is power and so is preparation. Do you know your subject matter well enough to answer impromptu questions? If not, you should. Review the material and ask yourself potential questions that might come up. Look for inconsistencies in information within your presentation and then remove them. Prepare answers to potential questions.

2. Don’t react to negative comments or questions. You are the professional and you are the “guru” of information concerning the topic you’re speaking on. Reacting negatively destroys any positive images that your audience has of you. Believe it or not, your audience is not thinking “Oh poor speaker being heckled by audience member Joe!” Don’t give in to emotion because that’s not part of your equation. Stick to the topic at hand and take the stance that you are the information “guru” regarding the subject matter!

3. Always answer all questions. Avoiding difficult questions also questions you’re validity as a subject matter expert. One of your goals as a speaker is to gain the support of your audience. You want them jumping on the bandwagon idea that you’re pitching to them. In the process, you’ll want to eliminate anything that will cause you to lose your credibility.

4. Maintain your control. Responding to your negative audience with the same negative emotion will cause you to lose control of your topic. Focus on the topic at hand. Train your mind to deliver the message you were hired to deliver instead of letting emotional antics get in the way. A developed speaker is one who has control over his/her emotions.

5. Be prepared for the next potential negative encounter. Having one negative speaking experience certainly prepares you for the next. Instead of focusing on the negative situation, take a step back and begin to learn from what happened. Perform a self-evaluation. What did you learn?

6. Engage your negative audience member or group. A negative audience or member is one who is disconnected with your presentation. It should be your goal to connect with as many people as possible and to make your subject come alive in their minds that what you present is possible.

Train yourself to react professionally. In doing so, you’ll be establishing yourself as a leader and as a subject matter expert. Don’t let negative questioning override what you have to communicate – look at it as being just a learning experience. When you do that, you’ll be well on your way to becoming a top-notch professional speaker!

How to Feel Confident in Front of Your Audience

The fear of public speaking is one of the top fears that people have. Statistics show that over 41% of people have some level of fear or anxiety with regards to speaking in front of an audience. This fear often manifests as excessive sweating, sweaty palms, increased heart rates, blanking out (memory loss), nausea and sometimes difficulty breathing. There are many speakers who have been in front of audiences for years and they still deal with anxiety to some degree.

Since having this fear often has no bearing on whether you have to do a presentation or not, you’ll have to find some ways to overcome your anxiety. The first step is to know that you are not alone and that you can prepare in advance so that the level of fear you feel is significantly reduced. Here are some other interesting statistics.

- Proper presentation and rehearsal of your message can reduce your fear by about 75%.

- Utilizing breathing techniques can reduce your anxiety by another 15%.

- Preparing for your mental state can reduce your fear the remaining 10%.

With these statistics in mind, here are some preparation tips to help you relax and reduce how you feel before going in front of your audience.

1. Know the environment you will speak in. Become familiar with the area by arriving early and walking around. Know how much space you have and the physical distance between you and your audience. As you acclimate yourself to your stage, you will find yourself feeling more comfortable.

2. Know your audience. You should find out who comprises your audience and do some research to find out their likes and dislikes. When they enter the room, greet them and take time to get to know some faces.

3. Know your presentation inside and out. If you don’t know what you’ll be presenting how can you expect yourself to feel fearless?

4. Implement breathing techniques to help you relax. Breathing techniques have been scientifically proven to invigorate the body and help you get rid of nervousness.

5. See yourself on stage before you actually get there. Replay images of your successful presentation in your mind. If you visual success, you’ll find it.

6. Know that your audience wants you to succeed. Your success means they get what they want and need. If they’ve paid money to attend your presentation, they have a personal stake in your success. If you’re providing training, they have a personal stake in your success. If you’re delivering a graduation speech at a local university, the graduating class has a personal stake. Get the idea? Your audience wants you to succeed.

7. Don’t draw attention to your being nervous. Many people won’t even realize that you are nervous. Most times you will find that while you have your audience’s attention, they are really thinking about themselves. They are absorbing what you say and processing that into how that relates to them.

8. Know that there is a purpose to your message. You have a message to deliver. Sometimes it’s a cause that you are passionate about. Other times, it may be training that your company needs you to give.

Preparation is the key to your success! Through preparation, you can also overcome most if not all of the feelings of fear that you might have so prepare, prepare, prepare!

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