Public Speaking has been my personal development path to phenomenal growth for more than twenty years now. I am not alone. There are millions of people all over the world who engage in some form of speaking to the public every day as a means of earning income and most of them enjoy it. Read More→
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Archive for mistakes
Thursday,
May
20th,
2010
The wife had spent hours preparing a beautiful meal for the evening guests. As she took out the rich cream dessert from the refrigerator to lots of ‘oohs’ and ‘aahs’ disaster struck. The dish accidentally slipped and did a bottoms up transforming the perfectly decorated sweet into an indescribable splodge on the floor.
The lesson? Excellent preparation and contents can be destroyed by Read More→
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Categories : Misc Speaking Topics, Public Speaking Mistakes
Tags : Bad Habits, mistakes
Monday,
April
26th,
2010
Many people who speak in front of groups could be more effective communicators if they used a microphone. If the audience has to struggle to hear you, it will be difficult for you to communicate your message effectively. Many things can make it difficult for the audience to hear you, such as a noisy air conditioner or a loud group in the adjoining room. Hearing and understanding you can also be difficult if the people in the audience are not native speakers of the language you’re presenting in, or if you’re presenting new and technically complicated information.
Using a microphone effectively can help you Read More→
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Tuesday,
March
16th,
2010
It’s that time of year again! What time? you ask. It’s the time of year I celebrate my birthday by doing the same number of push ups that equal the year I’m celebrating. It seemed like a good idea when I turned 30, but I’m guessing I’m going to have to look for a new way to celebrate sometime soon. The challenge this year is to do 40 consecutive push-ups. The outlook is bleak.
Because I wasn’t sure if I would make 39 push ups last year, I wrote a list of 39 Things I’ve Learned About Public Speaking.
I don’t want to repeat last year’s list, so I’ve come up with a new list… 40 Fatal Public Speaking Mistakes. It’s not that the mistakes will kill you, but they will definitely hurt your presentation.
1.) Don’t practice. Just wing it and hope everything falls into place.
2.) Drink ice water and dairy products before your presentation. Who doesn’t want to produce more phlegm and clear their throat a lot during a speech?
3.) Apologize in advance for being boring/nervous.
4.) Create your slides before you’ve nailed down your content.
5.) Skip audience analysis.
6.) Tell a lot of irrelevant stories about your kids, spouse, nephews, etc…
7.) Keep walking from one side of the room to the other for the entire presentation.
8.) Try to sound motivational by speaking loudly the entire time.
9.) Insult politicians, businesses, and other easy targets so you can get a quick laugh. Just hope they don’t have supporters or employees in the audience.
10.) Dress inappropriately for the event.
11.) Speak quickly so you can get more information into your speech in half the time.
12.) Stand in one spot while rocking back and forth from heel to toe (like a rocking chair).
13.) Stand in one spot while swaying from side to side (like a pendulum).
14.) Start the speech by telling the audience you haven’t done this presentation in a long time and will probably get lost along the way.
15.) Use slides that say the exact same thing you’re telling the audience.
16.) Keep turning your back to the audience and speaking to the screen.
17.) Don’t arrive early to set up your room. Show up a few minutes before and expect everything to be set up perfectly.
18.) If you’re using a microphone, skip the sound check. Just ask people if they can hear you when you start your speech.
19.) Start your speech by reading the “Starfish” story from “Chicken Soup for the Soul.”
20.) Use a lot of acronyms your audience won’t be able to remember.
21.) Use a lot of big words to show off your vocabulary. Who cares if no one knows what you’re saying?
22.) If your audience disagrees with you, try to convince them by being extra passionate about your position.
23.) Go over the time you’ve been given to deliver your speech. This works well just before lunch.
24.) Don’t research the statistics you use in your speech. Just assume they’re correct because you heard someone else use them.
25.) Steal stories from other speakers and make yourself the main character.
26.) When reading a speech, hold onto the lectern for dear life and don’t look up.
27.) Ask the audience to share their deepest feelings with people they’re meeting for the first time.
28.) Ignore the mood in the room and jump straight into your presentation. It will show the audience how tuned in you are.
29.) When using statistics, let the audience figure out how those statistics apply to them.
30.) Say “um” a lot so you’ll sound more “authentic.”
31.) Keep checking your wristwatch every few minutes. The audience will be curious about where you have to be after the speech?
32.) Assume the professor pose (one arm across your body and one hand holding your chin) so no one questions your knowledge.
33.) Give an infomercial on your product or service instead of speech that provides useful information.
34.) Forget vocal variety. Just use the same tone of voice and volume regardless of what you’re speaking about.
35.) Start your speech by complaining about the weather, your hotel, breakfast, aches, pains and anything else you can think of. Everyone loves a whiner.
36.) Mispronounce the names of the VIPs in your audience. Better yet, call them a different name altogether!
37.) Since body language is supposed to make up for 55% of your message, use a sparkling smile and huge gestures to cover up your lack of preparation.
38.) Insult people in the audience because they’re not as enthusiastic about your topic as you are.
39.) Use examples that are sexist and racist generalizations.
40.) Don’t practice. I know this was #1, but it’s important enough to repeat again. Failing to prepare for your speech is the most fatal public speaking mistake you can make.
If you want to avoid making the 40 Fatal Public Speaking Mistakes, I suggest you download a free copy of my “Successful Speeches Toolkit.” It will give you the inside scoop on how to give a better speech and get better results. Visit http://www.wellwrittenwellsaid.com/freetoolkit.html to get your workbook and search tool.
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John Watkis is a freelance speechwriter, speaking coach and keynote speaker who helps his clients use the right words at the right time in the right way so they can educate, influence and inspire their audiences. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=John_Watkis
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Categories : Misc Speaking Topics, Public Speaking Mistakes
Saturday,
February
20th,
2010
Looking for a way to ruin that perfect speech? How about a tried-and-true method to disengage with your audience? Tired of people asking you to speak again? What if I told you that following just one bad course of action could help you with all of these goals? How much would you pay for that advice? $12.00? $17.94? One Million Dollars?
Well here it is… free of charge (shh!):… wait for it… Give out too much information. <– That’s the ticket. Now you’re probably wondering, “Hey Rob, what are the 3 best ways to do that?” I’m glad you asked!
First… cram too much material into the time allotted… Imagine the perfect mutual fund speech: First point, the entire history of mutual funds. Second point, what mutual funds are. Final point, how to invest in mutual funds for your future. Time? not just 5-7 minutes… no… no… you extend this gem out to 6-8 minutes. Sweet!
Seriously, don’t be afraid to just talk about one fraction of one topic in your presentation. i.e. Pick history, and just talk about how the mutual fund got its start in the ’70s (or whenever they came into being). Now, people will be able to absorb what you’re talking about and understand your points. Bonus! You can talk about the current state of mutual funds in a future speech, and your audience will remember that you were informative last time, so they’ll listen this time too.
Second… Keep talking until you’ve said everything you can think of, no matter how long it takes. This is the best idea, because your audience is trapped! They wouldn’t dare walk out while you are speaking about this topic! You are the King, or Queen, or Jack… whatever. The point is you own the stage Ace, so they need to pay that rent and listen until you’re done, right?
Seriously, your audience is probably expecting a set time presentation, and a reasonable amount of information to be provided in that time frame. Make your promise, i.e. “You’re going to learn the 2 steps to investing in mutual funds”. Then don’t blabber on about anything that doesn’t meet that promise. Even if it makes you cool. When in doubt… drop it out. No audience ever gets mad at a speaker who finishes early. Ever!
Finally… Look at your watch in the middle of the presentation, and just stop talking! No conclusion. Or better yet, just say “Thank you.” and step off the stage. Victory!
Seriously, you should open your presentation with your second strongest material, and close with your best material. You can’t do that properly if you just stop before you get to your conclusion. You should practice your conclusion, watch your time, and avoid “added” extra content in the middle. Don’t set yourself up to drop it off of the conclusion.
Now! You know my secrets to less communication! Talk more… say less! It’s a winning combination. Take the time to add useless drivel and pointless content to your next speech, and your audience will be sure to ask for me to speak in your place next time! Victory!
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Rob Christeson is an IT Project Manager, freelance writer and speaker based in Wichita, Kansas. His Talk to the Human™ blog is based on the premise that while on-line social networking, e-mail and text can be very useful for building contacts and staying in touch, nothing beats real live human communication when you need to get stuff done.
Visit his professional website using either of the links below:
http://www.robchristeson.com
http://www.talktothehuman.com
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Rob_Christeson
Comments (3)
Categories : Public Speaking Mistakes
Tags : mistakes
Saturday,
November
14th,
2009
Looking for a way to ruin that perfect speech? How about a tried-and-true method to disengage with your audience? Tired of people asking you to speak again? What if I told you that following just one bad course of action could help you with all of these goals? How much would you pay for that advice? $12.00? $17.94? One Million Dollars?
Well here it is… free of charge (shh!): …wait for it… … … … Give out too much information. <– That’s the ticket. Now you’re probably wondering, “Hey Rob, what are the 3 best ways to do that?” I’m glad you asked!
First … Cram too much material into the time allotted. … Imagine the perfect mutual fund speech: First point, the entire history of mutual funds. Second point, what mutual funds are. Final point, how to invest in mutual funds for your future. Time? not just 5-7 minutes… no… no… you extend this gem out to 6-8 minutes. Sweet!
Serious, boring part: Don’t be afraid to just talk about one fraction of one topic in your presentation. i.e. Pick history, and just talk about how the mutual fund got its start in the ’70s (or whenever they came into being). Now, people will be able to absorb what you’re talking about and understand your points. Bonus! You can talk about the current state of mutual funds in a future speech, and your audience will remember that you were informative last time, so they’ll listen this time too.
Second … Keep talking until you’ve said everything you can think of, no matter how long it takes. This is the best idea, because your audience is trapped! They wouldn’t dare walk out while you are speaking about this topic! You are the King, or Queen, or Jack… whatever. The point is you own the stage Ace, so they need to pay that rent and listen until you’re done, right?
Serious, boring part: Your audience is probably expecting a set time presentation, and a reasonable amount of information to be provided in that time frame. Make your promise, i.e. “You’re going to learn the 2 steps to investing in mutual funds”. Then don’t blabber on about anything that doesn’t meet that promise. Even if it makes you cool. When in doubt… drop it out. No audience ever gets mad at a speaker who finishes early. Ever!
Finally… Look at your watch in the middle of the presentation, and just stop talking! No conclusion. Or better yet, just say “Thank you.” and step off the stage. Victory!
Serious, boring part: You should open your presentation with your second strongest material, and close with your best material. You can’t do that if you just stop before you get to your coclusion. Practice your conclusion, watch your time, and avoid extra content in the middle. Don’t drop it off of the end.
Now! You know my secrets to less communication! Talk more… say less! It’s a winning combination. Take the time to add useless drivel and pointless content to your next speech, and your audience will be sure to ask for me to speak in your place next time! Victory!
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Rob Christeson is currently the Lieutenant Governor Marketing for Toastmasters International in Kansas and Western Missouri, including 105 clubs. He has mentored numerous speakers to increase their success through better presentation skills. He can be reached online at www.TalkToTheHuman.com.
To learn more about Toastmasters, visit www.toastmasters.org.
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Categories : Misc Speaking Topics, Public Speaking Mistakes
Thursday,
November
12th,
2009
Do you remember being stuck in a room listening to a speech and thinking how bad the speaker was? I think we have all been there!
Based on an informal survey of my own memories of what I thought and heard other listeners say, I came up with 8 most glaring mistakes made in public speaking:
• Coming across as pompous or patronizing
• Giving the impression they’d rather be someplace else
• Sounding tentative
• Speaking in a monotone voice
• Talking on a topic that does not interest the audience
• Making the speech too long
• Reading along with PowerPoint slides
• Giving all theory with no human stories or emotions
Let me ask you; when you read that list, do you think women are more likely than men to commit those errors?Most people would say the opposite; women have an easier time being attuned to their audience, including emotions in their material, and coming across with empathy.
Yet it’s not an uncommon belief that women speakers have a harder time being successful at public presentations. Why the apparent contradiction?
The culprit is the “big mama” of public speaking sins — sounding tentative.
Giving a public speech is a form of performance; and as such, it requires having and transmitting a lot of charisma. That in turn, requires having a lot of confidence.
And what gives confidence? Experience and sometimes a bit of thick skin; both of which can be lacking in a woman speaker’s “toolkit.”
The antidote? The right kind of preparation helps. It allows you to be willing to give speeches and to do so with a greater chance of success. That in turn, will create a willingness to keep public speaking.
And the more times you give a successful speech, the easier it is to overcome the times when the audience did not respond as well as you would have liked.
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Want to know more about how to be a success and overcome any fear of public speaking especially as a woman speaker? Get the free report, the “5 Secrets to Solving Every Woman’s Nightmare on Public Speaking,” at http://PublicSpeakingTipsForWomen.com
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Helen_Dee
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Categories : Misc Speaking Topics
Friday,
November
6th,
2009
“I blew it. It was the worst performance in recent memory.
I’d like a do-over.”
Have you ever said these words or anything similar, about one of your performances? In my case it was a business presentation. Perhaps it was an internal presentation before your boss and peers. Maybe a critical sales presentation before a prospective customer or existing client. What do you do when you know you blew it? Do you beat yourself up constantly? As if this would help.
Recently, I blew it. I failed to give my best presentation. From my standpoint it was awful. From the audience’s point of view, it was good. You see, I possess enough professional skills that even my worst is better than most. A good friend of mine, Lisa Jo Landsberg said, “Your 50% is better than everyone else’s 200%. You’ve got a lot of junk in your trunk.” (How many of you know that real life is better than fiction. And you can’t make up what some people say?) Now for those of you who are not familiar with this colloquialism or catch phrase, a lot of ‘junk in my trunk’ is a good thing. What she meant was I have a lot of talent. My ‘off’ day is better than most people’s ‘on’ day in front of an audience.
“People do not learn from experience. They learn from
reflecting on their experience. The failure to debrief is the main reason
why people fail to reach their full potential in performance.”
– Sivasailam “Thiagi” Thiagarajan
STEP #1: Debrief Your Performance.
Let’s debrief the situation. The first debriefing framework comes from Blaire Singer – Author of Sales Dogs. This is step #1, when you blow it on the stage (or any other life experience.)
1) What happened (Facts only, no opinions)?
I gave a lousy performance on stage.
2) Why? There were these mitigating factors:
• I was tired. I was traveling internationally. I was suffering from jet lag and had very little sleep. By the time I got on stage, it was 2:00 am according to my body clock.
• The audience was tired. Again, by the time I got on stage, the audience had been at the venue for almost an entire day, with very few breaks.
• I was speaking to another culture – Non-North American. The audience did not relate to some of the idioms and humor.
• I was over confident. The day before in Montreal, I got a standing ovation. I assumed that this standing ovation would follow me on the airplane.
• I did not rehearse and practice as much as I normally do. I have given this presentation over 100 times before.
• It was a free speech. My preparation showed that I thought it was a free speech. I am the world champion of public speaking. Many people are seeing me for the first time. I don’t get a second chance to make a first impression.
3) What worked?
Analyzing my speech on stage.
I did get a do-over. I made two additional presentations to the same crowd that were superior.
4) What did not work?
Being on automatic pilot mode. My speech was more of a performance than a conversation. It was not genuine.
5) What did you learn?
Not to taking any audience for granted.
Prepare for every presentation as if I were being paid a million dollars because poor performances are worthless.
6) What can you do to correct or improve?
• Prepare!
• Provide original content.
• Practice and rehearse as if it were the world championship of public speaking.
• Stop beating yourself up.
“If you are not failing… you are not trying.”
– Alan Weiss, PhD.
STEP #2: How to Handle Your Mistakes in the Future.
So how do you handle mistakes? Authors Matthew McKay, Ph. D. and Patrick Fanning, in their best-selling book Self-Esteem (third edition) make the following suggestions:
1) Realize that everyone makes mistakes.
Mistakes are the inescapable by-product of learning or trying anything new.
2) Realize that even you make mistakes.
Make a list of your 10 biggest mistakes.
• For each mistake, before you acted, ask, “What were you thinking?”
• Were you hoping for happier consequences?
• Did you have any idea that this would turn out painful?
• What were your needs that pushed you into this decision?
• Knowing what you know now and given the same thought process and needs, would you act differently?
3) Forgive yourself. You need to forgive yourself for three reasons:
• You did the best you could at that time.
• You’ve already paid for your mistake. You’ve endured the consequences and felt the pain. There is no need to pay this price over again. Pay for your mistakes only once. I’m going to repeat this again. Pay for your mistakes only once. Guilt is paying for your mistakes more than once.
• Mistakes are unavoidable. They are part of the learning process, in fact, everything you have learned in your life was the result of countless mistakes. How many falls did it take you to learn how to walk? Did you give up? Get the point?
• Bonus Reason: Associate mistakes with learning. Make mistakes faster so you learn quicker.
“Finish every day and be done with it. You have done what you could;
some blunders and absurdities no doubt crept in; forget them
as soon as you can. Tomorrow is a new day; you shall begin in…
serenely, and with too high a spirit to be cumbered [cluttered]
with your old nonsense.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson
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Using the principles he teaches today, Ed Tate became the 2000 World Champion of Public Speaking. Out of 175,000 members of Toastmasters International, Ed won the coveted 2000 World Championship of Public Speaking — Toastmasters’ highest award. This internationally known keynote speaker has earned a reputation as the “speaker who energizes, educates, and entertains.” He has spoken professionally in 46 states and 12 countries, and on 5 continents. Visit Ed’s website at www.EdTate.com.
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Categories : Public Speaking Mistakes, Public Speaking Skills
Wednesday,
February
11th,
2009
When Setting Up a Story…
* Don’t say the words funny, reminds me of, or story. These words are so overused they alert the audience that a story is coming. This causes audience members to resist your story rather than get caught up in your story. They say in essence, Let’s see you make me laugh, or OK here comes another story.
* Don’t say, I heard a good one the other day for the same reason you don’t say it reminds me of. The audience will resist and challenge you to make them laugh.
* Never say, I don’t know if I should tell this one. If there is any doubt whatsoever that a story is not appropriate for a particular group, leave it out.
Better Ways to Set Up a Story…
The best way to start a story is to get right into it. You should be into the story before anyone realizes it is a story. That way they are already deeply involved and don’t have time to resist. You could say:
There was this man …
On the flight here … Don’t say, A funny thing happened on the way to the meeting today.
Driving in this morning …
In the cab today …
I was talking with …
Let me take you back …, Come with me … Imagine …, Visualize this … These are a little different because they do alert the audience that a story is coming, but they get them so involved emotionally that any resistance is counteracted.
When Getting Out of a Story…
* Never say, But seriously folks. If it was a funny story you don’t have to say, Hey Stupid! That was a joke. It also implies you were lying.
* To exit a story, don’t say anything about it being over. Just make a slight change in delivery, tone, rate, expression, etc., and go on.
Here Are Some More Don’ts
* Use too many stories on the same topic. Each successive one will lose impact.
* Tell a story where you are the hero. If you are the hero, make it appear that it was dumb luck that made you so (self-effacing humor). If you are a bonafide hero, forget what I just said, but make sure you add a healthy dose of humility for best connection with the audience
* Use terms foreign to the experience of the audience.
* Die of printed page poison. Written stories must be changed to be recited aloud. When you find a story that you like in a reference book, you cannot say it exactly as it is written or you will sound stupid. You must knock out the he saids and she saids.
* Don’t give a history lesson when telling a humorous story. Put yourself into the story to make it believable. Fake truth is essential to humor even if story is totally false. The exception to the need for fake truth is when you are telling an exaggeration. Then anything goes.
Example: I had a terrible day at the beach. I came home with 14 harpoon wounds.
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For additional articles & resources from Tom Antion, please visit his website at http://www.antion.com.
Tom Antion is a master business speaker who has entertained and educated thousands with his comic antics and sometimes outrageous style. Although he is quite boisterous himself, he claims he can teach anyone, no matter how reserved they are, to use humor more effectively. His clients include: Choice Hotels International, Geico Insurance, Kodak, Blue Cross/Blue Shield and John Wanamaker Department Stores. Tom is an active member of the National Speakers Association and is past president of the National Capital Speakers Association.
He can be reached at
Box 9558, Virginia Beach, VA 23450. (757) 431-1366
Outside Virginia (800) 448-6280, Fax (757) 431-2050,
Email orders@antion.com
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Categories : Public Speaking Mistakes, Storytelling
Monday,
February
9th,
2009
Not Connecting with Your Audience is something that is discussed frequently, however I think it is important that this article presents a trap from each part of your speech that causes you not to connect with your audience. If you understand how you are not connecting in each part of your speech, you will have the knowledge you need to correct your presentation so that you connect with power.
The Opening – A Boring Opening
“Thank you for inviting me to speak today. My name is Chris Elliott and I am going to talk to you about….”, so says the speaker that is putting the audience to sleep.
The first trap that will cause you not to connect with your audience is a boring opening. You can thank the organizers for bringing you in to speak after you are done. Your job during the opening is to start off with a story, a poignant result, or a key benefit that will capture the audience’s attention in the first few moments of your presentation. Failure to do so will label you as a boring speaker and you will not capture the full attention of the audience.
The Middle – The Curse of Knowledge
The Curse of Knowledge is a concept from the book Made to Stick by Chip and Dan Heath. Basically it means that you know too much about a topic and talk as if everyone has the same knowledge of the topic as you. I see people fall into this trap this many times when hitting their stride in the middle of their speech. The Curse of Knowledge can strike in any presentations, but is most often seen in technical and academic presentations. It is demonstrated by speakers using technical lingo, buzzwords, or technical babble that not everyone knows.
The Close – Not Calling the Audience to Action
So you have avoided all of the Public Speaking Traps as you reach the end of your speech and have delivered a dynamic speech filled with relevant, useful, and engaging information. How do you conclude the speech? Do you just summarize what you told them, or do you call the audience to take action and use the information you have presented.
If you are just summarizing what you told the audience, then you are falling prey to the trap of not calling the audience to action which breaks the connection you have strived to keep through the presentation. Not calling the audience to action leaves the audience with a summary of what you talked about, but no marching orders on what to do next. That leaves the audience thinking, “OK that was a good speech, but now what?”
The trap of not connecting with your audience is the most important trap to avoid. It is filled with many other traps that can cause you to speak at and not with your audience. Avoiding the trap of not connecting is not easy and takes many hours of diligent preparation, practice, and coaching. As you study the traps of public speaking, I urge you to join Toastmasters, get a coach, and practice speaking with you audiences. I promise you that if you learn the essentials, your audience will thank you.
Do you want to know the secrets of public speaking? Visit http://chris-elliott.com/resources to learn my #1 public speaking secret.
About the Author:
Chris Elliott serves as a leader for supply chain and international non-profit organizations. He has an unshakable habit of lifelong learning and uses his knowledge and experiences during his speaking engagements, workshops, consulting projects, and one-on-one coaching sessions. The result… connecting people and empowering change.
In his presentations on personal success, employee morale, technology selection, and supply chain issues, Chris Elliott brings a unique perspective to help you solve the problems that affects your business. Contact Chris Elliott at http://chris-elliott.com/contact so he can deliver the results that you need to be successful.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Christopher_L_Elliott
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Categories : Connect with Your Audience, Public Speaking Mistakes
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