Want to be known as a vital and important speaker? Learn this technique for getting audiences to sit up and take notice!
How do you talk about the most important topic in the world? You accept that moving others to share your views is the hardest thing possible.
And the easiest. Apart from a commanding argument, the key factor is the level of passion you display.
It's true, of course, that you already know where your passion lies. But now you must decide how badly you want listeners to see and hear your commitment.
Not surprisingly, that's where performance techniques come into play.
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So what's the magic formula to stand out for all the right reasons?
How to Be More Than a Subject Matter Expert
Recently, an audience member shared a story with me that illustrates why you need more than subject matter expertise to effectively discuss your all-important topic. I was conducting a workshop on communication skills for physicians. I found myself sitting next to a doctor during lunch, who shared his personal experience with me. Actually, he started out by saying something any trainer would love to hear:
"You are so needed in my profession! You know why? — I travel all around the world to medical conferences." (The workshop was, in fact, being held in Boston and he was from South America.)
He then explained his combination of enthusiasm (for speech training) and disappointment (in the speeches he attended):
"I'll go to a conference specifically because a leading researcher in my field is giving a keynote. I'll be excited to hear what he has to say. . . . And five minutes after he starts speaking, people are checking their cell phones or otherwise tuning out. The speaker stands there mumbling into his manuscript, and I think to myself: Why did I come all this way to listen to this?"
We can probably assume that the keynote speaker's passion for his research is undiminished. That's to say: for him, it's an all-consuming area of interest. But he's left out half of the equation: The need to get across to audiences the importance of your message and your commitment to conveying it. You simply can't accomplish that by leaving out the dynamics of performance.
Your Key to More Passionate Speaking
The presenter lacked a fundamental skill: knowing how to achieve presence as a speaker. In other words, he wasn't living his content as he presented it. No matter how pressing the matter, if you're not demonstrating your emotions through vocal and physical expressiveness, you're not fully feeling them yourself.
In a recent article, I mentioned my "Public Speaking for Diplomats" workshop I conduct at the United Nations. Even in this august setting where the most serious of issues are discussed, passion has a legitimate place. If an international crisis is at hand, should a speech concerning it sound like the recitation of an order from the nearest East Side deli? Every flame needs a source of ignition—and to light a fire under your listeners, you must be the spark.
You can't be that spark by blandly delivering content. Instead, you must inhabit your speech—mentally, emotionally, physically, and spiritually. It must be obvious to your listeners at every moment that for you, what you're talking about is the most important topic in the world.
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