Want more recognition and influence, and a chance for a promotion? Improve your speaking skills! Here's some help: my Top 10 Public Speaking Blogs of 2024.
We can all agree, can't we, that 2024 was a wild and wooly year politically? And that's as far as I'll go down the political road!
I'm guessing that what mattered more to most of us professionally were the pitches, speeches, presentations, meetings, updates, and other types of public speaking we did. Whether we were presenting in person or speaking virtually, we had the opportunity to create some serious influence. I hope that you, your team, or the leadership of your organization were able to do so.
Get ready the right way for the new year! Learn the skills of great communicators. Visit my Business Speaker's Library. You'll also find it here on Amazon. Or click on this image:
As always at this time of year, I publish a list of the most popular articles in the Speak for Success! blog. Here they are in ascending order, in terms of the pieces that interested you most. Feel free to follow the links below to any blog that interests you (or review those you found particularly useful).
#10 7 Ways To Use Your Voice To Be An Unforgettable Speaker (June 16)
Want to transform your relationship with your audience? Then work on your speaking voice! It's one of your greatest professional assets. Read this piece to learn the 7 characteristics that influence listeners. From energy to breath control to having the sound of authority . . . and even knowing how to use silence, this is how to show everyone you mean business!
#9 Leadership Presence: Why You Need It In Public Speaking (October 13)
Every time you speak in public (even to your team), you're leading others. That means you need leadership presence. To give a speaking performance that’s truly magical, you can’t do it the way a stage magician does—by putting something over on everyone. Instead, you need to honestly focus on knowing how to create your style of onstage magic. How do you do that? Read my secrets of leadership performance in public speaking!
#8 7 Bad Public Speaking Habits — Are You Guilty of Them? (September 22)
You've heard about all the things you're supposed to do to be a better presenter. Know your topic. Give yourself plenty of time to prepare. Be sure to include strong eye contact. Speak to the audience not the slides, etc., etc. But what about some key bad habits that are getting in your way? Here are seven of them, more or less in the order in which they present themselves.
#7 How To Build a Presentation: Four Ways to Achieve Your Purpose (May 5)
What's the best way to organize a speech for success? Well, you need to start by understanding why you're speaking. (Too many presenters jump right into gathering content.) To positively influence your audience, you need to zero in on their needs. Here's how to be crystal clear on your purpose, so you're better armed when it comes to accomplishing it.
#6 The Power of the Pause: Why You Need It In Your Presentations (August 4)
Shhh! Seriously. It's true that silence is golden—even when you're speaking. For one thing, pauses are dramatic. But that's only the most obvious reason why you need to use them in every one of your speeches and presentations. Actors understand that silence in a scene can be as powerful as a clap of thunder. Here are four ways to use the power of the pause to help your listeners stay tuned in and interested.
#5 Speaking Nerves? — 7 Ways to Take the Pressure Off Yourself (April 21)
Do you get jitters before or during an important presentation? Even if you know the material backwards and forwards? Your frazzled mind just isn't allowing you to access what you know when presenting or being asked a tough question. Talk about a weight on your shoulders! Here are 7 proven ways to take the pressure off yourself.
#4 Three Foolproof Ways to Capture Any Audience's Engagement and Interest (Jan. 28)
Wow. Really? Foolproof ways? Sure! When you use this trick of putting together a presentation, you'll be looking through the right end of the telescope. That's the one that brings your audience's engagement and satisfaction into view. Believe me, they won't be able to resist you and your message!
#3 Speaking to Your CEO? — Five Ways to Make Your Presentations Memorable (Jan. 21)
Will you be speaking to your CEO (or if you are a CEO, your board)? Are you a lawyer who presents to panels or commissions? Or are you otherwise a voice of your organization? In each of these cases, you're speaking to leadership at the same time you need to demonstrate leadership. Here are five ways to command the stage as a leader who speaks!
#2 How To Create An Effective Conclusion (April 7)
No wonder this is my #2 blog this year in terms of readership. Speakers tend to spend much more time and effort on their introduction than their conclusion. But remember: your closing is where you need to seal the deal, and make sure your message continues to resonate. Here's how to conclude your speech so audiences remain focused on your core message.
And now, ladies and gentlemen, this year's winner . . .
#1 12 Positive Mantras That Will Transform Your Speaking Confidence (February 4)
If you struggle with lack of confidence in public speaking, you need a way to develop a positive mindset. I have not one, but a dozen! Here are 12 mantras that you can and should be telling yourself. So, go from negative self-talk to positive coping statements. These simple statements are custom-made to help you develop a healthy and positive attitude toward public speaking!
As always, thanks for visiting Speak for Success here at The Genard Method. Wishing you great success with these topics and all your on-the-job speaking and presenting. Here's hoping you thrive in '25!
You'll find all my public speaking books here at The Genard Method's Business Speaker's Library. And here are some of our free resources!
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Gary Genard is an actor, author, and expert in public speaking and overcoming speaking fear. His company, The Genard Method offers live 1:1 Zoom executive coaching and corporate group training worldwide. In 2022 for the ninth consecutive year, Gary has been ranked by Global Gurus as One of the World’s Top 30 Communication Professionals. He is the author of the Amazon Best-Seller How to Give a Speech. His second book, Fearless Speaking, was named in 2019 as "One of the 100 Best Confidence Books of All Time." His handbook for presenting in videoconferences, Speaking Virtually offers strategies and tools for developing virtual presence in online meetings. His latest book is Speak for Leadership: An Executive Speech Coach's Secrets for Developing Leadership Presence. Contact Gary here.
Main photo credit: AnarkaliArt on pixabay.com.
