Want to know how to engage and move audiences every time? Here are speech expert Dr. Gary Genard's Six Rules of Effective Public Speaking.
Pay attention to the best speeches and presentations and you'll see that great speakers don't just speak—they perform. As an actor and speech coach, that's something I always tell clients.
But here's the interesting thing: you can put that knowledge to work right away. Whatever speaking you do—in business, academically, socially, or for personal pleasure—you're already performing. Sociologist Erving Goffman's book makes that very point, and right in the title: The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life. We perform roles every day as we engage and influence others, and public speaking is no exception.
Want more tips on dynamic speeches and presentations? You'll find 101 easy-to-learn skills in The Public Speaking Handbook, How to Give a Speech. Find it here on Amazon.
Want to be a speaker with presence? You can with some tried and true techniques. Learn what they are in my free e-book, 12 Easy Ways to Achieve Presence and Charisma.
The Six Rules of Effective Public Speaking
Rule #1: Make the Audience the Center of Your Universe
You're not the focus of the event! Get that essential truth into your presentation DNA. Ultimately, every good speaker cares more about the audience than themselves. This can be a tough prescription to fill if you have speech anxiety, which tends to wrap you in a cocoon of anxiety and self-consciousness. But the good news is this: focusing fully on the audience lifts a tremendous burden from your shoulders in terms of worrying about your performance. To make your message new and exciting for you and your audience is the most wonderful thing that can happen to you as a speaker. Here are 10 focusing techniques to command a speaking stage.
Rule #2: Focus on Relationships
If the audience is the center of your universe, you're already focused on the right task: establishing and maintaining a relationship with them. (Here are 20 ways to connect with an audience for lasting influence.) Your speech's content can never live on its own—if it could, why would there be a presentation? Three relationships are operating during a speech: between you and the audience; you and the content; and the audience and the content. In the first, you engage, interest and activate your listeners; in the second, you interpret your content for those listeners; and in the third, the audience relates to your content because you've pointed out why it matters to them. Pay attention to all three relationships.
Rule #3: Understand Your Purpose
Too many speakers confuse topic and purpose. For instance, I'll ask a client, "What's your purpose with this presentation?" And the response will be, "Well, I'm going to talk about—" "No," I say, "that's your topic . . . what's your purpose?" Then it becomes clear what I mean. Yes, the information is what you're there to talk about. But it definitely isn't what you're there to accomplish. That's where knowing how to outline a speech for a great performance comes in. Audiences hope to be better for the experience of listening to you—and that's exactly what you must try to make happen. Being clear on your purpose will help you gather exactly the right information to accomplish it.
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Rule #4: Use Your Body
Your body is a powerful communication tool. You're not a brain in a bell jar communicating telepathically. Audiences need you to give physical expression to your message. That, of course, means understanding how to use body language as a speaker. Some hints: Stand rather than sit if you have a choice (so you don't eliminate 50% of your physical presence). Come out from behind the lectern if possible. And use gestures that strengthen your point.
Rule #5: Color Your Vocal Delivery
Your voice is the most flexible speaking tool you own apart from the brain itself. It's capable of a wide range of coloration and effects, from astonishment and incredulity to mockery and skepticism, and a hundred other intentions (and more) To speak without vocal variation means using a "mono" or single tone, from which we derive the word monotonous. If you're limited vocally, work with a speech coach to learn the 5 key tools of vocal dynamics that will, quite simply, make you a more exciting speaker.
Rule #6: Boost Your Skills at Q & A
I call Q & A "the forgotten avenue of audience persuasion." Virtually anyone can give a good presentation if they prepare and practice enough. But what happens when the questions and challenges begin? The speaker who can handle that situation with style, knowledge, and a bit of self-deprecating humor, is the person who embodies presentation leadership. And while you're at it, get my Free guide, How to Survive the 7 Danger Zones of Q & A.
This article was originally published in 2014. It has been updated.
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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.
