Public Speaking Tip: How to SUMmarize Your Talk Well

 A good headline is far more than a summary. It has to characterize, in a few brief words, the most important themes and news items of the article it accompanies. 
~ Parker Conrad

Have you ever been in a presentation and wondered what was covered when you were nearly at the end of the talk?

It's likely because of a few reasons, and one of the most common misses is that a speaker, a presenter, does not summarize what was covered to bring the information together before closing the engagement.

The parts for which to prepare your talk, training, or pitch include the following and this month, the focus is on the 5th:

1. Open

2. Preview

3. Body

4. Interaction

5. Summary

6. Close

The last months covered the OPEN, the PREVIEW,  the BODY, and the INTERACTION, so the SUMMARY is where the SUM of the experience allows for everyone to come together through:

S - Stating what was covered by reviewing the agenda items and the purpose/goal/objective to make certain that was all accomplished

U - Unlock the audience's ability to talk by addressing questions and confirming you provided what was being sought

M - Move through to the close gracefully and energetically

When you SUM up the presentation with an effective summary, you get yourself ready for a powerful close (which we will cover next month)!

#publicspeaking #ProfessionalDevelopment #PersonalDevelopment #KIND

Four Keys to Public Speaking Success!

People say “Fake it ‘til you make it,” that “You’ll get better at presenting by presenting,” to “Picture everyone in the audience naked, or look over their heads, to calm your nerves,” and “When you practice, it sounds scripted, so just shoot from the hip to sound real,” and yet these untruths are part of what makes the idea of public speaking the no. 1 fear for Americans.

Public speaking is not the problem. It’s not the issue. How public speaking is perceived and how it is incorrectly “taught” are a couple of the challenges with people being successful presenting ideas, products, and even themselves.

In the face of all this presentation confusion, how do we increase our presentation prowess? It’s by overcoming all that ill-advised counsel with truths and practical, useful tips that are readily implementable. The four keys to presenting beyond public speaking fears and misperceptions are:

1)  Be an expert on the topic, and don’t be concerned if other experts are there too. It’s a presentation, not a competition.

2) Put the audience first by setting a goal for them, about them.

3) Get out of your own way by being present and not being concerned about how you look, sound, or the day you had before presenting, or what you have going on after presenting.

4) Come from a place of gratitude, with thoughts and comments of “I get to present today at 1:00 p.m. on our first quarter 2019 outlook” rather than “I have to speak on the 2019 number later today.”

About those lies…here are the truths:

Specifically, resist “faking it ‘til you make it” by focusing on making it about what you are doing until you make it to the next step, and onto the next step, and ultimately to the subsequent results. Make it about sharing and learning, and then you don’t have to fake your interest or your effort.

Let go of the notion that you’ll get better at speaking by speaking. Sadly, you will simply get used to being average, at best, if you do not change how you are speaking. You will get comfortable speaking, and yet average and comfortable are not likely huge draws for audiences. How you improve speaking is by engaging the audience, keeping your ego out of your efforts and off the stage. When you have that all set, you can let your personality shine and your persuasiveness connect.

#IHatePublicSpeaking #PublicSpeaking #ProfessionalDevelopment #PersonalDevelopment

Stop Should-ing All Over Yourself!

No matter what the time of year, it is often tempting to say "Oh, I should..." when there is something to be done that is different than what is being done at that time. This is what I (and others) call "Should-ing all over yourself". And, as you can likely tell, that is not a recommended action!

While the words, "I should" seem innocent, they are harmful and not helpful.

Instead of "Should-ing" all over yourself, which is putting yourself down, and putting yourself in a place of repression and/or obligation and "need", put yourself in a place of empowerment and action by saying things like "Since I want to be on time, I am going to leave now", or "In order to feel great tomorrow, I am going to go to bed now".

Start strong and end strong with the words you choose and the actions you take...with no shoulds or should haves in your way!