Constantly refining our skills helps us keep moving toward professional advancement. Public speaking is one of the areas in which we compare notes around the Tallawah MPC workspace. We have found the following reliable strategies for improvement:
- Grab the Audience’s Attention: One effective way to do this is to include compelling hooks. We try to get our first point in during the first 60 seconds of each presentation. Leading into this primary point with a memorable anecdote is also a good way to secure listeners’ attention right off the bat.
- Practice: There’s no substitute for rehearsing a speech. We partner up with our Tallawah MPC colleagues and have them act as practice audiences. Through this approach, we receive helpful feedback from trusted sources on our vocal delivery and body language. We gain more confidence with every practice session we have.
- Leverage Silence: It’s a good idea to strategically use silence during a speech, and we sometimes do so at the very beginning. We have found that locking eyes with an audience member or two is a great way to build anticipation before our opening statements. This is also a good way to start building rapport with listeners before even saying a word.
These strategies have helped us refine our public speaking abilities.
