No Energy Crisis

Think about a speech you've heard that convinced you the speaker cared deeply about the subject. This could even be a sales pitch that gave you the impression the sales person believed in their product. What was it about the talk that drew you in? At least part of it was probably the delivery, the variation of the pitch of the voice, the quick rate at which some of the words were spoken, and the accompanying gestures. Even a sober, serious, speech can convey passion or excitement when there is energy behind it.

 

I once came across this sentence in an acting book: "Energy is the direct result of how much you care about what is going on in the scene." We can adapt this guideline for our speaking. Energy is the direct result of how much you care about your message and listeners. If you have energy you will have a much easier time with your delivery, gestures will come naturally, your voice will rise and fall at appropriate times (but still PRACTICE!). The energy will do a lot to overcome any stage fright you experience.

 

The next time you are going to speak ask yourself how much you care about the topic. Perhaps you don't have a choice of topics, but you will have a choice of emphasis. You must report the status of your group's project, but you can focus on the potential, or the ground gained so far. You have a chance to make your team look like winners to the board. Lots of reasons to care about your presentation. Lots of reasons for dynamic delivery.

Find Your Voice

You are self-conscious when you open your mouth. Your words are all spoken with the same pitch, the same inflection. You feel your listeners drifting off. You've come to the right blog. Here are two simple ideas.

 

First, push your voice to the limits in rehearsal. (You ARE rehearsing your talks many times, aren't you?) Try varying the volume, pitch, and rate of your delivery as much as you possibly can. Yes, this will sound ridiculous. The idea is to break out of the old pattern you are in, much like stretching your muscles before a run. You may not need the full range, but it will be easier to move around within it.

 

Second, study actors. These professionals work their voices for all they're worth. Here's an exercise we use in my basic speech class. I bring in a DVD of an animated movie. I happen to like The Incredibles, but most other feature-length animated films will work. I put pictures of the actors in front of the class for the students to look at during the scene we watch. This allows the students to imagine the actor delivering the lines, allowing them to realize how exaggerated the delivery actually is (it just seems normally for a cartoon character). The students are assigned one character to follow through a scene, noting the emotion the character starts with, the emotion the character ends on, and the emotional cues in the pitch, rate, and volume of the voice the fill us in. Even if you don't want to be this formal, try watching a film like this and closing your eyes every so often during scenes that you know well. Now ask yourself, does your delivery even come close to the work the actors are doing? Yet far from embarassing themselves, they have become stars partly by using the full range of their voices. If it's good enough for them, it's good enough for you, right?

Avoid the LCD

    There is a section of our culture that likes to approach life in a relaxed manner. Those following this philosophy don't take anything more seriously than they must. They don't like formality, being forced into structure. They are consistently casual. While this lifestyle might seem to have benefits,say, for heart health, it can (and usually is) carried too far. Nowhere is this easier to spot than in use of language. The danger lies in becoming too comfortable with slang, crude terms, and off-color humor. This creates an image that is undesirable in many situations.

    In mathematics there is a term we can borrow, the Least Common Denominator. For us it means using the lowest, raunchiest words that will get our meaning across. I understand that this is sometimes used in humor, or for emphasis, but when it becomes our normal mode of speech we are in trouble. Isn't there a huge difference between "Can you excuse me for a few minutes?" and "Man, I really gotta take a crap!" One will work in the office, the other is better saved for a fishing trip.

    Now don't get me wrong. My everyday language extends into some crass terms at times, but usually to make a point. The idea is to use appropriate language. When the people down the street let their huge dog make a pile on my lawn again and don't clean it up, I describe the incident in much coarser terms than when I visit a client and ask where their men's room is. Why? The different types of language make different impressions.

    So when do you switch up? Follow the number one rule of speech making "Know your audience." If you're still not sure apply the old test "When in doubt leave it out."

 

 

Yes, it Should be Fun

If you haven't come across it anywhere else yet, let me acquaint you with the term "fanny factor." It refers to the amount of time people will sit before their attention to your presentation flags. Have you ever turned on a flashlight with weak batteries? The beam starts out bright and fades away. If you shut of the light for a little while and turn it back on the beam will start out just as bright as ever. So it is with the human attention span. We want to make our points when attention is at its highest, give our listeners a chance to recharge, then make our next point. Where does the recharge come from?
One good way to let your audience rebuild their attention span is to move them from passive listening to participation. Ideally you should involve them in an activity that helps make your point or enhances your lesson in another way. Whenever possible choose something lighthearted. For instance, at the beginning of a seminar where participants are strangers to each other, arrange for your audience members to pair up and introduce themselves. Assign them the task of creating an "award" that they could present to their activity partner. This award should be based on the life experiences and characteristics that help define the recipient. One person may spend a lot of time skydiving, spelunking, and hiking. Their partner could create the "daredevil" award for them. Audience members then introduce each other to the entire group by presenting the award and explaining how their interview partner earned it. Some groups may be too large for each member to be introduced, you could assign the pairs to join larger groups for the introduction stage.
Different authorities place the fanny factor at six, eight, or ten minutes into a presentation. Others place a second attention break at 20 minutes. One thing is certain, you should take this characteristic of audiences into account early and often.
Here's a little warning: make sure that you do not take up more of your time with activities than speaking, and make sure you do not allow more time than needed for the activity. In either case you are in danger of losing control of the direction your presentation takes, and possibly losing control of your audience.
So where do ideas for these activities come from? Surprisingly, I have found very few by using Internet searches for "icebreakers," etc. But there are many books available with games for trainers, parlor games that can be adapted, stunts, challenges, and of course, magic tricks. (You knew I would recommend magic tricks, didn't you?) If you know a teacher, they will certainly be able to give you ideas to help review, reinforce, or illustrate your points. And watch this blog, because every Friday entry will contain another fun activity you can introduce into your presentation. Hey, I've got to keep your attention, don't I?

Add a Little Fun

    You know that you should do more than just speak. You should break up your talk with a little variety, whether it is simply a story that helps make your point or an activity that will make sure participants remember your ideas. There are lots of places to find these types of items. There are even books full of these activities especially for trainers. As you might guess, I draw mine mainly from the world of magic. Here's a magic-related betcha that you can use.

    To work this effectively you will need a piece of rope between three and four feet long. Any length in that range will do. Ask someone to volunteer to help you. The best way to do this is to decide who you will ask earlier in your program. At the correct time look right at them and ask them to step up to you. While they are joining you drape the rope over one of your shoulders, where it can be easily retreived. You will alternate between actions and explanation for a few steps. Ask you helper to hold out their hands. Indicate the desired position by holding your own out about shoulder height, palms up. When they comply place one end of the rope in each palm. Now ask them to close their hands into fists and let the rope hang in front of them. Once the volunteer reaches this position you explain the challenge they face. They are not to open their fists for the rest of their time holding the rope. But they are required to complete the challenge by tying a knot in the rope. Stand back and let them try. Some will wind up and start twisting away. Some will hold still and look away while thinking up ways to make it work. Let them get coaching from the group. Give them enough time to be sure they have really tried, but don't let others get bored. Then show this solution.

    Have your volunteer hold the rope out for you in the starting position. Before you take it, cross your arms. Turn to allow the entire group to watch your fists, then uncross your arms. As the rope drops away it will form a knot. Take your bow. This is a good way to make a point that the right knowledge can enable someone to achieve results that they couldn't enjoy any other way. If you would like more involvement you could bring ropes for the entire group and let them try the exercise together.

    This is just an example, but I hope it encourages you to look for ways to break up your talks and illustrate them in memorable ways. Have fun!

A Quick Betcha

    As a speaker you will have the experience of feeling your listeners drift. It happens to all of us. It's not always your fault. But there are things you can do to hold attention. The basic plan is to make sure your talk is relevant to your audience. If you have done your homework this will happen at the stage where you choose your topic. As you plan your actual talk, though, there are other items to be considered. One of them is attention span. It is normal for a listener's attention to drift, and you can find ways to draw them back into your talk using activities that create a change of pace. Here is one that can be adapted to several topics as an illustration.

    You will need a dollar bill. If you choose to use a bill of a larger denomination you will add opportunites for humor. Or you can borrow the bill, again giving yourself a chance to use some humor. Hold the bill near one end between your thumb and first finger, letting it dangle. Bring the opposite hand up a few inches under the the bill, with the thumb and first finger in position to close on the bill. Let go of the bill and catch it with the opposite hand. Do this a few times to demonstrate to your audience what you want them to do. Make sure that everyone has a clear view as you bring a volunteer up, Hold the bill up for them to catch, and when their hand is in the catch position release the bill. They will find it almost impossible to catch the bill. You can repeat this several times, it is very unlikely that they will be able to react quickly enough to catch the bill.

    This illustration is easy to adapt to themes like having inside knowlege, or the fallacy of waiting to react in important situations. And the best part is you will almost always have the required material at hand.

Nothing to say?

    You have to make a tough point. No, the customer can't have an exception to the store policies. No, your employee didn't earn a bonus this year. It's bad news and you expect an argument, but you will not be changing your position. Sometimes you just have to let people figure it out. They know, and you know, but if you talk, you lose.

    If you have already stated your case clearly it is time to stop talking. You may get arguments and rationalization. Well, I was absent from class for a reason. Can't I make up the work? You might repeat "no" one more time, but then stop. If you have laid the proper groundwork, you are done. Let's say you are managing a group and find it necessary to fire an individual for failing to perform basic duties of the job. You have delivered verbal and written warnings, so the employee knows exactly where the matter stands. Call the employee in, review the situation, and come to the inevitable conclusion. A short version of this talk with all the polite words left out would be "You received two warnings about your failure to perform your duties. You knew that if the situation did not change you would be let go. I have documentation that you have continued to neglect your work. We need to ask you to clean out your desk and go."

    Here's the turning point. The employee will either comply or begin a discussion. The time for such conversations has past. There is no room for discussion if you've done your job. You've explained everything throughout the process, made sure of your facts and documented everything. There are no loopholes for the employee to bring up. So don't be drawn into an argument. You might say something that will be used against you. As the excuses and babbling (or crying) begin, simply listen and wait for a pause. Stand up, open the door to your office to signal that the conversation is at an end. Don't answer objections or accusations, make a simple statement to close the talk if you must, like "You need to get started." Remember, this is the end of a process. Any worthy objections should have come up long ago. Anything further you say will create confusion and prolong the agony.