Best Public Speaking Articles: Weekly Review [2008-08-30]

Every Saturday, we survey the best public speaking articles from throughout the public speaking blogosphere.

Topics featured this week include:

• design of visuals;
• gender differences in your audience;
• pause techniques;
• the Accredited Speaker Program;
• the National Speakers Association;
• and more.

Week in Review: Six Minutes

The feature article this week was the latest in a series of public speaking book reviews:

• Book Review – slide:ology by Nancy Duarte
  An instant classic on effective visual presentations from the expert whose design firm created the graphics for Al Gore’s Oscar-winning film, An Inconvenient Truth.

Week in Review: Public Speaking Blogosphere

Visual Aids

• Garr Reynolds draws slide design lessons from a series of IKEA billboards.

Make it visual.

One slide, one point.

Make type big.

Contrast rules.

Don’t be afraid to bleed.

Rule of thirds.

Empty space.

Have a visual theme.

Delivery Techniques

• Dave Munger analyzes a scientific study which reveals gender differences in the effect of eye contact on persuasiveness.

Most public speakers are encouraged to look around the room, alternating eye contact with individuals in the audience. But there’s no way to look at everyone at once…

While men weren’t persuaded significantly more in any of the conditions, there was a large increase in persuasion for women when … the presenter looked at them for the entire course of the experiment…

• Nick Morgan discusses key points in your speech when a pause is most effective.

Many speakers talk too fast, and pausing is a great way to slow the express train down for a station or two.  Audiences will almost always be grateful for the opportunity to catch up, reflect, and file away what you’ve been saying, even if they aren’t asking questions.

Speaker Habits

• Nancy Duarte provides tips for effective communication when your audience isn’t in the room with you.

For the presentation, I draped off the windows of my office (because I felt silly), posted pictures of employees (so it felt like a real audience), stood up clicker-in-hand and delivered the presentation.

• Lisa Braithwaite recommends using a countdown timer to keep yourself on time when speaking.

A common presenter mistake is to run out of time. Even when you’ve practiced, you sometimes find yourself rushing the last five or ten minutes of your presentation, wondering where the time went.

Toastmasters Articles

• Ever wonder about the Accredited Speaker designation from Toastmasters?
  Sheryl Roush reflects on the career growth she has experienced since earning this designation 15 years ago.

Doors have opened that I had never even considered; Ive been to places I’ve needed to find on a global map; I’ve met amazing people from different cultures and belief systems; and I am grateful.

• Ian Griffin has recorded a speech he gave to Toastmasters about the National Speakers Association.
• Dorothea Stuart interviews Jonathan Palmer about lessons learned in the Humorous Speech Contest.

I gave my speech several times and audiences laughed in different places.

I had to learn to ride the wave and pause for longer.  You need to give your audience time to soak up the humour and enjoy it. Pacing is what you’re learning – something great comedians have down to a fine art.