Reading a speech is not the recommended way to deliver a speech.

But, there are many occasions where you may find yourself in exactly this situation, whether due to the circumstances of the event or unavoidable constraints on time. Or, maybe you’ve got to read a speech that you haven’t written!

When you must read a speech, are there ways to enhance your delivery? Two Six Minutes readers approach this question from different perspectives:

Patricia McArver writes:

How should a speechwriter mark up copy so that the speaker will deliver the message with emphasis and pauses in the right places? As a writer, you think it’s obvious, but that’s not always the case.

Jacob Miller asks:

Do you have any tips for annotating a speech? When I try to read my speeches, I frequently get lost in the print, and sometimes I put the emphasis in the wrong places. Is there anything I can do other than the obvious — practicing more?

When is it okay to read a speech?

Although I strongly encourage you to read your speeches as rarely as possible, there are occasions when it is acceptable, or even expected. These include:

• You are speaking at a highly formal occasion (e.g. a commencement speech)
• You are delivering a particularly emotional speech (e.g. a wedding speech, a eulogy)
• You are forced to read word-for-word by lawyers or campaign managers (e.g. a corporate statement; a political speech)
• A speechwriter has written your speech.
• Life prevented you from preparing adequately.
• Within a larger speech, you are reading a passage from another work (e.g. a poem; a book excerpt).
• You are a brand new speaker, and you haven’t developed the confidence yet to go without a script.

The drawbacks of reading from a script

Once you are committed to reading your speech (or a portion of it), it’s helpful to consider the drawbacks so that you can attempt to compensate for them.

Negative effects of reading include:

• Your eyes are on your page, and not connecting with your audience.
• Your eyes are on your page, and not reading feedback from your audience.
• Your head is tipped down, which inhibits your vocal projection.
• You are locked into the words, not as free to introduce a conversational style.
• You risk skipping words or lines, and sounding foolish.
• Your vocal variety tends to be limited, as you concentrate on simply “getting the words out” instead of worrying how they sound.

Creating the best the printed speech

Whether you are writing your own speech, or writing one for someone else to deliver, there are several strategies for creating an optimal page, including:

• Don’t hand-print or write your speech. I don’t know a person in the world who writes or prints as neatly as Times New Roman font. Even slight imperfections in your penmanship make you work harder than necessary when reading. Type it in and print it out.
• Print with a large font size — larger than you would typically use. For example, I typically print documents with 9 or 10 point font. When I have to read during a speech, I make sure it is 12, 14, or 18-point font. Larger typography makes it easier to read, and easier to find your place as you look up and then back down again.
• Print using multiple narrow columns. It’s harder to read wide columns of text (your eye is strained to “wrap” to the next line), so format it into two or three columns.
• Use subheadings. You won’t read these, of course, but using subheadings can help to structure the speech on the page, and is a good signal to take an extended pause.
• Use line breaks to mark pauses, even within sentences. This technique is wonderfully explained in Speak Like Churchill, Stand Like Lincoln (read the Six Minutes review). The idea is to divide the sentence into bite-sized chunks. Between each chunk, insert a slight pause, which is marked by the line break. Skilled speakers can use this technique to create a balanced cadence that overcomes some of the drawbacks of reading.
• Use ellipses to mark pauses, … or perhaps words that should be draaawn out for effect.
• Use italics or bolding to mark words, phrases, or entire sentences that require extra emphasis. Pick one style and use it consistently, so as not to confuse yourself or your speaker. I suggest not using underlining for this purpose as it will often truncate the bottoms of letters making them harder to read.
• Use italics or bolding or color to mark linked words, which may be separated by several other words or sentences. Consider this a form of super-emphasis.
• Put instructional annotations (not meant to be read) in the margins. For years, I used to write “BREATE” and “SLOW DOWN” in red pen on my speeches.

What can you do with your body?

The printed page acts a bit like handcuffs, restraining your gestures and locking your body position in non-optimal ways. Still, there are a few things you can do to improve the situation.

• As much as possible, position your printed page high and away from your body. (i.e. if you are using a lectern, make sure it isn’t set too low, and try to read from the upper part.) This will keep your gaze closer to your audience, and also allow better voice projection.
• Don’t forget about gestures. It’s hard to incorporate them, but do your best to avoid a completely lifeless body.
• Use expressive facial gestures while you read. Though it may seem counter-intuitive to use facial gestures even when you are facing downward, forcing yourself to generate appropriate facial gestures will bring your vocal variety alive.

Last words…

Minimize reading your speeches. For most settings, your delivery will be much more effective if you free yourself of the page. If you can only memorize a few sentences, then memorize your opening and closing words.

Don’t accept the “I didn’t have time to learn it” excuse from yourself repeatedly. You owe it to yourself and to your future audiences to break free of the page.

All of these techniques above can be utilized to prepare yourself for rehearsals. Working from a well-annotated printed speech, you will find it easier to practice and gradually learn the speech. (Of course, you should also be editing and revising as you rehearse.)

Your Turn: What’s Your Opinion?

Do you have any tips for marking up your speech so it is easier to read or learn?

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Have a Question? Contact me anytime, or find me on Twitter: @6minutes

Andrew Dlugan is the editor and founder of Six Minutes. He teaches courses, leads seminars, coaches speakers, and strives to avoid Suicide by PowerPoint. He is an award-winning public speaker and speech evaluator. Andrew is a father and husband who resides in British Columbia, Canada.

True, but sad, since so many speakers perpetuate these communication barrier habits. I invited the video’s creator — Stacey Hanke — to share it with Six Minutes readers, and here is her article for you.

Most individuals are unaware of the static they create when they communicate. What do I mean by static? Static is created when what you say is inconsistent with how you say it.

For example, suppose you’re having a conversation and the other person says, in a boring, monotone voice, “I’m so excited to have this opportunity to work with you.” Their facial expressions are lifeless. They never look you in the eye while they’re fidgeting with a pen. Most likely you’d question their credibility and knowledge, and not take action on what they have to say.

This article will increase your awareness of the static you are creating for your listeners, and give you practical, immediate tips to have more impact and influence.

Video: Stop Communicating Ineffectively

Take a couple minutes to view the video below, and then continue with the rest of the article which builds upon it.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Communication Barrier #1
Lack of Enthusiasm

Do you really believe your product is better than the competition’s? Do you look as confident as you say you are? The benefits of your product will not be believable if you don’t communicate your passion, enthusiasm, and commitment through your facial expressions.

How to Avoid This Barrier: Show Some Enthusiasm

• Begin paying attention to the type of facial expressions you use and when you use them. You may not be aware of when you frown, roll your eyes, or scowl.
• Make sure your facial expressions are appropriate based on your topic, listeners and objective. When you’re smiling while communicating a serious or negative message, you create a discrepancy between your facial expression and your message. The same discrepancy applies when you’re communicating a positive message without facial expressions.
• Once you have increased your awareness of facial expressions, practice the skill of incorporating them into your message, matching the appropriate expression to each situation. You wouldn’t want to have a stone-cold look on your face when you are expressing your passion for your company’s products.

Communication Barrier #2
Distracting Gestures

The majority of individuals I work with fidget with their fingers, rings, pen — the list goes on. If they don’t fidget, then they unconsciously talk with their hands. Their elbows get locked at their sides and every gesture looks the same. Or they’ve been told they talk with their hands so they hold their hands and do nothing.

Throughout the day, notice how you and others use gestures.

• Do you talk with your hands or gesture too often? If you’re constantly using gestures, you’re not able to think on your feet and you’re creating static.
• Do your gestures have purpose?
• Ask for constructive feedback from friends, family and co-workers: “When I gesture do I look like I’m talking with my hands?” “Do I use gestures too often or not enough?”

How to Avoid This Barrier: Use Gestures for Emphasis

Confident speakers use gestures to add emphasis to their words. To gesture with purpose, avoid locking your elbows at your sides or creating the same repetitious gestures. Instead, expand your gestures from your sides and let your hands emphasize and describe your message.

Add variety to your gestures by relaxing your arms back to your sides after you complete a gesture.

Benefits include:

• When your gestures create a visual for your listeners, they’ll remember more information and will remember your message longer.
• Gestures will grab your listener’s attention.
• Gestures add energy and inflection to your voice and channel your adrenaline and nervous energy.

Communication Barrier #3
Lack of Focus

The more you add information that isn’t necessary, the greater the risk your listeners will misinterpret your point.

How to Avoid This Barrier: Stay Focused

1. When you begin to say too much and feel like a train about to derail, put the brakes on and get yourself back on track … PAUSE!
2. Keep your objective in mind. Think in terms of what your listener needs to know about what you want them to do, not what you want to tell them.
3. Put thought into your words.
4. Focus your message on three significant points.
5. Pay attention to your listener. Are they hanging on your every word or are they dazed? Are they attentive or fidgeting?

Communication Barrier #4
Using PowerPoint as a Crutch

PowerPoint isn’t designed to serve as your notes. The purpose of visual aids is to enhance and support your message through pictures and illustrations.

How to Avoid This Barrier: Design Visual Aids, not Wordy Slides

How you design your visual aids will determine your ability to stay connected with your listener.

• Create PowerPoint slides with more pictures and fewer words.
• Ask yourself, “Why am I using this PowerPoint slide?”
• Identify how your PowerPoint slide best supports your message based on the following criteria:
• Listener expectations and needs.
• Listener experience and knowledge level.
• Objectives.
• Time frame.
• Number of participants.
• Save details for handouts. Your listeners will appreciate a conversational approach with interaction accompanied by take-aways they may use as a resource.
• Stay away from software overkill. If you’re clicking the mouse every few seconds, your visual aids are the message and you are the backup.
• If you’ve been using the same PowerPoint design for more than six months, it’s time to make a change!
• Stop disconnecting with your listener by talking to your visual aids. Only speak when you see eyes! Pause when you refer to your visual aids and stay connected with your listener.

Communication Barrier #5
Verbal Static

Um… what perception… like… do you create… you know… when you hear… um… a speaker using… uh… words that clutter… you know… their language? Knowledgeable, credible and confident are labels which probably don’t come to mind.

As I travel the country, the number one challenge individuals need to overcome to increase their influence is the ability to replace non-words with a pause. We use non-words to buy ourselves time to think about what we want to say. These words are distracting and your listener misses your message.

How to Avoid This Barrier: Eliminate Filler Words

Benefits for you:

• Think on your feet.
• Get to the point and avoid rambling.
• Take a relaxing breath.
• Hold your listener’s attention.
• Gain control over your message.

Benefits for listener:

• Hear, understand and respond.
• Act on what you say.

Communication Barrier #6
Lack of Eye Connection

The only way to build a relationship is through trust. When you forget what to say, you will look at the ceiling, floor, PowerPoint slides or anywhere away from your listener. When you disconnect you’ll say: “uh” “um” “so” “and”, etc.

How to Avoid This Barrier: Keep Your Eyes On Your Audience

When speaking to more than two individuals, connect with one individual for a complete sentence or thought. Take a moment to pause as you transition your eyes from one individual to another.

When rehearsing, ask your listener to immediately give you feedback when you look away from them while you’re speaking.

Similar Articles You May Like... Are Your Speech Gestures Too Small, Too Big, or Just Right? Toastmasters Speech 5: Your Body Speaks How to Make Reading a Speech Not Like Reading a Speech How to Stop Saying Um, Uh, and Other Filler Words Speech Critique: Elizabeth Gilbert @ TED (Author of Eat, Pray, Love) Boost Your Speaking Confidence Through Improv

Have a Question? Contact me anytime, or find me on Twitter: @6minutes

Stacey Hanke is co-author of Yes You Can! Everything You Need From A To Z To Influence Others To Take Action and founder of 1st Impression Consulting, Inc. She helps individuals eliminate the static that plagues communicative delivery - to persuade, sell, influence and communicate face-to-face with a clear message. She has trained over 15,000 people to rid themselves of bad body language habits and choose words wisely.

In this speech, Novogratz demonstrates several strong speech techniques, including:

• A direct opening which immediately captures interest and provokes curiosity;
• Contrast as a rhetorical device;
• Relating to the audience;
• Complementary visuals; and
• Masterful delivery.

This is the latest in a series of speech critiques here on Six Minutes.

I encourage you to:

1. Watch the video;
2. Read the analysis in this speech critique; and
3. Share your thoughts on this presentation in the comment section.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Speech Opening

Novogratz opens her speech with the following:

I’ve, um, been working on issues of poverty for more than 20 years, and so it’s ironic that the problem that and the question that I most grapple with is how you actually define poverty. What does it mean?

Overall, this is a strong opening which quickly establishes the direction for the speech.

• It establishes her as an authority on poverty (her ethos!)
• It creates surprise. How can this expert not know how to define poverty?
• By asking the question “What does it mean?”, Novogratz also sparks curiosity. The audience is now engaged, and they are trying to answer the question along with her.
• There is no wasted time. She jumps straight in.

Unfortunately, she also does what I often do — utter an “um” or a similar filler word in the opening sentence. I suspect this indicates a bit of nervousness (because that’s what I think causes my similar behavior).

Contrasts

I love the way Novogratz uses contrast.

In this first example [1:15]:

And when we were walking through the narrow alleys, it was literally impossible not to step in the raw sewage and the garbage alongside the little homes. But at the same time it was also impossible not to see the human vitality, the aspiration and the ambition of the people who live there.

Novogratz repeats the words “impossible not to” to emphasize the contrast between “the raw sewage and the garbage” and “the human vitality, the aspiration, and the ambition“. This is wonderfully done, enhanced with photographs to make the words real. Additionally, note the use of the rule of three in the latter sentence.

Later in the speech [6:00]:

I thought I wanted a husband, but what I really wanted was a family that was loving. And I fiercely love my children, and they love me back.” She said, “I thought that I wanted to be a doctor, but what I really wanted to be was somebody who served and healed and cured.

Here, she provides successive sentences with a contrast between the original dream, and the reality which provides happiness to Jane.

This passage is particularly powerful because it circles back to follow up on Jane’s two dreams which were introduced earlier in the speech [at 2:20]. This technique — to introduce a concept early in a speech, and then refer back to it much later — is a powerful one that you can emulate in your speeches.

Giving Meaning to Numbers

Early in the speech [approximately at 0:50], Novogratz describes the Mathare Valley. As part of this description, she wisely decides to provide context by giving the dimensions of the slum. She says:

Now, Mathare Valley is … about three miles out of Nairobi, and it’s a mile long and about two-tenths of a mile wide, where over half a million people live crammed in these little tin shacks …

This is good, but it could have been better. How long is “a mile wide and about two-tenths of a mile wide”? Do you have a real-world sense of this?

I think it would be better to frame this in a way that more people relate to when grappling with the size of this neighborhood. When I think neighborhoods, I immediately think city blocks. So, perhaps this would be better:

“… and it’s eight blocks long and two blocks wide, where over half a million people live…”

Relating to the Audience

Several times during the speech, Novogratz deliberately relates her speech back to her audience.

Early in the speech [1:55], she says:

It was also the day after the inauguration, and I was reminded how Mathare is still connected to the globe. And I would see kids on the street corners, and they’d say “Obama, he’s our brother!” And I’d say “Well, Obama’s my brother, so that makes you my brother too.”

This short anecdote highlights the real connection between the people of Kenya and her TED audience (mostly American).

Later [3:35], Novogratz describes Jane’s economic activity:

And that turned into what she does now, which is to go into the secondhand clothing markets, and for about three dollars and 25 cents she buys an old ball gown. Some of them might be ones you gave. And she re-purposes them with frills and ribbons, and makes these frothy confections that she sells to women for their daughter’s sweet 16 or first Holy Communion — those milestones in a life that people want to celebrate all along the economic spectrum.

Why does she give the detail about the purpose of these dresses? Is it important that the dresses are for “their daughter’s sweet 16 or first Holy Communion”? Yes! These tiny details help the audience to relate to the Kenyan women, because they can easily picture a young woman wearing a special dress on her 16th birthday. Indeed, many in the audience have worn such a dress.

Finally, in the conclusion to the speech [6:40], she says:

And in the middle of this economic crisis, where so many of us are inclined to pull in with fear, I think we’re well suited to take a cue from Jane and reach out, recognizing that being poor doesn’t mean being ordinary. [...] We owe it to the Janes of the world. And just as important, we owe it to ourselves.

This is a fantastic conclusion.

• This speech was delivered in February 2009, when the economic crisis was surely on the minds of many in the audience.
• Novogratz recognizes the strong emotion many were feeling at that time (fear), and hinges her argument on it.
• She uses contrast wonderfully again (“inclined to pull in” versus “reach out”).
• She concludes with an inspirational call-to-action which appeals to the audience’s self-interest: “we owe it to ourselves”.

Complementary Visuals

Imagine this speech without the photographs.

Though this speech is strong with the words alone, it is much more effective with the complementary visuals. Without the visuals, Jane is a character in a story. With the visuals, Jane is real.

To truly appreciate the impact of the photographs, try to imagine this speech being delivered with bullet-point text slides.

Eye Contact

Novogratz delivers her speech without a script or cue cards of any kind. This allows her to connect more directly with the audience.

She frequently looks down, usually as she recalls precise details of a story. I thought this added to her authenticity. As she gazed down, I imagined that she was “seeing” the scenes before her.

More often, Novogratz looks directly at the audience with passion in her eyes.

It is worth noting that the speech opening and closing are both delivered while looking intently at the audience. This provides maximum impact, and suggests that these lines were rehearsed several times until they were memorized. This, like many other traits demonstrated by Novogratz, is something we should all emulate.

Your Thoughts?

What did you think of this speech? What are Jacqueline’s strengths? How could this speech have been made better?

Please share your thoughts in the comments.

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Have a Question? Contact me anytime, or find me on Twitter: @6minutes

Andrew Dlugan is the editor and founder of Six Minutes. He teaches courses, leads seminars, coaches speakers, and strives to avoid Suicide by PowerPoint. He is an award-winning public speaker and speech evaluator. Andrew is a father and husband who resides in British Columbia, Canada.

But do you know how big these gestures should be?

In this article, you’ll learn to match the size of your gestures to your audience and venue.

What is meant by gesture size?

Just as your voice can be loud or soft, your gestures can be large or small.

For example, consider the spectrum of hand and arm gestures.

• Gestures involving your fingers only are small gestures.
• Gestures pivoting at your wrist are a bit larger.
• Gestures pivoting at your elbow are larger still.
• Finally, gestures pivoting at your shoulder are large.

Okay, how do you choose the right size?

It depends. Gestures that are effective for one audience might be completely ineffective with another audience.

Factors you should consider are:

1. the distance between you and your audience, and
2. sight lines between you and your audience
3. cultural and contextual factors

From these factors, we can derive some basic guidelines for effective body language.

Distance

In general, the farther your audience is from you, the larger and more pronounced your gestures need to be. Small audience = small gestures. Big audience = big gestures.

For example, when seated at a board room table, you might use a small hand gesture. When speaking in an auditorium, you need to use full arm gestures.

Sight Lines

In general, if sight lines are clear, you can make smaller and more intricate gestures. If sight lines are partially blocked, you need larger (and higher) gestures.

Cultural and Contextual Factors

Cultural and contextual factors may impact the appropriate size for your gestures. A few examples are:

• The culture of your audience members may dictate more subdued gestures. (In general, beware the use of large gestures if you are not familiar with your audience’s culture.)
• When delivering a eulogy or news about layoffs, your gestures should be subdued.
• When speaking to children, your gestures can probably be magnified.

In all cases, it is best to research this as part of your audience analysis, particularly if you are speaking to a new group.

Example Scenarios for Speech Gestures

Let’s consider a few sample scenarios to illustrate how the size of your audience (and, by extension, the size of the room) influences which gestures are most effective.

1. Speech Gestures for a Small Group (2-6 people)

Example Scenario: You are having a conversation with a colleague in an office, or sitting at a table with customers.

Guidelines for this small group setting:

• Your gestures can be small and still effective because everyone is close to you.
• Finger gestures and hand gestures pivoting at the wrist can be effective.
  For example, consider the finger gestures displayed by the man in photo A on the right.
• Eye gestures and facial expressions are inherently small gestures. They are critical in an intimate small-group setting, because everyone can see every nuance, both conscious and unconscious.
  For example, the woman in photo B is communicating non-verbally simply with her eyes and facial expression.
• The smaller your audience is, the more likely that you will have their full attention. They will tend to be looking at your eyes with a rather narrow field of view. Therefore, small hand gestures may work best if you raise your hands up closer to your eyes.
  For example, see how the man in photo C is gesturing with raised hands.
• Beware nervous gestures (e.g. tapping your fingers on the table; clicking a pen repeatedly) which are magnified in this setting.

2. Speech Gestures for a Medium Group (7-40 people)

Example Scenario: You are presenting to an audience which is seated around boardroom table, or in a small meeting room. You may be standing, or you may be seated yourself.

Guidelines for this medium group setting:

• Your gestures should be scaled up a bit as the average distance between you and the audience members increases.
• Your eye and facial gestures are still important. People in the front rows may still be able to see every nuance, both conscious and unconscious.
• Hand/arm gestures should pivot from your elbows at least.
  For example, consider President Obama in photo D as he gestures with his arm pivoting from his elbow.
• Watch your sight lines! Hand gestures which pivot at the wrist may be too small for people to see, particularly if you are speaking with a lectern or if views are obscured (e.g. by computer screens).
  For example, the man’s gesture in photo E may be invisible to his audience (and thus, ineffective) because it is blocked by the computer screen.
• Depending on the room layout, you may be able to incorporate some larger gestures with your upper body.

3. Speech Gestures for a Large Group (40-100 people)

Example Scenario: You are presenting a lunchtime seminar at a company, or perhaps a conference break-out session in a large meeting room. There probably is not a significant stage, nor is there raised seating (i.e. you are standing at the same level as your audience).

Guidelines for this large group setting:

• Your gestures should scale up even larger with arm gestures out and away from your body.
  For example, the woman in photo F is gesturing with her arm which is pivoting from her shoulder.
• Eye and facial expressions become less important because they are probably invisible to much of the audience unless you really exaggerate them.
• Because of the obscured sight lines for most of your audience behind the first few rows, this can be the most challenging audience size because they can only see you from the chest and higher. Any gestures you make lower are invisible to much of the audience.
  Note how the man in photo G has raised both his arms just under his face to gesture. This allows audience members to see him above the head of the person in front of them.
• One way to magnify smaller gestures is to hold them for a longer period of time and turn your body slightly as you display it. This increases the likelihood that more people will see the gesture.

4. Speech Gestures for a Huge Group (100+ people)

Example Scenario: You are presenting a keynote address at a conference. Audience seating is elevated as you move from front to back, and you are speaking from a stage which is probably set back from the front row.

Guidelines for this huge group setting:

• Your gestures need to scale up again. Full body gestures are necessary. Don’t hold back.
• Small gestures, like small objects, are invisible. Gestures with your fingers (e.g. putting up three fingers to indicate your third point) are invisible. Your audience will see your arm up, but they cannot see your fingers.
  For example, consider Steve Jobs as he unveils the MacBook Air in photo H. He realizes that most of his audience cannot really see what he is holding. (And his hands and face are even smaller!) So, a photo of a manila envelope appears on the screen behind him to compensate.
• Eye and facial gestures are invisible. This does not mean you should have a “dead” face. Quite the opposite, you should still have expressive eye and facial gestures because this will tend to keep your vocal variety high.
• Because of improved sight lines, you can probably use “low” hand/arm gestures that are centered around your stomach and waist.
• Also, your legs are now visible and you can exploit this to great advantage with full body gestures such as strolling or kicking.
• In rare cases, a video system may be used to magnify you for your audience, as with the woman presenting in photo I. If this is the case, smaller gestures can, once again, be seen. Large gestures are probably still more effective.

In Summary

Always be aware of the distance between you and your audience and the sight lines in the room. Based on this knowledge, scale your gestures accordingly and you will be effective.

Similar Articles You May Like... Toastmasters Speech 5: Your Body Speaks 6 Communication Barriers and How You Can Avoid Them Boost Your Speaking Confidence Through Improv How to Thrive When Speaking Outside How to Make Reading a Speech Not Like Reading a Speech Speech Critique: Elizabeth Gilbert @ TED (Author of Eat, Pray, Love)

Have a Question? Contact me anytime, or find me on Twitter: @6minutes

Andrew Dlugan is the editor and founder of Six Minutes. He teaches courses, leads seminars, coaches speakers, and strives to avoid Suicide by PowerPoint. He is an award-winning public speaker and speech evaluator. Andrew is a father and husband who resides in British Columbia, Canada.

Does your face signal fear or does it signal excitement for your topic?

Do your hands vibrate, or do they punctuate your words?

The fifth Toastmasters speech project encourages you to make every body movement enhance your speech rather than detract from it. This article of the Toastmasters Speech Series examines the primary goals of this project, provides tips and techniques, and links to numerous sample speeches.

Why is This Speech Important?

Your aims for this speech project are to complement your message with your body during delivery. Specifically, be aware of your:

• posture,
• body movement,
• facial expressions, and
• eye contact.

If you aren’t aware of your body language, you are missing an incredible opportunity to improve your effectiveness as a speaker.

Tips and Techniques

1. Remove “Noisy” Movements

The Competent Communicator manual advice for this project is excellent, and among my favorite pieces of advice is “any movement during your speech should be purposeful.”

For many people, there is as much to be gained from removing nervous and distracting movements as there is from adding conscious gestures. It may seem counter-intuitive, but this is “addition by subtraction.”

Before delivering this speech, ask your mentor or a fellow club member to highlight your most distracting physical mannerism. We all have one. Mine is “wringing” of my hands. Yours might be a tendency to play with your hair. It might be playing with your keys or coins in your pocket. It might be rocking back and forth from your heel to your toe.

Whatever it is, make a goal in this project to consciously remove or reduce it in this speech project. By doing so, you can clear your physical palette, and then you’ll be ready for purpose additions of gestures to complement your message.

2. Avoid “Forcing” Gestures into Your Speech

One common mistake I see in Toastmasters who tackle this speech project is to overdo it by awkwardly forcing a hand gesture into nearly every sentence. This almost always results in a very choppy and awkward delivery.

Remember that your goal is not to provide a continuous physical interpretation of every word spoken. Instead, add gestures selectively where they add the most impact.

I find that the best way to avoid forcing hand and arms gestures is to try to strike an even balance between the other forms of physical gestures — eye contact, facial expressions, posture, or whole body movements. For example, if you convey an important emotion with your facial expression, your arms can relax to your sides because they “aren’t needed.”

3. Record Video of Yourself Speaking

If you have not seen yourself speaking yet, use this project as the motivation to finally do it. The best way to discover any distracting movements is to watch yourself delivering a speech with the volume turned off.

• Is your body constantly in movement, or do you come to rest in between gestures?
• Do your gestures alone (without the sound) convey emotions which match your message?
• Is your face expressive or flat?
• Are your eyes darting around the room or providing sustained contact?

What I Did for Speech 5

I decided to select a speech with a range of emotions so that I could practice having my body express the emotions. I chose to talk about a hobby that I shared with my dad — woodworking. Some examples of body language I used were:

• eyes wide open to mimic child wonder;
• angry face to signal frustration at a woodworking project gone wrong;
• shaking head to signal disappointment from my dad;
• a thrusting arm to show how wooden furniture was smashed; and
• various arm movements to show the sizes of pieces of wood.

The title of the speech was Measure Twice, Cut Once. Years later, I rewrote a substantial portion of this speech and entered the Toastmasters International Speech Contest, eventually placing third in District 21.

Critiques of Toastmasters Speech 5 Examples

Here are a few examples of Toastmasters members delivering speech 5 on video. Each is accompanied by a few critiques which highlight positive behaviors and things to improve. In several cases, a time is given (e.g. 0:45) Clicking on this link will take you to the moment the gesture is used in the speech.

Speech Example #1

Feeling Naked by Heather Applegate

• Gestures to Improve
  • Repetitive gesture (both arms spread out to sides), many times in a row. [0:45] If you repeat any action too many times, your audience starts to ignore it, or be annoyed by it. Both are bad for you.
  • In general, arms are quite “busy” with many “generic” gestures throughout. In her defense, this creates a relaxed, conversational style that is appropriate in for this speech topic. Still, I would like to see it toned down.
• Effective Body Language
  • Facial gestures convey a “puzzled look” to complement the confusion of the “neighbors being around you”. [0:55] This gesture comes through strong even with the imperfect video quality.
  • It’s better to avoid notes because they tend to limit gestures as you hold on to the paper. However, if you do must have notes, this is the way to do it [1:30]: briefly look down to orient yourself, and then look back up again before speaking. (Contrast this with talking to the paper @ 5:00.)
  • Inhale, exhale to complement “Just breathe” [3:05]

Speech Example #2

Let’s have disagreement by Anonymous

• Gestures to Improve
  • Forced gesture – The opening walk from right to left [0:02] seems forced to me. However, he recovered well with broad arm to right while saying “you’ll be one mile apart”
  • Repetitive action – Throughout the speech, two gestures are repeated over and over again. [1] two arms with palms upward; [2] two arms with thumbs up.
  • Back to the audience. [5:32] Try to avoid facing away from the audience, even when writing on a whiteboard or flip chart.
• Effective Body Language
  • Natural smile throughout the speech.
  • Raising of right arm reinforces that he wants the audience to respond to his question. [0:57]
  • Arms mimic “building a wall” [1:45]
  • Arms mimic a complete circle to punctuate “a whole” [3:16]
  • Emphasize opposites. Notice the use of the two arms for “stupid” and “smart” [4:16]
  • Arms “hugging” to punctuate the word “embrace” [6:03]

Speech Example #3

Speak Without Saying a Word by Emilie Staryak

• Gestures to Improve
  • It’s difficult to focus naturally on gestures when talking about gestures. For this reason, I recommend choosing a topic other than gestures for this speech.
• Effective Body Language
  • Natural smile throughout the speech.
  • Get the lectern out of the way [1:06]. Removing barriers between you and your audience helps them to see your body language and connect with you.
  • Emphasize opposites — “If we have a party that is going to start at 5 o’clock, we have to tell my Uncle Joe that it starts at 6 (arms gesturing to the right), and we have to tell my Dad that it starts at 4 (arms gesturing to the left)” [3:15]

Speech Example #4

Learning from Yourself by Anonymous

• Gestures to Improve
  • Arms tucked behind body for the first 70 seconds of speech. Try to keep your hands and arms in front and “ready” to gesture.
  • Repetitive gesture, both arms out in front, palms up, hands going up and down. [e.g. 4:40 to 5:20, and other times]
• Effective Body Language
  • Broad smile accompanies “I had lots of fun there” [2:20] Authenticity!
  • While saying “Projection”, arms project strongly outwards to complement words [2:48]
  • Emphasize opposites by providing opposing gestures. Arms sway to right = “too fast”; arms sway to the left = “too slow” [2:52]

More Examples of Your Body Speaks

Here are a few more sample video speeches which may provide inspiration for you. As you watch some of these videos, ask yourself which body language is effective and which is not. Then, try to emulate the best behaviors in your own speech.

• The Joy. The Ecstacy. The Moment by Anonymous
• Home Invasion by Annie
• Stuck in a Rut by Jason Turner
• Unknown by Sanjiv Santhanam
• Death of an Apostrophe by Chris J
• Unknown by Julia Billingsley
• Competition by David Stokes
• Couch Exercise by Eric
• Change by Accident by Bruce
• Invest a Little Discipline by Harsh Singhal
• Learning from Kids by Sachin Shah (including an evaluation)
• What Winners Do To Win by Lisa

Next in the Toastmasters Speech Series

The next article in this series examines Toastmasters Speech 6: Vocal Variety.

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Have a Question? Contact me anytime, or find me on Twitter: @6minutes

Andrew Dlugan is the editor and founder of Six Minutes. He teaches courses, leads seminars, coaches speakers, and strives to avoid Suicide by PowerPoint. He is an award-winning public speaker and speech evaluator. Andrew is a father and husband who resides in British Columbia, Canada.