poseyblog is all about TED Talks: The Official TED Guide to Public Speaking this month. This book is the essential evangelist’s field guide – full of detailed, useful advice for speakers. This week let’s look at who and how to be on stage.
“The only thing that truly matters in public speaking is not confident stage presence or smooth talking. It’s having something worth saying,” says Chris Anderson. “Inspiration can’t be performed. It’s an audience response to authenticity, courage, selfless work, and genuine wisdom. Bring those qualities to your talk, and you may be amazed at what happens.”
As we always say at poseycorp, when you are giving a talk, you are not giving a performance. ‘Performing’ on stage can actually undermine your credibility. You are not a game show host. You’re a person giving a gift to your audience. Your gift is your big idea, which hits on your audience’s concerns. The quality of your message, the quality of your gift, is always the most important thing. Technique can get in your way, especially if your message isn’t strong.
Here’s Chris Anderson again: “Some speaking coaches may push vocal variety beyond what feels right to you. Don’t let them. Let it come naturally from the passion you feel for the topic. Mostly you want to speak conversationally, interjecting curiosity and excitement when it’s appropriate.”
He goes on, “Some speakers fall into a trap here. In the thrill of being on stage, they get caught up in a slightly too grandiose sense of the occasion and begin unconsciously embracing a form of oration. They slow down their pace. They speak a little too loudly. And they insert dramatic pauses between sentences. This is an absolute talk killer.”
Here’s the recipe. You love your idea + you love your audience + you are at home with yourself. That’s the winning combination for a great talk.
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