Hey, a Good Speech is More Than Just Talking

When we begin speaking in public we are usually focused on our own feelings and emotions. We are hyperaware of any misspoken words, stuttering or any other mistakes. After speaking a few times with an understanding of where our fear comes from and what we can do about it we start to see it diminish. We may still feel some degree of fear but the knowledge and understanding that we have gained about fear helps us move beyond its paralyzing nature.

At this point something starts to occur in our thoughts. We start to realize that speaking to an audience is less about our thoughts, feelings and emotions and more about our audience’s. This is good news because as we start focusing on our audience’s needs we focus less on our own fear.

One area that we have been discussing is learning styles. Learning styles is used to describe the fact that we all take in information through three primary means:
• Visual – learning by watching.
• Auditory – learning by listening.
• Kinesthetic – learning by doing.

Now we can all learn through any of these modalities - however most of us will have one that is dominant. The individual who is an auditory learner will be most interested in listening to a speaker. The visual learner will take in more information through images and mental pictures. The kinesthetic learner will be most intrigued by hands on workshops.

It's important to remember that even though we may have one dominant style most people can take in some information through the other modalities. As a speaker it is important not to misinterpret this information. It may be tempting to prepare an auditory only message and expect the audience to adapt. Such an attitude forgets that the audience is the reason we are speaking in the first place and it is up to the speaker to meet their needs.

No, the knowledge that people can learn from modalities other than their dominant one should be used to their advantage - not to ours as a speaker. You see individuals benefit when they receive the same message through multiple means - to illustrate this think about various entertainment choices. How often do you choose an entertainment source that is solely auditory or solely visual – probably not often.

You may be thinking to yourself, “Oh yeah David, I listen to the radio all the time.” That may be true, but how often do you listen to the radio and do absolutely nothing else. Most often we listen to the radio in the background while performing a primary task such as driving or working. If you were not absorbed with a primary action would you choose to listen to the radio for exclusive entertainment? If the answer is yes then you are a rare individual. Most people would move on to something else that involves more of their attention.

To illustrate the point further, think about why most people dance at rock concerts rather than just sit in their seats. The answer is that they want more than just the music - they want to be involved… and they get it by being involved. They move to the music which is a kinesthetic action.

What does this mean to you as speaker? It means that as we make the transition to the audiences feelings we have one easy way to help them stay interested – that is to bombard them with information in various modalities.

Obviously if we are speaking or presenting then we are providing information in an auditory manner. In fact all speeches and presentations should be composed with an auditory component first. After we have a successful auditory foundation we can move on to supplementing with additional modalities.

If we want to boast our presentation to the next level it is usually not too difficult to add a visual component. This can be done through the use of gestures and/or props.

Gestures are physical movements that communicate a message as well. The visual message usually re-enforces what is being said (but not always)

Props are physical objects that we can use to also re-enforce what is being said. The most common prop by far is PowerPoint (or PowerPoint like) presentations. PowerPoint is an excellent tool when it used properly – as a prop that supports the point being made.

Props can be other objects that are shown, demonstrated or manipulated in order to illustrate a point. I often use magic tricks to emphasize the points that I am making.

One other visual component is to have our audience imagine a scene. As they imagine it they are in fact visualizing it.

Okay so the visual component is relatively easy to add – but what about kinesthetic modalities?

In order to add a kinesthetic element you want have the audience feel like they are directly involved – that they are doing something.

Some simple examples of adding kinesthetic components to a speech include:
• Conducting a quick survey and asking for a show of hands.
• Asking rhetorical questions – which they will start thinking about the answer.
• Asking direct questions that you are looking for the audience to contribute answers to.
• Getting members of the audience to ask you questions.

This is a very simple list to get you started.

If you haven’t read it yet, you might want to read my article about an exercise I have used with some audiences regarding colours…. It gives an example of how I used the actions of my audience (standing and sitting) to illustrate a point that they were not expecting – it turned out to be very effective.

Another method that I use to get the audience kinesthetically involved is the use of the magic tricks. You see they are not just at a visual component - they also have an active component:
• First of all I am usually performing an illusion “on” a volunteer. This person is directly involved, but by this person’s participation the other audience members also feel involved.
• In addition the very act of doing something that the audience can not understand or explain causes them to start thinking about how the trick was accomplished. Again, they are intellectual involved so they are “doing”.

I have one more unconventional method to share with you regarding magic tricks. Occasionally I will demonstrate an illusion and then to the audience's surprise I will explain how it is done. Now the true magician never reveals her/his tricks – however I’m a public speaker, not a magician. If the explanation of the illusion re-enforces the point I’m making I will do it. It gets the audience involved on all three modalities and they are much more likely to a) maintain their attention and b) remember the points.

The best news of all is that as you begin to incorporate techniques like this you are focused on your message and your audience. This means that you are much less likely to become paralyzed by your fear.

Remember, as you use more modalities of learning your audience will be more likely to maintain their attention and retain the information that you are sharing. Your speech should be based primarily on auditory information, but supplement it with visual and kinesthetic modalities - By doing so both and your audience will benefit.

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Copyright © 2007 David Mudie All Rights Reserved

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