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10 Tips for Improving Your Public Speaking Skills

Few are immune to the fear of public speaking. Marjorie North offers 10 tips for speakers to calm the nerves and deliverable memorable orations.

Marjorie North

Snakes? Fine. Flying? No problem. Public speaking? Yikes! Just thinking about public speaking — routinely described as one of the greatest (and most common) fears — can make your palms sweat. But there are many ways to tackle this anxiety and learn to deliver a memorable speech.

In part one of this series,  Mastering the Basics of Communication , I shared strategies to improve how you communicate. In part two, How to Communicate More Effectively in the Workplace , I examined how to apply these techniques as you interact with colleagues and supervisors in the workplace. For the third and final part of this series, I’m providing you with public speaking tips that will help reduce your anxiety, dispel myths, and improve your performance.

Here Are My 10 Tips for Public Speaking:

1. nervousness is normal. practice and prepare.

All people feel some physiological reactions like pounding hearts and trembling hands. Do not associate these feelings with the sense that you will perform poorly or make a fool of yourself. Some nerves are good. The adrenaline rush that makes you sweat also makes you more alert and ready to give your best performance.

The best way to overcome anxiety is to prepare, prepare, and prepare some more. Take the time to go over your notes several times. Once you have become comfortable with the material, practice — a lot. Videotape yourself, or get a friend to critique your performance.

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2. Know Your Audience. Your Speech Is About Them, Not You.

Before you begin to craft your message, consider who the message is intended for. Learn as much about your listeners as you can. This will help you determine your choice of words, level of information, organization pattern, and motivational statement.

3. Organize Your Material in the Most Effective Manner to Attain Your Purpose.

Create the framework for your speech. Write down the topic, general purpose, specific purpose, central idea, and main points. Make sure to grab the audience’s attention in the first 30 seconds.

4. Watch for Feedback and Adapt to It.

Keep the focus on the audience. Gauge their reactions, adjust your message, and stay flexible. Delivering a canned speech will guarantee that you lose the attention of or confuse even the most devoted listeners.

5. Let Your Personality Come Through.

Be yourself, don’t become a talking head — in any type of communication. You will establish better credibility if your personality shines through, and your audience will trust what you have to say if they can see you as a real person.

6. Use Humor, Tell Stories, and Use Effective Language.

Inject a funny anecdote in your presentation, and you will certainly grab your audience’s attention. Audiences generally like a personal touch in a speech. A story can provide that.

7. Don’t Read Unless You Have to. Work from an Outline.

Reading from a script or slide fractures the interpersonal connection. By maintaining eye contact with the audience, you keep the focus on yourself and your message. A brief outline can serve to jog your memory and keep you on task.

8. Use Your Voice and Hands Effectively. Omit Nervous Gestures.

Nonverbal communication carries most of the message. Good delivery does not call attention to itself, but instead conveys the speaker’s ideas clearly and without distraction.

9. Grab Attention at the Beginning, and Close with a Dynamic End.

Do you enjoy hearing a speech start with “Today I’m going to talk to you about X”? Most people don’t. Instead, use a startling statistic, an interesting anecdote, or concise quotation. Conclude your speech with a summary and a strong statement that your audience is sure to remember.

10. Use Audiovisual Aids Wisely.

Too many can break the direct connection to the audience, so use them sparingly. They should enhance or clarify your content, or capture and maintain your audience’s attention.

Practice Does Not Make Perfect

Good communication is never perfect, and nobody expects you to be perfect. However, putting in the requisite time to prepare will help you deliver a better speech. You may not be able to shake your nerves entirely, but you can learn to minimize them.

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About the Author

North is a consultant for political candidates, physicians, and lawyers, and runs a private practice specializing in public speaking, and executive communication skills. Previously, she was the clinical director in the department of speech and language pathology and audiology at Northeastern University.

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5 steps to giving a perfect TED Talk

• James Haynes
• August 1, 2022

Table of Contents

Introduction.

If you’re pursuing a speaking career, you’ve likely seen or heard about TED Talks. But have you ever thought about giving one? TED Talks have become one of the most high-profile examples of public speaking gigs today. If you are excited to learn more about how to give a TED Talk or TEDx talk, let this be your guide! (Interested in other avenues for public speaking? We have a piece on how to best get started here .)

What is a TED Talk?

TED originated in the 1980s on the West Coast as a forum for learning about technological developments in particular in Silicon Valley. In the 1990s, the annual conference grew to a major event, spinning off independent events in major cities around the world under the TEDx banner in the 2000s.

According to TEDx Cambridge director Tamsen Webster , TED Talks are much more exclusive and invite-only, since speakers are invited from around the world. But TEDx Talks, the local, community-based independent forums for TED, are easier to access. If you speak at a TEDx, you’re recorded as a TEDx speaker, but your video may be promoted to the official TED website, ted.com and published on the TEDx official YouTube channel.

Some TEDx speakers, such as academic researcher Brené Brown, get invited to the “Big TED” stage after a breakout performance on the TEDx stage. In Brown’s case, her 2010 TEDx Houston talk, “The Power of Vulnerability”, became a top 5-viewed TED Talk online, and she followed it up with a TED Talk titled “Listening to Shame” in 2012. But, TEDx Cambridge director Tamsen Webster cautions, such cases are rare. Hear more from her interview with Grant Baldwin here (discussion of TEDx gigs begins around the 11:30 mark) .

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How to give a TED Talk in 5 steps

Want to learn how to give a TED Talk? Read on for 5 steps to make it unforgettable:

1. Begin with the end in mind

Have you ever been left at the end of a speech wondering, “What was the point of this talk?” Don’t do that to your audience. When creating your talk, determine the destination that you want to take them to. Once you pick a point, then you can work backwards and reverse engineer how to get your audience to that place. (for more on finding your big idea, check out this episode  of The Speaker Lab podcast)

Answer “now what?” for the audience. Your audience is always asking two questions: so what and now what? So what means what does this have to do with me? Now what is what you want the audience to do as a result of your talk. Give them action steps to implement what you taught them. If they hear you speak but literally don’t do anything differently, what’s the point?

2. Hone your big idea

Professional speakers often have an extra barrier to cross when it comes to being selected even for a TEDx event. While not prohibited from participanting, they are generally discouraged unless they have a particularly original new idea. In Webster’s words, “We want to catch the rising star. We want the new idea before it’s out there. If you’ve already got the book talk, and you’re already making money with that talk, that’s probably not the talk that we want.”

What’s the type of idea that TED or TEDx organizers are typically looking for? According to Webster, it needs to have the three Is: Interesting, Important, and Individual. In other words, it needs to have a speaker 1) who is an authority on the topic (due to background, life experiences, research, etc.), 2) who can address an important unmet need in the world, and 3) be passionate to share about it.

One way to break down the big idea is looking at a problem, an idea and a change. Webster gives the example of an entrepreneur unsuccessfully chasing work-life balance. The problem they see is that they want less pressure in their non-work lives. The idea Webster proposes is that what entrepreurs actually need to achieve work-life balance are not external skills: “That’s adding more pressure on you’re on entrepreneur already.” The change could be choosing to accept internal skills and abilities and delegating more things to de-stress.

3. Write out your material and tell a story

Professional speakers don’t just make stuff up. They don’t write a few thoughts on a notecard and then shoot from the hip for an entire presentation. They take the time to write and carefully craft their material.

Humans relate to stories. We connect to stories. Funny stories. Sad stories. Inspirational stories. We love stories. So tell them. Lots of them. Stories will keep your audience engaged and are also easier for you to memorize. Read  this super helpful post  by my speaker pal Josh Sundquist for his tips on writing your speech, setting your fee, and booking your first gigs.

There’s nothing wrong with telling a 3rd person story or using some case study or example. Telling stories that you lived and experienced generally makes the story better for you and the audience. For the audience, they can often times find themselves in your story. For you as the speaker, it’s much easier (and more powerful) to tell a story that you lived versus one you read in a book.

4. Prepare the presentation

Oftentimes speakers want to have Powerpoint or Keynote slides to use as notes for their presentation. This is lazy. Don’t do this. Any slides you use should be an enhancement not a replacement of your talk. If you’re just going to stand up there and read off the screen, what does the audience need you for?

Use Powerpoint to show images that make a point. Some speakers will build their talk around their slides. Start with the talk FIRST and then determine if slides are needed or necessary. Slides are generally most effective for showing images or videos that can’t be conveyed in words. For example, if you were in some death-defying crash and that’s part of your talk, it’s one thing to tell that story, but it’s incredibly more powerful if you show pictures or video of it all.

Consider writing out your material. Professional speakers don’t just make stuff up. They don’t write a few thoughts on a notecard and then shoot from the hip for an entire presentation. They take the time to write and carefully craft their material. There is no right way to create a talk. You don’t need to memorize your talk like a script, but manuscripting can help you to think through the entire presentation and to know exactly how it all flows together. Some speakers prefer to have an outline with several bullet points and flesh it out from there. Every speaker is different. Find a process that works for you.

5. On stage, be an amplified version of you

The bigger the venue, the bigger you need to be on stage. The way you would communicate to a group of 10 people is very different than how you would need to communicate to a room of 10,000. Both should be an authentic version of you, but simply amplified to the setting. The bottom line is don’t try to be something you’re not on stage. Be you.

Keep it slow and steady. When you are talking really fast, it becomes difficult for the audience to follow. It’s hard to keep up and process. Plus the faster you talk, the harder it is to understand what you’re saying. So slow down and enunciate. Give the audience the chance to keep up with where you’re going.

Don’t be afraid of the silence. The silence to a speaker can feel deafening but it can be powerful. Silence shows confidence that you’re in control of the talk and the room and you’re continuing to guide them towards a common purpose. When you make a strong point, don’t rush to the next line. Stop and let it hang there. The silence is your friend.

All in all, though giving a TED and TEDx Talk isn’t going to drive revenue for anyone’s speaking business, it can provide a tremendous platform for reach in your area of expertise, and giving either one is a great feather in anyone’s cap.

If you found this piece helpful, we have a great podcast with Tamsen Webster digging even deeper into the world of TED–especially the ins and outs of the TEDx selection process! She tells us how she helps her speakers prepare for their TEDx talks, how you can get your foot in the door with your local TEDx and how to know if your idea is interesting enough to be considered for a TEDx talk. You can listen to this “inside look” at TED here . Want to read more about speaking tips? Take a look at our 100 tips for motivational speaking for any speaking engagement!

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While you mull all of that over, here are a few rapid fire FAQs about TED Talks. Happy speaking!

What does TED Talk stand for?

TED is an acronym for Technology, Entertainment, and Design, the original topics of TED Talks when the organization launched in the mid-1980s.

How long is a TED Talk?

TED Talks are limited in length to 18 minutes or less.

How much do you get paid to give a TED Talk?

Although TED and TEDx Conference speakers do not get paid, presenters may receive travel and lodging costs for the conference they speak at.

Does TED have any tips for giving a TED Talk?

TED has many resources for aspiring speakers at ted.com. And some past TED speakers have given talks of their own on how to deliver a great TED Talk! See below for a video from TED Curator Chris Anderson, who shares his secret ingredient that all the best ones have in common, along with four ways to make it work for you.

• Last Updated: February 29, 2024

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Productivity

Productivity tips

How to Give a Talk

This year I accepted my first request to give a talk at an organized, all-day event. There was only one problem, I had no idea how to! I've given one or two short technical lectures to user groups, but nothing like a 10-20 minute engaging talk in front of a few hundred people.

The following guide is me writing down my process for next time and is aimed at folks who have given few, if any, talks before. But maybe even experienced talk-givers could pick up a tip (or leave a comment explaining how your process deviates)!

I realize there are a lot of styles of talks. Some are technical, some are tactical, some are entertaining, some are inspirational. It all depends on the audience you're talking to. The first thing to do is figure out the demographics.

If you're truly starting from scratch, expect this process to take about one week (10-15 hours, nights and weekends) for a polished talk.

This is a long resource. Here are helpful quick links.

Come up with a talk idea

Write down your talk

Create your deck

Practice your talk

Give your talk

Learn from your talk

Reach out and say thanks

1. Figure out who you are talking to

There are several ways you can do this. The first is to ask the organizers. If the organizers haven't explicitly asked for demographic information during registration, they should at least have a gut feel for who is likely to attend.

If you're speaking at a venue that has hosted the event before, you can leverage existing community knowledge. You only need one insider to give you the "boots on the ground" perspective of the potential audience.

For I/OWA, I learned that almost everyone attending was involved with a small business or startup in some way—but I didn't learn this before, I learned it at at the conference by networking with attendees! This insight would have influenced me to share more tactical advise in my talk.

Find audience attributes like average age, typical job experience, dominate industry, technical aptitude, and geographic distribution. When you obtain this information, don't ignore it! Use it to help form the basis of your talk.

2. Come up with a talk idea

Repeat-speakers often recycle their slides and talks. But I’m assuming you're starting from scratch, like myself at I/OWA.

You might have been given a prompt by the organizer. If the organizer hasn’t given you one, lean on them to give you one. In fact, collecting demographics is a means to an end. If the organizer gives you a talk prompt they've likely already taken demographics (even subconsciously) into account.

If you don't have a prompt, the demographics information is a great starting point. What you're looking for is a connection with the audience. Preferably, a connection slanted towards something you know that the majority of the audience does not.

This connection forms the arc of your talk. In other words, the single message you'd like to convey. At this point you're looking for a message you could write in one or two sentences.

Technical/tactical talks, which tend to be very bullet point driven, are improved by having a central message that the audience can hang onto well after they've left.

If you feel unqualified to talk about your message, you're in luck! There is a perception that all speakers are undoubtedly qualified. While true to an extent for technical talks (less so than you'd think) there is greater value in hearing stories and anecdotes. For the same reason people don't often write about their experiences (who would want to hear this?!) they'll make the mistake of omitting stories in their talks.

Think of speaking as storytelling. Tell your story and tie it to your message.

Stories and anecdotes are so important because they enable the audience to relate. They are also very engaging and will keep the audience paying attention the entire time (see Giving below).

Even if your goal is to deliver tactical advise or technical wisdom, your tool for doing so is inspiration. You first have to inspire the audience to follow anything you say and stories are very effective at doing this.

3. Write down your talk

The goal of this step is to write down parts of your talk in complete sentences. This step often takes the longest and is the one where you'll actually craft your idea into a talk.

Fortunately, you never have to show anyone these sentences so consider this the drafting stage. Feel free to nuke sentences, reword, and move them around with prejudice.

A very important thing to consider here is talk length. You've probably been given a time limit by the organizer and unless your limit is 10 minutes or less, I strongly encourage you not to hit it. Most venues have fallbacks in case you run short—but running long almost always causes havoc. There are other good reasons to be brief:

The audience will have paid attention the entire time, meaning they are more likely to get your message

Your talk will stand out because it was shorter, in a good way

It forces you to include a high-pass filter for your sentences, trimming out the fluff

You should find out from your organizer if there will be questions and answers after the talk. Often if there is, your talk time and Q&A time come from the same pool of minutes. The more you talk, the less time you get for Q&A.

Use Q&A to your advantage, especially if you don't know your audience demographics! Purposely leave hints in your talk that can be brought up during Q&A. This lets the audience decide what they want to hear more about. This also makes Q&A less scary because you will know some of the answers ahead of time.

I give some estimates for length farther down.

Just like an essay, first you want to outline. Come up with the top-level categories you're going to hit and the order you're going to hit them. If you're telling a story these might be dates, locations, or major events. You can even use these same categories for technical and tactical talks though the structure for those talks is often very apparent given the subject matter.

You'll also want to decide the arc for your message while outlining. There are two easy arc structures you can choose between.

Teaser, Conclusion

This structure teases the message by introducing some conflict or outcome early in the talk, so the audience knows why they are paying attention for the meat of it. The middle of the talk mostly focuses on tactics, technical points, or stories. Finally, the conclusion is where the message is derived from the talk. You can explicitly call-back moments in the talk to build your message.

This structure does really well for time-linear based talks with lots of stories.

Upfront & Repetition

This structure hinges on outright telling the message upfront. By using this structure, you'll state exactly what the audience will learn by paying attention. The meat of the talk again focuses on tactics, points, or stories, but each section is tied back into the message as it goes. The final conclusion can simply be a re-statement of the message.

This structure does really well for point-based (or technical) talks with lots of tactics.

This should be enough to get your top-level categories written down. In fact, you will probably be itching to add more details under each top-level category which is the next step.

Bullet points

After coming up with your top-level categories you can start to bullet point ideas under them. You could even outline and bullet point at the same time.

This is where the real meat of the talk gets developed. Again you have several things to choose from:

Tactics : a specific thing you do, why you do it, how you learned it, what outcome it has had

Stories : recanting a sequence of events that lead to some moment in time relevant to your message

Technical Points : a fact, pattern, or approach that most people don't know

You can weave in-and-out pretty gracefully from one to another. Using different devices also helps break up any monotony that might otherwise sneak into the structure of your talk.

Don't forget to use teasers if you're doing Q&A after the talk. These are great for trimming possibly tangent stories/advise from talks because the audience can specifically request to know more if they want to afterwards.

The final iteration is turning your bullet points into sentences. For each top-level category I like to have (at least) three sentences: one for the introduction, one for the meat, and one for the transition to the next top-level category. You'll use these sentences as waypoints (and can even read verbatim while practicing, see Practicing below).

After you've done this, you'll have at least 50% of your talk written down in sentence form. These sentences are great length estimators. As an example, for a 10-minute talk I gave, I initially had created about 10 top-level categories each with three sentences written out underneath.

Much like writing, at this point I like to let my sentences simmer for a day or so and revise. Unlike writing, I'm not looking at grammar or spelling while revising rather I'm looking at the talk structure as a whole including the arc, message, and length.

4. Create your deck

There are two types of talks. The ones that use slides and the ones that don't—though the latter is becoming increasingly rare. Even if you don't want to use a deck I think it's still useful to go through the motions (sans images) because it'll help when practicing. If you're just starting out and have the choice, I would recommend using slides.

And there are two types of slide decks. There are decks that attempt to mimic blog posts whereby a reader could grasp the message just by skimming the slides. The other type of deck is purposely designed for talks. I like to call the former "blog post decks." You can identify them primarily by their long length and overuse of text.

Recently, blog post decks have spiked in popularity (helped in part by a culture of folks asking you to "send them decks"). If you browse sites like SlideShare you'll find this kind exclusively. The idea seems attractive because you get to republish your talk afterwards online without doing more work.

Personally, I think blog post decks are less effective at communicating their message and they make sacrifices to achieve this "less work" scenario. Blog post decks encourage you to be wordy on each slide. This is at odds with effective talk slides (where fewer words is more). You end up with a deck that is overly wordy for a talk and not wordy enough for readers to grasp your message via slides alone.

A better route is to purposely create a deck for the talk and then turn your talk into a real blog post afterwards. Blog posts are a much better format for communicating online.

Types of slides

An effective slide deck can be made up of several things.

A photo really does say 1,000 words. But don't squander this and use clip-art to highlight something. Photos can set tone, they can provide context, show relations (graphs, plots), and they can emphasize a point you are saying aloud.

Text Emphasis

If you're making a technical point or delivering a critical idea, putting this into text format a slide can help solidify it in the audience's mind. Don't overdo it, though, or it will lose its power.

You can use a slide to indicate a waypoint in your talk. This maps pretty cleanly onto the top-level categories that were touched on earlier. It lets the audience know the talk is progressing and can be used to divide ideas into sections.

By far the hardest type of slide—and the most at odds with "blog post decks." Humor is chronically under-used but delivers massive efficacy gains. If you want to get attention, this is a very effective method. Attention is arguably coupled with retention so more people will take home your message.

Humor slides are all about timing, irony, self-deprecation and callbacks. I'm no professional comedian though; this is the best place I've found to get inspired by humor .

Structure & Design

Before you invest time in creating your final slides, ask the organizer what type of file they prefer—Keynote, PowerPower and PDF are most popular—and what aspect ratio to use.

Make sure to have a title slide and a "thanks" slide. The title slide is often left up on the screen while you're taking the stage (or slightly before) and the thanks slide might be kept in place while you are answering questions or exiting. For this reason, it's a great place to put actionable items like Twitter handles .

With bookends in place, begin to go through your outline and sentences, linearly filling in content from the sentences written earlier.

Pacing is the primary driver here. I'd recommend following your natural conversation pacing. If you are high-energy, you can get away with flipping through lots of slides. But if you talk slower, consider how many slides you can show within your time limit and still make it through to your message.

Just remember the guiding principle for slides: less is more .

Another good tip to remember is the venue won't always be set up the way you expect it. Some common assumptions you might be making (that aren't always true):

The screen will be behind me

There is only one screen

The screen will show colors exactly how my computer does

A confidence monitor will show the current slide and preview of the next slide

I'll be controlling the slides

To be safe, design your slides with a large, contrasting font.

I had a minor panic at I/OWA when I saw speakers before me having trouble with the slide remote control. I learned that the slide technician ended up manually advancing slides when he saw the speaker attempt to unsuccessfully. I had several timing-based humor slides and knew they would fall over if this happened to me.

As a workaround, I offered to go over the slides with the AV technician before my talk so he could get primed on when I intended to change slides. Literally 60 seconds before I walked on stage, a more robust slide remote arrived at the venue. Crisis adverted!

Make sure to save your slides in a safe place, send them to the organizer, and have them available locally on the day you give your talk.

5. Practice your talk

Depending on the length of your talk, the memorization needed, and your speaking time, you can either start practicing the day before or the day of your engagement.

1. Via your sentences

The best way to start practicing is by just reading your sentences out loud in your speaking voice (try to use the same pacing and intonation you will during the talk). You'll likely have some filler content that you didn't put into sentences and you can practice that here, too.

The key point is to start molding your neurons towards certain transitions phrases. You don't need to memorize your entire talk. All you need to memorize is the general flow of the talk and the transitions and you'll be able to improvise the in-between bits. But don't skip saying the in-between bits during practice or else you'll blank on them when onstage!

By the time you talk onstage, you won’t even need to be able to recall all your transitions in order. You just need to be able to make it from 1 to 2, 2 to 3, and so on.

Have the top-level category headings above your sentences as you read them. This helps structure the sentences in your head. I've found that reading through all my sentences 2-3 times is sufficient for this stage.

2. Via your slides (with look-ahead and sentence references)

Arrange the windows on your computer side-by-side so you can see the sentences and slides (with the mini-preview of all the slides down the left-hand column).

Now, go through your slides one by one and start putting the sentences together with the slides. Here you are defining and practicing the slide transition with respect to the sentences you typed out.

It'll take a bit of iteration at this stage to figure out the exact transition moment. You also might be getting sick of your sentences at this point—which is a good thing! This is the last stage where you want access to the written sentences. Continue on to the next stage only after you can see a slide and recall what you intended to say about it.

This stage usually takes 2-3 times, as well.

3. Via you slides (with just look-ahead)

Now you should close your written sentences, you won't be needing them for the rest of the time. Go through your talk from top to bottom and feel free to look ahead at the mini-preview bar so you can prime yourself for the transition and what's coming up next.

If you know you'll be presenting with Keynote (and have the confidence monitor to support it) you can start practicing with that. The Keynote presenter mode gives you a preview of the next slide which can help prime transitions. This is effectively the last stage you'll need perfect.

Warning : if you're not absolutely sure you'll have this Keynote presenter mode as a tool, I recommend practicing via the next and final stage.

This usually takes 3-5 times to perfect with look-ahead.

4. Via your slides (blind)

It is much more difficult to deliver a swift, elegant talk without having your transitions memorized.

If you take away the next slide preview, you need to be able to still know the upcoming transition, the sentence to get you to the next slide, and when to actually perform the slide change. This is doubly important if you have any humor-timing elements built in.

If you're having trouble nailing this final stage, consider adding in a few top-level category waypoint slides that can serve as safety slides. These are slides with a few words that describe the talk section. They are always safe to transition to/from and offer a reset point for memorizing what comes next.

This final stage usually takes 2-3 times to perfect.

5. 30-60 minutes before

If you can swing it, set aside 30-60 minutes before your talk so you can run through your slides a few times (stage 4-esque). This will help ease your nerves and serves as another memorization tool.

6. Give your talk

You're on stage next! At this point you've closed your slides, practice is over. You've memorized as much as you're going to. You're nerves are probably going, move around a lot before you get on stage to burn some energy.

All that’s left to do is deliver the talk you've spent the last week preparing. Get to the first slide and start talking! Your practice will pay off and you'll glide right from one transition to the next.

Here are a few things you should (try) and be mindful of on stage:

You'll naturally have the inclination to speak fast. If you've got an accent this can be show-stoppingly bad. In the words Paul Graham used to prepare us for Y Combinator Demo Day: "speak unnaturally slowly and clearly."

Even if you think you're using speed towards an effect, you're probably going to fast. Slow down so the audience can hear and process more of what you actually say.

Another natural inclination is to move around a lot. Try to resist this if possible (or if you're going to work it in, walk to a spot and deliver, then move to another spot). The most distracting type of movement is bouncing from one foot to another in a small three-foot by three-foot box.

What do you do with your hands? One tactical advise I've heard is to hold an invisible basketball in front of you when you start. When you want to make a strong point, make the basketball bigger, then shrink it back down.

Try to avoid touching your face. I personally use my hands a lot even in conversation, so I like to point to things and make overt gestures. While this is okay in moderation, it can be distracting. I try to make a point to put my arms and hands down from time to time, to give the audience a rest and make my hand movement more meaningful.

Eye Contact

Don't stare at your slides, especially if they are behind you. Especially, especially if you don't have a microphone. Face your audience and talk to them. This is where memorization really pays off because you can connect with your audience via eye contact without needing to constantly reference your slides.

You're finished! You made it through your talk. Make sure to hang around onstage if you're doing Q&A afterwards!

7. Learn from your talk

Now that your talk is done, there are two things you should do.

Watch your own talk

If the event recorded your talk, go watch it ! It can be pretty painful to watch and hear yourself (especially because you realize you screwed up more times than you thought on stage) but it makes you better the next time.

If you incorporated any humor into your deck, this is a prime opportunity to figure out what worked and what didn't.

At I/OWA, I had several jokes in my deck that I thought would be funny but no one laughed, and several places in my talk where people laughed that I hadn't intended to be funny. These are awesome moments to review and learn.

Ask people how you could improve

Chances are you're not hopping on a flight right after the talk. Take this opportunity to bluntly ask people, "What is one thing I could have improved?" or "What is one thing you liked the least?"

A lot of people might feel uncomfortable giving any negative feedback in person and you could try via email later—but chances are they might have forgotten the intricacies of your talk by then.

At I/OWA, I heard all kinds of feedback. The most consistent was that my talk ended abruptly. I was given a 15-20 minute window but I only used up 10 minutes. This was partly by design (and speaking quicker than I should have) but it's evidence that if people are enjoying your talk, they are going to want more of it.

8. Reach out and say thanks

Even though you were invited to talk, the event couldn't have happened without the organizers. I've been in their shoes enough times to know how thankless it can be. So make sure to reach out after your talk and personally say "thanks" to everyone who helped.

That's it! That's everything I know about giving a talk, up to today. I'd love to hear how you prepare for talks and what you do differently than me (because I'm always looking to learn) so please speak up in the comments!

Credits: Flickr photos via TED , Marco Armet , PopTech , Big Omaha

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• Published: 04 March 2024

How to give great research talks to any audience

• Veronica M. Lamarche   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-2199-6463 1 ,
• Franki Y. H. Kung 2 ,
• Eli J. Finkel   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-0213-5318 3 , 4 , 5   na1 ,
• Eranda Jayawickreme   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0001-6544-7004 6   na1 ,
• Aneeta Rattan 7   na1 &
• Thalia Wheatley 8 , 9   na1  

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Being able to deliver a persuasive and informative talk is an essential skill for academics, whether speaking to students, experts, grant funders or the public. Yet formal training on how to structure and deliver an effective talk is rare. In this Comment, we give practical tips to help academics to give great talks to a range of different audiences.

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Acknowledgements

We thank the Society for Personality and Social Psychology (SPSP) Early Career Committee for supporting the preparation of the SPSP 2022 professional development session that led to the development of this Comment. We thank all of the attendees who joined us for this session and not only generated a lively discussion but also signalled the need for more support in giving great academic talks for all audiences.

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These authors contributed equally: Eli J. Finkel, Eranda Jayawickreme, Aneeta Rattan, Thalia Wheatley.

Authors and Affiliations

Department of Psychology, University of Essex, Colchester, UK

Veronica M. Lamarche

Department of Psychological Sciences, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, USA

Franki Y. H. Kung

Department of Psychology, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA

Eli J. Finkel

Management & Organizations, Kellogg School of Management, Evanston, IL, USA

Institute for Policy Research, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA

Department of Psychology & Program for Leadership and Character, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, NC, USA

Eranda Jayawickreme

Department of Organisational Behaviour, London Business School, London, UK

Aneeta Rattan

Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Dartmouth, Hanover, NH, USA

Thalia Wheatley

Santa Fe Institute, Santa Fe, NM, USA

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Correspondence to Veronica M. Lamarche .

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Lamarche, V.M., Kung, F.Y.H., Finkel, E.J. et al. How to give great research talks to any audience. Nat Hum Behav 8 , 616–621 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41562-024-01839-2

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Want to learn how to give a great talk? Chris Anderson is writing the official TED guide to public speaking

In the upcoming book “Talk This Way! The Official TED Guide to Public Speaking,” our curator Chris Anderson will give insights on what makes a talk great. Photo: James Duncan Davidson

Over and over, you keep asking us: What’s the best way to give a TED Talk? It’s not just that you’re interested in sharing your ideas at a TED or local TEDx event. Short presentations have become a bread-and-butter staple at schools and offices around the world, and you want more guidance on how to give them well.

And so, our curator Chris Anderson is writing a book to be published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt in spring 2016. Titled Talk This Way! The Official TED Guide to Public Speaking , it will be packed with insights on what makes talks work.

“There was no one spark for writing this book—it’s more like a long-smoldering fire that’s now ready to break out,” he told the TED Blog. “A decade ago, speaker prep at TED was simple: We’d agree on a basic talk idea, send the speaker a plaque of ‘the TED Commandments’ and wait to see what they showed up with. In recent years we’ve been stepping up our pre-conference engagement with speakers, encouraging them to carry out early rehearsals, working with some of them on their scripts. We’ve found the process to be incredibly valuable. We’ve seen speakers who start out nervous and/or with unfocused ideas come through to give truly compelling talks.”

One of the main points: there simply is no one-size-fits-all approach.  

“We should be clear on one thing. There is no single formula to giving a TED Talk. Indeed, the most annoying talks of all are those that seem to think there is,” he says. “But at the same time, there’s a ton of important advice to offer, including a key metaphor that many speakers find helpful. I’ll offer all the guidance I can, but much of it is in helping speakers to find the type of talk that’s right for them. And by the way, the book isn’t just for TED Talks. It’s meant to be helpful for any form of public speaking or presentation.”

Another key goal for the book: highlighting the amazing power of direct human-to-human communication, recorded on video, in the Internet age.

While we hope that this book will be helpful to you, we also see it as another way to foster TED’s mission of sharing ideas for free to the world. All proceeds from the book — from the advance to sales — will be donated to TED’s nonprofit parent company, and will support the free sharing of TED Talks and other free programs around the world.

The book will be available internationally. So far, rights have been negotiated in Canada, Brazil, China, the Czech Republic, Finland, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Israel, Italy, Japan, Russia, Spain, Sweden, Taiwan and the UK, and deals are in progress in France, Poland and Portugal.

Have specific questions about giving a talk that you’d like answered in the book? Email [email protected] and we’ll pass them on to Chris. Who is busily typing away on this book as we speak.

“It’s fun!” he tells us. “I mean, not all the time — I can definitely get hit with intense writer’s block. But when it flows, it’s really exciting. There’s so much great material to tap into. Examples from hundreds of different TED Talks, and the direct advice from about 30 favorite speakers who have been generous enough to share their wisdom. If all I do is channel them, all will be well.”

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• Delivery Techniques →

How to Give a Speech: 10 Tips for Powerful Public Speaking

When we start preparing to give a speech, it can be a nerve-wracking experience. It’s completely normal—most of us feel a combination of excitement and nerves when we’re about to take the stage.

However, with some strategic planning and practical advice, you can make sure your speech is powerful and effective. In this blog post, we’ll explore how to give a speech that will leave your audience engaged and inspired.

We’ll examine 10 tips to help you build a powerful speech, from outlining your points methodically to crafting captivating introductions . Whether you’re a beginner or experienced public speaker, these nuggets of wisdom will help you take your next speech to the next level. Let’s get started!

Quick Review of Key Points

Preparing ahead of time is the key to giving an effective speech. Make sure to structure your speaking points, rehearse your delivery, and be aware of the needs of your audience for maximum impact.

How to Prepare for a Speech

Preparing for a speech is an essential step to public speaking success. It can help to build your confidence, create content that reaches the audience, and reduce performance anxiety.

Although it can be time-consuming in the beginning, preparation will ensure less stress and more comfort during delivery. Here are some tips to consider when preparing for a speech:

Practice : Before delivering a speech, practice it out loud several times. This will allow you to gain experience in speaking without an audience and increase your confidence when you do have one.

Practicing also helps to identify awkward moments in the speech or any difficult phrases which then can be changed or removed altogether. Additionally, it helps you determine where to pause for effect. Research : Depending on the topic of the speech , research should be done beforehand to gather information that is relevant and interesting for the audience. It is important to get acquainted with the language typically used by audiences to ensure a clear understanding of what is being said.

Additionally, relevant statistics and stories concerning the topic are a great way to draw in listeners and make the presentation more engaging .

Know Your Audience : When preparing your speech, be sure to consider who will be listening. For instance, if giving a presentation at work, include industry jargon that members would understand and include relevant topics from publications that might be familiar to the employees.

On the other hand, if consulting business professionals in their field then technical language may be easier for them to comprehend than laypeople or students.

By gathering valuable information about the topic and getting comfortable with a speech’s content and delivery through practice, speakers will gain more assurance during their talk as well as respect from their audience.

Preparing beforehand not only gives insight into how to engage listeners but also encourages more meaningful conversations after the event. Now that we have discussed how to prepare for a speech let us move on to creating an outline which will provide structure during delivery.

Create an Outline

After determining the audience and purpose of your speech, the next step to effective public speaking is to create an outline .

An outline serves as a roadmap to ensure that your speech has a logical flow and contains all important points. It also can help keep you on track during the speech itself, allowing you to stay focused and organized.

When constructing an outline, consider drawing up both a main point and sub-points for each portion of the speech. Both should be relevant to the goal of the presentation and backed up by facts and research.

Brainstorming can help in this process; try grouping your ideas together in clusters to make sure you cover all possible angles.

Furthermore, writing out exact quotations or figures can prove beneficial in forming a cohesive argument. At this stage, it is also wise to decide where transitions, humor, stories, or other engaging techniques will be included.

While there are differing opinions as to whether outlines should be memorized or simply used as a reference while speaking, many agree that they should serve their purpose – not only articulate the main thoughts of the speech but also assist the speaker with maintaining focus and preventing distractions.

The debate between those who advocate for memorization versus casual consulting touches upon issues such as rehearsal time, risk of errors in delivery, ease of practice versus actual performance and more.

Each side has valid arguments that should be weighed prior to deciding what type of approach best suits your needs.

Having a firmly constructed outline acts as a valuable tool when it comes time to deliver a powerful public speech. By actively utilizing this tactic, speakers may not only enhance their clarity and coherence, but also add structure and vibrance to their presentations.

Now that we have explored what goes into crafting an effective outline, let’s dive deeper into how we can best collect resources and research our topics for maximum impact.

Collect Sources and Research

Collecting sources and research is a crucial step for any public speaking engagement. It ensures that you have the necessary information to make strong points and back up your statements.

Before writing your speech, take time to research your topic to gain familiarity with different perspectives, facts, and counterpoints. This will help you to craft an argument that can stand up to scrutiny while also adding a breadth of knowledge to your speech.

Interviews can be a powerful source of evidence and anecdotes, so try to include one or two relevant interviews in your research process. Relying solely on secondary sources such as books and articles can lead to a narrow scope of understanding.

Interviews provide an opportunity to hear directly from an expert and create an interesting dynamic in your speech by adding personal experiences as well as commentary from a professional.

In research it is important to stay objective. Gather a variety of perspectives and be open-minded about their merits. Don’t forget to consider both sides of the argument when researching for your speech.

Doing this allows you to understand the opposing perspective and enables you to anticipate potential counter arguments from your audience.

By acknowledging them beforehand, you may increase the persuasive power of your speech by showing confidence in the points you make.

Once you have collected all sources, review them carefully and separate the most pertinent information from the less useful material.

Synthesising this information into concise yet impactful points is a critical part in delivering powerful talks without overloading your audience with too much data or going off track during your speech delivery.

Organizing Your Speech

Before you start putting your words together, it’s important to consider how the different parts of a speech fit together. By taking the time to organize the ideas in your speech , you’ll be able to deliver a presentation that is well-constructed and easy to understand.

One way to help with organizing your speech is to write an outline . An outline is like a map or plan that will provide you with a framework for each section of your speech.

Start by writing out your main points and then include additional details underneath each one. This will help keep your speech focused and provide direction for where you are going next.

Another approach for organizing your speech is known as the “inverted pyramid” method. This structure starts with your conclusion at the beginning of the speech, and then works backward by providing more explanation and detail as it moves toward the introduction.

This method can be helpful when speaking about topics that are unfamiliar to the audience since it doesn’t require them to wait until near the end of the presentation to learn what you’ve been talking about.

No matter which organization approach you choose, make sure to practice it before giving your speech so that you are comfortable with its flow. Lastly, remember that it’s ok to adjust things while you speak if they don’t seem or feel quite right.

Now let’s take a look at how we can use these organizing techniques to actually put our speeches together – starting with structuring our speech.

Structure Your Speech

Creating a strong structure for your speech will ensure that the audience stays engaged and understands your main points. As you are developing an outline, map out how you want to begin and end your speech.

Break up the information into smaller sections with either verbal or visual cues so that your audience can clearly see how you are transitioning between topics . Consider adding humor judiciously throughout your presentation as this could help engage the audience and lighten any tension.

The length of your presentation is also important. You will want to make sure that you include all of the necessary information without going over time.

Oftentimes less is more; if you can say it in five minutes why use ten? Make sure that you practice timed rehearsals so that you can gauge how long you’re actually speaking.

In contrast, avoid trying to pack too much content into one presentation as this could overwhelm both you and the audience. If needed, offer supplemental reading materials for those who may be interested in delving further into the subject matter.

Paragraphs can also be helpful when organizing large amounts of content within the body of your presentation. Utilizing paragraph breaks gives your audience a break and helps to highlight key ideas or summaries before moving onto a new topic area.

Finally, it is crucial to remember what your desired outcome is from the presentation; plan accordingly by ensuring that the beginning, middle, and end serve their respective purposes and adhere to that goal.

With careful deliberations, structuring a successful presentation can be achieved with relative ease.

Having established a solid structure for your speech, it’s important to focus on another key element: rehearsal. The next section will discuss the benefits of practicing before delivering a powerful public speaking performance.

Rehearse Your Speech

Rehearsing is integral to giving a successful speech. When you rehearse your presentation, you give your mind an opportunity to become familiar with the notes and concepts that you are presenting. It also increases your confidence and reduces anxiety or self-doubt.

In fact, studies have found that those who rehearsed their presentation had higher scores in public speaking performance and language proficiency evaluations.

When it comes to how much rehearsal is enough, opinions are divided. Some people believe that over-rehearsing can lead to a more robotic speech with less natural emotion and connection with the audience .

On the other hand, others argue that no matter how well-versed someone is on the topic, additional rehearsal time improves both the delivery of the speech and memorization of key points and facts.

Ultimately, it’s important to practice until you personally find the most comfortable level for yourself, as this will ultimately result in a more engaging delivery.

Finally, if at all possible, try to practice in front of a friend or colleague for honest feedback on any elements that need improvement before the big day. Rehearsal dedication may be tedious, but it results in big rewards on stage–enabling you to deliver your content with clarity, confidence, and poise.

With thoughtful preparation complete, it’s now time to step into the spotlight and give your speech!

Giving Your Speech

The key to success when giving a speech is to be well prepared and confident. Every individual’s preparation process will vary, but the basics should stay the same.

Start by studying your content, understanding the material and being able to repeat it in your own words. Clarify any potentially difficult points. Create visual aids like PowerPoint slides or handouts that supplement the key ideas in your speech.

Practice your public speaking skills with informal conversations with friends and family or rehearse it alone in front of a mirror. Use visualization; imagine yourself confidently delivering your speech. Consider addressing a practice audience if possible to become more accustomed to a live size group.

On the day of the event, arrive early and plan for any potential obstacles: What if my computer doesn’t work? What if I forget something? Allow sufficient time for setup and check-in.

When you are ready to give your speech, take some deep breaths, focus on the positives, and distract yourself from any anxious thoughts with positive affirmations. Remember you have prepared diligently for this moment, you are well prepared and you will succeed!

Start strong by engaging the audience immediately with an attention grabbing opening statement. Speak clearly and make sure that everyone can hear and understand your message.

Slow down and emphasize points as needed throughout your presentation. Be aware of pace, volume, and tone of voice: too fast/monotone can confuse/bore listeners while pauses add a dramatic effect that keeps their interest piqued.

Ultimately, giving a successful speech will depend on knowing your material well enough to speak confidently in front of your audience without hesitation or missteps.

When you do make a mistake (and they happen!) don’t panic – know that mistakes are inevitable but don’t be discouraged; get back on track as soon as possible and continue at the same energy level you had before the mistake occurred.

Having successfully given your speech, take a moment to reflect on what went well and what could be improved upon for next time before transitioning into the next step: mastering delivery.

Master Your Delivery

Mastering your delivery is the key to an effective speech. Without purposeful body language and careful emphasis on certain words , your speech may lack wow-factor and prevent listeners from tuning in. Following these simple tips can help you get started with delivering an engaging and memorable speech:

The most important part of delivery is practice. Rehearse and perfect your speech ahead of time – this allows for more natural flow and confidence during your presentation. It also helps to create pauses between sentences for clarity, emphasize key points, and not be too casual or stiff.

Practicing inflections and varying tones adds interest to your speech by keeping listeners’ attention.

Additionally, it’s important to project your voic e so everyone in the room can hear you; make sure you’re speaking loud enough but don’t feel pressure to shout or yell at any point unless that’s part of the atmosphere of the event.

It’s also crucial to maintain good posture while speaking – stand tall with both feet on the ground, keep your back straight, hold yourself up without gesturing too much or leaning against a podium if applicable.

To further engage listeners, use purposeful hand gestures as they help emphasize certain points and add visual interest – however, avoid overusing them as it can hinders communication.

Make meaningful eye contact with audience members throughout the presentation – otherwise you might come across as unenthusiastic or bored with what you’re saying which deters attention away from the content itself.

By mastering your delivery, you can boost the impact of your presentation considerably – providing a memorable experience for your audience that stands out from others’. As such, it’s worth investing time into practicing ahead of time until delivery feels comfortable and second nature.

Having said this, making use of visual aids such as PowerPoint slides can greatly improve the impact of a speech once delivery has been mastered – let’s look into that next.

Use Visual Aids

Using visual aids can help presenters express concepts more clearly and engage the audience.

Visuals are particularly useful when conveying complex information, such as data, trends, or statistics — they impart meaning at a glance. But some public speakers may wonder if visual aids can be distracting or unnecessary.

Even though visuals can attract attention away from a presenter’s verbal delivery, carefully designed visuals can actually support the speech and help provide clarity. If done well, visuals are effective for capturing an audience’s interest and helping them to better understand the content being presented.

For example, a graph or chart should relate to the points made in the speech and should be discussed in more detail during its appearance onscreen. The presentation can also include larger images that effectively reinforce the ideas conveyed in the speech.

Videos and sound clips are other powerful forms of multimedia that could be employed to make the speech more meaningful.

To ensure that visuals enhance the message of the presentation, key factors to consider include relevancy to topic, good graphic design or aesthetics, accurate size to prevent distortion or blurriness, and seamless integration into the keynote slides or printed handouts .

In this way, visuals offer an opportunity for presenters to demonstrate their creativity and keep their audiences interested in what is being said. Thus, used wisely and aptly, visuals can add tremendous value to speeches by presenting arguments more efficiently and driving home important points. Now let’s explore effective techniques for speech giving that will allow you to craft and deliver your speeches with confidence.

Effective Techniques for Speech Giving

There are a number of effective techniques for giving a speech that will help you deliver it with confidence and poise.

First, practice your delivery in advance. You should practice both in front of a mirror or recording device to check for any distracting habits such as talking too quickly or mispronouncing words.

Second, use simple, clear language and short, concise sentences. Avoid overly technical terms and jargon that may leave your audience confused.

Third, work to establish a connection with your audience by using appropriate facial expressions and hand gestures while speaking.

Fourth, utilize effective persuasive techniques such as presenting evidence, strong arguments supported by facts, personal anecdotes and vivid metaphors.

Finally, articulate an organized structure for your speech. Your speech should have an introduction, body and conclusion to clearly communicate the main point and provide the audience with the necessary context to understand it better.

While these techniques may sound intimidating at first, they can be learned over time with practice and will make all the difference in how successful your speech delivery is received by your audience.

To build on these skills further , the next section will provide tips on how to build confidence when giving a speech.

Building Confidence

Building confidence is key when giving a powerful speech, as it will enable you to deliver the speech in a more poised and credible manner.

To create this confidence , start by understanding that any hesitation or butterflies prior to your speech are completely normal and should not be feared. Instead, view them as natural states of anticipation for something exciting, knowing that you are about to give an amazing speech.

Next, understanding who your audience is and tailoring your speech to meet their expectations will help build your confidence.

Familiarizing yourself with their interests and knowledge on the subject matter ahead of time can equip you with the understanding needed to respond appropriately if questions arise or objections surface during the speech.

Further, practice is key when building confidence for a public speaking engagement . Rehearsing with friends or colleagues before hand will give you an opportunity to learn where problem areas are within the content of your speech, as well as help solidify your delivery by becoming more comfortable with each step.

Checking sound levels in the room you’re presenting in coupled with learning where exits/emergency locations are located within that space can also help alleviate stress levels and boost self-assurance while delivering the speech.

Finally, wearing comfortable clothing and dressing professionally adds an extra layer of confidence when speaking in public.

If possible, bring an additional outfit on hand during the presentation in case of spills or accidents that would require a quick change between sections of the talk. Having this back-up plan in place can aid in keeping peace of mind at ease throughout the speech.

In conclusion, building confidence prior to a public speaking event can mean the difference between a good and great delivery of your message.

By taking into account each of these tips you can ensure that this part of your preparation runs smoothly and sets you up for success when delivering powerful speeches.

With a well-crafted note card of talking points and strong sense of self-assurance, it’s time to start speaking with passion!

Speaking with Passion

As a public speaker, your audience expects you to engage not only with your words but also with your emotions. To share the most impactful message, it is important to speak passionately about your subject.

Doing so will make your speech more memorable and thereby more effective in convincing your audience of its legitimacy.

The power of speaking authentically with emotion lies in its relatability and connection. Showing feelings allows people to connect with you as a person rather than just a speaker. It opens the door to understanding through empathy and active listening .

Examples might include adding personal stories , telling jokes, or displaying your feelings openly during the delivery of your message.

However, not all topics lend themselves easily to expressing emotion. If the subject matter is overly complex or technical there may be less opportunity for emotional expression—but this doesn’t mean those conversations can’t incorporate emotion.

Even if faced with a difficult situation such as death or financial turmoil, emotions can still be conveyed in a respectful way that keeps audiences engaged.

Remember that how much emotion you show depends on the type of audience you’re sharing it with—using sensitivity when delivering passionate speeches helps avoid awkwardness or embarrassment for any attendees who may find opinionated language uncomfortable for whatever reason.

Striking the right balance between being straightforward and showing compassion takes practice, so take the time to develop a style that works best for you and improves upon each performance.

Finally, incorporating passion into a speech gives it life and makes it relatable and engaging—which are essential elements to speaking effectively.

Having passion means giving ourselves permission to take ownership over our stories, making them deeply personal in order to reach our goals and touch people’s hearts in meaningful ways. With that said, let’s move on to discussing how we should tackle dealing with challenges while giving a speech.

Dealing with Challenges

The process of delivering a speech can be challenging, but it is also rewarding. Difficulties can arise during the process that may threaten to derail your success. To ensure you are adequately prepared for these possible pitfalls it is important to consider strategies for proactively mitigating the risk of encountering these challenges. 1. Public Speaking Anxiety: Many people experience some form of anxiety when asked to speak in public. There are a number of techniques available to combat this fear and increase confidence, such as deep breathing exercises, mental rehearsal, positive self-talk and visualization of success.

Learning about the audience, creating an engaging presentation and using props or visual aids can also help reduce anxiety levels and create a better overall experience for both the speaker and the audience. 2. Unfamiliar Topics or Audiences: When presenting on unfamiliar topics or to an unknown audience it can be difficult to prepare effectively.

In this situation it is important to conduct research on the topic and familiarize yourself with the needs of your audience so that the content is tailored accordingly. It is also helpful to use humor or stories related to the topic in order to engage your audience and make them more receptive to your message. 3. Lack of Support: If you lack support from family, friends, colleagues or mentors, it can be difficult to push through difficult conversations or speeches without any additional motivation.

To overcome this challenge, seek out peer mentorship opportunities or find compatible online communities where people discuss similar topics or objectives. Here you can share ideas, provide feedback and learn from others who have experienced similar issues. 4. Time Constraints: One of the biggest challenges when giving a speech is managing your time effectively in order to deliver an effective message without going over allotted timeslots and boring your audience .

To successfully address this challenge try setting manageable goals for each section of your speech and practice regularly. Replicating real-time conditions as closely as possible will help you stay within time constraints when delivering your speech on the day itself. In conclusion, there are many potential challenges you may face when giving a speech or taking part in a public speaking event – but with proper preparation and practice they are easily managed if approached correctly.

With knowledge of techniques for dealing with such scenarios comes increased confidence when stepping up to the podium – further improving your chances of delivering an effective speech that resonates with your audience members.

Responses to Frequently Asked Questions

How should i end my speech to leave a lasting impression.

The best way to end your speech is by reinforcing your main point and summarizing the key takeaways. You should also encourage the audience to take action, whether it be to sign up for a newsletter, make a donation, or visit your website for more information. This final call to action will not only leave a lasting impression on the audience but will also help you achieve any goals you might have had when making your speech in the first place.

What techniques can I use to keep my audience engaged during my speech?

One of the best techniques for keeping an audience engaged during a speech is to keep it interactive . Ask questions throughout the presentation, as well as allowing for audience input and discussion. This can help to keep people’s attention and create a more engaging experience.

Another great tip is to use humor. Even if you don’t consider yourself a natural comedian, sprinkling in a few jokes here and there can break up the monotony of long speeches and keep people interested. Humor can also help to make points stick in people’s minds, making them easier to remember.

Finally, try to be enthusiastic about the content of your speech. If you show too much indifference or lethargic behavior, it will discourage your audience from paying attention and taking your message seriously.

Instead, be passionate about what you are saying so that the energy of your words carries into the room and engages your audience with excitement.

How can I use storytelling to make my speech more interesting?

Storytelling is a powerful tool that can be used to make any speech more interesting. Telling stories in your speech will help engage the audience and make your message stick. Here are some tips for using storytelling in your speech:

1. Choose stories that are relevant to your message and audience. Think about stories that will best illustrate the point you are trying to convey, or evoke emotions in your listeners. 2. Use vivid descriptions and visuals when telling your story. Be sure to include details such as setting, character descriptions, dialogue and plot points. This will help to bring the story to life for your audience. 3. Make sure the story you are telling has a strong conclusion or moral at the end. This will help add emphasis to your message and make it memorable. 4. Practice telling stories out loud before delivering a speech with them. Rehearsing will help you deliver your story more effectively and with more confidence in front of an audience. By using these tips, storytelling can be an effective tool to make any speech more interesting, engaging, and persuasive!

How can I prepare for my speech effectively?

Preparing for a speech effectively is essential to delivering an impactful and memorable presentation. Here are some tips: 1. Have a clear goal in mind. Before starting to prepare, ask yourself what the purpose of giving the speech is: what message do you want to convey? Defining this will help to structure your content and focus your research. 2. Research thoroughly. Make sure you understand the subject matter well, so that your delivery sounds confident and inspiring. Using facts and data will strengthen your arguments and make your talk more convincing. 3. Outline your speech. Make a rough outline of how you want it to go – from beginning to end – well in advance of the actual presentation. This will give you a strong foundation upon which you can craft an engaging talk with an effective narrative arc that keeps audiences interested and engaged. 4. Practice regularly. Rehearsing your speech out loud several times is key to ensuring that you know it well enough to feel comfortable when delivering it live in front of an audience.

5. Time yourself. Record how long it takes for you to go through your entire speech, so that you can adjust the length as needed before delivering it live – remember that most speeches should last no more than 10-15 minutes. 6. Identify potential questions from the audience and prepare answers before hand. Knowing ahead of time what kind of questions people may ask can help reduce the anxiety of not knowing what comes next, enabling you to stay confident when speaking in public. 7. Work on building up confidence levels before delivering a speech. Visualize yourself succeeding in delivering a great presentation; practice relaxation techniques such as deep breathing or positive self-talk; or use props during practice sessions such as water bottles or stress balls if needed to remain calm during the real thing!

What strategies can I use to reduce my anxiety when giving a speech?

1. Plan Ahead: Create an outline of your speech beforehand and practice it multiple times to become familiar with the content. Doing a trial run with the audience can also help you get used to speaking in front of people.

2. Visualize Success: Positive visualization is a great way to reduce anxiety before giving a speech. Imagine yourself confidently delivering the speech while feeling relaxed and composed.

3. Get Organized: Make sure you have all the materials necessary for your presentation, including notes, slides, etc., to reduce any additional stress that may come from not having what you need when you speak.

4. Take Deep Breaths: Before and during the speech, take a few deep breaths as this will help calm nerves and make sure your breathing is regulated throughout the duration of your presentation.

5. Speak Slowly: It is common to feel anxious while giving a speech and try to rush through it too quickly. Speaking slowly helps maintain composure while delivering your message effectively and clearly.

6. Pay Attention to Your Body: Your posture, stance, movements , facial expressions can all influence how confident you appear to your audience and how nervous you may be feeling inside. Check in with yourself frequently throughout the presentation and correct any tense body language or physical actions if needed.

7. Focus on the Audience: If you notice that your anxiety levels are growing as you present, shift your focus onto the audience instead of yourself as this will help refocus your attention away from negative thoughts that may arise from fear or insecurity.

8. Make Eye Contact: Establishing eye contact with your audience is a key confidence-builder for public speakers—it shows that you’re strong, engaged with them, and receptive to feedback or questions they might have regarding your speech topic .

9. Practice Positive Affirmations: Positive thoughts will boost your self-confidence as well as your mood which can help increase performance quality significantly during speeches or presentations in general—so don’t forget to tell yourself “you can do it!” several times throughout the day leading up to the event!

10. Seek Support of Friends & Family: Many experienced public speakers suggest seeking support of close friends & family members prior and during their speeches—not only does it allow helpful critique regarding content but it also creates a more comfortable atmosphere while speaking which can reduce pre-speech jitters drastically.

19 tips for giving an effective talk

As scientists, we communicate our work in many ways. We publish peer-reviewed manuscripts, we write reviews and books to summarize the state of our fields, and we give oral presentations at seminars and conferences. Each of these formats presents unique challenges; however, all of them require intense editing and feedback from mentors and peers.

In this article, I’m sharing tips on how to prepare your talk, tips about your slides (design and structure), and tips on presentation. Discover BMB is less than a month away — it’s time to get ready to present your science.

I am a fifth-year Ph.D. candidate at Vanderbilt University, and during my time in graduate school, I’ve learned many lessons about how to give an effective talk — often by giving an ineffective talk and receiving much-needed feedback. At first, I was uncomfortable hearing critiques, but I learned that the purpose of constructive criticism is to help me grow; when someone gives me feedback, it’s because they care about my success.

By being receptive to constructive feedback, I learned that I tended to overexplain the technical aspects of my data without highlighting the broader impacts of the findings, I used brightly colored slides that were distracting, and I spoke too quickly. Thanks to this feedback, and after giving dozens of talks for different audiences in various settings, I learned to correct these issues.

Now when I give a talk, I often get feedback from the audience about how clear and engaging I was, so I want to share what I’ve learned about how to give an effective oral presentation.

The following list includes tips sourced from a tweet written by Tessa Davis (@TessaRDavis), a presentation coach who shares helpful advice, and from a YouTube video I created, “ 30 tips on how to give an effective talk ,” which is a culmination of the lessons I’ve learned about presenting during my time in graduate school.

I’ve learned that an effective oral presentation is clear, compelling and accessible and establishes a convincing argument supported by empirical data, all constrained by a time limit. As I mentioned at the outset, an effective presentation requires a lot of practice, feedback from trusted peers and editing.

Preparation

• Create your presentation with your audience in mind. If you’re talking to a room of M.D.s, you probably do not need to provide a lot of background about common diseases; however, if you’re talking to structural biologists about physiology, spend more time on the background so they can follow along.
• Write a script for the first slide or first few slides and memorize it. The beginning of a presentation is often the hardest part because you’re nervous and just getting your footing. If you have a script for the first few slides, you know exactly what you are going to say. This helps you start the presentation with confidence and then ease into the unscripted portion.
• Practice before you do the real thing . Practice your talk in front of trusted peers, ask for constructive feedback and use that feedback to edit your talk; then practice the edited talk again, keeping in mind your allotted amount of time. If possible, practice in the room where you will be giving the presentation.
• Make sure you have seen your slides in the format you’ll be presenting them in. I prefer to make my presentations in Google Slides, so I usually have to convert the slides into PowerPoint and save them on a flash drive to present at conferences. If you do something similar, make sure you open the presentation in whatever the final format is to make sure nothing has been shifted or messed up.
• @TessaRDavis tweet : Use a decent font size. Tiny fonts lead to unreadable text and a confused audience, so use a font size that can be seen in the back of the room (probably at least 30 points).
• @TessaRDavis tweet : Use high-quality images. Don’t use images that are pixelated and blurry or clip art with giant watermarks. Use images that are crisp and clear, without any distortions due to resizing.
• @TessaRDavis tweet : Avoid too many animations. I only use animations to reveal the content on the slide in a stepwise manner, so as not to overwhelm the audience with slides that are jam-packed and hard to digest.
• @TessaRDavis tweet : Create a consistent look. Use the same font and color style on every slide.
• Make your talk as accessible as possible! Provide captions, transcripts, handouts and high-quality audio.
• Make the title of each slide the main finding (the argument you are trying to make with the slide content). This will help your audience remember what argument you’re trying to make so they can follow along more easily and reorient themselves if they get distracted.
• Acknowledge the people who did the work. You can give acknowledgments throughout the presentation and end with an acknowledgments slide. It’s important to highlight each individual’s hard work as well as the team effort that went into the results you’re showing.
• Conclude with a summary and future directions. Try to relate the summary to the problem or gap in knowledge that you present in the beginning of your presentation; this makes your talk feel more like a complete story.
• Remember: Quality vs. quantity. It’s tempting to show off as much data as possible because you worked so hard to acquire it, but this can overwhelm an audience. Instead, strive to curate a story that is clear, compelling and linear. Obviously, you need to be truthful — don’t hide data to create a false story — but strive to highlight the most compelling data to create an interesting narrative.

Presentation

• Begin by highlighting the goal of your talk. Start by saying something like, “Today I hope to convince you that …”
• Don’t read text from your slides or stare directly at them instead of at the audience. Your slides are not your script; they are an accessory to buttress what you’re saying.
• Speak intentionally slowly. We often speak too quickly when we’re nervous or excited. Speaking slowly can be challenging, but it will help you deliver your message to your audience more clearly. Practice this when you are preparing for your talk.
• If you use a laser pointer, guide the audience’s attention intentionally. Don’t overuse your laser pointer and force your audience’s eyes all around your screen. Practice using your laser pointer when you’re preparing for your talk.
• Have a confident stance and speak loudly and clearly. You can convey confidence with your body language. If you are able, stand up proudly and move around the room to help keep your audience’s attention.
• Stay within your time slot. Often, when giving an oral presentation, you are one of many speakers and will have a strict time limit. Practice your talk with a timer and make edits to stay within your slot. You don’t want to go over time and cut into someone else’s time; this can cause issues for both the speakers who come after you and the organizers of the event.

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Adriana Norris is a fifth-year Ph.D. candidate at Vanderbilt University studying lipid biology and metabolism. She is a member of the ASBMB Science Outreach and Communication Committee and has a YouTube channel where she strives to make academia entertaining and accessible.

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16 Public Speaking Tips for Students

Arlin Cuncic, MA, is the author of The Anxiety Workbook and founder of the website About Social Anxiety. She has a Master's degree in clinical psychology.

Aron Janssen, MD is board certified in child, adolescent, and adult psychiatry and is the vice chair of child and adolescent psychiatry Northwestern University.

Public speaking tips for students aim to reduce anxiety that can interfere with giving presentations or speeches in class. These tips can also be helpful for those with social anxiety disorder (SAD)   who have difficulty speaking in front of a group or telling a story among friends.

Public Speaking Tips

If you have SAD and need to give a speech  in elementary school, high school, college, or university, it helps to be as prepared as possible . Beyond preparation, however, there are strategies that you can use to reduce anxiety and fight the urge to stay home with a fake illness.

Even great speakers practice their speeches beforehand. Practice out loud with a recording device or video camera and then watch yourself to see how you can improve. If you are feeling brave, practice in front of a friend or family member and ask for feedback.

• Talk about what you know : If possible, choose a topic for your speech or presentation that you know a lot about and love. Your passion for the topic will be felt by the audience, and you will feel less anxious knowing that you have a lot of experience to draw from when other students ask you questions.
• Concentrate on your message : When you focus on the task at hand, anxiety is less likely to get out of control. Concentrate on the main message of your speech or presentation and make it your goal to deliver that message to the other students in your class.
• Grab the audience's attention : Most of your fellow classmates will pay attention for at least the first 20 seconds; grab their attention during those early moments. Start with an interesting fact or a story that relates to your topic.
• Have one main message : Focus on one central theme and your classmates will learn more. Tie different parts of your talk to the main theme to support your overall message. Trying to cover too much ground can leave other students feeling overwhelmed.

Tell Stories

Stories catch the attention of other students and deliver a message in a more meaningful way than facts and figures. Whenever possible, use a story to illustrate a point in your talk.

Being prepared to speak in public can also be important if you have social anxiety disorder. Feeling confident and prepared to give your speech may help lessen your feelings of anxiety. Some of the things that you can do to prepare include:

• Visit the room : If you have access to the classroom where you will be speaking outside of class hours, take the time to visit in advance and get used to standing at the front of the room. Make arrangements for any audio-visual equipment and practice standing in the exact spot where you will deliver your speech.
• Rack up experience : Volunteer to speak in front of your class as often as possible. Be the first one to raise your hand when a question is asked. Your confidence will grow with every public speaking experience.
• Observe other speakers : Take the time to watch other speakers who are good at what they do. Practice imitating their style and confidence.
• Organize your talk : Every speech should have an introduction, a body, and a conclusion. Structure your talk so that the other students know what to expect.

Manage Your Anxiety

Taking steps to deal with your feelings of anxiety can also make public speaking easier. Some of the things that you can do:

• Tell someone about your anxiety : If you are speaking in front of a high school or college class, meet with your teacher or professor and describe your public speaking fears . If you're in elementary or high school, share your fears with your parents, a teacher, or a guidance counselor. Sometimes sharing how you feel can make it easier to overcome stage fright.
• Visualize confidence : Visualize yourself confidently delivering your speech. Imagine feeling free of anxiety and engaging the students in your class. Although this may seem like a stretch for you now, visualization is a powerful tool for changing the way that you feel. Elite athletes use this strategy to improve performance in competitions.
• Find a friendly face : If you are feeling anxious, find one of your friends in class (or someone who seems friendly) and imagine that you are speaking only to that person.

Press Play for Advice on Finding Courage

Hosted by therapist Amy Morin, LCSW, this episode of The Verywell Mind Podcast shares a strategy to help you find courage when you need it the most.

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Maintain Perspective

Remember that other students are on your side. Think about a time when you have been an audience member and the student delivering the speech or presentation was noticeably nervous. Did you think less of that student? More likely, you felt sympathetic and wanted to make that person more comfortable by smiling or nodding.

Remember—other students generally want you to succeed and feel comfortable. If for some reason the audience is not on your side or you experience bullying or social exclusion, be sure to discuss this with a parent, teacher, or guidance counselor.

Be Confident

Sometimes just knowing what makes a good speech can help you feel more confident. Focus on some of the following elements and practice them before you have to speak in public.

• Develop your own style : In addition to imitating good speakers, work on developing your own personal style as a public speaker. Integrate your own personality into your speaking style and you will feel more comfortable in front of the class. Telling personal stories that tie into your theme are a great way to let other students get to know you better.
• Avoid filler words : Words such as "basically", "well", and "um" don't add anything to your speech. Practice being silent when you feel the urge to use one of these words.
• Vary your tone, volume, and speed : Interesting speakers vary the pitch (high versus low), volume (loud versus soft), and speed (fast versus slow) of their words. Doing so keeps your classmates interested and engaged in what you say.
• Make the audience laugh : Laughter is a great way to relax both you and the other students in your class, and telling jokes can be a great icebreaker at the beginning of a speech. Practice the timing and delivery of your jokes beforehand and ask a friend for feedback. Be sure that they are appropriate for your class before you begin.
• Smile : If all else fails, smile. Your fellow classmates will perceive you like a warm speaker and be more receptive to what you have to say.

Don't Apologize

If you make a mistake, don't offer apologies. Chances are that your classmates didn't notice anyway. Unless you need to correct a fact or figure, there is no point dwelling on errors that probably only you noticed.

If you make a mistake because your hands or shaking, or something similar, try to make light of the situation by saying something like, "I wasn't this nervous when I woke up this morning!" This can help to break the tension of the moment.

A Word From Verywell

It's natural to feel frightened the first time you have to speak in front of your class. However, if you fear continues, interferes with your daily life and keeps you awake at night, it may be helpful to see someone about your anxiety.

Try talking to a parent, teacher, or counselor about how you have been feeling. If that doesn't get you anywhere, ask to make an appointment with your doctor. Severe public speaking anxiety is a true disorder that can improve with treatment .

Spence SH, Rapee RM. The etiology of social anxiety disorder: An evidence-based model . Behav Res Ther. 2016;86:50-67. doi:10.1016/j.brat.2016.06.007

By Arlin Cuncic, MA Arlin Cuncic, MA, is the author of The Anxiety Workbook and founder of the website About Social Anxiety. She has a Master's degree in clinical psychology.

Speaking at TED

If you know someone who belongs on the TED stage, or if you belong there yourself, we want to hear from you! Please use our speaker nomination form .

If you wish to suggest a speaker for a local, independent TEDx event that accepts nominations, contact the organizer directly through the TEDx event's own web page or social media.

About our speakers

At TED, we search year-round for speakers who will inform and inspire, surprise and delight. Our presenters run the world's most admired companies and design its best-loved products; they invent world-changing devices and create ground-breaking media. TED also seeks out emerging artists, scientists and thinkers, introducing them to the TED community well before they hit the mainstream.

Collectively, TED speakers have won every major prize awarded for excellence, including the Nobel, Pritzker, Fields, Pulitzer, Oscar, Grammy, Emmy, Tony and MacArthur "genius" grant.

Some of these remarkable people have included primatologist Jane Goodall, Microsoft founder Bill Gates, legal expert Bryan Stevenson, roboticist Simone Giertz, Nigerian finance minister Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, AI pioneer Kai-Fu Lee, mental health activist Dixon Chabanda, biologist E.O. Wilson, photojournalist James Nachtwey, astronaut Mae Jemison, Nobel laureates including Daniel Kahneman, Murray Gell-Man, Jodie Williams and Leymah Gbowee, designer Phillipe Starck, theorist Zeynep Tufekci, moviemaker JJ Abrams, Segway inventor Dean Kamen, writers including Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and Elif Shafak, Google founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page, educator Rita Pierson … Browse all TED Speakers

Suggest a speaker

If you know someone who belongs on our roster, or if you belong there yourself, we want to hear from you! Please use our speaker nomination form , and tell us why this person would be well-matched to the TED stage.

Multiple nominations for the same person won't influence the speaker selection team in any way. We review every nomination that comes in, and it only takes one.

TED Talks: The Official TED Guide to Public Speaking

For anyone who has ever been inspired by a TED talk… this is an insider’s guide to creating talks that are unforgettable.

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Before public speaking....

Getting ready to speak at TED or a TEDx event? We recommend these talks to help get you pumped up. Watch now

FAQ: Speaking at TED

TED isn't a typical conference. The TED audience has high expectations of the speakers; the TED speaker team works with speakers well in advance of the conference to help shape a presentation that will succeed on the TED stage. TED is the place to give the talk of your life.

How do I suggest a speaker? Use our speaker nomination form , and fill in as much information as you can. This form goes directly to our speaker selection team.

Can I suggest someone I don't know personally? You ask for their email address, and I don't know it. Please do! Just let us know how you've heard about this person, and why you think they should speak at TED.

Can I suggest someone I work for, or a client of mine? Yes.

Can I suggest myself as a speaker? Yes.

Can I speak at TED by becoming a sponsor? No. Read more about partnering with TED . Sponsoring TED has many benefits, but a guaranteed speaking slot is not one of them.

Will it help if I submit multiple nominations, or have my friends nominate me several times? No. It really only takes one suggestion.

Is there a deadline for suggesting a speaker? We accept nominations all the time. It's best to get your suggestions to us as early as possible, so we can research them carefully and make the best decision on the speaker roster.

I want to speak at TED, but my usual talk runs 50 minutes. Can I get a longer slot? We strictly enforce the clock for all speakers. TED is the place to condense your ideas into a compelling 18-minute talk that communicates your best ideas. We've found that a carefully prepared presentation of this length can have astonishing impact.

Do you have keynotes or panels? At TED, everyone hears every presentation; there are no breakout sessions or tracks, no keynotes, and very rarely are there panels (though we have had debates).

What do you pay speakers? TED does not pay speakers. We do, of course, cover travel costs and provide excellent hotel accommodation -- as well as a covetable pass to all five days of TED. Most speakers stay for the whole conference, soaking up the talks and connecting with other attendees. Other benefits include pre-conference coaching and training, special events for networking, the gift bag, and a web archive of the full conference. We are committed to creating an experience that's tremendously fulfilling and beneficial on all sides.

An additional benefit of speaking at TED is that your presentation may become a TED Talk, part of our beautifully produced, broadcast-quality video series. Not all talks given on the TED stage will automatically become online TED Talks, but we hope most do.

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• How to Start a Speech: The Best Ways to Capture Your Audience

You’ve heard the saying,  “First impressions are lasting; you never get a second chance to create a good first impression” —  right?

The same is true when talking about how to start a speech…

The truth is, when you start your speech, you must focus everything on making a positive first impression on your audience members (especially if you are doing the presentation virtually ). Capturing the audience’s attention from the very beginning is crucial to prevent them from being distracted, losing interest, or forming negative opinions.

The introduction is the formal greeting for speeches, so let’s be sure to get this right to hook the audience. Understanding the importance of speech openings can significantly impact making a strong first impression. Planning and delivering the first words with confidence and relevance is essential, as they set the tone for the entire presentation and ensure you deliver a professional start, free from hesitation or irrelevance.

Here are 15 different ways to start a speech as well as 2 extra BONUS tips at the end.

1) Thank the Organizers and Audience

You can start by thanking the audience for coming and thanking the organization for inviting you to speak.

Refer to the person who introduced you or to one or more of the senior people in the organization in the audience.

This compliments them, makes them feel proud and happy about your presence, and connects you to the audience like an electrical plug in a socket.

2) Start With a Positive Statement

A presentation tip at the start is to tell the audience members how much they will like and enjoy what you have to say.

For example, you might say:

“You’re really going to enjoy the time we spend together this evening. I’m going to share with you some of the most important ideas that have ever been discovered in this area.”

Remember that  speaking is an art,  so be an artist and take complete control of your performance,

3) Compliment the Audience

You can begin by complimenting the audience members sincerely and with great respect.

Smile as if you are really glad to see them as if they are all old friends of yours that you have not seen for quite a while.

You can tell them that it is a great honor for you to be here, that they are some of the most important people in this business or industry, and that you are looking forward to sharing some key ideas with them.

You could say something like:

“It is an honor to be here with you today. You are the elite, the top 10 percent of people in this industry. Only the very best people in any field will take the time and make the sacrifice to come so far for a conference like this.”

4) Start Your Speech With the First Sentence Referring to Current Events

Use a current event front-page news story to transition into your subject and to illustrate or prove your point. You can bring a copy of the newspaper and hold it up as you refer to it in your introduction.

This visual image of you holding the paper and reciting or reading a key point rivets the audience’s attention and causes more people to lean forward to hear what you have to say.

5) Refer to a Historical Event

For many years, I studied military history…

Especially the lives and campaigns of the great generals and the decisive battles they won. One of my favorites was Alexander the Great. Standing in the symbolic shadow of such historical figures can provide a powerful and engaging start to any speech, especially when drawing parallels to contemporary challenges.

One day, I was asked to give a talk on leadership principles to a roomful of managers for a Fortune 500 company.

I decided that the campaign of Alexander the Great against Darius of Persia would make an excellent story that would illustrate the leadership qualities of one of the great commanders in history.

I opened my talk with these words:

“Once upon a time there was a young man named Alex who grew up in a poor country. But Alex was a little bit ambitious. From an early age, he decided that he wanted to conquer the entire known world. But there was a small problem.

Most of the known world was under the control of a huge multinational called the Persian Empire, headed by King Darius II. To fulfill his ambition, Alex was going to have to take the market share away from the market leader, who was very determined to hold on to it.

This is the same situation that exists between you and your major competitors in the market today. You are going to have to use all your leadership skills to win the great marketing battles of the future.”

6) Refer to a Well Known Person

You can start by quoting a well-known person or publication that recently made an interesting or important statement.

One of the subjects I touch upon regularly is the importance of continual personal development.

I will say something like:

“In the twenty-first century, knowledge and know-how are the keys to success. As basketball coach Pat Riley said, ‘If you are not getting better, you are getting worse.’”

7) Refer to a Recent Conversation

Start by telling a story about a recent conversation with someone in attendance.

For instance, I might say:

“A few minutes ago, I was talking with Tom Robinson in the lobby. He told me that this is one of the very best times to be working in this industry, and I agree.”

8) Make a Shocking Statement With a Startling Fact

You can start your talk by making a shocking statement of some kind.

For example, you might say something like:

“Here’s a startling fact: According to a recent study, there will be more change, more competition, and more opportunities in this industry in the next year than ever before. And 72 percent of the people in this room will be doing something different within two years if they do not rapidly adapt to these changes.”

Click here If you want to learn more techniques to wow your audience.

9) Quote From Recent Research

You can start by quoting a relevant, recent research report.

One example is:

“According to a story in a recent issue of Businessweek, there were almost 11 million millionaires in America in 2018, most of them self-made.”

10) Start Your Speech With a Strong Opening By Giving Them Hope

The French philosopher Gustav Le Bon once wrote, “The only religion of mankind is, and always has been hope.”

When you speak effectively, you give people hope of some kind.

Remember, the ultimate purpose of public speaking, is to inspire people to do things that they would not have done in the absence of your comments.

Everything you say should relate to the actions you want people to take and the reasons that they should take those actions.

11) Be Entertaining

Bill Gove used to walk onto the stage after his introduction if he had just finished talking to someone on the side and was breaking off to give his talk to the group.

The audience got the feeling that his entire talk was one continuous conversation, devoid of meaningless filler words .

Bill would often go to the edge of the stage and then drop his voice in a conspiratorial way, open his arms, and beckon the audience members to come a little closer.

He would say, “Come here, let me tell you something,” and then he would wave them forward as though he was about to tell a secret to the entire room.

The amazing thing was that everyone in the room would lean forward to hear this “secret” that he was about to share. People would all suddenly realize what they were doing and break out in laughter. It was a wonderful device to get the audience into the palm of his hands.

12) Ask a Question

You can open by making a positive statement and then pose a rhetorical question to engage your audience and set the stage for your presentation.

Try something like this:

“This is a great time to be alive and in business in America. But let me ask you, what does it truly mean to be self-employed in today’s economy?”

Raise your hand to indicate what you want people to do. I have used this line, and after a moment of thought, I then say to someone who looks intrigued in the front, “How many people here feel truly self-employed?”

Invariably, someone will say, “We all do!”

I then compliment and affirm the answer: “You’re right! We are all self-employed, from the time we take our first jobs to the day that we retire; we all work for ourselves, no matter who signs our paychecks.”

Similarly, a 17-year-old science fair winner effectively engaged their audience with a question at the beginning of their TED Talk, showcasing the power of this technique.

13) Open With a Problem

You can start with a problem that must be solved. If it is a problem that almost everyone has in common, you will immediately have the audience’s complete and undivided attention.

For example, you could say:

“Fully 63 percent of baby boomers are moving toward retirement without enough money put aside to provide for themselves for as long as they are going to live. We must address this problem and take action immediately to ensure that each person who retires will be able to live comfortably for the rest of his or her natural life.”

Introducing a new idea at this point can be a powerful way to engage your audience further, by promising a solution that is both innovative and beneficial.

14) Make a Strong Statement, Then Ask a Question

You can start by making a strong and powerful statement and then ask a question. You then follow with an answer and ask another question. This gets people immediately involved and listening to your every word.

Here’s an example:

“Twenty percent of the people in our society make 80 percent of the money. Are you a member of the top 20 percent? If not, would you like to join the top 20 percent or even the top 10 percent? Well, in the next few minutes, I am going to give you some ideas to help you become some of the highest-paid people in our society. Would that be a good goal for our time together today?”

15) Tell a Personal Story

You can start your talk with a personal story. Some of the most powerful words to capture the complete attention of the audience and make a personal connection are, “Once upon a time…”

From infancy and early childhood, people love stories of any kind. When you start off a presentation with a personal anecdote using the words, “Once upon a time…” you tell the audience that a relatable story is coming. People immediately settle down, become quiet, and lean forward, eager to hear how your experience might mirror their own or offer them new insights.

When I conduct full-day seminars and I want to bring people back to their seats after a break, I will say loudly, “Once upon a time there was a man, right here in this city…”

As soon as I say these words, people hurry back to their seats and begin to listen attentively, connecting with the story on a personal level.

Incorporating a personal story is very effective.

In fact, it’s probably one of the best public speaking tips I’ve learned to this day.

Bonus Tip: Tell Them About Yourself

Very often, I will start a serious speech or presentation to a business, sales, or entrepreneurial group by saying:

“I started off without graduating from high school. My family had no money. Everything I accomplished in life I had to do on my own with very little help from anyone else.”

It is amazing how many people come up to me after a talk that began with those words and tells me that was their experience as well.

They tell me that they could immediately identify with me because they too had started with poor grades and limited funds, as most people do. As a result, they were open to the rest of my talk, even a full-day seminar, and felt that everything I said was more valid and authentic than if I had been a person who started off with a successful background.

Building a bridge like this is very helpful in bringing the audience onto your side.

Bonus Tip: Get Them Talking to One Another

You can ask people to turn to the person next to them to discuss a particular point.

For instance, you could say:

“Tell the person next to you what you would like to learn from this seminar.”

Whatever you ask your audience members to do, within reason, they will do it for you. Your commands and your thought leadership will easily influence them, as long as you ask them with confidence.

By following any one of these tips for starting your speech, you are sure to grab your audience’s attention every time. How do you start a speech? Let me know in the comments.

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About Brian Tracy — Brian is recognized as the top sales training and personal success authority in the world today. He has authored more than 60 books and has produced more than 500 audio and video learning programs on sales, management, business success and personal development, including worldwide bestseller The Psychology of Achievement. Brian's goal is to help you achieve your personal and business goals faster and easier than you ever imagined. You can follow him on Twitter , Facebook , Pinterest , Linkedin and Youtube .

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6 Engage Your Audience: Don’t Spit Random Words at Generic People

The success of your presentation will be judged not by the knowledge you send but by what the listener receives. Lilly Walters, Secrets of Successful Speakers 

There are five words that can change everything about how you look at public speaking. These four words can alter how you look at nervousness, how you design your content, the way you present, and the way the audience receives the message. What are these words? “It is not about you.”

It is Not About You

It is not about you. So, there you have it–the secret to success in speaking wrapped up in five little words. It is not about you; it is about your audience. Most of the time, speakers think, “ I have this great message I need to tell people” or “ I need to inform them of what I know.”  In each case, it is about “I”. To be a successful speaker, you have to change your way of thinking. A speech is not about you, the speaker, it is about them, the audience. It is about the fact they need something, and you can provide it for them. They may need information, they may need to be inspired, they may need to know about a product that will improve their lives, they may need to celebrate a special moment. They have needs and when your message meets those needs, your audience will be transformed. Chris Anderson of TED talks says, The truth about “speaking your truth” is this: “If the audience doesn’t understand how your truth applies to them, or what they get by learning about your dreams, they’ll tune out or quickly forget what you’ve said.” The more you think about your audience and explore who they are and what they need, the more you can tailor your speech.

Treat your audience as guests who’ve consented to give you some of their precious time and attention. Don’t abuse their gift by making them feel like captives who are compelled to listen to you. Vivian Buchan, Make Presentations with Confidence

Give Your Audience Something of Value: Audience Before Content

A speech is a gift you give the audience.  Chris Anderson, the curator of TED Talks, says, “Focusing on what you should give, should be the foundation of your talk.” From the moment, you are tasked with giving a speech, you should ask yourself what gift you have to give.  One way to think about it is the acronym ABC-audience before content. One professional speaker helps herself to think about what she gives by imagining herself handing out one-hundred-dollar bills to each audience member. This helps her remember her speech should give each person something of value.

Game designer Jane McGonigal tells her audience she is giving them something valuable. She suggests she will give them seven and a half extra minutes to their life. Watch her introduction to hear for yourself.

I’m a gamer, so I like to have goals.   I like special missions and secret objectives.   So here’s my special mission for this talk:   I’m going to try to increase the life span of every single person in this room   by seven and a half minutes.   Literally, you will live seven and a half minutes longer   than you would have otherwise,   just because you watched this talk.

Speech is about serving your audience instead of serving your agenda.  One group of speech coaches, Ginger Public Speaking, emphasize being servant speakers. They illustrate the difference between taking and serving this way:

Normal public speaking can focus more on  taking  from an audience: I need them to listen to me. I need them to look interested in what I’m saying. I need them to laugh at my jokes. I need them to affirm my expertise. I need them to know how good I am. Servant speaking is all about building a community:

• I want to give my community what they most need to hear.
• I believe my message will bring benefit to those listening.
• I want the people listening to me to feel a part OF something not apart FROM something.

Did you notice three out of four of the key features that Chris Anderson mentions have to do with the audience? 1. Limit your talk to just one major idea. 2. Give them a reason to care. 3. Build your ideas based on what the audience already knows. 4. Make your idea worth sharing. Who does this idea benefit? The information in this video is for a specific context–how to give a TED Talk–but many of the lessons apply to public speaking in general. 

Getting into the Mind of Your Audience

“Speakers do not give speeches to audiences; they jointly create meaning with audiences,” according to scholars Sprague, Stuart, and Bodary,  to create meaning, you need to think about what your audience already knows. You need to get into the mind of your audience. The key to good speaking is to put an idea in the mind of your audience. For this to work, you need to think about them and their worldview. To do this, you need to research your audience as well as your topic.

Frank Luntz knows all about how to get in the mind of an audience, it’s what he does for a living. He is an American political and communications consultant and he polls audiences to find out their beliefs. He specializes in helping speakers find what words best resonate with audiences. He says:

You can have the best message in the world, but the person on the receiving end will always understand it through the prism of his or her own emotions, preconceptions, prejudices, and preexisting beliefs. It’s not enough to be correct or reasonable or even brilliant. The key to successful communication is to take the imaginative leap of stuffing yourself into your listener’s shoes to know what they are thinking and feeling in the deepest recesses of their mind and heart. How that person perceives what you say is even more real, at least in a practical sense, than how you perceive yourself.

This means not just looking at an audience in terms of demographics, but rather, what are their goals, why should they care, what do they need?

Ask Yourself, What Do They Need?

Many of you are reading this book because you are in a public speaking class. If so, you are thinking, “What do I have to do to make an “A” on this speech?” or “What is the least I can do to get my college credit?” Notice that both approaches focus on “I.” Realize when you give your presentation, there will be an audience of college students that need something. What do they need? They need not be bored. They need to think it was worth it to come to class. They need to learn things. They need to be inspired. If it is a persuasion speech, don’t think about what you need to persuade them to do, think about them and how their lives will be improved if they listen to your speech and act on the important issue you presented. If you are giving a ceremonial speech, think about how you can make them feel a part of something–make them feel included.

The goal of effective communication should be for listeners to say ‘Me too!’ versus ‘So what?’ – Jim Rohn, motivational speaker

I want to share with you a few scenarios from my own experience. Read carefully and consider what the audience needs.

INFORMATION: I spoke to the monthly meeting of Kiwanis about a nonprofit I managed.

What did my audience need?

• To enjoy themselves among friends after the meal.
• To know about what is happening in their community.
• To feel like their involvement in the club was meaningful.
• To feel like they could do things that will make a difference.
• To feel like they are a part of something important.

Why did they come to the speech?

Because they are part of a club that has weekly luncheons with community speakers. They are there to be with like-minded individuals, they are there to find ways to get involved, and they are there to network.

CELEBRATION: I spoke to a sorority at their annual banquet that honored the academic achievements of the group.

• To feel bonded with others in their sorority.
• To feel proud of their achievements.
• To feel motivated to succeed and make good grades in college.
• To feel like the university cares about their success and recognizes their hard work.

 They liked being part of a group where they make friends and celebrate accomplishments. They were required to attend, or they would be fined. They knew me or one of the other speakers that day.

PERSUASION: I spoke to a major corporation about why they needed to buy diesel engine parts from the company I worked with.

What did my audience need? To know about the product and how it might benefit them. To be able to understand the details of the product enough to make an informed decision. To feel empowered to make an informed choice. To feel good about their decision. To be able to get back to work in a timely fashion. To feel like they were doing what was right for their company and their customers.

They benefited from finding good products for their company. It was their job. Saving their company money while buying a good product makes them look good.

TRAINING: I spoke at a teaching camp to a group of college faculty and gave them tips for teaching.

To know about specific ways to improve teaching. To feel good about being a teacher. To understand the teaching tip in a way they could apply it. To connect with and feel encouraged by other teachers.

Why did they come to camp?

It is an optional camp, so they came specifically to learn to be a better teacher. They came to spend time with friends.

Do this anytime you have a speech to give. Put yourself in the mind of the audience and write their needs and motivations.

Write down what they need and why they are at the event. It is easy to think about the tangible reasons they attended, but it is helpful to think about the emotional reasons they are there. Are they there to bond with friends? Are they there to be inspired?  Are they there because they have to be? What reward do they get for coming? Notice in some of my examples, I have things like “to feel good,” “to know more,” “to connect.”

Make yourself a graphic of the target audience members.  As you write your speech, keep looking at this reference so you keep the audience’s needs in mind. Here is one I made for students I have in my public speaking class.

Nancy Duarte, the author of The Art and Science of Creating Great Presentations , suggests you ask yourself these questions about your audience.

• Lifestyle: What does a walk in their shoes look like?
• Knowledge: What do they already know and not know about your topic?
• Motivation and Desire: What are their wants and desires? What motivates them?
• Values: What is important to them? How does their use of time and money reveal their priorities?
• Influence: What influences their behaviors and thoughts?
• Respect:  What makes them feel respected? How do they give and receive respect?

Consider the Situational Needs

Consider the setting of your speech. After a big lunch, people may be tired. If they have listened to other speeches before yours, they may be fatigued from sitting and listening so long. If they have been listening for a while, consider having them engage briefly with another audience member. If you know they have been sitting, consider how you can have them move a little. If the room is stuffy, or loud, or if they were forced to come and listen, acknowledge how much you appreciate their presence.

Consider the Audience’s Needs

People don’t remember what we think is important. They remember what they think is important. John Maxwell, leadership expert

 Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs is one tool you can use to help you analyze audience needs. Work through the pyramid and see if you can relate each level to your topic in some way.  I find it is particularly helpful to use it as a brainstorming tool when constructing speeches. In short, psychologist Abraham Maslow suggested people are motivated by their needs and they seek to satisfy their needs. For our purposes, we won’t delve into the larger theory but rather acknowledge that people seek to satisfy their needs. The more you identify and talk to their need and demonstrate how those needs can be satisfied, the more likely they are to have a positive response to your topic (and more likely to be persuaded).

Let’s work through an example of this. Imagine you are doing a speech to persuade people to take a self-defense course at a local gym.

• PHYSIOLOGICAL NEEDS : People need to sleep: I can remind listeners that they sleep better once they exercise. They will sleep better knowing they can protect themselves. Taking a self-defense class will help them get a good night’s sleep.
• SAFETY NEEDS : People need to feel safe:  I can remind them of crime statistics to make them feel unsafe so they take the class to regain a sense of safety.
• BELONGING NEEDS: People need to belong:  I can encourage them to take the class with a group of friends or I can remind them of times they missed spending time with friends because they were uncomfortable being out late at night alone. Take a self-defense class will give them the confidence they need to go out with friends.
• ESTEEM NEEDS : People need to feel good about themselves:  I can remind them how bad it feels to not be able to fend for themselves and tell them how good it feels to have the confidence to know how to defend themselves. Learning new skills makes you feel good. Independence feels good.
• COGNITIVE NEEDS: People have the need to know, so I can tell them about the science of some of the techniques and why they work.
• SELF-ACTUALIZATION NEEDS: People need to feel safe, they need to know and belong, so they can work to fulfill their life’s goals. A college student who is afraid to walk to their night class, might skip class and then fall short of their personal goal of graduating.

Designing a presentation without an audience in mind is like writing a love letter and addressing it: To Whom It May Concern. – Ken Haemer, Presentation Design Manager

Recipe for Listenability

Listenability: What does that mean in plain English? By using easily understood phrases and words and giving the audience a reason to listen you are making your speech listenable.

Think of your speech in terms of listenability. Communication scholar D.L. Rubin says, “Listenable discourse is characterized by linguistic and rhetorical structures that ease the particular cognitive burdens listeners face.” (What do you think about that quote, appropriate to the audience of this book or unnecessarily wordy and full of big words? Was it a listenable quote–I don’t think so.)

In plain English, make your speech easy to listen to.  How do you do that? Glad you asked, let me share with you a few ways.

To Be Listenable Find Common Ground

Seek to establish a connection with your audience right away.  Find common ground or draw from common experiences. If you are talking to a civic organization read their mission statement and seek commonalities.  Work in the common ground such as, “Like you, I am passionate about finding a better solution for the homeless in our area.” Recognize similarities if they represent a cause that matters to you, if you have a hometown team in common, if you all ate a catered lunch, or if you all walked uphill to get to class.  It is no coincidence when speakers come onto a college campus, they almost always mention one of these: The mascot, the sports team, a place on campus, a famous eating establishment, or a campus hero. These details draw the audience in to listen. People appreciate a speaker who took the time to think about them it will increase both liking and credibility.

When I teach a public speaking class, I always dedicate a day to helping my students understand the audience and how to relate. I ask questions and we put the answers on the board. For example, I ask, “How many like camping?” “How many like cats?” “How many are politically involved?” We put the answers to the questions on the board for everyone to see.  Once the board is covered, I explain they should take a picture of this and reference it in all of their speeches. For example, they might say, “I noticed only 20% of the class is politically involved, which is why I decided to persuade you to take a political science class during your time at college” or they might say, “Most of the class said they liked camping. Now I know you like camping, I want to tell you about why you need to go camping along the Buffalo River.”

Sometimes a speaker will use the same speech with different audiences and common ground has to change. Julie Miyeon Sohn, Toastmaster’s competitor, reflected on what she learned about adapting to an audience. Her failure to adapt caused her not to win at the World Championship of Public Speaking:

“One thing I would do differently is changing how I select my speech topic. My story about learning English was well received in Korea because the Korean audience had all had a similar experience to mine. However, I failed to connect with the audience at the semi-final because the story was not very relatable to the international audience. I would change my story to something more universal so that everyone can relate to it regardless of their race, nationality, and age.”

In order to find common ground, you need to take time to get to know the audience. In addition to the traditional research, one speaker suggests reading up on the news before you speak and draw references to things most people might know. Make sure the examples you give are now by most audience members.  Speaker Nancy Duarte shares her common ground mishaps:

 I referred to an airline, (an example of amazing customer service, Open Skies) to an audience of American business executives, forgetting that an airline with only one route (NY-Paris) wasn’t something many of them would know.

Even if most of your audience knows about your common ground reference, they may have differing opinions about it. Nancy Duarte says,

 I learned this the hard way with the same audience, telling them, proudly, how a former customer had asked me for referral to a therapist (everyone goes to therapists in NY!), which provoked guffaws from brawny macho Midwesterners.

Finding common ground with your audience, not only gets their attention, but it helps them get on the same wavelength–literally. Princeton neuroscientist Uri Hasson says the more commonality between a storyteller and listener, the more brain imaging shows that the brains sync up. Let that sink in. When you find common ground through story, it shows up on a brain scan. Your audience’s brain scan lights up in the same places yours does–that is incredible. Thinking about your audience and then finding common ground is crucial to your success.

The royal road to a man’s heart is to talk to him about the things he treasures most. Dale Carnegie, Author, Speaker

To Be Listenable, Reference Someone in the Group

When possible, go to a speaking event early and talk to several people. Engage them in friendly conversation and then ask them questions related to your topic.  During your presentation, point them out and say, “Derek was telling me that….” The audience’s attention zooms in when you acknowledge someone from the group. If you don’t have time to visit beforehand, you can always reference the host who invited you. Mentioning anyone they know can draw the audience’s attention.

To Be Listenable, Tell Them How It Applies to Them

To keep the audience’s attention, talk about what they care about the most–themselves. Get the audience on your side by telling them why this speech is relevant to them. Don’t just assume they know, help them make those connections. Typically, highly engaged, and knowledgeable audiences, need only a light reminder of the topic’s application.  For those that are not very knowledgeable or not motivated listeners, you need to tell them specifically how it applies and why. One easy way to do this is to say, “So what, who cares…” Another way is to simply ask the audience, “Why do you think this should matter to you?” Then, answer the question.

To Be Listenable Use the Language of Your Audience

Author, William Butler Yeats said, “Think like a wise man but communicate in the language of the people.” Make sure that the words you use match the vocabulary and the knowledge level of the audience. Throughout your speech, define your terms clearly and carefully. Be careful not to use jargon or “insider” language that will exclude listeners who aren’t “in the know.”  While working for a nonprofit, I was invited to come onto the university campus to speak to campus groups interested in volunteering. To identify with the audience, I told them I was a COMM major. After my presentation, someone came up to me and said, “Ms. Meade, what is a COMM?” I explained it was shorthand for Communication Major. We laughed at my mistake, I apologized for assuming everyone knew what it meant, and then he offered to join my organization. It goes to show you, even within the group (in my case people on a college campus), you can’t assume people know the specialty language. It also goes to show you that you can mess up and still make a friend (if you acknowledge your mistake gracefully).

I am often to be a judge for a unique speech competition. Graduate students have three minutes to explain their research in a way anyone can understand. They have to make it plain enough a layperson can understand what they are doing and what the results mean. Many graduate students have been working in complex theories and specialty language for so long they have a hard time realizing not everyone knows what these concepts mean. It is important you learn to know how to adapt your message to audiences with differing levels of knowledge and complexity.

Watch this Wired video where an astrophysicist explains gravity in five levels of difficulty. (You don’t have to watch the whole video, just watch a little bit of how she talks to each person to get the point).  This is an excellent example of talking about the same topic to different audience members.

Finding the right vocabulary and the right tone for the right audience takes a lot of thought and practice. Alan Alda and the Center for Communicating Science issued a “flame challenge” and they asked scientists to explain a flame to 11-year-olds.

To watch more on this https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hS6rOCdy-uo

Here is perhaps the simplest case of persuasion. You persuade a person only insofar as you can talk their language by speech, gesture, tonality, order, image, attitude, idea, identifying your ways with theirs. Kenneth Burke, American literary theorist

To Be Listenable Use Inclusive Language

Inclusive language means many things. It means speaking to the knowledge level and education level of your audience. It also means designing sentences where you invite them to be a part.

NO: I know most people worry about what goes into their food. YES: I know most of us worry about what goes into our food.

The use of “us” and “our,” makes the sentence more personal and friendly.  As much as possible, use personal pronouns with your audience.  As Shel Leanne points out in the book,  Say It Like Obama: The Power of Speaking with Purpose and Vision , these words help to “send the message that the speaker and those listening are on the same team, in the same boat, facing the same fate.”

To Be Listenable Give the Audience a Map of the Journey so they Won’t Get Lost

Tell them what you are going to say, say it, and then tell them what you said. Along the way, help them stay on track by telling them where they are headed. “Now that we talked about this history of this, I want to share with you the future of the product.”

Always keep the focus on what is the point of your speech. Nancy Duarte, presentation expert suggests, “Every bit of content you share should propel the audience towards that destination.”

To Be Listenable Take the Audience’s Perspective

Your speech is a journey, and you are taking your audience on that journey with you. Chris Anderson, TED Talk curator says, “It is your job to know about your fellow travelers. What do they need from the journey and how can you help them, so they enjoy the trip and they don’t get lost?” Delve into the audience’s mind, what is their perspective of your topic?

Consider This When the country music singer, Garth Brooks arrives as the venue, he sits in many of the seats that are pointing at the stage and asks, “What am I doing for this person.”  As a speaker, it is good to sit in the many (symbolic) seats of your audience and ask, “What am I doing for this person?”

To Be Listenable Ask for Audience Participation

Actively involving your audience helps them stay alert and attentive.  All too often, speakers seem to spit random words at generic people. The audience is supposed to passively sit back and take in whatever comes their way. An audience is made up of people who need to be considered, addressed, and engaged and it is your challenge to figure out how to connect. Consider using one of the following when engaging your audience:

• Ask rhetorical questions.
• Take an informal poll.
• Ask for a volunteer.
• Have them write something down.
• Ask them to talk with their neighbor about a topic.
• Have everyone yell the answer at the same time.
• Tell them there will be a “test” at the end.

Watch Toastmaster’s World Championship Speech by Darren Tay Wen Jie to see how he relates to the audience.

Look at All the Ways He Connected with the Audience

Darren Tay said in a Business Insider interview that he emphasized the importance of making audience members feel like he was talking directly to them. One way he does this is by asking rhetorical questions of the audience: “If you are all wondering whether the underwear Greg used was clean, I had the same question.” Look at this list of all the ways he connects with the audience in this speech.

• He opens by staring at them directly.
• If you are all wondering whether the underwear Greg used was clean, I had the same question.
• Mr. contest chair, fellow toastmasters, and anyone including those watching worldwide. If you are looking at Calvin Klein here, stop staring! My eyes are up here.
•  “I gonna knock you in my teeth and punch you in the guts and laugh at your sorry behind. He didn’t quite use the word- behind. I just cleaned up the words because this is a toastmaster program.
• And, have you ever wondered why a bully needs to tell you the exact sequence that they gonna bully you?
• My friends, whenever I heard those words, my hands would tremble. Have you ever felt so fearful, that you cannot eat or sleep?
• My friends, as much as we tried to deny it, we are our toughest and strongest bully. We beat ourselves up and put ourselves down. Have you ever f elt that you are not good enough? I thought that way.
•  I’m standing on stage now in front of two thousand of you a nd more are watching worldwide but I am not afraid anymore. I am in control because I am acknowledging it, I am stepping out of it, observing it, and watching it weaken and fade. My friends , let’s all not run away f rom our inner bullies anymore. Let us all face our inner bullies and acknowledge its presence and fight . Let us all be together as a family supporting one another because we can all outsmart and (outlast).

Asses and Elephants

Making assumptions makes an ass out of u and me (assume).

Make a list of the known demographics of your audience and create a profile.   Make a list of what you know about them and what you assume about them. Be honest, but don’t let that profile lead you astray. Don’t create unrealistic stereotypes and expectations based on the way you profiled them. For example, just because your audience is made up of seventy-year-old women, does not mean that they have the same values as your conservative grandma. Most of us naturally default to grouping things based on what we already know–don’t assume.

While persuading the class to skydive, one student said, “I know you may not be interested Dr. Meade, but you can tell your sons about it.” Just for the record, I went skydiving the next year– my sons still haven’t been. In another speech, I had a student say, “Now that I have shown you how to make taco casserole, you can take this recipe home with you to make it. Guys, you can take it to your girlfriend.” The guys were upset because she didn’t think they were interested or capable.

In the first example, they made assumptions about abilities and interests based on age, and in the other example, they made assumptions based on gender roles. Don’t assume.

Let’s Talk About the Elephant in the Room

What do you call people? Frankly, this is a tricky topic. It is like the elephant in the room that everyone can see but no one wants to mention. African American/Black/Native American/Indian/Transexual/Non-binary–there are so many different words in the “people dictionary”. What is acceptable and what is offensive seems to change regularly.  If I am honest (and I try to be), I get nervous about what to call people, because I’m afraid I will mess up and someone will get upset when I didn’t mean any ill intent. Then I think, why do people get their feeling hurt over the littlest things?  Well, if you are on the receiving end, they are not little things.  I try to remember when someone said hurtful things to me and then it is easier to remember why it matters.  Even if the person who hurt my feelings wasn’t trying to be mean, it still hurt. When I was hurt by those words, I was too busy with my own thoughts to hear anything else they had to say.

Hurt people do not listen.  If the point of my speech is to be heard and I said something that causes my audience not to listen, I hurt not only them but my own cause.

I once spoke before an interfaith board of directors. I had a list of the names and organizations that were represented, and I thought I had done all my research. During my presentation, I talked about the need for volunteers in the community, I talked about how each of their groups represented a belief that people should help each other, and then I asked them to “Go back to your churches and ask if they will allow me to come out and give a talk about how your church can get involved with helping others.” After my presentation, a member of the board came up to me and said, “Lynn, not all of us go to church, some of us go to synagogue.” I thanked her for correcting me and I learned to use the phrase “faith groups” instead of the word “churches” when talking to an interfaith audience. Because I was gracious in accepting my mistake, we developed a great working relationship for years to come. Before speaking to a group– do your research.  If you mess up (and if you are human, you will mess up eventually), be gracious to those who pointed out your mistake, learn from your mistake, and accept responsibility.

Do no harm. Create no barrier. When taking the audience-centered approach, consider what the audience needs so they can listen.  Do your research to learn the preferred name for a group and the vocabulary of the group because it respects the audience.  Audience members who feel respected are more likely to listen.

Your Credibility is Linked to the Audience’s Opinion of You

Every time you speak, you are building credibility, maintaining credibility, or diminishing credibility, according to Ryan Sheets, Director of the Business Communication Lab at the University of Arkansas, y our credibility (ethos) is linked to what the audience thinks of you. An audience expects y ou to not only have knowledge but also to be trustworthy and sincere. What they think about you translates to how much they will listen to your message. That opinion is formed by looking at the way you are dressed, how you carry yourself, the words you say, and the way you address them.

Your credibility is tied up in their opinion of you and whether they think you care about them.

Thinking About the Audience Makes You Less Anxious

When you realize speech is not about you having something to say but rather, you are giving the audience something of value, it changes things. Not only will you give a better speech, but you will benefit yourself as well. When you think about the needs of the audience, you become less nervous. Focusing on their needs and the topic helps you focus on providing a service rather than delivering a performance.

Instead of thinking, “I am so nervous,” try thinking “the audience really will benefit from knowing this.” Instead of thinking, “I will persuade them to do this” change your thinking to “their life will be better if they try this.”

If you pick a topic you are passionate about and if you believe in it, you will begin to care more about the importance of the topic and less about your own personal discomfort. If you feel a little nervous, think about how your information can improve lives or change people’s perspectives. Make your topic so important that you forget to be nervous.

Quit being so self-centered. It’s not about you—- it’s about the audience. They need something and you have it. Writer Ambrose Redmoon said, “Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the judgment that something else is more important than fear.”

Don’t be selfish. It does little good to have all that experience and all that knowledge and keep it to yourself. Author Marianne Williamson says, “Your playing small does not serve the world.” It is worth a little discomfort for the awesome privilege you have to change, educate, motivate, and persuade your audience. They need this information, and you are the one lucky enough to get to give it to them. When you spend all your time thinking about how to connect with the audience and how to help them understand what you have to offer, you have less energy to spend worrying about if you are nervous.

I tell myself that what I have to say in any speech is important for people to hear, and that I prepped for it, and am well versed in it. So basically knowing that what I have to say is worth hearing makes me confident in saying it. Andrew Powell, Former University of Arkansas Communication Student

Audience Analysis Tools

There are many ways to gather information about the audience, Here are a few of the most common and a list of the pros and cons of each

When we think a speech is about what we have to say, we get it wrong. T he whole reason you are giving the presentation is for the audience. The speech is about them, and your job is to figure out who they are and what they need before you write even the first word.

Key Takeaways

Remember This!

• The most important thing to remember is it is not about you; it is about the audience.
• Focus on making your speech listenable.
• Make a list of what your audience needs and the reasons they are listening to your speech.
• Don’t stereotype or make assumptions about your audience.
• Know the right words to use for your specific audience.
• Use a variety of tools to gather information about your audience.

Extras to Help You with Understanding Audience

Actor and writer Alan Alda trains communicators by teaching them basic improvisational techniques. The goal is to help them to gain empathy and to learn to read people better. In this video, he explains a couple of ways to gain empathy with your audience.

From the book, If I Understood You, Would I Have This Look on My Face by Alan Alda

Please share your feedback, suggestions, corrections, and ideas.

I want to hear from you. 

Do you have an activity to include? Did you notice a typo that I should correct? Are you planning to use this as a resource and do you want me to know about it? Do you want to tell me something that really helped you?

Click here to share your feedback. 

Alda, A. (2012). Alan Alda’s ‘Flame Challenge’ illuminates the importance of communicating science. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hS6rOCdy-uo Standard Youtube License

Alda, A. (2017).  If I understood you, would I have this look on my face? Random House.

Alan A. (2017).  Grow your empathy through visual perception. Big Think. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qulq_n5zbTs   Standard YouTube License

Anderson, C. (2016). TEDs secret to great public speaking by Chris Anderson. [Video] YouTube. https://www.ted.com/talks/chris_anderson_ted_s_secret_to_great_public_speaking?language=en Standard YouTube License

Anderson, C. (2016).  TEDtalks: The official TED guide to public speaking . Mariner Books.

Aristotle. (2007). On rhetoric: A theory of civil discourse , 2nd ed. trans George Kennedy. Oxford University Press.

Broadside Blog. (2012). How to give a speech (Hint: be authentic). https://broadsideblog.wordpress.com/2012/11/15/how-to-give-a-great-speech-hint-be-authentic/

Buchan, V. (2019). Make presentations with confidence. Barron’s: A business success guide. Barron’s Educational Series.

Burke, K. (1969). A rhetoric of motives.  University of California Press. *In the Burke quote, I changed it from “his” to gender-inclusive language “theirs.”  A topic worth thinking about and discussing.

Cartier, F.A. (1952). The social context of listenability research. Journal of Communication , 2, 44-47. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1460-2466.1952.tb00177.x

Duarte, N. (2010). Resonate Present visual stories that transform audiences. Wiley.

Feloni, R. (2016). Here’s a breakdown of the speech that won the 2016 World Championship of Public Speaking. https://www.businessinsider.com/toastmasters-public-speaking-champion-darren-tay-2016-8

Goble, F. (1970).  The third force: The psychology of Abraham Maslow. Maurice Bassett Publishing.

Goldberg, B. (2020). Top 5 TED Talk cliches you should avoid. https://masterclass.ted.com/blog/5-TED-Talk-cliches-to-avoid

Harris, L. (2017).  S tand up speak out: The practice and ethics of public speaking. Creative Commons License. https://open.lib.umn.edu/publicspeaking/

Jeary, T. (1997). Inspire Any Audience. River Oak Publishing

Kardes, F.R., Kim, J. & Lim, J.S. (1994). Moderation effects of prior knowledge on perceived diagnosity of beliefs derived from implicit versus explicit product claims. Journal of Business Research, 29 , 219-224. https://doi.org/10.1016/0148-2963(94)90006-X

Kienzle, R. & J. Miyeon, S. (2017). Losing at the World Championship of Public Speaking.  https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/losing-world-championship-public-speaking-robert-bob-kienzle-kienzle/

Luntz, F. (2007). Words that work: It’s not what you say, it’s what people hear. Hyperion.

Martin, B.A.S., Lang, B. & Wong, S. (2013). Conclusion explicitness in advertising: The moderating role of need for cognition and argumentation quality on persuasion. Journal of Advertising, 32(4), 57-65. https://doi.org/10.1080/00913367.2003.10639148 

Maslow, A.H. (1943). A theory of human motivation. Psychological Review, 50 (4), 370-96. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0054346

Maxwell, J. (2010).  Everyone communicates few connect: What the most effective people do differently . Thomas Nelson.

McGonigal, J. (2012). The game that can give you 10 extra years of life.  [Video] YouTube. License. https://www.ted.com/talks/jane_mcgonigal_the_game_that_can_give_you_10_extra_years_of_life/transcript?language=en   Standard YouTube License.

Rubin, D.L. (1993). Listenabilty = oral-based discourse+ considerateness. In Wolvin, A.D. & Coakley, C.G. (Eds.) Perspectives on Listening. Ablex.

Rubin, D.L., Hafter, T. & Arata, K. (1999).  Reading and listening to oral-based versus literature-based discourse. Communication Education, 49 , 121-134. https://doi.org/10.1080/03634520009379200

Sawyer, A.G. & Howard, D.J. (1991). Effects of omitting conclusions in advertisements to involved and uninvolved audiences. Journal of Marketing Research, 28, 467-474. https://doi.org/10.2307/3172786

Saylor Academy (2012). Stand up, speak out: The practice and ethics of publicsSpeaking.  Saylor Academy. https://open.umn.edu/opentextbooks/textbooks/77

Sheets, R. (2020) Walton College of Business Presentation. The University of Arkansas.

Snippe, E. (2016). 101 quotes to inspire speakers. https://speakerhub.com/blog/101-quotes

Spencer, G. (1995). How to Argue and Win Every Time . St. Martin

Sprague, J., Stuart, D., & Bodary, D. (2010).  The speaker’s handbook (9th ed.) Wadsworth Cengage.

Strategic Business Insight. US Framework and VALS Types. http://www.strategicbusinessinsights.com/vals/ustypes.shtml

Tay, D. (2016). Outsmart, Outlast. Toastmasters World Championship. [Video] YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v26CcifgEq4 Standard YouTube License

Tempesta, L. (2019). You’ll never look at a bra the same way again. TEDxKCWomen. [Video] YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GrxJ-9_qXeM Standard YouTube License.

Toastmasters (2013). Keep your audience engaged. [Video] YouTube.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JHl4yUQMBYA  Standard YouTube License.

Toastmasters: Know your audience.  [Video] YouTube.   https://www.toastmasters.org/Resources/Know-Your-Audience  Standard YouTube License.   Walters, L. (1993). Secrets of successful speakers: How you can motivate, captivate, and persuade. McGraw Hill.

Wired. (2019). Astrophysicist explains gravity in 5 levels of difficulty. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QcUey-DVYjk

Wolvin, A. (2017). Listenability: A Missing Link in the Basic Communication Course. Listening Education, 1 3-21. No doi available.

Wrench, J.S., Goding, A. Ifert-Johnson, D., Attias, B.A. Stand up, Speak out. The practice and ethics of public speaking. Flatworld Knowledge. https://open.umn.edu/opentextbooks/textbooks/77

Media Attributions

• Audience Listening © M-Accelerator on Unsplash is licensed under a CC BY (Attribution) license
• Audience © Melanie Deziel is licensed under a CC BY (Attribution) license
• OIG4 © Generated with AI ∙ January 31, 2024 at 1:03 PM
• Needs © Lynn Meade is licensed under a CC BY (Attribution) license
• sander-dalhuisen-nA6Xhnq2Od8-unsplash © Sander Dalhuisesn is licensed under a CC BY (Attribution) license
• hierarchy of needs © Lynn Meade is licensed under a CC0 (Creative Commons Zero) license
• Audience by Oliver Tacke CC © Oliver Tacke is licensed under a CC0 (Creative Commons Zero) license
• Elephant in the room © Bit Boy is licensed under a CC BY (Attribution) license

Advanced Public Speaking Copyright © 2021 by Lynn Meade is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

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Before You Start Collaborating with Someone, Talk About Your Work Styles

• Anke Thiele

Having an explicit conversation about your preferences will set the relationship up for success.

When you’re working with new people, spending time upfront to have an explicit and open conversation about each other’s work styles and preferences can prove to be one of the best time investments. This “style alignment” conversation can lay a foundation for trust and understanding and help you set agreements for how to successfully work together. Yet, many people shy away from having these conversations for two reasons. First, they worry that it will take up too much time. Second, they fear that it might make style differences more obvious and aren’t sure how to bridge those. By having open and deep conversations about style and preferences, something powerful happens. If you better understand where someone is coming from, you don’t just react to their behavior and feel annoyed by making potentially false assumptions about why someone is behaving a certain way. Instead, you can bring more compassion and less reactivity into your work relationships and maybe even preempt work conflict.

After two consecutive reorganizations, my coaching client, Kara, an experienced product group manager, found herself in a new reporting relationship with the chief product officer. Throughout her career, Kara had worked under managers with different leadership styles and, with experience, had gotten a better sense of her own over the years. While she was eager to start with her new boss, she wanted to make sure not to lose some of the unique ways she had been able to share her ideas and gain support for her teams. Kara wondered what she could do to set a strong foundation for a productive work relationship with her manager, how to effectively work together with people who may have different work styles, and reduce the likelihood of misunderstandings right from the beginning.

• Anke Thiele , MBA, MS Psych., MCC, is an executive coach and leadership consultant who works with senior leaders and their teams. She is the founder of The Human Link , a psychologist and certified meditation teacher, who has taught mindfulness at tech companies including Google for many years. She also works as a team coach and extended faculty at UC Berkeley’s Haas School of Business. Connect with her on LinkedIn .

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Giants give pep talk to Jung Hoo Lee: ‘We hope you’re proud of what you’re doing’

Jung Hoo Lee received a tap on the shoulder Monday in Philadelphia.

The San Francisco Giants outfielder had been stuck in a 3-for-22 slump in the first five games on the road trip. His on-base percentage over that span was .136. The baseline OPS+ for a league-average hitter is 100. For the season, Lee’s was down to 86. His batting run value, as calculated by Statcast, was minus-4. The Giants weren’t winning games, they weren’t scoring runs and they weren’t getting difference-making results from the leadoff spot after spending $113 million to sign Lee in December.

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The coaches wanted to meet with him. What message would await him when he connected with them in the batting cage? Were they demoting him from a primary leadoff role? Would he be asked to overhaul his approach? Did they want him to show up even earlier to the ballpark? Work even harder? Somehow run faster than a dead sprint down the first base line, which had become his custom even on the most routine ball in play?

“We hope you’re proud of what you’re doing,” Giants hitting coach Pat Burrell told Lee. “Because we’re thrilled with it.”

Barely a month into his career, Lee’s offensive impact on the club might be fairly described as negligible. Entering Wednesday’s game at Coors Field, only five of his 37 hits had gone for extra bases. He’d stolen two bases and been caught three times. He appeared especially discouraged last week at Fenway Park when he blistered the ball in three games against the Boston Red Sox , who have the lowest rotation ERA in the major leagues , yet had just a 1-for-12 to show for it.

“It’s my fault for placing the balls there,” Lee said through Korean interpreter Justin Han.

So when Lee had another mostly empty first three games in Philadelphia, dropping his on-base percentage below .300 for the first time since the team’s initial homestand last month, the Giants’ coaches and analytics team decided the time was right for a little show and tell. They called Lee into a meeting and gave him a rundown of his expected numbers.

You should be batting 30 points higher. You should be slugging almost 100 points higher.

“He’s getting unlucky,” Burrell said. “The numbers back that up. We’re very open and we talk all the time, but we wanted to be 100 percent certain nothing was getting lost in translation. We just wanted to get with him and say, ‘You’re doing everything we’ve asked you to do. You play hard. Your at-bats are amazing. You’re getting unlucky. Try not to let that bother you.’

“He must be wondering, ‘What do they think of me? How am I doing?’ So we wanted to make sure he knew we are thrilled.”

Jung Hoo #Lee ’s first 3-hit game in #MLB !! 👏🏻 pic.twitter.com/B4iAur6ft0 — Joseph Kim (@blackwings2011) May 8, 2024

No team has invested more in a player from Korea Baseball Organization than the Giants did when they signed Lee, 25, to a six-year contract with a total outlay of more than $130 million (his $113 million salary plus a $18.825 million posting fee to the Kiwoom Heroes). Giants president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi didn’t view the contract as a gamble. He and his staff were confident that Lee’s preternatural contact skills would work against major-league pitchers despite their higher-velocity fastballs.

So far, they’ve been right.

The league-average whiff rate on four-seam fastballs is 21.8 percent. Lee’s rate of 6.9 percent on four-seamers is the fourth lowest among 76 players who have been thrown at least 175 of them. More notably, Lee’s whiff rate on four-seamers at 95 mph or faster is just 3.1 percent. That’s the second-lowest rate among 207 major leaguers who have seen at least 40 such pitches, behind only Cleveland ’s Steven Kwan (who hasn’t swung and missed at any of them).

Lee’s overall contact rate of 91.3 percent is the third best in the majors, trailing only Kwan and Luis Arraez , the two-time batting champ whom the San Diego Padres just acquired from Miami for four prospects. (One of those prospects, minor-league relief pitcher Woo Suk Go, is Lee’s brother-in-law.)

Lee’s batting average on all fastballs is .241. Based on the quality of contact, though, he should be hitting close to .300 on heaters.

All of this to say: high heat isn’t knocking the bat out of his hands. Which is important. Because he doesn’t walk much (which is partly a function of his high contact rate), his on-base skills are heavily reliant on his ability to hit for average.

His other tools have been impressive as well. Although it looked early in the season like teams would make a point to run on his arm, his 94.2 mph average on throws puts him in the 97th percentile for arm strength. His average sprint speed of 28.5 feet per second puts him in the 85th percentile. And aside from issues with a couple of balls in the sun, his defense in center field has been excellent.

He was frustrated by one of those sun balls in Boston. Two batters later, he sprinted in and made a headfirst dive to catch a sinking line drive, slapping the turf with his palm. Three days later in Philadelphia, he took a flawless route to the deepest part of center field and made a backhand catch that was so unexpected that the entire ballpark gasped. On the mound, Giants right-hander Jordan Hicks very clearly mouthed his two-word reaction: “Holy f—!”

Jung Hoo Lee lays out to save a run with nice diving grab! pic.twitter.com/jqbjoiCaSz — MLB (@MLB) May 2, 2024

JHL runs like the wind and makes the catch 👀 pic.twitter.com/bpi6qClBNt — SF Giants on NBCS (@NBCSGiants) May 4, 2024

“He looked like he was flying with the wind,” Hicks said. “I understand that nickname now.”

Lee’s nickname in Korea was “Grandson of the Wind.” His father, 1990s KBO legend Lee Jong Beom, was the original “Son of the Wind.” But the prevailing opinion among scouts who watched the younger Lee in six seasons with Kiwoom was that the Giants were paying for his ceiling and he would be little more than a league-average center fielder.

There aren’t too many average center fielders who have the ability to come in on balls and also go back on them. Usually it’s one or the other. Lee’s ability to do both is among the elements that most impresses Giants left fielder Michael Conforto and right fielder Mike Yastrzemski .

“He’s covering a crazy amount of ground and that really takes some pressure off me and Yaz,” Conforto said. “It’s allowed us to cover the lines better. It’s nice to have a guy who can go all directions. And he’ll get better dealing with the sun, with all the fields, with more experience.”

Seeing a fly ball in the sun might not seem like an adjustment for a Korean outfielder, but it is. That’s because all the diamonds in KBO face south instead of north or northwest, as most do in the major leagues. So outfielders are accustomed to having the sun behind them or to their right. And KBO games are seldom played in the kind of rainy conditions that the Giants and Phillies played through last Friday.

The Giants’ current road trip presents one more new challenge: cross-country flights and skipping time zones for the first time. That isn’t something Lee had to do in Korea, where all the teams play in the same time zone and five of the 10 teams are in Seoul’s metropolitan area.

“I do need to put in some work on the time difference,” said Lee, who told teammates he had a hard time sleeping after the team arrived in Boston. “Everything is new on the road.”

This might be the biggest difficulty that nobody is talking about: Lee only had to become familiar with the pitching staffs of nine other teams in Korea. Now he’s being introduced to brand new 13-man pitching staffs on 29 teams. And because of the balanced schedule and expanded interleague play, he won’t see many of those pitchers for more than a plate appearance or two.

So it’s understandable why Lee has been taking so many first-pitch strikes. He’s trying to absorb a firehose of information about major-league pitchers. He’s been swinging a bit more often on the first pitch in recent days, though. He’s also attempted to make an adjustment to let the ball get a little deeper so he can use the opposite field and hit fewer ground balls to the right side. As with any adjustment, it’s a process that includes trial and error. Lee is popping up a little more often over the past two weeks, which dragged down his average exit velocity from the mid-90s to the high 80s.

This is what the Giants are watching: a hitter with smarts and skills who is figuring it out as he goes.

“We had a good feeling but I’m not sure anyone knew for certain,” Giants manager Bob Melvin said. “It’s a whole new league. It’s higher velocity. It’s not knowing the opponent. And the swings have been good, sometimes really good. It’s not like he’s off balance.”

Lee looked comfortable Tuesday night at Coors Field when he collected three hits, including two on the infield that he used his speed to beat out. For someone with Lee’s contact skills, the wide-open expanses in Denver figure to be an advantage he can exploit.

But when will Lee start hitting the doubles and triples that might put the paddles to an offense that is desperate for a spark ? What does he need to start splitting gaps?

“More time,” Melvin said. “That’s all. He’s been a quick study. I mean, it’s been barely a month. After 250 at-bats or so, we’ll have a better idea.”

It’s possible that the Giants move Lee out of the leadoff spot eventually, but not as a demerit. His contact skills are so reliable that he might bring the hit-and-run play back into fashion. If the Giants had another leadoff candidate with speed and on-base skills, then there’s little doubt Lee would be a better fit as a No. 2 hitter. The Giants still have five months and five years to go on Lee’s contract. That’s plenty of time for him to keep learning and for the Giants to keep learning how best to utilize him.

“We just want to make sure he’s feeling comfortable,” Burrell said. “I don’t want him feeling like he has to do more. As long as he’s comfortable, I think we’ll get the best version of him.”

Even if he has to play in the rain.

“He said he’d never done it before,” Burrell said with a laugh. “So they’re smarter over there, if you ask me. They have a better system.”

(Photo: Rick Schultz / Getty Images)

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Andrew Baggarly is a senior writer for The Athletic and covers the San Francisco Giants. He has covered Major League Baseball for more than two decades, including the Giants since 2004 for the Oakland Tribune, San Jose Mercury News and Comcast SportsNet Bay Area. He is the author of two books that document the most successful era in franchise history: “A Band of Misfits: Tales of the 2010 San Francisco Giants” and “Giant Splash: Bondsian Blasts, World Series Parades and Other Thrilling Moments By the Bay.” Follow Andrew on Twitter @ extrabaggs

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• APR 23, 2024

Watches & Wonders - Our Darlings

So, just like that, Watches & Wonders is over. Another year, another slew of releases. This week, we sum them up, and give you our top picks, both within and out of our budgets, as well as discuss things that didn’t quite tickle our pickle.  Give us a follow, and feel free to reach out to us on Instagram: @lumeplotters Or… leave us an audio comment using the link below, and we may just play it in an upcoming episode: https://www.speakpipe.com/lumeplotters

• APR 15, 2024

The curious case of ‘keyless works’, and all of the other watch jargon you need to know!

Watch lingo! We all hear it, but not all of us know what it all means… Have no fear, the Lume Plotters to the rescue! This week we break down a watch into its major components and discuss every piece that you should be aware of, so that you, dear listener, can also be up to speed on what to say whilst discussing watches! Give us a follow, and feel free to reach out to us on Instagram: @lumeplotters Or… leave us an audio comment using the link below, and we may just play it in an upcoming episode: https://www.speakpipe.com/lumeplotters

• 1 hr 21 min
• APR 9, 2024

Lume Plotters 2024 Watches & Wonders LIVE Reaction!

In this week’s installment, we guide you through a (somewhat) comprehensive initial review of the 2024 Watches & Wonders new releases! Of course, as this is a live first take, there is much more to unpack, which we will do in due time! Enjoy! Give us a follow, and feel free to reach out to us on Instagram: @lumeplotters Or… leave us an audio comment using the link below, and we may just play it in an upcoming episode: https://www.speakpipe.com/lumeplotters

• 1 hr 16 min
• APR 2, 2024

Rolex vs. the WORLD! What else is out there?

After the release of the Morgan Stanley watch rankings, Rolex is clearly on top. We play devil’s advocate and ask the question- “WHY?”. With so many different brands in the world, why buy a Rolex when you can have a slew of other great watches! We take you through each offering in Rolex’s catalog and talk about the big competitors in each segment. Give us a follow, and feel free to reach out to us on Instagram: @lumeplotters Or… leave us an audio comment using the link below, and we may just play it in an upcoming episode: https://www.speakpipe.com/lumeplotters

• © 2024 Lume Plotters - Watch-Talk, -Banter, -Speculation and -News

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Maya Rudolph Brings Beyoncé Back to ‘Hot Ones’ for Outrageous ‘SNL’ Sketch

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Maya Rudolph brought Beyoncé back to “Saturday Night Live,” reprising her impression to give Queen B another shot at the spicy chicken wing talk show “Hot Ones.”

Opposite Mikey Day’s take on host Sean Evans, Beyoncé returns for the challenging YouTube interview segment, cocky about eating the wings until they become uncomfortably hot. As things get more unbearable, she has increasingly difficult instructions for her assistant, played by Kenan Thompson.

“This wing is stompin’ my ass,” she says at one point. “Damn, my bones are hot. That wing was a real one. Ooh, you’re ’bout to make me sing — This ain’t Texas!”

Popular on Variety

Rudolph last played Beyoncé appearing on “Hot Ones” on a March 2021 episode of “ SNL .” Before this new “Hot Ones” sketch, Rudolph’s monologue consisted of a Beyoncé-inspired song called “Mother.”

Rudolph has spoken in the past about how much Beyoncé’s artistry has empowered her, including in a 2019 interview with Jimmy Fallon on “The Tonight Show” about how much she loved the singer’s Coachella sets.

“I saw Beychella…I saw it both weekends,” she said. “It was the craziest thing… it changed my life. We all witnessed something that had never been done, that was made with love, that was made with beauty, that was made with pride. It was a nod to Historical Black Colleges and Universities.”

Watch the sketch below.

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Transfer Talk: Barcelona aiming to sign Nico Williams

The summer transfer window won't reopen in Europe for a while yet, but there are plenty of moves in the works and gossip is swirling around. Transfer Talk brings you all the latest buzz on rumours, comings, goings and, of course, done deals !