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You are judged firstly by your general appearance; secondly, by the
way in which you carry yourself (superb posture, purposeful stride,
slight swagger), and thirdly, by the way in which you speak. If you are
to lead, you must refine your public and private speaking to perfection.
Words are tools, weapons, conveyances and a means of initiating action.
Superb communications skills are crucial in your advancement toward
your greatest successes in every aspect of your career.
I've spoken about this before in my
SENDING SIGNALS! Blog [
http://SendingSignals.blogspot.com], and in my personal blog at
http://aboutDouglasCastle.blogspot.com.
Incidentally,
while it is an enormous asset to have a broad vocabulary and a
tremendous command of your language, these things are not quite as
important as the way in which you deliver your message.
Every speech is an opportunity to gain territory and influence.
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It's actually all up to you.
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Most individuals tend to be desperately afraid of speaking before audiences -- and by the term "
audiences,"
I mean any assembly of persons from a conference room with twelve
people seated at a long rectangular mahogany table, or an auditorium or
corporate conference center speaking room, with a crowd of 400 people
who are either falling asleep in their seats (the standard lecture hall
configuration), or perhaps a grand dining hall where people are busily
eating and drinking (food and drink were their principal reasons for
coming) and carrying on multiple conversations which converge upon
you in a deafening roar of indistinct, unintelligible noise. Welcome...
Actionable Skill: Business Leaders, Executives,
Entrepreneurs:
Power Up Your Public Speaking!
Return On Investment (ROI): Your ability to comfortably command and control an audience
is one of the key skills which will propel you to a position of
dominance and authority within your company, profession or industry.
Stating the obvious (which is part of inimitable style), all of this
domination and authority leads to an increase in your income and wealth.
The Tactics And Strategy To Get You There:
You have to make a choice.
You must either master your audience, as a puppeteer plays his puppets,
or you can be frightened, stammering and sweating -- and lose their respect as well as their attention. The way you
internally address the situation (the "context" as either
Gladwell or Milgram would call the environment, as you perceive it, or as your obnoxious
subconscious mind, with its nagging, self-limiting, self-conscious, self-doubting whisperings would
have you
perceive it), will determine whether you will either have a wonderful
experience of exhilaration and victory, or a disabling one that will
land you on the therapist's couch before, probably wearing Depends
Adult Diapers and crying your
mental health investment away.
Before
you even begin to speak, you must bear several important factors in
mind; it even helps to recite them to yourself repeatedly -- as a
pre-speech "mantra." They are basic truths about the group (whatever
group) you are about to address. You need to know these factors, and
believe absolutely in their truth if you truly wish to take command of
the speaking platform and have what will turn out to be an exhilarating
experience. The author (
Douglas E. Castle, Chairman of TNNWC Group, LLC) is not being sarcastic...an empowering, transformative experience.*
*NOTE: If you are a follower of Braintenance
(for cognitive enhancement, increasing intelligence, exercising your
mind's "muscle" mass, improving your thinking skills, life extension,
unleashing creativity, powering up memory and recall, and, generally
speaking, 'training and maintaining your brain,' you will find some
excellent fodder for your mental mill in studying the content which
follows.
The Truth (The Factors) About Your Audience:
1)
They are all fearful of public speaking themselves. They are, in fact, empathetically frightened
for you. They are picturing themselves in your role - and they are actually feeling a bit frightened;
2)
They are likely bored, and would like to be somehow brought out of their boredom. If you stood up on the stage on one leg playing "
The Star-Spangled Banner"
on the kazoo, they would be far happier than just continuing with their
attempts at staying awake, making smalltalk, or feeling out of place.
In fact, if you could stand on one leg, play the kazoo, and juggle three
avocados...well...that would be fabulous.
3)
They are, at least initially after the first "hush", at your command, and are actually more susceptible to your ideas when you are at the podium; they perceive you in an elevated status -- professional and authoritative. Know this, be aware of it, and use it to your decided advantage. You are in charge.
Douglas E Castle
