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How do you think before you speak if you are standing in front of an audience? That is a wonderful question. If you are delivering a speech or a presentation, it is actually quite easy to think if you do one thing prior to the event and three things during it. The 1st thing is something that professional actors, musicians, singers, performers, athletes, and public speakers do all the time. It is called practice or rehearse as much as possible. Now you may be thinking that you don’t have time to practice. If you do not have time to practice, then you do not have time to give a speech or a presentation. It is as simple as that. If athletes did not practice, you would not want to watch them play. If musicians did not rehearse, you would not attend their concerts. Practicing or rehearsing is what makes these athletes and performers stand out from the rest. It is why they are so skilled. And, it can only happen to you when you have delivered your presentation out loud, over and over and over again. It is the speaker who is unprepared who is unable to think or gather his thoughts while addressing an audience. By the same token, if you deliver a memorized script, you will also be unable to think because you will be performing. Public speaking is not performing. Public speaking is the art or act of oral communication with an audience. And, the best in the business treat their audience as if they were having a conversation. That is the 2nd thing you need to do. I recently spoke to a group of women and was able to add anecdotes on the spur of the moment because of their enthusiasm and interest in what I was saying regarding diaphragmatic breathing. Did I know in advance that their interest would be so keen on this particular topic? No. Every audience is different and when I speak to a group, I tailor my material around their needs – not mine. In doing so, I am able to think as I speak and to think before I speak. Thus the 3rd thing is the ability to acknowledge or recognize your audience’s reaction to you. And the 4th is taking control of your nervousness. Nervousness is excellent but I want you to be in control of it instead of the other way around. If your nerves have the upper hand, your mind will not be on your material. When you are able to take control of your nervousness, know your material inside and out, treat your audience as if in conversation, and appreciate your listeners’ reaction to you, you will be able to think before you speak. It is amazing how this works! The Voice Lady Nancy Daniels offers private, corporate and group workshops in voice and presentation skills as well as Voicing It!, the only video training program on voice improvement. For more information on upcoming workshops, visit Nancy's Voice Training Workshops.
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