The public speaking lesson you never had | DK . | TEDxNelson
Summary
TLDRThe speaker, a seasoned public speaker and TEDx organizer, shares invaluable insights on effective public speaking. Despite his hearing impairment and speech therapy background, he has honed his skills to inspire action through storytelling. He emphasizes the importance of 'grace,' which involves one's physicality and presence on stage, 'credibility,' which is achieved through compelling storytelling, and 'resonance,' the emotional impact on the audience. The speaker also discusses common public speaking pitfalls, such as the misuse of scripts and bullet points, and offers practical advice like the 'soft rock star pose' to combat stage nerves. He concludes with a 'Jedi mind trick,' encouraging speakers to reframe nervousness as excitement, thereby transforming the physiological response to public speaking.
Takeaways
- π€ **Embrace Vulnerability**: Sharing personal stories can create a deep connection with the audience, as demonstrated by the speaker's experience at The Sandbox Summit.
- πΆ **Transform Weaknesses into Strengths**: The speaker turned a hearing impairment and speech difficulties into a powerful speaking skill through perseverance and practice.
- π€Έ **Master the Art of Listening**: Listening is as important as speaking in public presentations, and it can be transformed into a strength that enhances one's communication.
- π **Eliminate Distractions**: Be aware of physical habits like excessive walking or swiveling, which can distract the audience from the message.
- π« **Avoid Script Dependency**: Relying on scripts can lead to nervousness and a lack of authenticity in delivery; instead, prepare by understanding the feelings and responses you want to convey.
- π **Focus on Storytelling**: Crafting a compelling narrative is more impactful than simply presenting information; use personal experiences and emotions to engage the audience.
- π **Breathe and Relax**: Utilize breathing techniques to calm nerves and harness the excitement of public speaking, which can help in delivering a more confident performance.
- π€ **Establish Credibility**: The content of the speech should be well-researched and delivered with confidence to establish the speaker's credibility.
- π **Use Body Language Effectively**: Non-verbal cues such as facial expressions and gestures play a significant role in conveying emotions and maintaining audience engagement.
- π **Structure Your Speech**: Follow a clear structure like the 'tell them what you're going to tell them' model for a coherent and memorable presentation.
- π« **Limit Bullet Points**: Overuse of bullet points can distract and disengage the audience; instead, integrate complex information naturally within the narrative.
Q & A
What is the main challenge the speaker suggests one might face when asked to speak in front of a hundred strangers?
-The main challenge is the fear and discomfort of sharing personal and professional stories with an unfamiliar audience, which might make someone want to avoid such a situation.
What has the speaker been doing for the past 10 years that involves public speaking?
-The speaker has been running TEDx Wellington, an event in New Zealand's capital city where people are asked to stand and share their stories.
What is the speaker's background related to speech and hearing?
-The speaker was born with a hearing impairment and underwent speech therapy during formative years. They also had multiple surgeries related to their ears, which left them with a hearing deficiency.
What is the 'soft rock star pose' the speaker suggests for public speaking?
-The 'soft rock star pose' is a strong and firm standing position that prevents the speaker from engaging in nervous habits like hip-bopping or one-legged walking while speaking.
What are the three key components the speaker believes are necessary to deliver a great talk?
-The three key components are Grace (the manner of speaking), Credibility (the content and how it's delivered), and Resonance (the emotional impact on the audience).
Why does the speaker advise against using a script during public speaking?
-Using a script can lead to nervousness being more visible, as the paper may shake, and it can also disconnect the speaker from the audience, making the speech feel less natural and engaging.
What is the 'Jedi mind trick' the speaker refers to in relation to public speaking?
-The 'Jedi mind trick' is a technique where the speaker reframes their nervousness as excitement, which can help to calm their parasympathetic system and make the experience of public speaking more enjoyable.
What does the speaker mean by 'humanizing information' in the context of storytelling during a presentation?
-Humanizing information means incorporating personal stories, experiences, or emotions into the presentation to make it more relatable and engaging for the audience.
Why is it important to avoid bullet points when delivering a complex story?
-Bullet points can distract the audience and kill attention as people tend to read them rather than listen to the speaker. It's better to segmentize complex information and present it in a way that complements the spoken narrative.
What is the significance of the speaker's personal story about their hearing impairment in the context of the presentation?
-The personal story serves as an example of vulnerability and authenticity, which can resonate with the audience and make the speaker more relatable. It also demonstrates how personal challenges can be turned into strengths.
What is the role of the speaker's physicality in enhancing the resonance of their talk?
-The speaker's physicality, including facial expressions and body language, provides emotional cues to the audience, helping them understand how they should feel at different points in the presentation.
Outlines
ποΈ Overcoming Fear in Public Speaking
The speaker begins by posing a daunting scenario of public speaking to an unknown audience and sharing personal stories. He admits his own challenges with public speaking despite his experience as a TEDx organizer and coach. Born with a hearing impairment, he had to undergo speech therapy and numerous surgeries, which paradoxically helped him develop strong listening skills that he applies to his public speaking. The speaker highlights the importance of vulnerability in connecting with an audience, as demonstrated by his memorable keynote at the Sandbox Summit, where he managed to get 300 people to dance with him. He outlines three key components for delivering a great talk: Grace, Credibility, and Resonance.
π The Art of Public Speaking: Grace
The speaker delves into the first component of effective public speaking, Grace, which he defines as the manner of speaking rather than the content. He emphasizes the importance of physical presence and movement, advising against excessive walking or odd movements on stage. The speaker humorously demonstrates common bad habits like the 'hip bop' and 'one-legged walk-in', suggesting the 'soft rock star pose' as a solution. He also addresses issues like swiveling, excessive gesticulation, and nervous shaking, recommending practical solutions like holding an object or using a clicker to manage these habits. The speaker strongly advises against using a script, as it can amplify nerves and lead to a disconnect with the audience.
π Crafting Credible and Compelling Stories
Moving on to the second component, Credibility, the speaker discusses the importance of the content of the speech and how it is delivered. He criticizes the overuse of complex jargon and bullet points, advocating for simplicity and the humanization of information. The speaker suggests using a structured narrative form, such as the classic 'tell them what you're going to tell them' model, to craft stories that resonate with the audience. He also stresses the importance of brevity, using Woodrow Wilson's quote to highlight the value of concise communication. The speaker advises against reading from slides and recommends segmenting complex information to keep the audience engaged and following the narrative.
π Emotional Resonance and the Jedi Mind Trick
The final component, Resonance, is about the emotional impact of the speech on the audience. The speaker explains the importance of evoking emotions and avoiding a neutral, informational tone. He suggests using personal stories and emotional cues to guide the audience's feelings. The speaker also shares a technique to manage nerves, involving deep, controlled breathing, which can help calm the speaker and reframe nervousness as excitement. By understanding that nervousness and excitement are physiologically similar, the speaker encourages embracing the excitement and using it to enhance the presentation. The speaker concludes with a recap of the three components and a reminder to enjoy the process of public speaking.
Mindmap
Keywords
π‘Public Speaking
π‘TEDx Wellington
π‘Leadership Coaching
π‘Hearing Impairment
π‘Speech Therapy
π‘Grace
π‘Credibility
π‘Resonance
π‘Storytelling
π‘Bullet Points
π‘Emotional Cues
π‘Jedi Mind Trick
Highlights
The speaker has been running TEDx Wellington for 10 years and has extensive experience in public speaking and coaching leaders.
Despite having a hearing impairment and undergoing surgeries, the speaker turned listening into a powerful public speaking skill.
The speaker emphasizes the importance of sharing personal and professional stories to inspire creative action.
Three key elements for delivering a great talk are identified: Grace, credibility, and resonance.
Grace involves how you say something, not just what you say, and includes physicality and movement control.
Credibility is about the stories you choose to tell and how you tell them, which should be simple and relatable.
Resonance is about the audience's emotional response to your talk and the importance of humanizing information.
The speaker shares a personal story of getting 300 people to dance with him as an example of the power of public speaking.
The 'soft rock star pose' is introduced as a technique to prevent excessive movement on stage.
Shaking while holding a script can amplify nervousness; instead, speakers should practice without a script.
Bullet points can kill attention; complex information should be broken up and delivered alongside speech.
The speaker discusses the importance of emotional cues in presentations and how they affect audience engagement.
A Jedi mind trick is introduced to help speakers reframe nervousness as excitement, which can improve their performance.
The speaker provides a simple presentation model: tell the audience what you're going to tell them, tell them, then tell them what you told them.
The use of lived experience stories is encouraged for better audience connection rather than relying on read material.
The speaker shares a personal experience of coaching a government official on the importance of smiling and showing emotion during presentations.
The talk concludes with a reminder that public speaking can be an enjoyable experience when armed with the right techniques and mindset.
Transcripts
foreign
[Music]
how would you feel if I invited you to
stand in front of a hundred people that
you don't know
and try to share personal and
professional stories to create and
ignite and Inspire creative action
is that a proposal that you would run
towards that's something you go yes
that's full of promise for me and
potential or would you like to push me
over and Run to the Hills
probably the latter a lot of you were
thinking great public speaking I kind of
do a little bit of that but it's not my
favorite thing ever to do for the last
10 years I've been running the tedx
Wellington down obviously in the capital
city of New Zealand and asking people to
do just that the stand and share their
story stand in their voice but for the
last six years I've been coaching
leaders and ex all blacks and kind of
CEOs of big companies and a Dame thrown
into the mix to do that as well however
I've got about 60 news of public
speaking experience myself I've been
really lucky to speak to small audiences
as well as larger audiences on five
continents around the globe on different
topics and I spend my time really trying
to help people find and have their voice
and today with total humility I gotta
say I'm gonna give you the public
speaking lesson that you should have got
when you were a kid or at least when you
started work let's be honest cool so
this is me
born in The Valleys of Camry South Wales
ah look at that not a lot of people can
put off the stripy sock flouncy shirt
with a short and kind of vest top like
that it was the 70s so forgive me for
that man you Jillian so there I am
beautiful little kid runt of the letter
I got two older brothers they remind me
I'm the runt so that's kind of cool
I was born with a hearing impairment
that was very quickly picked up and then
through my formative years I had to have
a lot of speech therapy if you know
anybody with a speech impediment uh
issues need to do with their sharing but
sometimes not but as a kid I couldn't
cheer the sounds to then save the sounds
so I remember from time I was about five
time I was about eight or nine every
week going with my mom to the speech
therapist office and I had a couple of
doctors there who teach me to listen and
then in listening pronounce the words
back or at least certain consonants and
and groups of consonants as well by the
time in my teens I was in and out of
hospital with evasive surgeries to do
with my children perforated eardrums
that's always fun skin grafts
mastoidectomies that's a big word for
cutting little bones out in the middle
ear so you lose a lot of the kind of
functionality in your ear and polyps
removing from eustachian tubes very big
words for okay he's had a lot of stuff
done with his ears so I'm left with a
deficiency however fast forward I'm now
speaking to you about speaking which is
kind of ironic but cool right how we
turn these superheroes or always have uh
as many kind of flaws as they do
superhero skills as well so I've turned
listening into my speaking skill in
terms of what I get to to in a little
bit how speaking can really be more
about listen listening than it is about
talking
so in my history of speaking this is my
favorite ever speaking gig you'll see me
hopefully looking cool and calm and
Collective speaking at a conference
called The Sandbox Summit it was in
Boston at MIT if you know that that's a
big cool big deal it was the closing
keynote always go on last or towards the
last people remember you much more then
so that's cool and that was the first
time I really stepped into my
vulnerability as the speaker back in
2015 I was speaking a lot but I really
stepped into the idea of revealing who I
am talked about me hearing the
difficulties but my my creative insights
and things like that and the impact of
that is that I got 300 people to dance
with me seriously this is me dancing
with 300 people and just to prove it I
come up in a minute spot the bad white
boy dancing right there
see cool
and I suddenly don't know me that if you
get the right components together you
can move physically people into dancing
with you so what are those components
well with a big Jedi mind trick and
three other elements I'm gonna now give
them to you you only need three things
to Great deliver a great talk and they
are Grace credibility and resonance
let's go through them very very quickly
Grace it's not what you're saying it's
how you were saying it
credibility that's the stuff coming out
your mouth now that's the stories you
choose to tell and the way in which you
choose to tell them cool story models
Frameworks blah blah blah resonance
that's the audience's role in your talk
what are you leaving them feeling right
the great Maya Angelou paraphrasing her
here said that obviously people will
remind me how you made them feel a lot
longer than what you told them or what
you did
so let's take them one by one chapter by
chapter if you like and now I'm gonna
show you stuff that you can't unsee and
I apologize for that kind of because
once I reveal things to you you're gonna
go see other people speaking and going
ah DK told me about that that's cool so
let's start with my favorite thing to
work on with clients which is Grace
remember that's not what to say what
they're saying that's how they are
saying it their whole physicality my
favorite thing with clients is to stop
them walking too much stop them moving
in a weird wonderful way so I'm going to
show you all the weird and wonderful
ways in which people tell me other
things about themselves first let's
start with your feet okay I'm quite
solid up here I don't mind walking and
coming forward and now and again and
then stepping back gently when I feel
like I've made my point and situating
myself here some people do a couple of
different things one called a hip Bop
and the other is called one-legged
walk-in again I'm sorry I'm gonna show
you this stuff you can't and see it but
the hip-hop is obviously they sit on the
hip then they transfer their weight onto
the other hip now some people every
sentence is this and in another sentence
comes off and another sentence and if it
was a beat going on in the back you've
got a hip bot movement right they're
just dancing up here great
my one-legged walk-in is kind of fun
because you'll see this a lot is people
stand and for some reason when we know
why this wants to leave thank you very
much it just wants to leave obviously
their body is going run there's 100
eyeballs on you your food or you're in
trouble with the tribe that's your
lizard brain but for some reason this
leg wants to leave but you know you got
to Stand and Deliver
so that's a big issue right because if
then we have some people wandering
around and feeling a little bit off they
kind of throw their focus down here so
those two issues can be solved with one
solution I call it the soft rock star
pose I made this up all right we know
Rockstar poses this you know you got an
ax a guitar and you're rocking out to
something hard cool that's rock star
pose cool soft rock star poses when you
get up to speak don't speak until you're
standing
strong and firm this is not standing
like that where I can one-legged walk or
I can hip-hop okay this is strong and
firm now the haptic feedback if I try to
move I can't do the hip thing because
the way I'm built but if I can do the
one-legged walking I can't because I'm
all over the place
stand first before you speak just your
feet let's move on up some people are
swivelers I like swivelers you're
swiveling you don't realize you're
swiveling but bless them is swiveling
that's cool and they don't realize it
and that's the one big thing you gotta
do as friends and colleagues is tell
people if they don't know what they're
doing please when they're not there
because they don't realize they're doing
that so let's move a little bit higher
up to the hands and he gesticulate those
in the crowd I'm one of those thank you
very much I don't mind stressing things
like that and openstandial making things
small when I need to hands are good for
reasons however some people have a
gestural cue and every point they make
or every sentence or every International
point they make is joined with a hand
gestural cue you might know some of
these people and you just think why are
they doing that every point they make
and they don't know that they're doing
that again or maybe they're shaking yeah
we all get the shakes and the nerves
well if they're shaking give their hands
something to do like holding a clicker
and hold it by the side or put a hanky
in their hand of stick it in their
pocket where the tedxb goes really shook
like that that's what we did put our
hand in a pocket with a hanky so she
could squeeze and then she looked calm
up there but if you looked at her
forearms you were popping okay that's
where that's where the strength lies oh
scary stuff
now I mentioned shaken now shaking is
really interesting when it comes to
hands because a lot of people will just
started well surely you need a script to
start to speak now I'm going to come
back to scripts in a minute the reason
why you should never use a script
there's a couple of reasons I'm going to
illustrate it with this lovely
strategically placed piece of paper
thank you very much A lot of people use
scripts when they publicly speak in and
we are professionals now so we don't use
scripts right you joining me in that
kind of yeah change the world no more
scraps evil scraps because when I see
people with a script what I usually see
is people shaking with a script not just
with a script and especially if it's a
piece of paper and you're standing
trying to present now the paper will
rock for you yeah you've all seen this
happening and what happens then is that
as the speaker I'm looking down and
seeing this paper shaking so now I'm
aware that I'm scared and you can see
that I'm scared now it's amplifying now
I try to do some funky stuff like hold
it with my hip or something and try to
fold it over and hold it down there and
just bring it up now and again and it's
a whole bag of worms right there right
so let's what happens when you get rid
of the script right people go if
you don't have a script how can I
practice my talk
just didn't go anywhere you can't
practice public speaking
they're out loud you can only prepare
for how you're going to feel when you
stand on the stage with 100 people that
you don't know and you're trying to
impress them
because most people practice wrong they
write the script and by the way we write
differently than we read just straight
away there's a deficit in communication
there is reasons why there are speech
writers and scriptwriters out there it's
a really hard to write dialogue we speak
differently than we write so now if you
start with a script what you then do is
condense it down bullet points and those
bullet points become what you say and
the stories you tell which I'll get on
to in a minute but practicing right
which means not practicing with a script
means then you're not at home practicing
with your cat your dog your kids or your
spouse who goes that's brilliant darling
you're going to do great and then when
you get up you don't do great because
suddenly there's lights I can hear
myself back now this matters now there
are people I don't know looking at me
if the conditions change
so you have to prepare differently you
have to prepare for your physiological
responses which I'll get to at the end
because that's the elephant in the room
room in the Jedi mind trick I'm going to
play on you
but that was Grace let's move on to
credibility the second chapter of our
little thing here so credibility is
interesting because the stuff coming out
of your mouth no no this is where Ted
has got a lot to blame for I seriously I
point the tear into a bad Teddy you know
bad head because Ted as we all know is
this big beer moth of this is brilliant
presenting
I would say this has had a negative
effect on the expectations of the
audience because this raised your
literacy so now anybody standing here
has to match what you've seen in the
past and you've probably seen good
presenters right to your level of
literacy is ranged even in as raised
sorry even in work now when you see in
people present you want this level of
expertise and delivery right as a
speaker that means I got up my game as a
creative producer who books other
speakers I'm now finding people who hold
themselves very well can communicate
complex problems in a simple way but
give of themselves as well
usually that's not the CEO who gets
handed their script and presentation
when they turn up because they're far
too busy to do it themselves right
so let's think about well how do you
craft a great story
I'm going to take a quote from this Old
Gentleman Woodrow Wilson one of the
okayish presidents in the past and he
said this
[Music]
brevity is tough to do
and we've all been in a situations where
the boss says yeah I'll just speak for
two minutes and 10 minutes later you're
thinking have you got a point it's
always fun for the listener if you do
right get to it in other words so think
about brevity as a skill as a condensed
distillation skill now the art of
anything the craft is always in the
editing so when you write your script
now you've got to condense and
concentrate that down and distill it
down into the stories now there are so
many narrative forms out there it could
be as simple as just tell me where you
started where you finished and fill out
the lovely little bits in between my
favorite model is get up tell me what
you're going to tell me tell me tell me
what you told me
it's the simplest presentation model out
there really simple right there's other
more complex ones the Nancy Duarte the
shape of great presentation check that
out where she establishes what is and
what could be what is what could be you
go back and forth between those twos and
end with a lovely new bless with the
annulment and the three-act structure
you don't have to get that detailed all
you got to do is stand up there and tell
lived experienced stories choose from
lived experience not stuff you've read
that will resonate with the the people
in the room much better what doesn't
resonate is bullet points that's a slide
to remind me to talk about bullet points
see what I've done there yeah it's a
good stuff so there are three bullet
points on this slide they're just not
there because it's pattern seeking
creatures if I started with three bullet
points in other words any text on a
slide you are reading it so what I do is
I hold the slide until I'm ready to talk
about the guns don't kill people
bullets kill people and bullet points
kill attention
boom
cute yes but you know the point that
Megan if I'd started like this you would
have been reading and by the time you
got to the bottom I would have been
reading the first one you would have had
to come back with me and join in because
you can't listen as well as read
you get the point right so if you have
complex information make sure it's
segmentized or broken up and have it
coming in as you're speaking to it so
the listeners can follow the story with
you and not ahead of you or trying to
decipher or are confused and coming back
at the wrong point when they start
listening to you again
the last one
is the resonant now this is where you
have a role I guess it's your emotive
feeling what am I leaving you feeling as
an audience as a group of humans
so this is where most people fall over
because they write a script based on
something that they want to impart with
this information now in a realm of a
sphere or atmosphere this is a line so
let's talk about it as a spectrum thank
you of emotion on the one end you got
feared and disgust on the other hand
you've got joy inhalation the worst
place in given a presentation is in the
middle
that's the information ma realm m-e-h
okay I have no feeling towards that it's
just information right I'm not saying
don't have information I'm saying
humanize that information as much as
possible whether it's you in the story
whether someone else a user and you know
an end experience user of something
throw humans as much as possible into
your story and this is where I come back
full circle about Grace as well because
you will get your emotional cues from me
as the speaker I had a client bless him
quite senior in the government and he
sent me a 40-minute presentation of him
speaking in a European conference about
something very funky apparently and that
was great I could watch the talk and
then critique when I met him for the
first time and it was very ego very open
he was like hit me with everything you
got so I said great my first question is
how many times did you smile in a
40-minute talk
and he was like I don't know and I had
counted and it was twice the first time
was thanking the person for introducing
him the second time was thanking
everybody for listening to him he was
gone right we've seen those people who
are kind of very stoic in their
presentation but what they're saying is
freaking awesome apparently but they
don't change their face they're very
serious about these things and that was
my point to him there was no emotional
kind of cues from you as a presenter of
the information to understand how as The
Listener I should be feeling at certain
points in the story
if you're serious don't do this okay
this is a very serious subject you know
or alternately if you need to get a
little bit fun with it you know you can
play around with this but please
recognize that people are going to
mirror your emotion so when you get
excited and lean and you use your hand
you're going to feel a little bit of oh
he's coming forward I should be paying
attention to you versus someone going
back and obviously a bit scared of you
and then start talking like that and and
don't have it you can get my point the
whole physicality lends itself to the
resonance now this is where we get the
Jedi mind trick and this is the last
piece of information I give you and this
is the fun little thing that you can't
participate in if you breathe with this
expanding and Contracting little visual
you will reset your parasympathetic
system big words for basically you chill
the hell out you might want to yawn
while you do this I do it when I breathe
this slow I yawn that's cool and I stood
on the side of stages with this as a
gift I got it I can send it to you with
people and I go let's do this breathing
exercise and I see their shoulders drop
and they relax and then I give them the
beautiful stuff which is you're not
nervous you're excited
not nervous yet excited and as soon as I
clicks into their brain the
physiological responses actually had
kind of amplify that excitement remember
when you gone to see your favorite ever
person in concert or your favorite ever
team in whatever Sport and they're just
running on you feel that excitement and
you're like oh my God I'm here I want to
pee this is called cool
and that is the same as when you're
feeling really really nervous like I
don't want to be you need to pee
the psychological state is the only
thing that's changed so you're not
nervous you're excited you're not
nervous you're excited it's excited to
speak not nervous and that will get you
through so many of the ills that we have
when it comes to public speaking so just
a recap
if you had a little bit of Grace and
credibility and resonance with a little
bit of a Yoda Jedi mind trick going on
you can then speak with a plum and
connect to an audience and also whilst
you're up here have a little bit of fun
thank you for your time and attention
really appreciate it
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