Emotions are Contagious

This morning I attended an aerobics class, and witnessed firsthand the power of the speaker's (or in this case, instructor's) emotions.

You couldn't help but "catch" this teacher's energy and spunk. She seemed to be having the time of her life - and we couldn't help but join in the fun.

Though the class was full, she looked each person in the eye, and took the time to smile at individuals, including me.


What was most remarkable about her teaching style was the way she responded to her own mistakes. And she definitely made quite a few. But she seemed almost to embrace these missteps and use them as opportunities to get us laughing.

By the end of the class, though we were all exhausted, we were smiling.

I will go back to her class not only because she led a challenging workout, but because her joy is contagious, and quite simply, she brightened my day.

From the Green Room: Rest assured, you will mess up each and every time you get up to speak. It is how you respond to those mistakes that determines your success as a speaker.

Remember, your emotions are contagious. If you suffer, your audience will suffer with you. If you roll with your mistakes - or even embrace them joyfully - your audience will have fun, too.

Harvard Students Want to Learn How to Speak

Last week, the Harvard Crimson reported that "Harvard Speaks!," a public speaking student group lobbied the administration to make public speaking a core component of the Harvard curriculum:

http://www.thecrimson.com/article/2010/4/8/speaking-public-harvard-more/

"The College has sought to increase public speaking resources on campus and has even created a speech tutor program, but students are still calling for more opportunities to enhance their public speaking skills.

Members of “Harvard Speaks,” a campaign launched by students Tuesday night, hope to demonstrate to administrators the importance of public speaking as a life skill and the consequent need for more public speaking opportunities on campus.

“Whether it’s [speaking] with a law professor, in consulting, or in advocacy, the skills you take away from public speaking will help you communicate your message,” said Kevin Y. Fan ’13, the founder of the campaign, which has already collected over 100 student signatures on a petition calling for more public speaking resources."

And from the Harvard Speaks! Facebook page:

Harvard Speaks! seeks to revitalize Harvard’s hallmark - oratorical excellence. By making an investment in rhetoric, Harvard ensures that tomorrow’s leaders are well-equipped to think critically and communicate effectively.

That such a student group exists at Harvard indicates to me a realization of a basic truth about communication:

You can attend the top university in the country. You can graduate with honors, and go on to become a master in your chosen profession.

But this does not necessarily mean you know to speak well. The ability to communicate a message and connect with an audience is a learned skill - and something which everyone can get better at - regardless of your knowledge of your particular field.

And this is a perfect skill to begin to learn in high school and college - before you build your career and your ability to speak in public is already assumed.

Speech Advice from the Boss

After listening to quite a few bad acceptance speeches at this year's Golden Globe Awards, here's a great one:



No magic potion here. He's 100 percent himself. Humble. Lyrical. Inspiring.

From the Green Room: Find your authentic voice. There is no great way to communicate your message. And no greater gift you can give your audience.

Rachael Ray and the Art of Public Speaking

From this week's NYT Sunday Styles:

Jonathan Rosen, the agent to Food Network stars, describes how he knew that Rachael Ray would succeed:

"I told her I felt like her personality translated directly across the screen and made you feel like she was in the room with you."

Truthfully, when I first watched 30 Minute Meals, I said to myself, "What makes her special? I could totally do that!"

And now I realize that this is her secret weapon.

Rachael Ray's slip-ups, cutesy expressions, and goofy laugh make her seem not like some celebrity chef, but like your fun (and albeit sometimes annoying) girlfriend. She's not giving a cooking demo - she's chatting it up with her buddies.

We can all learn from this.

The next time you get up in front of an audience, try saying to yourself, "I am not giving a speech. I am having a conversation with people I care about." You don't have to be best friends - or even know the people in order to find sometime about them you care about - even if it's just, "I care that they understand what I am trying to say because it will be helpful to them."

You will connect with an audience, when you speak to them as if you are having a one-on-one conversation with each person in the room.


From the Green Room: To master the art of public speaking, don't just give a speech to an audience. Have a conversation with the audience.

Address the Individual

This week on Slate, John Dickerson comments on Obama's second press conference:

http://www.slate.com/id/2214510/

Obama returned to the theme of togetherness to buy time. We will "travel that road as one people," he said in his opening remarks. "We are all in this together." Lovely sentiment, but the times seem to call for a stronger pitch. Why should people join together when bailouts are rewarding people who didn't act in the common interest?...

Obama may be popular enough to make the case. But to bring about collective action in this environment, Obama may have to return to a lesson he wrote about in Dreams From My Father: the power of self-interest in helping to create community.

Good point. Truly connecting to an audience means addressing individuals - not the collective group. In Obama's case, he could have spoken to each individual, without losing his call for people to join together to get our nation back on track. Obama could have stated that we travel that road - not just as one people - but as a community of individuals, each with something to contribute.

From the Green Room: When you speak to an audience, imagine you are having a one-on-one conversation with each individual present.

G-dcast: The Power of Visuals

What is G-dcast?

As defined on their site (G-dcast.com), "G-dcast is a place to watch cartoons based on the story Jews are reading in the Torah this week."

This week, I am the lucky narrator. I discuss the story of the Golden Calf, and my words are animated by the incredibly talented Nick Fox-Gieg.

Parshat Ki Tisa from G-dcast.com

More Torah cartoons at www.g-dcast.com

In my discussion, I talk about the power of sight. The seriousness of the sin of worshipping the calf is only truly recognized when God and Moses see it with their own eyes.

This message about sight really hit home for me months after the initial recording, when I actually saw my words come to life through the animation!

A famous study at UCLA tried to answer the question, "What makes the most impact on an audience?"

The study revealed that only 7% of the impact comes from the words you say.

37% is the sound of your voice.

And a whopping 56% is what the audience sees when they listen to you. (stance, movement, visuals, eye contact, etc.)

So the key to making your content stick is to reinforce it with your body and your visuals - and especially with eye contact.

What makes G-dcast so powerful is the simultaneous audio and visual expression. Each reinforces and enriches the other.

From the Green Room:
Synchronize what you say with what you do with your body. Watch G-dcast.com.

Lessons from "Shopaholic"

Even the best presentations can fall flat if the they are given to the wrong audience.

As a far too blatant example, read this excerpt from a review of "Confessions of a Shopaholic" (http://shine.yahoo.com/channel/entertainment)

Could the release of the new movie “Confessions of a Shopaholic” be any more poorly timed? Based on a popular book series, the story is about a credit-crazed, New York City woman who makes Carrie Bradshaw’s shoe collection look like a joke. We just watched the trailer where the Shopoholic, played by Isla Fisher, animalisticly bashes her emergency credit card out of a block of ice with a stiletto, desperate to spend more money...

Warning: it’s tragically painful to watch, given the current financial crisis.

Talk about tone deaf.

Before you prepare, take time to learn as much about your audience as you possibly can. Who are they? What matters to them? What challenges are they going through? What do they know and what do they need to know? What do you need them to do?

And if any of your answers change before you give your speech - adjust your content accordingly.


From the Green Room: Know Your Audience.