Four Practices Of Effective Professional

SpeakersRon Bratt

• Public speaking is simply a fact of professional life. Getting ahead in business often means being able to express your ideas verbally, and persuading other professionals to your point of view. In a recent article in B Daily, Sylvia Baldock, a Personal Presence and Team Dynamics specialist, detailed her list of essentials for being an effective public speaker. Below are just some of her notes to would-be professional presenters.

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Take notes from the best.

• If you are in a field in which presentation skills are key, chances are you have already seen some very effective speakers. Learn from them, Baldock says. Watch how top speakers talk and use their bodies to engage with the audience. Identify the tactics that they use that jibe with your own personal style and adopt them for your own.

Know Your Content

• The best way to convey confidence to your audience is to know your subject inside and out. Be up to date on all of the latest developments in the subject that you are speaking about and you will have no problem establishing yourself in position of authority.

Know Your Audience

• Do your research on the type of people for whom you will be speaking. Know the size of the room and how many will be in attendance. Having this information not only gives you an idea of what to expect, but also allows you to tailor your message to those who you will be attempting to bring around to your point of view.

Practice• This should be obvious, but it bears repeating: if you

want to be an effective speaker, you must practice. In order to gain confidence, you need to practice in front of anyone willing to listen to you. Learn how to use prompts as such, and not as crutches to read from. Speaking in front of others will only build comfort for speaking in front of larger and larger groups.

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• Read more tips at B Daily.