Your turn to speak

Objective effectiveness

Preparation, the key to successful speaking

As with any communication, it all starts with preparation.

First of all, the message: it's essential to organize your ideas according to your objective. And is it clear? Mind mapping is the ideal way to map your ideas. With this kind of tool, there's little chance of forgetting key elements, as you'll be able to produce a graphic and mental representation of your subject and the points to be addressed. As mind maps are highly visual, they make it easier to identify superfluous elements.
Whatever tool you choose, the first step is to structure the message you want to get across:

• A clearly defined objective
• Clearly identified, logical sections
• Key elements first

This last point is worth noting: unless you're a storyteller, you don't need to set the scene and ensure a dramatic progression, complete with plot twists and turns. You're a professional talking to other professionals. Set the table right away, starting with the important elements that will help you capture attention. If there's a need for context, that can come later.

Expressing your ideas is all well and good, but they still need to be clear.

Sometimes things are clear to us because we've mastered the subject and everything seems logical and straightforward. This is a well-known and natural cognitive bias. A few precautions are needed to get around it.

A clear message usually meets several criteria:

• It revolves around a single, simple idea, or one that can be expressed simply (focus!).
• It must arouse the interest of those listening to you (even if it means deliberately provoking them).
• It uses their vocabulary (and short sentences with simple syntax), not your specialist verbiage. That's what metaphors are for!
• All parts support the main idea (no digressions).

Finally, the audience must be able to benefit from your message (not just you). Or measure the risks of not following you.

Speaking: a practical approach

Rehearsing for the sake of it

Unless you're a seasoned professional, there's no room for improvisation. On the contrary, everything must be prepared and meticulously planned. And therefore rehearsed, again and again, to identify pitfalls, difficult words to pronounce, unclear formulations, repetitions and so on. More generally, repetition will help you to become more fluent and, above all, to take your nose out of your notes and limit your stage fright.

Here's a little trick from neuroscience: you can improve your performance by imagining it. By observing two control groups, the experiment showed that the group who actually practiced made just as much progress as the group who imagined their training!

In the best of worlds, it's very effective to rehearse in front of a test audience (friends, family, colleagues), to get constructive feedback. In reality, this is more or less realistic. On the other hand, everyone can practice in front of a mirror or, better still, film themselves on their phone. The mirror forces you to concentrate both on the performance and its analysis, whereas filming yourself does it in two stages, which is more effective. The camera is merciless, and you'll discover plenty of flaws and tics... but at least you'll make progress. You can do the same thing with Teams or Zoom and your computer's webcam.

Another aspect that doesn't always come to mind is that consulting a mentor, someone who has been through the same thing and gained experience, can help you, both in terms of preparation and performance. It's also a good way to network internally and forge or strengthen ties.

• Rehearse!
• In front of a mirror, a camera, an audience - just rehearse!
• Learn from your rehearsals to improve your presentation.

Perception IS truth

As the saying goes, you only get one chance to make a good first impression. You might as well take care of it.

At the risk of disappointing some: the proof is in the pudding, and the book is judged by its cover. Hence the importance of knowing your audience and adapting to it. It may seem obvious, but your tone and appearance shouldn't be the same if you're addressing new recruits from Generation Z or the executive committee...

Whatever the context, the first few moments will set the vibe for your audience. When preparing your presentation, work on your entrance, the way you look, and your choice of first words, all of which contribute to conveying confidence and credibility. From the outset, both verbal and non-verbal aspects play a role.

In all cases, your rehearsals should have helped you to :

• Use a clear, dynamic tone,
• Adopt a confident, smiling posture, with no awkward gestures or shifty eyes,
• Wear appropriate clothing.

Conclusion

Speaking is much easier when you've worked on the content (an idea) and the form (both verbal and non-verbal). That said, even when you're "ready", you may make mistakes or stumble... it's no big deal: it doesn't call you into question as a person or as a professional. By doing more and more speaking engagements, you'll master your stage fright, erase your shortcomings, gain self-confidence and become a better speaker.

And don't forget that public speaking is a little more complex than just the first steps outlined here.

Find out more about how to retain the right information, use influential language, develop your charisma, assert your style, deal with difficult speakers and much more.

For a successful presentation: