Your personal style and the subject matter of your speech should dictate the types of props you can use. For example, don’t use a humorous prop with a serious subject. Props can be simple or complex – they don’t have to be elaborate – the key to using an effective prop is that it should help convey your message – no more, no less.
Some speakers find it easy to use props to help keep them on track with what they want to say during their presentation. For example, I know one man who wears a different hat for each segment of his speech – he changes the hat and replaces it with another when he goes to the next segment. The hats remind him of key points to cover in each portion of his speech.
Humor can benefit your presentation in so many ways – it can overcome an overly complimentary introduction and tell your audience you don’t take yourself too seriously. It can also make you seem more down-to-earth and less intimidating – helping you form a bond with your audience. And, perhaps most importantly, it will keep attention focused on you – they’ll be waiting for the next punch line, and you can use that opportunity to hit them with your key message. It’s also a good way to illustrate main points or concepts without creating hostility.
One sure-fire way of keeping your audience attentive and interested is by using humor throughout your speech. Your ultimate goal as a speaker is to get your message across in an effective manner – but does that mean you need to turn into a comedian just so the audience hears you?
Vary your presentation - use audio visual props such as flipcharts, PowerPoint presentations, pass out handouts for your audience to read, use different intonations of voice - speak louder or softer - don’t make the mistake of using a monotone. Move around the stage (within reason - you’re not up there to give a Chorus Line review.)
A little pre-planning and practice can go a long way toward alleviating that paralyzing fear of getting up in front of a crowd – the more knowledgeable you are about your subject, the more confident you’ll be in your presentation, and the more effective a speaker you’ll be. Keep in mind that almost all audiences – from the guests at a wedding to a political fundraiser – want you to do well, so the chances of tomatoes being tossed in your direction are slight.
Like it or not, public speaking is part of the entertainment industry – and even if your message is a serious one – audiences still want to be entertained. If you’ve been hired by an organization or a service club to stand up and deliver a message, you need to be able to do just that – or you won’t be invited back. Nor will you receive any recommendations to address any other group they might be connected with.
Used correctly, props can add a tremendous amount of significance and variety to any presentation and help ensure that your message is received and understood. And that’s what public speaking is all about.
Some simple preparation and advance planning will get you past that overwhelming fear you feel about public speaking. There are relaxation methods you can practice prior to giving your speech, not to mention going over the actual material in your presentation until you know it backwards and forwards. In fact, that’s the place you need to start - knowing your material.
What public speaking is really all about is delivering something of value to your audience. That’s it. If people in your audience walk away with something of value they’ll consider you – and the speech – a success. That something of value can be feeling better about themselves, their job, understanding an idea or concept better, even feeling happy or entertained – if you can accomplish any of those things – you were effective as a public speaker. Give yourself a round of applause.
Think about how you feel when you have to listen to a boring speaker. Make it interesting for your audience. Not only will they have more fun, but your message will get through, because they’ll be listening to you.
Props can be used very effectively to help draw attention to key points of your presentation – visual aids of any sort, such as slides or flipcharts - can deliver your message more effectively to the visual learners in your audience. They can also add variety and a great deal of additional dimension to your speech, and make your key points even more noticeable.
Public speaking ranks right up there with public torture for most people - they’d rather die than get up in front of a room full of strangers and give a speech of some sort. That’s a pretty silly reaction, considering public speaking really isn’t all that difficult - but there you have it.
That doesn’t mean your presentation has to be a “laff-riot” – in fact, your subject matter may not be appropriate for large doses of humor. For example, if you’re addressing cancer survivors, you’d want to tone down the ratio of jokes and one-liners, but if you were speaking to a group of salespeople, you could be a little more free-wheeling. You’ll be the best judge of content, knowing your own message and audiences. Just don’t toss out the humor entirely.
A key point many public speakers forget is that they don’t have to be perfect to be an effective public speaker. You can get tongue-tied, forget whole sections of your speech, go off on a tangent, and not recall your best joke – and the audience may still love you. In fact, they may relate to you better if you’re imperfect than if you got up in front of them and delivered a polished and flawless speech. You’re less intimidating – more like them.