Body Language in Public Speaking

Body language is very important when delivering a speech.


Have you ever seen our great leaders fidget or make unnecessary movements while addressing the nation?

Since you are the center of attention while making the presentation, you should mind every move that you make so as not to bore or distract the people listening to your speech.

You already have a speech prepared, you know the topic well and you are now standing in front of the audience.  They are in for a treat because you have prepared a great presentation, yet you also know that they have a very short attention span.  How would you keep them interested with what you are saying?

The answer is to maintain eye contact.  This is one public speaking technique that great speakers use when addressing a large group of people.

Here are some tips on how you can use this "trick" to keep your audience interested while delivering a speech:

Once you have started speaking and have delivered your introduction, take a look at your audience.  Do not be nervous if you see one or two people frowning as you are not sure of exactly what they are thinking.  Instead of looking out for unfriendly or blank faces, search for the people who are smiling and nodding their heads.  Try to focus on this person for a couple of minutes and look him or her in the eye.

This way, you have an immediate "friend" in the audience to whom you can look and gain confidence from.  This will not just increase your confidence but also help relax you in the course of your speech.

Gaze steadily at your audience, moving from one part of the room to another, catching one person in each section.   This way, you would immediately grasp their attention as each person feels you are speaking just to them.

Make it a practice to never read your speech. Just make an outline of the important points that you can expand on.

If you have visuals, do not read the bullet points word for word as this might imply that your audience cannot read that themselves.  Allowing them to read what is on the screen creates a "bond" with your audience as a speaker since you do not have to keep on looking at your notes through the course of your speech.

The key to delivering a great speech is to know what your message is for your audience (why this message and why this audience) and then to just breathe, relax and make eye to eye contact with your audience.  Thus, you are not just making a physical connection with them but you are also ensured that you come out as a sincere speaker who wants to inform and interact with the audience through your speech.

To your successful speaking
  Fran   P.S.  Check out John Maxwell's books for more tips on public speaking and leadership - Click here