Public Speaking Success in 20 Minutes a Day (Skill Builders)

196 Pages·2010·2.99 MB·English

by  LearningExpress Editors

Public
SPeaking
SucceSS
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Public
SPeaking
SucceSS
in 20 minutes
a Day
®
ne w Y o r k
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Copyright © 2010 LearningExpress, LLC.
All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions.
Published in the United States by LearningExpress, LLC, New York.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data:
Public speaking success in 20 minutes a day.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references.
ISBN-13: 978-1-57685-746-5
ISBN-10: 1-57685-746-8
1. Public speaking. I. LearningExpress (Organization) II. Title: Public speaking success in twenty minutes a day.
PN4129.15.P838 2010
808.5’1—dc22
2010010695
Printed in the United States of America
9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
ISBN-13 978-1-57685-746-5
For more information or to place an order, contact LearningExpress at:
2 Rector Street
26th Floor
New York, NY 10006
Or visit us at:
www.learnatest.com
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contentS
introduction ix
leSSon 1 Preparing to Speak Publicly 1
Dealing with Anxiety 2
Who Will Be in the Audience? 2
Choosing a Topic 5
What Will Be the Setting? 7
leSSon 2 Good Speaking Requires Good Listening 11
Limited Attention Span 12
External Distractions 12
What’s Bugging You? 13
The TMI Problem 13
Make Eye Contact 14
Spice Up Your Speech—Carefully 14
When the Messenger Hinders the Message 15
Pushing Their Buttons 15
leSSon 3 Organizing And Spicing Up Your Speech 21
Using a Computer 22
The Old-Fashioned Method 23
Collecting Your Spice 23
leSSon 4 Doing Your Homework 27
Taking Notes 28
Using Personal Experience 28
Interviewing Other People 28
Using the Internet Responsibly 30
Visiting the Library 32
v
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–contentS–
leSSon 5 The Major Types of Speeches 37
Informative Speeches 38
Demonstrative Speeches 39
Persuasive Speeches 40
Special Occasions 43
leSSon 6 Preparing an Outline 47
Hit the Target 48
Speech Body Parts 48
Using Your Research 49
Outlining from Your Notes 50
Conclusion 51
leSSon 7 Body Building 55
Selecting Your Main Points 56
Adding Flesh 56
Explaining the Significance of Your Sub-Points 57
Arranging Your Sub-Points 58
Writing and Rewriting 59
Writing for Speaking, Not Reading 60
leSSon 8 End with a Bang 63
Restate Your Thesis 64
Summarize Your Major Points 64
Provide Closure 64
Call the Audience to Action 65
Be Brief 65
Concluding Our Examples 65
leSSon 9 Start with a Bang 69
Keep the Audience’s Attention 70
State Your Credendials 70
Introduce Your Topic or Thesis 71
Introduce Your Major Sub-Points 71
Give Them a Reason to Listen 71
Be Brief 72
Introducing Our Examples 72
leSSon 10 Don’t Lose Your Place 75
Reading from a Manuscript 76
Memorizing a Pre-Written Speech 77
Speaking Extemporaneously 77
Impromptu Speeches 79
vi
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–contentS–
leSSon 11 Speaking Responsibly 83
Tell the Truth 84
Present All Sides to an Argument 84
Do Not Plagiarize 84
leSSon 12 Empowering Your Speech 89
Spoken Words versus Written Words 90
Alliteration, Repetition, Sequence 90
Metaphors and Similes 90
Clichés 91
Active Voice versus Passive Voice 91
What to Avoid 92
leSSon 13 In the Eye of the Beholder 95
Good Gooming 96
Good Posture 96
Eye Contact 97
Gestures and Motion 97
Control Your Voice 98
leSSon 14 Seeing Is Believing 101
Objects 102
Maps, Charts, Graphs 102
Blackboards and Whiteboards 103
Slides 103
Overheads 103
PowerPoint 104
Handouts 105
The Cardinal Rules for Visual Aids 105
leSSon 15 Avoiding Distractions 109
Um. . . Ah. . . Like. . . You Know. . . See What I Mean? 110
That Twitch 110
Nervous Motion 111
The Best Laid Plans 111
leSSon 16 Overcoming Anxiety 117
The Fear of Fear Itself 118
Pretend to Be Confident 118
Take a Deep Breath 119
Be Prepared! 119
vii
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–contentS–
leSSon 17 Practice, Practice, Practice! 123
Use a Video Camera 124
Live Performance 124
Practice on Location 125
Rest Time 125
leSSon 18 What Comes Next? 129
Prepare in Advance 130
Control the Questions 130
Follow Etiquette 130
Giving the Right Answer 131
Invite the Audience to Answer 132
Opening and Closing the Question Time 132
leSSon 19 Common Speech Situations 137
Making a Presentation 138
Public Meetings 138
Special Occasions 139
Stressful Situations 139
leSSon 20 Learning from the Pros 143
Speech 1 144
Speech 2 147
Speech 3 148
Speech 4 149
aPPendix 153
gloSSarY 181
viii
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introduction
p
ublic speaking is a vital skill in any area of success. If you are a student, speaking well in public will enable
you to explain your ideas and persuade others to your opinions. If you are pursuing a career—in virtu-
ally any field—good speaking skills will enable you to advance far more quickly than your peers.
Perhaps you feel that you’re not a gifted speaker, that public speakers are born and not created. But the truth
is that you speak publicly all the time; whenever you gather with a group of friends or answer a question in class
or explain something to coworkers, you are speaking publicly. Speaking well is a skill, and no skill is gained with-
out practice.
This book will help you increase your skills as a public speaker. Over the course of the next 20 lessons, you
will learn how to be a good listener, analyze your audience, do research, organize your thoughts and notes, prepare
an outline, and craft a memorable speech. You will also learn how to use stage fright to your advantage, how to
control the audience’s responses, how to use visual aids, how to use language, and much more! Use the lined pages
in the back of the book to take important notes as you make your way through the lessons.
Each lesson also presents exercises that will help you hone what you’ve learned, one step at a time. The final
lesson presents the texts of several famous speeches so that you can read for yourself how to craft a great speech.
All types of speeches are covered: speeches to persuade, to demonstrate, to inform, and to honor special occasions.
With this book, some practice, and just 20 minutes a day, you can become a skillful public speaker!
ix
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