Whether you’re an aspiring or a novice speaker, it’s natural for you to aim to become great at public speaking.
That’s why it’s common to look at TED talks and other prominent public speakers as examples to learn from.
While this is a worthwhile undertaking at getting better, there’s a question that has to be asked:
What are the traits of a successful speaker?
Answering this question seems daunting at first glance, but this has been tackled head-on by Dale Carnegie, a prolific writer and a pioneer in public speaking.
In the book, “Public Speaking for Success,” he identified the essential elements in successful public speaking.
Since we can’t cover all of them here, here the most important elements:
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Persist even when you’ve hit a wall.
Learning doesn’t follow a fixed, upward trajectory. Carnegie describes this as “sudden jerks and starts”—explosive bursts of improvement followed by plateaus where progress seems to vanish.
According to Carnegie, those who do not recognize this quirk in the improvement process tend to get discouraged and quit.
The solution?
Persistence.
Even when it seems like you’ve hit a wall in your improvement, keep practicing, as this is the only path towards improvement and success.
Likewise, persistence is the only way for you to combat the nervousness and anxiety you feel just before you begin to speak.
The greatest speakers, Carnegie says, experience some initial nervousness. The only reason they’ve prevailed over this emotion is by being persistent, because by the time they’ve spoken their first words, all the anxiety they feel has already dissipated.
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Put success at the top of your mind.
Nothing spurs people into action more than the promise of a reward for their efforts.
The principle applies in the context of public speaking as well.
Think about it: You’re much more likely to do the necessary things needed to succeed if you’re going to get something for your efforts.
In other words, put success at the top of your mind, because you’re more likely to put in the work necessary to become a successful public speaker.
There you have it—those are the principles you need to keep in mind if you want to become a successful speaker.
Even though these are just a couple of principles, they are game-changing concepts that will enable you to become great at speaking.
So, the next time you feel like you’ve hit a wall in your progress, keep these in mind!
These just might be what you need to push yourself to the next level!
About The Dynamic Marketing Communiqué’s
“Thursdays: Speak on the Shoulders of Giants”
In a meeting with one person…
… a boardroom with five people…
… or a huge venue with hundreds of people…
—whatever the situation or setting, it’s very important to learn and eventually master the art of public speaking.
No matter what, you always need to effectively get your message across.
What good is a presentation with awesome content if you don’t deliver it properly?
Every Thursday, we publish different tips, insights, and secrets on how you can improve your presentation skills to captivate your audience and lead interesting discussions.
The need for great presentation skills applies EVERYWHERE.
(Small meetings with your team, big meetings with your boss, an important marketing pitch, speaking engagements for events with a big audience, etc.)
Learning these skills is not just for the corporate world. Being in other industries such as the Arts, Information Technology, Medicine, and Education while knowing how to communicate and present well will definitely give you an edge.
Have that advantage.
Hope you find this week’s public speaking tip interesting and helpful.
Stay tuned for next Thursday’s “Speak on the Shoulders of Giants!”
Cheers,
Henry Desai
Managing Director
Valens Dynamic Marketing Capabilities
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