Improve Your Public Speaking
Public Speaking Wisdom is dedicated to two tasks:
This website is not simply a collection of public speaking tips. Think of this website as your own public speaking coach. Here you will find thought provoking articles, video lessons, helpful tutorials and even analysis of world championship public speaking. All designed specifically to help you to become a better public speaker.
The Truth About Public Speaking
Public Speaking is something we all do. But public speaking is also something that few of us do well. Most of us are downright terrible at public speaking and many of us are scared to death of it. I know I was. The first time I walked into my Toastmasters club in West Vancouver and was invited to speak I thought I was going to lose my lunch!
If public speaking scares you then you’re not alone. It was reported in a survey from a popular psychology magazine that in a list of what scares people the most, speaking in public is selected more frequently than dying! So if you think about it, most people at a funeral would rather be the person inside the coffin than the one outside the coffin doing the eulogy! But just like a school yard bully, public speaking isn’t something that we can run from, no matter how much it scares us. Sooner or later you’re going to have to stand up and face the microphone. Of course, public speaking isn’t just about standing in front of a microphone and a crowd of 400 people. When you ask someone out on a date, you’re engaging in public speaking. When you try to motivate your employees, you’re public speaking. When you’re giving the big presentation and trying to close the sale… you guessed it! The ugly truth is that often, what we say is less important than how we say it. If this sounds cynical it’s not meant to and I hope you’ll forgive me. But when we are strong public speakers we appear more confident and knowledgeable. Whether it’s dating, motivating coworkers or closing the sale, appearing confident and sounding knowledgeable make us more attractive in the eyes of our audience, and that’s a fact. I’ve seen some incredibly knowledgeable presenters completely lose their audience because they didn’t know how to craft or deliver their message. I’ve also seen presenters who know far less on their subject receive standing ovations from their audience because they knew how to effectively deliver what they did know in a way that would make it meaningful and relevant to their audiences. |
About The Author
 Teacher and competitive public speaker
My name's Ian. I'm a full time teacher in North Vancouver, BC and I live just next door in West Vancouver. When not teaching I compete in public speaking. As teaching and public speaking are two of my passions it seemed like a natural fit to share what I know about public speaking in a way that could help others. I'm a 2 time public speaking finalist for Toastmasters District 21 (British Columbia) competitions and I have spoken frequently on TV and radio (Global TV, CKNW, News 1130, etc...). My public speaking goals for the new year include making it to the international finals for the 2013 World Championship of Public Speaking and helping my fellow speakers improve their public speaking skills.
If you'd like, you can learn more about me and my public speaking journey. |
Becoming a Natural Public Speaker
So, if we know that public speaking is a critical skill, and that trying to avoid public speaking causes more pain than it solves, what should you do if you are not a ‘natural’ public speaker? Here’s the good news. The idea of a ‘natural’ public speaker is a myth - nobody is a ‘natural’. You have to work your backside off to become a natural.
The truth is that what we think of as public speaking is really a group of closely related skills and techniques. And skills and techniques can be acquired and mastered with a little bit of insight and the willingness to practice.
If you are willing to take the next step then I’ve got good news for you. The journey from complete novice to confident and competent public speaker is a lot shorter than you might think. There are just a handful of necessary skills that you need to get comfortable with, and we will go over them in detail here along with examples and exercises to help turn you into a confident speaker.
And once you’ve become comfortable with the basics of public speaking and are emerging as a confident and competent public speaker. I’ll show you how to take that all important next step and begin going from good to great!
And before you say: “Hey wait Ian… I’d be happy with just being able to get up and speak without feeling like I’m going to pass out!” I want you to consider this very important question…
Who is the 2nd fastest man on the planet?
Do you know? I bet that you probably know that the fastest man alive is the Jamacian sprinter Usain Bolt. You might even know that the difference between these two runners is measured in just a few hundredths of a second. And yet, here we have two of the fastest men on the planet. Two phenomenal athletes. One was rewarded with gold medals, worldwide fame and product endorsements, while the other was rewarded with obscurity…
When you are going for the big prize it is important to remember that:
‘Small differences can yield massive disparities in success’
You might beat out 19 other competitors with a presentation that took months to assemble and still lose a big contract to a single competitor who was just marginally better than you in their delivery.
Sometimes the difference between the best and the runner up is everything and nothing. So whether you’re taking your first steps into public speaking or you’re ready to take the next steps and shift your public speaking from good to great, I’d like to encourage you to delve into the articles and tutorials on this website. Get involved. Post questions and comments on my blog. This website has all the tools you will need to become a better public speaker. But like all tools, they only work when you use them! So what are you waiting for? Let’s get going!
Ian Cunliffe
PS.
That other runner’s name was Yohan Blake. He lost by just 0.06 seconds…
The truth is that what we think of as public speaking is really a group of closely related skills and techniques. And skills and techniques can be acquired and mastered with a little bit of insight and the willingness to practice.
If you are willing to take the next step then I’ve got good news for you. The journey from complete novice to confident and competent public speaker is a lot shorter than you might think. There are just a handful of necessary skills that you need to get comfortable with, and we will go over them in detail here along with examples and exercises to help turn you into a confident speaker.
And once you’ve become comfortable with the basics of public speaking and are emerging as a confident and competent public speaker. I’ll show you how to take that all important next step and begin going from good to great!
And before you say: “Hey wait Ian… I’d be happy with just being able to get up and speak without feeling like I’m going to pass out!” I want you to consider this very important question…
Who is the 2nd fastest man on the planet?
Do you know? I bet that you probably know that the fastest man alive is the Jamacian sprinter Usain Bolt. You might even know that the difference between these two runners is measured in just a few hundredths of a second. And yet, here we have two of the fastest men on the planet. Two phenomenal athletes. One was rewarded with gold medals, worldwide fame and product endorsements, while the other was rewarded with obscurity…
When you are going for the big prize it is important to remember that:
‘Small differences can yield massive disparities in success’
You might beat out 19 other competitors with a presentation that took months to assemble and still lose a big contract to a single competitor who was just marginally better than you in their delivery.
Sometimes the difference between the best and the runner up is everything and nothing. So whether you’re taking your first steps into public speaking or you’re ready to take the next steps and shift your public speaking from good to great, I’d like to encourage you to delve into the articles and tutorials on this website. Get involved. Post questions and comments on my blog. This website has all the tools you will need to become a better public speaker. But like all tools, they only work when you use them! So what are you waiting for? Let’s get going!
Ian Cunliffe
PS.
That other runner’s name was Yohan Blake. He lost by just 0.06 seconds…
