CHICAGO — Public speaking and presentation skills can be useful when thinking about career development. Speaking opportunities offer the chance to be seen as a thought leader and expert of specific topics, and can open the door to even greater opportunities and exposure.
Having some fear or anxiety when it comes to public speaking — whether in front of internal teams or a large crowd — is completely normal and can be overcome. In fact, it has been cited that 75% of the U.S. population has a fear of public speaking.
To discuss best practices when it comes to public speaking and overcoming common fears associated with it, Trade Show Executive sat down with Chloe Richardson, Head of Content at the Event Leaders Exchange (ELX), and Event Coach and Consultant, to discuss her tips and tricks for nailing speaking engagements.
How Chloe Got into Public Speaking
Even as a child, Richardson was on stage performing as a drama student. She continued with public speaking and communications at university in the U.K., and after college she began doing a lot of training. She ran coaching sessions virtually and in-person and then was starting to be asked to talk at industry events.
“I found that when you’re on stage, no matter the topic, the goal is exactly the same as if you’re playing a role in a play, and the objective is for the audience to be engaged and take something away from what you’re sharing with them,” Richardson said. “I developed the skills I learnt as a drama student, and started to bolster my knowledge in my subject areas. Combining the two is really the secret sauce for being a successful public speaker.”
Chloe’s Five Hacks for Public Speaking
- Master Your Introduction
“You want to grab something compelling that’s going to immediately catch your audience’s attention,” Richardson said. “It should be focused, and it’s a good opportunity to establish some rapport and make the audience know who you are as a person as well.”
- Make Sure You Know Who Your Audience Is in Advance
“Whenever you’re doing anything, whether it’s a room of thousands or a room of 10, make sure you know in advance who your audience is,” Richardson said. “What are their roles? What are they wanting to get from this session? What’s their demographic and where are they from? These things are really important, not only so you tailor your message accordingly, but so you can be prepared for the questions they might ask at the end.”
- Harness the Power of Storytelling
“Make sure no matter what, you have a beginning, a middle and an end. It seems really obvious, but sometimes you see scripts that don’t make any sense. Don’t be afraid to hold back the climax a little bit,” Richardson advises. “That being said, every story should have some data points. The story is what keeps people engaged and the data points inspire them afterwards. You’re telling a story, but it’s peppered with little facts so that you’re establishing credibility.”
- Be Mindful of Body Language and Vocal Variety
“I am going to confess my weakest part about being on stage is I use my hands way too much. I have tried to stop, and it’s an awful habit, but some people don’t use them at all. There’s a happy medium, so I suggest to everybody when you’re on the stage make use of that space, but don’t overdo it,” Richardson said. “The second part is vocal variety. There are a lot of presenters and public speakers who have words that they keep going back to and they use a lot. When you start to notice it can get quite jarring. I suggest having a list of 10 adjectives or joining words to make sure you rotate when you’re speaking.”
- Prepare Thoroughly, But Stay Flexible
“This pretty much speaks to everything we’ve talked about, but it’s being prepared, knowing your audience, knowing your story and the objectives, and knowing where you want to land,” Richardson said. “Just keep flexible so that if things happen and you’re forced off course, you can get back on track.”
Related. Goals Guide for Young Professionals: Set Yourself Up for Success
Overpreparation Can Do More Harm than Good
Richardson recommends that people don’t over practice because being strictly scripted can come off inauthentic.
“Your most inspirational thoughts come from when you’re speaking slightly off the cuff,” Richardson said. “I’d recommend having a script that has bullet points that represent a paragraph, and practice seeing that bullet point and being able to craft a paragraph around it. Your paragraph will be different every time, and you want that. You cannot rely on something being word-for-word as you planned, because it’s inauthentic and can be dangerous because if you go off plan, you’re not going to be able to find your place again.”
Know Your Personal Brand
Another point Richardson brings up is that it’s important to know your personal brand and what your niche is to know when a speaking opportunity is right for you. Once you decide what your personal themes are going to be, you then need to ensure what you say and do reflect those themes. This helps people to associate you with the topics you want to be seen as an expert on, and while it may take a little bit of time, people will view you as someone who knows what they’re talking about.
“I’ve been a keynote speaker at M&IT, I’ve spoken at multiple BTN and Confex events. I’ve spoken at non-event industry events, and I’m the host and moderator at ELX events. I’m co-hosting the UFI European Event this year. All of that has come through me building my personal brand and people associating me with a core theme,” Richardson said.
She also advises professionals to know when to say no to a speaking engagement. If it’s not a topic you’re passionate about, you may have trouble engaging the audience, and if you’re not an expert, you probably won’t have anything new to add.
“It’s about getting to a point where you feel confident enough to say no if it doesn’t align with those core themes you’ve established right at the beginning,” Richardson said.
Looking for More Help?
Richardson recommends finding a local chapter of Toastmasters to get more opportunities to practice public-speaking skills.
“They’re a global community, and they have local chapters probably in every city. They meet on a regular basis and it’s worth having a look. They’re all about public speaking, they have table topics, main speeches or you could be an evaluator,” Richardson said. “The more you go, the more you can practice.”
