7 Powerful Public Speaking Tips

PUBLIC SPEAKINGPresented by 6 min read 7 Powerful Public Speaking Tips From One of the Most-Watched TED Talks Speakers Image credit: startwithwhy.com KIM LACHANCE SHANDROW ENTREPRENEUR STAFF Senior Writer. Frequently covers cryptocurrency, future tech, social media, startups, gadgets and apps. NOVEMBER 3, 2014 You’d never know it, but Simon Sinek is naturally shy and doesn’t like speaking to crowds. At parties, he says he hides alone in the corner or doesn’t even show up in the first place. He prefers the latter. Yet, with some 22 million video views under his belt, the optimistic ethnographer also happens to be the third most-watched TED Talks presenter of all time. Ironic for an introvert, isn’t it? Sinek’s unlikely success as both an inspirational speaker and a bestselling author isn’t just dumb luck. It’s also not being in the right place at the right time or knowing the right people. It’s the result of fears faced and erased, trial and error and tireless practice, on and off stage. Related: 6 Steps to Overcoming Stage Fright and Giving a Presentation Everybody Listens To We caught up with Sinek to pick his brain about how he learned to give such confident, captivating and meaningful presentations and how others can, too.  Here are his top seven secrets for delivering speeches that inspire, inform and entertain. (For more helpful pointers on how to wow an audience, check out his free 30-minute class on Skillshare now. It’s titled How to Present: Share Ideas That Inspire Action.) 1. Don’t talk right away. Sinek says you should never talk as you walk out on stage. “A lot of people start talking right away, and it’s out of nerves,” Sinek says. “That communicates a little bit of insecurity and fear.”   Instead, quietly walk out on stage. Then take a deep breath, find your place, wait a few seconds and begin. “I know it sounds long and tedious and it feels excruciatingly awkward when you do it,” Sinek says, “but it shows the audience you’re totally confident and in charge of the situation.” Related: Why Entrepreneurs Love Steve Jobs 2. Show up to give, not to take. Often people give presentations to sell products or ideas, to get people to follow them on social media, buy their books or even just to like them. Sinek calls these kinds of speakers “takers,” and he says audiences can see through these people right away. And, when they do, they disengage. “We are highly social animals," says Sinek. "Even at a distance on stage, we can tell if you’re a giver or a taker, and people are more likely to trust a giver -- a speaker that gives them value, that teaches them something new, that inspires them -- than a taker.” 3. Make eye contact with audience members one by one. Scanning and panning is your worst enemy, says Sinek. “While it looks like you’re looking at everyone, it actually disconnects you from your audience.” Related: 5 TED Talks That May Change Your View on Life It’s much easier and effective, he says, if you directly look at specific audience members throughout your speech. If you can, give each person that you intently look at an entire sentence or thought, without breaking your gaze. When you finish a sentence, move on to another person and keep connecting with individual people until you’re done speaking. “It’s like you’re having a conversation with your audience," says Sinek. "You’re not speaking at them, you’re speaking with them." This tactic not only creates a deeper connection with individuals but the entire audience can feel it. 4. Speak unusually slowly. When you get nervous, it’s not just your heart beat that quickens. You’re words also tend to speed up. Luckily Sinek says audiences are more patient and forgiving then we know. “They want you to succeed up there, but the more you rush, the more you turn them off," he says. "If you just go quiet for a moment and take a long, deep breath, they’ll wait for you. It’s kind of amazing.” Related: 5 Must-Read Books For Every Entrepreneur Sinek believes it’s impossible to speak too slowly on stage. “It’s incredible that you can stand on stage and speak so slowly that there are several seconds between each of your words and people… will… hang… on… your… every… word. It really works.” 5. Ignore the naysayers. Dismiss the people furrowing their brows, crossing their arms or shaking their heads “no.” Instead, focus only on your supporters -- the people who are visibly engaged, enjoying your presentation and nodding “yes.” If you find the audience members who are positively interacting with you, you’ll be much more confident and relaxed than if you try to convince the naysayers.   6. Turn nervousness into excitement. Sinek learned this trick from watching the Olympics. A few years ago he noticed that reporters interviewing Olympic athletes before and after competing were all asking the same question. "Were you nervous?” And all of the athletes gave the same answer: "No, I was excited." These competitors were taking the body’s signs of nervousness -- clammy hands, pounding heart and tense nerves -- and reinterpreting them as side effects of excitement and exhilaration. Related: 4 Motivating TED Talks to Help You Bounce Back From Failure When you’re up on stage you will likely go through the same thing. That’s when Sinek says you should say to yourself out loud, “I’m not nervous, I’m excited!” “When you do, it really has a miraculous impact in helping you change your attitude to what you’re about to do," Sinek says. 7. Say thank you when you’re done. Applause is a gift, and when you receive a gift, it’s only right to express how grateful you are for it. This is why Sinek always closes out his presentations with these two simple yet powerful words: thank you. "They gave you their time, and they’re giving you their applause." Says Sinek. "That’s a gift, and you have to be grateful." Related: Skillshare and Changing the Way We Learn Sign in or Post as Guest    is a conjunction used in making comparisons, then is an adverb. This article contains good content, and it is unfortunate that it is diluted with errors. LikeReply Maddy2 DAYS AGO "You’re words also tend to speed up. Luckily Sinek says audiences are more patient and forgiving then we know." This is a blatant disregard for proofreading that I would not expect from such a well-read and established site. Two grammatical errors in two following sentences no less is unacceptable. Than is a conjunction used in making comparisons, then is an adverb. This article contains good content and it is unfortunate that it is diluted with errors. LikeReply Maddy2 DAYS AGO "You’re words also tend to speed up." This is a blatant disregard for proofreading that I would not expect from such a well-read and established site.  LikeReply Magnus1 DAY AGO @Maddy Nobody likes a smartass, yeah well, nobody likes a dumbass either. But please focus on the content and not on your self!  LikeReply Kevin Tron from Facebook2 DAYS AGO Angelo DiGioia LikeReply David Fye from Facebook2 DAYS AGO Chris Fallico LikeReply Lets*play*game* from Facebook2 DAYS AGO (y) (y) LikeReply Ashish Chettri from Facebook5 DAYS AGO (Y) LikeReply Prisca Crawford from Facebook6 DAYS AGO Eve Jacob :-) LikeReply craighadden 6 DAYS AGO Those are great tips! I especially like #1 and #3 (Don’t talk straight away, and make real eye contact). By taking your time in those ways, speakers strongly communicate confidence – and even some charisma! You might also like this related 3-minute video, which shows how to combine good eye contact with natural movement on stage, to further engage people: https://bitly.com/1GrdA4H However, I do disagree with your tip #4 (speak unusually slowly). Yes, it’s common for speakers to race because of nerves, and it helps to pause (so people can absorb what you’re saying) and to vary your pace for interest. But IT IS possible (though rare) to speak too slowly. People don’t want to be FORCED to hang on every word because each… sentence… is… disjointed! One of the best ways to judge whether your pace is good is to ask for a show of hands on whether it’s too fast, too slow or about right. Another great help is to record your rehearsals, and if possible the live event. Then when you listen back to each one, look out for frequent pauses of several seconds, but also for fluency when you’re expressing a single thought. Anyway, thanks for the tips, and I look forward to watching Simon’s mini course on Skillshare too. LikeReply harrillpatricia 6 DAYS AGO Good Article .. Check Out For More Info ... Ｗ­­Ｗ­­Ｗ．WORK4HOUR．Ｃ­­Ｏ­­Ｍ LikeReply Ranna Seah from Facebook6 DAYS AGO Great article! LikeReply Laurence Ko from Facebook6 DAYS AGO Jina JiYoung Lee LikeReply Alex Restrepo from Facebook6 DAYS AGO Holly Johnson LikeReply Benyamin Hakak Zargar from Facebook6 DAYS AGO Yasaman Deriszadeh LikeReply Mustafa Ahmed from Facebook6 DAYS AGO Namrata Amar for speak easy LikeReply Audreyana Lucht from Facebook6 DAYS AGO Elijah Thomas Jensen not that you need any tips, but though I would share with you regardless. LikeReply ridiculando 6 DAYS AGO You’re words also tend to speed up. You're words. :|  LikeReply Lior Aranya from Facebook6 DAYS AGO Ben Simoni מעניין LikeReply Kathleen Mitakakis from Facebook6 DAYS AGO I did! How sincere is this man. Crush continues LikeReply Shirin Asif from Facebook6 DAYS AGO Asif Sohani Hussain Noorullah Nasreen Noorullah LikeReply Julie Ann from Facebook6 DAYS AGO Kirsten Marie, for speech and debate! LikeReply Deborah Pacheco from Facebook6 DAYS AGO Kathleen , you will like this. LikeReply Saurabh Arora from Facebook6 DAYS AGO Simon Sinek.....all your articles/talks have a high tangible value! I can straight away connect...thanks for sharing your gift! LikeReply Saurabh Arora from Facebook6 DAYS AGO Simon Sinek.....all your articles/talks have a high tangible value! I can straight away connect...thanks for sharing your gift! LikeReply Crystal Renee from Facebook6 DAYS AGO Simon Sinek has some words worth listening to. LikeReply Simin Moghadasi from Facebook7 DAYS AGO I've watched one of his videos on Ted.com , that was awesome , after watching that , I decided to present it in the class ;) Some videos change your attitude , and that was one of them (y) 1LikeReply Bernard Winsemius from Facebook7 DAYS AGO I've seen your skillshare video before I had to speak for a great number of people. Great tips and it was amazing to do!! The 'nervous' -> 'Excitement' thing worked best. So cool and thank you for your insights!! Have a great day! 1LikeReply Barb Bisson from Facebook7 DAYS AGO :) LikeReply Anne Williams from Facebook7 DAYS AGO Awesome! LikeReply Justin Jackson from Facebook7 DAYS AGO Ben Clawson LikeReply Sophia Garf from Facebook7 DAYS AGO well, sometimes, you have to take in order to be able to give again LikeReply John Hammond from Facebook7 DAYS AGO Number six LikeReply Teresa T Philipp from Facebook7 DAYS AGO Thanks Caroline! From one Simon Super Fan to another! LikeReply Zac Blum from Facebook7 DAYS AGO Motti Blum LikeReply Kim Watson from Facebook7 DAYS AGO Elyse Reneau LikeReply DianeWindingland 7 DAYS AGO Earlier this year, I blogged my evaluation of the talk, focusing on presentation skills: http://www.virtualspeechcoach.com/2014/02/19/speaking-tips-from-tedtalk-2-how-great-leaders-inspire-action-simon-sinek/ LikeReply Cindy Pacheco Morris from Facebook7 DAYS AGO Paul Morris LikeReply Phillip Blackerby from Facebook7 DAYS AGO Excellent! LikeReply Show More Comments Powered by Livefyre VIEW COMMENTS (71) Company Advertise Brand Licensing Contact Us Staff Events Ready2Launch Growth Conference Products Business Books Reprints & Licensing eServices Classifieds International Editions China Middle East Mexico Philippines South Africa Follow Entrepreneur Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Google+ Pinterest Instagram YouTube Tumblr RSS Copyright © 2014 Entrepreneur Media, Inc. All rights reserved. Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Site Map