Interview with Andrea Flowers: Public Speaking InstructorPublic speaking is one of the top fears cited by many people in surveys – in fact, some surveys find people are more afraid of public speaking than of death! And yet public speaking and other communication skills are also assets employers value highly. In a tough
Andrea FlowersDate of Interview: June 30, 2009 economy, improving your public speaking skills may give you an edge in keeping your job or finding a new one.In this interview, Andrea Flowers, a college instructor in Tuscaloosa, Ala., discusses her interest in public speaking. In addition to teaching communications, Flowers practices what she preaches; she has been interviewed for a local media segment about her fitness and weight-loss journey and has posted videos of her fitness routines and skydiving adventure to the Web. Here, Flowers will give some perspective on the common public speaking mistakes people make and how communication skills can help you get ahead.Question: How did you get into teaching speech at the college level and how long have you been doing it? What’s your class like in terms of format, assignments, etc.? Answer: I have always been interested in communication. I always remember being very observant of other people’s mannerisms and actions when I was young. I was just fascinated about rule following and how people learned behaviors (and I would always ask questions of my peers about their family life). I also was very active in speech and drama when I was in high school – and really, throughout most of my early education, even competing in speech contests in elementary school. So, when I got to college, it really was a no-brainer that I would enter into the speech/communication field. I knew that I wanted to in the education field, so it just kind of clicked that I should teach communication and public speaking at the college level.
How Public Speaking Skills Can Help You Get Ahead in a Tough Economy
will hypnotherapy help me in the bedroom?
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Hypnotherapy in Michigan & Does it work for phobias?
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How to Establish Eye Contact During Public Speaking
Connect with Your Audience for Better Public Speaking PresentationsOne of the most commonly-held fears is public speaking, which is terrifying even to some experienced performers. A case of the nerves is almost guaranteed before you hop up on stage in front of a large group of people, and it can be difficult to remember all of the tips and techniques
that make a speech great. If you’re going to be pursuing a career or hobby in public speaking, one of the things you need to do is establish eye contact.But what if you’re delivering a speech to 3,000 people in an enormous auditorium? How can you possibly maintain eye contact with each and every person in the audience? You can’t, obviously. However, establishing eye contact with at least a few people throughout the course of your speech will help it hit home, according to Presentation-Pointers.com, even when there are hundreds of other people who never feel he power of your gaze.When Reading from a ScriptIf you’re new to public speaking, you likely bring at least a few notes along to your engagements, if not an entire script from which you intend to read. This makes it slightly more difficult to make eye contact, but certainly not impossible. One of the best ways to overcome this obstacle is to “trace” the script with your finger as you speak, which will help to mark your place when you look up to the audience.The Critical First Few MinutesMany experts in public speaking agree that the first few minutes of a speech are the most critical. This is the time when you want to make as much eye contact as possible, varying your “targets” from all areas of seating. Eye contact doesn’t need to last longer than three or four seconds before you move on to your next “target”, but make those few seconds count. This allows your audience members to feel as though you’re speaking directly to them, which makes for a more powerful presentation.Look for Familiar Faces
How to Overcome Your Fear of Public Speaking
Public speaking is stressful for the majority of people. However, the fear of public speaking, or glossophobia as it is called, is more serious in some than others. Many of us would love to dodge the problem entirely, but in some cases it’s absolutely unavoidable. For instance,
giving a toast as the best man at a wedding or a college presentation leaves you no choice but to just go through it. The good news is that there are effective methods to help improve and correct your fears, allowing you to give great speeches. Here are just a few things to help you do this:Relax.Start off the process by relaxing yourself. Most people believe that certain things in life are stressful, and public speaking is no exception. The truth is, it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to give nice, polished public presentations. The people you see giving speeches in front of large groups of people seem to have it down, but keep in mind that they too once started being terrified to speak. Their hands were trembling, voice felt as if it would give out, and there thoughts were cluttered in their mind. Does that sound familiar? If so, just know that they were able to eliminate their fears and so can you. Everyone is human, and if they are capable of doing something then you are too. Be confident with yourself. Change Your Perception of Public SpeakingA public speaker is an idea, almost like a job, and many people strive too hard to bring forth certain qualities that are necessary with being a public speaker. However, that’s not the way to proceed. You’re not trying to be a public speaker; you’re trying to be yourself. The majority of public speeches have gone wrong because the speaker tried to be something or someone that they’re not. Speaking in public is one of the few times that you can fully be yourself in the presence of others. Otherwise, your audience will see right through your false personality. Make your speech feel natural.
Five Tips to Combat the Fear of Public Speaking
Public Speaking – Be PreparedGlossophobia—the fear of public speaking.According to Wikipedia, glossophobia may affect as many as 75% of all people who have ever had to speak in public. There is a running joke that says statistics indicate that many people are more afraid of public speaking than they are of death. Public speaking is pretty much exactly what
it sounds like: speaking in public, and many people are terrified of this prospect.In order to be an effective public speaker, and to alleviate some of the fears associated with public speaking, this article will present five tips to help you become an effective public speaker.1. Know Your AudienceIn order to be an effective public speaker, you have to know your audience. This is where the ‘who’ of public speaking comes into play. How you would address a group of teenagers would differ greatly from how you would address a group of, say, lawyers. This is a critical factor to effective public speaking. You need to know your audience, who they are, their demographics, and then prepare your presentation geared toward the majority of your target audience. When you know your audience and understand where you audience’s perspective will be before you have to speak, you will be much more comfortable when the time comes to make your presentation.2. Know Your Subject/TopicWhat will you be talking about? What is it you will be presenting? Whenever you give a talk, speech, recital, presentation – you are presenting something to your audience. What is it? Figure out what your topic is and research and study it so you are prepared. While you may have a presentation already lined out and ready to just stand up and read, the audience may ask you questions, and you should be prepared to answer them. The more you know about your topic, the ‘what’ of your presentation, the comfortable you will be when speaking and the more knowledgeable you will appear to your audience.3. Practice, Practice, Practice