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August 2010 |
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Listeners' "Bill of Rights" Fights Speaker Tyranny. |
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Joey Asher
President's
Perspective |
To stop government tyranny, the
nation’s founders produced a Bill of Rights.
But how do we stop the tyranny of
lousy speakers?
I propose a Listeners’ Bill of Rights.
1. The right to a point of view.
Statements like this are all too common: “Well there
are two sides to the issue. I’m going to lay out both
sides so that you can make an informed decision.” No!
Give both sides if you must. But tell us what you
think. We’ll decide if we agree. Don’t be a wimp.
2.
The right not to remain silent.
“Question Authority” may be a slogan from the 70s. But
it’s come even more alive in the age of blogs, talk
radio, text messages, and Twitter. Listeners today like
to talk back and kick the tires. Leave lots of time
for Q&A.
3. The right to brevity.
One study indicates that after 17 minutes, no one
is paying attention. Most business presentations can
be delivered in 15 minutes, even if you leave half the
time for Q&A.
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If You Want to Sound Smarter, Dump the 'Ums'
and Speak Faster. It's Easier than you Think! |
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We’ve always said that some of the worst speaking advice people
often hear is “slow down.” Speaking slowly makes you sound
tentative and, according to a study out of Canada, less
intelligent.
That’s right, slow talkers who use lots of filler words are often
judged as ignorant when compared to faster speaking counterparts,
according to Robert Gifford, Ph.D., of the University of Victoria in
British Columbia. Gifford taped high school kids answering tough
questions and then played the tapes for other students. The ones
that spoke faster and avoided the “uhs” were perceived to be
smarter.
We think that the same goes with adults in business. We often urge
our students to speak faster. Slow talkers come across like they’re
unsure of their information.
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Improve Presentation Skills Right Now! Heard about the Shrink and
the Light Bulb? |
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Question: How many psychologists does it take to change
a light bulb?
Answer: Just one. But the light bulb has to want to
change.
That’s what we tell people when they ask if they can
really improve their communication skills. Of course
you can improve. But only if you want to.
Here are a few ideas on how to improve if you want to do
so!
Practice:
Before your next presentation, practice it out
loud five times from beginning to end without stopping.
By far the biggest reason people are bad speakers is
that they simply don’t rehearse. Serious rehearsal
alone will make many people instantly better. We worked
with one Investment VP who insisted she was a terrible
speaker. When she practiced her presentation 15 times,
she was suddenly considered one of the best in her
company.
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New Book From Speechworks
President,
15 Minutes Including Q&A. |
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Corporate America is
being overrun by a scourge of lousy presentations. Every day,
business people bore listeners with presentations that ramble on,
make no clear points, and fail to address the audiences’ key
concerns.
Speechworks
President Joey Asher proposes a simple cure for this corporate
scourge in his fourth book:
15 Minutes Including Q&A: A Plan to Save the World from Lousy
Presentations.
Read More
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Public Speaking
Tip from Voltaire. |
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Voltaire said, “The secret to being a bore is to tell everything.”
Indeed, we find that many presenters try to tell us too much.
That’s why we tell our clients to limit their presentations to no
more than one big idea and three main points.
In our Persuasive Speaker workshop, we teach you to create a message
that is simple, focused and connected with the audience. In this
workshop, you will deliver five presentations in front of a small
group all with the help of our expert coaches.
Read More
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