Here are 12 public speaking tips that you can use in your presentations:
1. Pattern Interrupt
A pattern interrupt is when the speaker does something that pimp slaps the mind to pay attention.
When you see a speaker on stage, you might get bored because it’s always the same thing. The speaker comes up, talks a littler bit, maybe has a couple of stories, yada yada yada…and you start yawning off.
And that’s when it happen [SLAP]
The speaker does something so different that your mind snaps to attention.
A pattern interrupt can be something as simple as telling everyone in the audience to stand or something crazy like having glass fall and break on the ground.
People pay attention to things that aren’t normal.
Think about how your presentations would naturally keep people engaged if you constantly pimp slapped your audiences mind.
2. Frame the audience
Why the heck should people listen to you?
You’re the speaker on stage and you know your information is Gods gift to man…but why should people actually listen to you? They don’t know if your information is good or not.
Framing is when you tell the mind what to look for and by doing this, that’s all it sees.
When you frame something, you change the meaning of anything that’s inside the frame.
Think about ‘rain’ as an example.
If you were out in a desert and you’re just about ready to fall over and die, then it starts to rain…you would see the rain as a good thing. But if you were in a hurricane and it keeps raining, you would be pissed off at the world and see the rain as something bad.
The rain is neither good nor bad…it’s the frame (desert or hurricane) that changes the meaning of the rain.
The same goes for your presentation as a speaker.
If you want to have better public speaking skills then you need to learn how to frame your audience so they’re ready to listen to what you’re about to say.
3. Change your language
Have you noticed the way I’ve been using language so far?
Notice how I said, “Pimp slap the mind”…and other similar language?
Most speakers use boring language. They talk about the technical details or the boring business talk because they think that sounding professional is what people want. But people are bored with ‘business talk.’
As a public speaker, if you change your language to words that have more emotion then people will think you’re an amazing speaker.
Instead of talking about how ‘funds are depleting’ …you need to say…’we are going broke.’
The language you use depends on your style as a speaker but pay close attention to how you use your words because they matter.
4. Create YES patterns
Now this is some powerful stuff.
Yes patterns is how every president gets elected, it’s how all the top speakers get to the top, and it’s why you like certain people over others. Yes patterns happen when people say things that you can’t help but agree with.
When someone says, “Family is more important than money.” Then you agree with that statement. Everyone basically agrees with it.
When someone says, “We need better education.” Then you agree with that statement.
And that’s the point.
Yes patterns get people to agree with statements. It’s when you say things that only a dummy would say no to (at least in public).
Speakers who create a lot of yes patterns in their presentations are always liked more and they’re much more persuasive.
Think about one of your favorite speakers. Tony Robbins, Les Brown, Brian Tracy, whoever it is…and listen to what they say…you’ll notice that you’re agreeing with just about everything they say.
5. Cliffhangers
Every great show has cliffhangers and smart speakers include cliff hangers in their presentations.
A cliff hanger is when you start something but don’t finish it. And because you don’t finish it, the audience wants closure so they’re more engaged until what you started is finished.
Breaking Bad is one of the best shows…ever! And almost every episode had a cliff hanger.
Stories are natural cliff hangers because we don’t know where it’s going to end up. But if you know the conclusion to the story then you’re less likely to pay attention.
When I do my mind reading shows, I start out by telling everyone to pay attention to this glass box that’s on the side because we are going to use it later and I talk about how I won’t go near it and never touch it. This opens a cliff hanger and the audience wonders what’s going to happen with that glass box.
If you want to come across as a great public speaker then add cliff hangers and you will keep people engaged throughout your presentation.
6. Use simple language
Most intellectual people like to use big words that make them sound smart.
But what happens when you listen to someone who’s all technical and stuff? You tune out.
They’re talking about statistics and using words that you need to look up in the dictionary, so you just tune out, go to sleep, then wake up and….geez…they’re still speaking.
But as a public speaker, you have to make things so easy that a five year old could understand it.
Taking something complex and making it simple is actually the sign of a superior mind (so boo-ya to all you smarty pants).
Einstein summed up an incredible discovery in E=mc² ….he could have made it complicated but it was simple.
The reason Apple is one of the top 3 companies in the world is because they made things simple.
Whenever you find yourself speaking and you see people squinting their eyes like they don’t know what the heck you’re talking about, you have to make things more simple. It’s not a sign of their stupidity for not understanding you, it’s a sign of your intelligence for communicating in a way that gets anyone to understand what you’re saying.
7. Increase your energy
A lot of people who are getting into public speaking usually feed off the energy of the audience. They try to get hyped up by paying attention to how the audience is feeling…but they have it backwards.
The audience feeds off your energy.
If you speak on a stage, or make any type of presentation, and you look like you don’t want to be there then your audience is going to be laid back and take cues from you.
But if you speak on stage and you’re excited, you’re moving around, then the audience is going to want to rise to your level.
Have you ever seen Tony Robbins speak? Tony is a master at this. He doesn’t care if the audience is sleeping…the second he gets on stage, his energy is so high that even people who are sleep deprived will stay awake long enough to listen to him.
8. Make the room cold
This is something very simple that every speaker can do…just make the room a little cold.
Not freezing…just cold.
When the room is too warm, people get sleepy. So even if you’re a great speaker, if the room is warm then messes with our body and we have a hard time focusing.
But if you make the room a little cold then people will be wide awake.
9. Focus on the showmanship
Showmanship is everything.
For some reason, when someone starts out with public speaking, they focus on the content…they focus on what they’re going to say. They think the words are the most important part of a presentation.
When you think about it, it makes sense…you’re a speaker…so the words you say have to be really good. Yea…that’s what she said.
Lets take Michael Jackson as an example…one of the best showman that ever lived.
If Michael Jackson got on stage and just started singing…nothing else (no lights, no dance moves, etc) then do you think he would be popular? Of course not.
Michael Jackson became the King Of Pop because of the showmanship. He didn’t just sing…he got on stage and made people scream. The dancing, the lights, sometimes he would do some magic tricks…they went all out for the shows.
As a speaker, you have to focus on the showmanship because people don’t remember what you say, they only remember how you made them feel.
10. Change the pace
No matter how great of a speaker you are, people will start to get bored if you go at one pace.
You might have high energy but eventually this energy will become the new norm…and when that happens, you become predictable and predictability as a speaker is the death of your speaking career (ok maybe not that bad).
In my presentation, I do a mind reading demonstration that gets everyone to be silent.
The entire presentation has this energy to it and then BAM!…silence. You could hear a pin drop.
Once again, this pimp slaps the mind to pay attention and it changes the pace of the entire presentation.
So about halfway through your presentation, you have to change it up a little. Don’t just keep speaking and do the same old stuff…do something a little different. If you were speaking fast, speak slow. If you were speaking slow, speak fast. Change the pace and people will be engaged until the very end.
11. Urgency and Scarcity
If you want people to take action then you need to include urgency and scarcity…and it needs to be real urgency, not some fake salesman crap.
As a speaker, if you have products to sell…only bring a few with you. So when you sell your products, you say that you only have 20 in the back…that’s real scarcity.
Apple does a brilliant job at creating scarcity and urgency.
Think about what happens with their new products like the Iphone.
When a new version comes out, they sell out within a day or two. Why? Apple has over 100 Billion in the bank, they can afford to stock up the stores with extra products so the stores have Iphones for everyone…but they don’t…why is that?
Apple doesn’t stock up the stores because they want their products to sell out fast. Think about what that does to a customer the next time…
They think,
“Their products keep selling out so if I want it, then I need to get it the day it comes out. If I wait then it’s going to sell out and I’ll be waiting another 2 months.”
Brilliant!
12. End on a high note
The closer to your presentation determines the success or failure of your entire speech.
If you end on a high note, then you create a massive amount of energy inside the audience and you’re much more likely to get a standing ovation.
At the end of my presentations, I do a demonstration that uses mind reading, slam poetry, and inspiration…by the end of the 5 minute demonstration, I’m practically yelling and this creates massive energy in the room and gets a standing ovation every time.
If you want to improve your public speaking skills and come across as a really good speaker, focus on your ending.
A horrible ending can ruin the entire presentation. How many times have you watched a movie and the ending sucked? You then hated the entire movie…just because the ending sucked.
The same goes for you as a speaker. People won’t hate your guts but they will definitely forget about you.
End on a high note because people will always remember how you made them feel.
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