Tuesday's Workshops

DYW LIFE SKILLS WORKSHOPS: PUBLIC SPEAKING GETTING PREPARED

Do you know what you’re going to be speaking about ahead of time? If so, get prepared.

Start by answering these questions:
• How long do you have to speak?
• Who will be in the audience?
• Where will I be speaking? On a stage? With a podium? • Will I have a microphone?

Knowing these things will help you know how to craft your response and how best to present yourself.

PREPARE YOUR RESPONSE

Now tackle working on your speech or response. On a sheet of paper write down the point or points you want to make while speaking. Then create a list of bullet points that support them.

Look back through – are all your bullets of the same level of importance? If not, maybe cross out any that don’t help hit your point home and then arrange the remaining bullets in an order that makes sense to you – maybe group similar ones. And, if you have a huge piece of information that puts things over the top, save that for last.

Be sure that if you state your opinion you back it up. Knowing your time constraint will help you know how much info you can include. Also, understanding who is in your audience will help you decide if the tone should be serious or if you can inject some humor.

When you craft your final speech, no matter the length, open by stating your opinion or point. Support that point and then wrap it up by rewording the point you’ve made.

 

BODY LANGUAGE

Body language is a way of speaking without using words. How you handle yourself physically says a lot to the people listening to you. Here are a couple things to keep in mind:

• If you are speaking at a microphone, adjust it and drop your hands before starting to speak. No need to worry about loud feedback while you’re talking.

• If you naturally speak with your hands - do. But avoid using hand motions in a grand manner to emphasize a point if it will seem forced or insincere.

• If you don’t feel comfortable using hand gestures, you can keep your hands at your side but be aware of them and don’t grab or clutch your clothing.

• Look at the entire audience as you speak – moving your eyes around the group.

• And be aware of your feet. Rocking on your heels or tapping your toes can distract from you.

 

MEMORIZE VS BULLETS

If you are presenting a speech you basically have three options – read the speech verbatim, memorize it or talk on bullet points.

No one likes to listen to a speech being read – there is no engagement with the audience and you can lose their attention.

Both memorizing and creating bullets allow you to look at and connect with your audience but memorizing has its pitfalls. Memorizing may seem safer but it can also lead to you getting frustrated if you forget something, losing your way or even hitting a dead stop if you can’t remember what’s next.

Bullets are the best way to go. Having a list of points you want to make allows you to easily stay on track but then fill in around those topics more naturally. Both methods do require that you put in some time practicing but bullets gives you some flexibility when you are speaking.

 

EXTEMPORANEOUS SPEAKING

Extemporaneous speaking is to speak without preparing your response ahead of time. Even though it may feel like you can’t prepare for this kind of situation -- you actually can.

When given the question or topic, on the spot think of 2 or 3 bullet points you would want to touch on. You can do this by taking a moment to collect your thoughts – no “umm-ing” or “ahh-ing” while you do.

Then answer as if you had prepared it ahead of time. Start with your point, hit your bullets and wrap it up. This style of response takes practice. Have a friend/family member throw out topics at you – literally Anything – and try responding using a statement, 2 or 3 bullets and a wrap-up.

The more you practice, the more confident you’ll feel when this situation pops up.

 

DISTINGUISHED YOUNG WOMEN TIPS

Here are a couple other things to keep in mind during Self-Expression.

• If you need to adjust the microphone, do so and start to speak once you’ve positioned it and

  dropped your hands.

• Even though you are not timed, keep your response to 20 – 30 seconds.

• Make your response short and concise. Three to Seven sentences should be plenty.

• Feel free to personalize your response. If you have a related story or quote, use them but make sure

  they apply.

• Check with your program about the wardrobe requirements and be sure to ask if you have any

  concerns about the outfit you pick.