[Black Quixote]

The ability to capture the attention of an audience has given power to men and women for centuries. It's saved lives, made millions, destroyed cities, and more. To discount it, is to limit yourself and lose a tool that is formidable in the right hands.

If you are not open to new ideas, then save yourself the trouble of trolling and close this thread. There are many others for you to pre-occupy yourself with. My approach to Public Speaking comes from years of training and development in Public Speaking, Acting, and Social Dynamics and psychology.

A Disclaimer: The things laid out in this data sheet are only useful in application. But, it isn't an automatic magic pill. Think of it as a process. In order for it to work, you have to practice, you have to study, you have to apply yourself.

It's broken down into the following:

Brief Summary of my experiences
Theory
Practice
Excercises
Videos and Resources + Classes that can help.

They will be flowing between each other.

At the end, feel free to ask me questions and I will attempt to respond as soon as possible.

Brief Summary of my experiences:

I have performed, written, or directed in over 100 productions and theatrical events. I have ran webinars, workshops, and podcasts. I even managed through my conversational and smoothtalking ability, to pretend to be a mentor and taught my own workshop after the intended instructor didn't arrive at a conference and canceled and was commended after it was made aware I wasn't booked. (I was a crazy teenager).

Even at a young age, I caused a riot at my elementary school by rousing the other kids in my class and going from class to class...twice. Even in middle school, I broke records in sales for my school using the skills I am about to lay out briefly.

So, I believe to some degree, I know what I am talking about. Now, you don't have to believe anything I say, in fact, I challenge you to be skeptic, but I ask have an open mind and at least test what I offer before you judge.

Let's move on...

Part I. Theory:

The art of public speaking has a connotation of being difficult, standing solo before a gaping and disinterested audience and being forced to be persuasive and coerce them to follow your point.

Imagine, looking out from a stage into bright lights, rows of indescript faces, judging, with your only cue being laughter, and other vocalized reactions. Now, let's take it a step further to the absurd. You're back in the times of Seneca. You're before an audience that wishes to have your head. You have to deliver, or be at the mercy of their anger. Two very different audiences but the problem is the same. You need to get your point across and capture their hearts and minds.

It's hard, your voice is weak, you are nervous, you've never been good at it.

So let me start with the following statement:

They don't know your story, even if they've known you your whole life, read your diary and look inside the bottom of your underwear, when you are presenting or speaking, you are the magician.

To be more basic: Act as if.

You need to first and foremost internalize the mindset of "I am the king, speaking to my court. I am Seneca. I am Tony Robbins but less corny." How do you do that? When I was a kid, I used to watch movies, copy the gestures, the body language, the tonality of people I believed could sway an audience or other people.

You'd be surprised how often through physical alteration, mental alteration occurs.

Make a list of your top three favorite speakers. If you need ideas, go watch TedTalks, Tony Robbins, etc. etc. on Youtube. Take notes, for example:

-Notice how they carry themselves. Strong body language, aka shoulders back, either relaxed face or intense (depending on the audience), open stance.
-They use questions, simply telling someone an answer is nowhere near as potent as a question that leads them to the answer themselves. Have you ever been asked a question with an obvious answer, only for it be expounded upon? Of course you have. We all have. It's: "Cheating is bad, but sometimes its' necessary" people scrutinize and filter a statement vs. "Who here thinks cheating is wrong by a show of hands? Ok. Who here has ever cheated on their taxes? or Who here has ever taken more then one free sample of something?" So cheating isn't that bad...".

Try to replicate it.

Next point:

Know Your Audience

I was blessed with the ability to walk into a room and automatically size people up. But, randomly I lost the talent. So, it became that I had to consider to whom I was appealing to based off the organization and event coordinators. I asked them the following questions:
-Whats the general background of most of the people coming? You'll get a decent idea.
or
-What's (insert business owner name here) like? I heard he's (make something up and wait to be corrected). What were your experiences like with him?

Be aware of the frame coming into this. If you are coming in front of an audience and speaking on a stage, that means usually to some degree you are seen as an expert. Even if you are coming to a top company to teach a workshop, you are seen as an expert until proven otherwise. So *hint hint* be knowledgable to the point of confidence.

For those of you that don't know, a frame is basically your mental representation of the world or your viewpoint, when you and another person come into contact, your frames crash and whoever has the stronger frame wins. Unreactivity in the face of problems or objections, moves of defiance against those with stronger social proof, and even just having greater social proof (such as being the one on stage) gives you power.

Use it.

If you are speaking to a room full of children, you're going to be more animated, make bigger faces, tell more simple jokes, and make references that appeal to them.

If you are in a room full of liberal psuedo intellectuals, you are going to use more references, quotes, humor to win over their guards and shields.

Know your audience.

One time in middle school, I had forgotten to do a "Whats Your Message" project, I had nothing. My mother woke me up, I got dressed, at breakfast, and hopped on the bus to school. I was seated next to a girl that was in my class that told me we had a presentation due. A wave of panic washed over me with the speed and strength of a tsunami.

I instantly pulled out my notebook and started scribbling bs down. I got off the bus went into the hallway and kept scribbling ideas. I walked to class and sat in my first class scribbling, next one scribbling, next one scribbling. Lunch time? Scribbling. Then, it hit me. I was walking on the playground think I needed to relax. I sat on a bench and looked at my books and then had a holy shit moment.

Eureka! I had a holy shit moment. I got a few kids, went to the library. We made a posterboard and diagrams and went to the auditorium. I walked on stage when I was called, confident.

I spoke about procrastination. How procrastination is a tool. How some of the greatest minds used procrastination to discover something much more. I can't remember the examples I used, (we looked up names in a frenzy). And talked about how procrastination isn't just something that destroys, it's something that builds. It's not always a problem, it can be a solution. You use it to test out things you otherwise would never try. I made my teachers laugh, I made the students laugh.

A+.

You get the point. Which brings me to a short next point:

Be Flexible

If you have too set a plan, you will fail. If it's an event, power fails. If it's a meeting, people aren't there, you lose things, there are interruptions. You have to MAINTAIN A STRONG FRAME and roll with the punches. Think like this: "No matter what happens, I am going to go with the obstacles and deliver my message".

Part II is coming later tonight.

Which will cover:
-Know Your Presentation
-Bring the Passion
-Stories, Anecdotes, Quotes to make a point or build rapport through humor etc. etc.
-Work on your tonality and vocal diversity
-Make your speech, your pitch, your idea, a community.

It will be more exercises and directly applicable info as well as techniques an a few videos.

Til then.

[Black Quixote]

Part II.

Know your presentation on't use notecards. Fuck notecards.

One of the things I am asked 80% of the time, is: How do I get over self consciousness/anxiousness etc. etc?

Well, It's alot more simple than you think. Your fear stems from the unknown, from possibilities, from perhaps even past experiences that were unfortunate in which you registered a negative association with the idea of speaking to groups.

It can be scary.

All of the attention is on you. Every detail is being taken in, from the way you walk, to how you hold yourself, to your dress. In your mind, the villagers are going to burn you at the stake if you suck, or at least don't bring it.

Think there is no way to remedy it? Think again.

You just need to A) Build up your comfort with attention. B) Work on your delivery.

I am going how to show you a few ways, in minutes a day you can do just that.

An exercise for A)

1. Go to a mall, a park, subway or anywhere: Write a short 1 minute speech, that describes you and who you are and that you have social anxieties. Stand up on a chair, bench, whatever. Make sure you have an audience, no matter how small. Start off with "Hello everyone. I know this seems strange. I am _________ and this is a social exercise in the art of presenting to others. I am a ______ and etc. etc." you get the idea. During this, make eye contact with each person looking at you, even for a moment. Smile. Use your hands. And deliver it. Do this everyday for a week three times a day. You can afford that. Don't be lazy.

For B):

1. Take your laptop, or cell phone and go to a secluded area in your house.
2. Find a monologue or speech.
3. Videotape yourself once a day delivering it. Pay attention to your voice, body language, whether you are fully using the space the camera allows.

-Take your time. Don't rush through it, on important parts or when you need to make a point, speak more slowly, strongly, and pause. Then go onto the next line. Too often, people rush through and don't take their time.
-Enunciate. Don't go overboard, but be sure to fully use your lips and tongue to form your words, and project your voice by using your breathe.

Your presentation is important. The connection you bridge between yourself and your audience is based on the story you are telling to them, whether it a simple summary of the month's expenses or if you are selling.

Don't use notecards. They, are the killers of the best presentations. You need to know it in and out word for word. Memorize it, study it, sleep with it.

Be able to summarize your key points in a few sentences, outline it.

Notecards cause presenters to look down and break the connection between themselves and the audience. It drops the illusion. If you must absolutely use a prompt make it as brief as possible and look down when already finishing a sentence. Make it appear as if you are contemplating, not lost.

Bring the Passion, bring the passion, Bring the passion.

You need to believe in what you are doing.

You need to believe in it even if it's against what you actually want.

Being emotive, using the stage, or area you have keeps the attention on you. A moving object is easier to keep focus on then one just stationary. Think back to school. The teachers who were passionate and moved held you more than those that didnt.

You need to be radiating passion from your presentation, because it gives people something to relate to. Emotion hits harder than logic, it's what makes people go "Wow" moreso then "Oh that's cool".

Bring the fire. See the video below. Don't feel the need to always be over the top, but don't let the presentation stay low energy the entire time.

Stories, Anecdotes, Quotes to make a point or build rapport through humor etc. etc.

A little theatricality can be a good thing. Stories, make you more real, more amiable, more human. Tell a story that is relevant. If you are selling your model for a fishing rod for example:

"When I was 7, my father woke me one morning, I should say cold night (laughter), at five am. He hustled me into the car that was packed and we whisked onto the road. I slept the whole way. When I awoke, we were at a lake. I didn't understand, until he handed me a rod and a tacklebox and said. (In a scruffy deep voice) "Son, a man isn't a man unless he can catch his food". Now, I was wide awake. We got into a small canoe and he paddled steadily to the center of the lake. He leaned back fixed his rod, cast it, and sat. I tried to the same, got caught on my jacket and he laughed, much to my embarrassment. Tried again, it sank. He turned "now we wait". And we did, and waited, and waited, and waited. I was confused, what was I doing out at this time of morning on a lake with him fishing. Then, something happened. The line shook, my dad reached put my hands on it, and wound and before my eyes like magic appeared a fish flipping infront of me wildly. I just stared and stared and he smiled proud. He told me, "this is what it means to be a man". The sun rose slowly on the horizon and it shined. We fished like that once a month every year to this day. This, is why I sell outdoor equipment, it's more than just fun, it's an experience". Not that dramatic, not that intricate, but you get the point.

It can be deeply emotive, or funny. Use quotes:

“If you tell the truth, you don't have to remember anything.

Can be used. Walk in with your notecards in hand, look up and make eye contact. Toss the notecards and say "There's a saying (quote). So, that's just what I want this to be, not a speech, but a conversation".

It's your best tool for building rapport, raising emotions, whatever.

Videos + Book:

I'm not going to overload you with recommendations. I am going to post two videos and one book. If you read it, then contact me for another. No point in putting forth too many at once. Especially because this one book will revolutionize the way you pitch, speak, or even interact.

-Pitch Anything by Oren Klaff

One of my favorites on bringing the passion:

Part III. After a few responses/comments/questions. Don't want to overwhelm.

[elabayarde]

A little to deep for the average non-public figure or leader type.... I once was very proficient public speaking... It transfers so well to game...

[chakri]

Another method of captivating an audience: the fact that you are leaving us hungry for more by splitting up your content into three parts

[Black Quixote]

Essentially, it's to get some responses going, but there's only been a few people who appeared to take anything from it and liked it and one comment. I wanted to get deeper questions so I can answer them and offer more value then the general ideas after the first two posts.

[Edmund Dantes]

I like the points you made and can't wait for part 3. One thing I want to stress is PASSION. That is the one thing that makes boring speakers into captivating speakers. I remember the difference between my college professors. My history professor was so passionate that I learned a great deal compared to my philosophy professor who droned on even when he made interesting points. Some good examples of speakers are Hitler and MLK. Both had such a deep faith in what they preached that it changed the world.