4 Key Elements Of Influential Speaking

Establish Your Credibility

The reason we give speeches, presentations, deliver reports in meetings, pitch ourselves or our products is to influence our listeners in a positive way.

Just to know that we have the power to do this, should give us confidence! It should even make us excited about getting up to speak!

But having confidence and expertise alone is not necessarily going to make an impact on your listeners. There are a few key elements of giving your speech that you should master if you want to influence your listeners and they need to be a part of every single presentation you deliver!

Be Honest

This might sound obvious, but when we lack confidence in ourselves we often find ourselves trying to be someone else or boost ourselves up. Even worse, we try to be as good as someone else. This will only backfire. The audience can see through you. Be authentic, be genuine, show your listeners your true self.

Connect with Your Audience

It may seem completely normal to be concerned with how you are doing when you are giving a speech or presentation, but to be influential, you need to take a different approach. From the moment you start to craft your speech, you have to put yourself in the minds of your listeners. Think like them, understand them and what they want to hear, not what you think they want to hear. Speak their language. Then when you are speaking, connect with each person. Look them in the eye, and speak just like you are having a conversation with each and every person in the room.

What Action Do You Want Them To Take?

Too many presenters and focused on their content, rather than the people who will receive it. An integral part of any presentation is the action you want you listeners to take as a result of listening to your speech. What do you want your audience to think, feel or do as a result of listening to you? This will actually make your presentation easier because you will have a specific purpose that will quantify the success of your presentation.

All of these points share one common theme. You have a responsibility to your audience.

Presenting and speaking is an opportunity for you to connect with your audience, to change their thinking, to inspire them, to motivate them, to help them to move forward and take action.