A Presentation Tip - Five Ways to Open a Speech

Another one in the series of articles that i sharing with you all.. in this week.. here it is..

Ultimately, an opening should capture interest, let the audience bond with the speaker, and set the agenda. Setting the agenda is the easiest part of the opening, but what about the first few words out of your mouth?

SIX TIPS FOR A STRONG OPEN

1. Don't start with "Thank You"

Many presenters begin by thanking the person who introduces them or thanking the organization they are speaking to. Pretty boring. Talking for the first two or three minutes with this kind of chit-chat is not the best tactic to "wow" your audience. Yes, do thank the organization, but first, engage your listeners. You can bring in your "thank yous" toward the end. I've even seen seasoned presenters weave their "thank you" after their introduction but before the main part of their speech.

2. Open with a Question

Engaging an audience is one of the most important strategies you can put in place. And beginning with a question or a series of questions naturally allows you to interact right out of the gate. Asking the audience a question that allows for feedback is a great way to get them engaged. Try to illicit a show of hands: "How many of you have...?" or "How many of you believe...?" or "How many of you are familiar with..."? Now answer the question and lead into the next set of ideas.

Some speakers prefer to open with a rhetorical question that does not require audience participation. I once heard a lawyer open his speech with a rhetorical question that got everyone's interest: "Do you think any lawyers get into heaven?" The key is to get attention and get the audience to relate to and bond with you.

3. Open with a Surprising Statement

Depending on the audience, another strategy is to begin with a startling statement. In business, this could be using an interesting or even outrageous number: "We can grow by 30% even in this economy." or "Three thousand customers...that's the number of existing clients we lost this year." Unusual figures get the audience thinking right away.

4. Don't Open with Too Much Surprise

But be careful how startling you are. Too much controversy can annoy or even anger an audience. I once heard a speaker open with, "You helped kill and torture over 20 million animals last year. That's because your tax dollars paid for animal experiments in federally funded laboratories." The speaker never regained the audience's trust. Be interesting, stimulating or unconventional, but be careful about being controversial.

5. Begin with a Twist or an Opposite Idea

A great way to really rivet attention is to show an audience the opposite of what they expect. What if you showed a picture of a fish with small legs walking, or a bear with webbed feet swimming or New York underwater? Follow the images with, "These could be pictures of what our world will be like a thousand years from now if we do not stop global warming." Replace the familiar with the unfamiliar and audiences are immediately curious.

6. Open with Objects or a Prop

Some presenters have great success by showing the audience objects or using a prop. Holding up an egg, and saying, "This is what our company is like right now: very, very fragile..." or come out holding a helium balloon and let it float onto the ceiling: "There go our customer satisfaction ratings...can we retrieve them or just watch them float away'"? Think of what your audience would relate to and plan a prop or object you can use to capture their interest.

There are many ways to begin your presentation, but ultimately, your opening should be genuine: something that you feel comfortable with and most importantly, it should be an opening that everyone in the audience can relate to. That is what will make for a memorable opening and a memorable speaker

Impressive outstanding presentation

I think presnetation is one of the most crucial things in our life.. when we are at school we have to present ourselves in front of our class and teachers and as we grow in to college & later in our jobs.. Presentation of our ownself in front of our colleagues, customers, family is something which can really give an impression good or bad about us as an individual or a company so keeping these things in mind.. here is something for creating impressive outstanding presentation in today's competitive world..

Standing out is a function of how your present yourself to others and how you react to others. The ability to be a good listener is a strong stand out quality. The best and most powerful form of listening is "active listening." It fulfills two very basic human needs-to be heard and to be understood. There are three crucial steps to active listening.

Think of the acronym EAR to help you remember these steps:

ENGAGE THE SPEAKER. In other words, show the speaker that you're listening by looking him in the eye, nodding occasionally, showing appropriate facial expressions (a smile for good news, concern for distressing news). Project open and relaxed body language. Also keep in mind that total silence does not imply listening. Give vocal signals such as: "mm-hmm," "yes," "really?," "I see," etc.

ACTUALLY HEAR WHAT'S BEING SAID. This means you have to pay attention and process the information. You must concentrate on the content of the message, which is what the speaker is saying, plus the intent, which is what she's feeling or what she means. It may help by repeating to yourself her key words or main ideas and also observing the nonverbal cues she's giving.

RESPOND APPROPRIATELY. This third step is the key to effectively wielding the power of listening. Instead of saying, "Yes, but...", you let the other party know you've heard and understood him. It can take three forms:

1. 1 Paraphrasing. This means repeating the gist of the message. It's generally preceded by, "So what you're saying is..." or "In other words..." or "If I understand you correctly..." The ability to do this lets the speaker know you did in fact hear the content of what he said. The amazing thing about paraphrasing is that once people feel like you heard them, they can be more receptive and open to what you have to say.

2. 2 Probing. This is a particularly important technique in diffusing the tension that comes with disagreement. After the speaker has made a statement, instead of launching into your rebuttal, you probe for more information. "Why do you think that?" "What's the downside to that?" "Can you give me some examples?" This lets the speaker know you're interested in hearing his side, which in turn will make him more likely to listen to your side.

3. 3 Reflecting back feelings. This is the finer-tuned skill of interpreting how the speaker feels about what she said. "You must be so proud," or "That certainly must have made you angry," or "I imagine you're very hurt by that..." are examples of reflecting. This is the ultimate validation a speaker can receive: being heard and being understood. When you give that gift to others, it opens doors, breaks down barriers, reduces anger and decreases resistance.

Listening actively is a magical skill. Its mastery can have a profound, positive impact on giving you "stand out" presence

hello... I am back

sounds like a dialogue from one of the classic flips.. of Arnold's movies.. terminator.. :)

Anyway... this is to just let my blog followers to know that I was quite busy with my work and hence consiously had stopped any activity on the blog.. it was very difficult to write something rather find time to write something..

Mostly I shall try to write at least over the weekends..from here on.. if not regularly.. anyway.. I shall keep collecting or putting my thoughts in drafts and will post them when time comes..

so I shall start with that activity from today onwards.. since my wife has helped me in getting some good articles to share with to you all.. hope you like them.. and let your comments & crticism come thru..