Speaking well to convey the right messages

Managing stress, clearly expressing one’s thoughts, respecting the speaking time, pacing one’s speech, managing interactions with the audience – good speakers master all these aspects of public speaking. And it’s not by chance, nor a special gift. Here are six essential tips.

1. Put yourself in the other person’s shoes.

It’s about putting the audience at the centre, and it’s essential to tailor your message to those you are addressing: journalists need information, shareholders need an investment pitch, the general public needs a simplified explanation of complex subjects, etc.

2. Confidently take full command of the audience.

The spotlights are on you; you have to own it. By appearing perfectly at ease in this situation and happy to be there, you will enhance your communication power. Effective public speaking is lively, confident and resolute.

3. Start with the conclusion.

This will help everyone understand what is important. This is called the Anglo-Saxon hammer method (as opposed to the French funnel method, which consists of gradually leading the audience to the conclusion through a Cartesian demonstration).

4. Keep it simple and brief.

Avoid lengthy explanations that might lose or bore your audience. Effective communication relies on simple, concise key messages: halve your content, prepare well-phrased, rhythmic sound bites, and you will double your impact.

5. Repeat.

It is more effective to repeat a few messages several times than to have many messages that are only mentioned once. Our brain needs to hear the same idea three times to memorise it.

6. Practice.

Appearing natural and spontaneous requires extensive preparation. A presentation that has been thoroughly prepared and rehearsed will automatically become more natural for the speaker.