the voice

When one talks about the voice it means volume and quality at the same time. Volume, just like your radio, cassette, or DVD can be controlled.

In public speaking the volume of the voice could spell the difference between a successful delivery and a failure. Needless to say a soft voice sounds weak and does not project the kind of conviction so vital in making your audience agree with you or believe in you.

Self-confidence is greatly expressed in the voice. Someone who is sure of himself speaks in a powerful voice. He only whispers in the bedroom with close members of the family. But onstage he is a dynamite. He keeps the audience awake with his power and enthusiasm.

The quality of the voice however is something that a speaker has no control over for it is built-in along with his other physical attributes like the color of his hair and eyes, his height, the shape of the nose, etc. Voice quality is a gift. It is something you're born with. But does the quality of the voice matter in public speaking? It does but this aspect can be overlooked if you work on the other aspects of effective communication like the content of your speech, volume of the voice, body language, audience rapport, etc.

There was one very effective radio personality whose voice sounded no different than the croaking of a frog. But how come people listen to his radio programs? How come he gets invitations to speak in several gatherings? It is because of what he has to say, what he has to share with his listeners that make him a much-admired speaker.

To sum it up, the volume of your voice reflects self-confidence while its quality does not really matter that much if you're good in all the other areas.

Preparation is the key

Like a soldier going to battle, a speaker should come prepared. He should have done thorough research on the topic to add to his years of experience. With this, he will be able to impart valuable information effectively and more confidently.

The best cure for nervousness is PREPARATION. No matter how nervous one gets, but if he or she is prepared, she will still emerge victorious. Nothing can put down a speaker who knows what he is talking about---not even the most-feared monster called NERVOUSNESS.

I have already discussed a few tips on how to handle nervousness in public speaking but the best one is this

PREPARATION

Nervousness

Nervousness or stage fright could grip both professionals and beginners. It is a very normal feeling when faced with the challenge of having to face and speak before a group of people, be it in the classroom or in an auditorium. The thing is, some people just know how to manage or deal with their feelings of nervousness while a good number end up making a lot of blunders and showing them; thus, making their presentation a dismal failure.

How do you eliminate nervousness? First, you don't eliminate it because it will just be there while you wait for your turn and during the early part of your delivery. In other words, after some time, nervousness will just go away by itself in the course of your presentation or speech. Do not make the mistake of taking anything like a glass of wine or some pills rumored to banish nervousness.

Managing or controlling the feeling in such a way that it does not show during the entire speech is possible. I have personally done this many times in the past. Whenever I was going to be the emcee or host of any particular show or program, like any normal being, I'd have feelings of anxiety which I try to minimize by preparing for the program. Always ask for a copy for the program days before the show and try to make a sort of working script which will serve as your guide in making the affair come to a smooth finish.

Preparation is the best weapon against nervousness. Go prepared for the worst like an uncooperative or unruly audience, poor sound system, bad venue, etc. Of course, you cannot do miracles here. You can only deliver what you have.

Many times when hosting I'd even feel my hands shaking especially when the audience look strange to me. But what I'd always do is to command my body to keep still, tell my hands not to shake, etc. and almost always, amazingly, they obey.

Always remember that the mind controls the body. It can will the body to stay put and do what it wants it to do. The good news is, no matter how nervous you may be, the audience never notices this unless you show it to them. So do not make a fool of yourself while up there. Never show that you are nervous by doing any of these things:
1. looking up or looking down (not looking at the audience)
2. bouncing, rocking, dancing
3. speaking fast
4. putting out your tongue when you make a slight mistake
5. making unnecessary gestures (scratching, clapping, etc.)
6. using ah,ah,ah a lot
7. repeating certain words needlessly
8. apologizing for anything

Remember, there are only two people who do not get nervous---those in mental institutions and in the cemetery. You are young and alive, it is normal for you to get nervous BUT learn how to control it and not the other way around.

eye contact with the audience

The first thing that a speaker should do upon reaching the podium is to LOOK at the audience. This is one way of acknowledging their presence and an initial step towards building rapport with them.

What we mean by looking at the audience is this---LOOKING at them eye-to-eye and not just merely glancing or seeing them. Then as you deliver your speech, deliver it to them in the warmest fashion possible. You have a message to tell, then deliver it spontaneously, talk to them in such a way that they will be able to understand your message.

Another thing to remember is the fact that if you have a big audience it is expected that you maintain eye-to-eye contact with everyone---left side of the audience, center, right side. When you focus your attention to only one area, the other parts of the audience will feel neglected. That is why you have to make sure that you do eye contact with the audience who are seated everywhere in the hall.

century-old expressions or cliches as prop words?

A worn-out expression or cliche started with one person who said if for the first time and it sounded good to others who picked it up and used it themselves then got picked up by others who heard him and also used it and so on and so forth until it now becomes hackneyed or over-used and should therefore be avoided.

Many speakers think that using these hackneyed or century-old expressions will make them sound authoritative or professional. An example of some of these much-abused expressions are "in this connection", "as a matter of fact", sad to say", "in the meantime", "may I have the honor to present to you", "without much ado", "the last but not the least" and a lot more.

I know many of us fall in the pit of using cliches because their commonness make them easy to access and therefore could save the speaker from losing grip of the entire speech. When this happens, lapses and ah,ah,ah will take over and could be the end of your public speaking career.

In preparing your speech it is important to pay attention to your choice of words, in trying to say what you mean in fresh language and original style. Expressions that became a hit centuries ago may no longer work with today's tech-savvy listeners. We need to upgrade our vocabulary or get updated on the latest techno lingo in order to have some relevance to our modern-day audience.

Cliches, whether in writing or in speech, have to be avoided at all cost.

Varieties of "Ahs" in public speaking

Toastmasters have ah-counters or members assigned to count the number of "ahs" a speaker makes in a single speech. Members who sprinkle a 5-7 minute speech with numerous "ahs" will most likely be penalized for doing this. The superfluous use of "ahs" could spring from it being a habit acquired over the years which had remained uncorrected until now.

"Ah" breaks the line of thought and actually means nothing. It probably gives the speaker a sort of a crutch, some sort of filler to fill some "dead air". But too much of this could sound very annoying.

How does one avoid this? Simple. Just do not use it. Whenever you feel the need to go "ah, ah, ah" just bite your tongue and keep quiet for that split second temptation. Instead of saying "ah" to fill the gap, just stop and allow silence instead of saying that killer word.

But beware. Ah,ah, ah...has several cousins. Some speakers can easily find other prop words which in effect actually means ah,ah,ah. What are the varieties of Ah? Here they are:

Ladies and gentlemen..

At the end of the day....

Madam Chair...

My friends....

You have anything more to add to the list? Feel free to add them here under comment.

how do we make students speak up in class?

This is one problem many educators face today---making college students speak during class discussions. If a teacher is lucky he or she might be able to elicit the participation of one or two students in a class of say, 40 or 45. Whyyyyyy???



That is the big question.



Having dealt with different kinds of students for the past 25 years of teaching, I have heard students give almost the same reasons for this reluctance:



1) They are not used to it. They were never trained since elementary to high school to speak in front. The only time they spoke in front of their classmates was when they were asked by the teacher to recite the Panatang Makabayan from memory.



2) They are afraid to be ridiculed or laughed at when they make mistakes. This indicates low self-confidence resulting from poor or inadequate exposure.



3) Feeling of incompetence in speaking English which again is closely related to number 1 & 2.



When students are given more drills or practice in correct conversational English, this will give them the opportunity to use the language as often as possible and improve their fluency, thereby reducing their fear of making mistakes and developing them into better speakers of English.



However, this type of activity would need a lot of feedbacking from the teacher who should be actively listening and noting down errors in the students' use of the language. The teacher should not only sit there and listen to the students commit blunders and not do anything about it. The school did not pay her to just sit down, do nothing but wait for the bell. Her role is to improve students' performance. Feedback should be given at the end of every period, giving emphasis to the most common mistakes students make.



With such a class, the teacher starts with a motivation, reminding students what good speaking means, how important are audience contact and appropriate gestures, the significance of delivering the speech with a punch, the use of humor, poise, etc.



After a very good motivational opening, students begin their activity while the teacher should be actively noting down errors in language and delivery. Ten minutes before the time, the teacher goes up front to give the necessary feedback for the improvement of the students.

the mother of all diaries

This blog of mine is more than just a diary or journal for it records almost anything and everything. This is where I will be promoting my new blogs. Earlier I had given the links to my two new blogs at http://coolkidsparty.blogspot.com and http://speak4money.blogspot.com

which had to be born in order to put order in this personal blog of mine which has become the depository of everything. With my two new blogs, I will have more specific goals to pursue, but of course, this blog remains a hodgepodge of life's experiences. But there seems to be an aspect in each of us that awaits to be given recognition. It is this part of us which had remained a secret all these years---our embarrassments and failures, our scares and losses. We all have them but do we dare let the world know about them, our darkest thoughts and secrets? This blog, http://offbeatmom.blogspot.com is a woman's journey through a life of thorns and rocks.

This blog being what it is becomes the mother of all diaries.

a thousand "Ladies and gentlemen"

It is amazing to hear how young debaters, learning the skill of debating for the first time, had absorbed the bad habits of their predecessors. I do not only mean the dancing and the bouncing while driving their arguments but the profuse use of certain terms and expressions that can easily irritate the ears of the audience after listening to all of them.

In a short speech of 5 to 7 minutes, you would hear a deluge of "ladies and gentlemen" rattled by all 8 debaters. Multiply that by 7 and that's almost an hour of hearing "ladies and gentlemen" used freely all throughout. "At the end of the day" I thought I heard the expression a thousand times.

Another favorite expression which will most likely take the place of "ladies and gentlemen" is "at the end of the day" which I heard 20 times running second to everybody's favorite "ladies and gentlemen".

When their attention was called regarding the obvious and profuse use of "ladies and gentlemen", the new debaters have found another clutch on a new phrase, "at the end of the day".

Needless repetition and redundancy are discouraged anywhere whether in writing or public speaking. An expression should, as much as possible be only used once during the entire speech. Repeating it may not be a very good idea. Saying it more than twice will make you sound like a bore to say the least.