CHAPTER 6Public Communication

PUBLIC COMMUNICATION

The transmission of a message from a single sender to numerous receivers

IMPROMPTU DELIVERY• No notes or formal preparation;

spontaneous and informal in nature

• Pros: Less formal style, more conversational; allows for quick and creative thinking; good practice

• Cons: Lack of preparation available, could know nothing about topic

• Ex: Making an exchange at the store, Miss America Q & A, roomful of strangers at that wedding reception, get asked an unanticipated question, called on in class, job interview

MANUSCRIPT DELIVERY• When the entire speech is read

from a script

• Pros: High accuracy in wording and content, gives sense of security

• Cons: Lack of eye contact, can sound mechanical and cold, can reduce your engagement with the audience, can struggle if you lose place on page

• Ex: Political speeches, proclamations, dedications, work presentations, eulogies

MEMORIZED DELIVERY• Delivery of a speech that has

been memorized beforehand

• Pros: Ability to practice and make points beforehand, can make eye contact

• Cons: Can sound mechanical and fake, forgetting a part of the speech can cause you to get frazzled

• Ex: Poetry slams, plays, stand up comics

EXTEMPORANEOUS DELIVERY• A speech that has been planned and

researched ahead of time

• Pros: Allows for good eye contact, let’s you research points beforehand and practice but have a conversational delivery, let’s your personality shine through

• Cons: Notecards can be used improperly, delivery depends on good practice

• Ex: Class lectures, work meetings, homilies, presentations

BEFORE CHOOSING A TOPIC

• What are the guidelines for the speech?

• What mode of delivery should I use?

• What type of speech is this? (informative, persuasive, etc.)

• Do I need visual aids? Are they allowed? What types are allowed?

• What type of research is required?

• What are the time constraints?

BEFORE CHOOSING A TOPIC

• Who am I speaking to?

• Demographics

• The audience’s age, sex, race, religion, income, sexual orientation, educational background, employment status, etc.

• Homogenous groups vs. heterogeneous groups

• Homogeneous-audience shares characteristics

• Heterogeneous-audience does not share characteristics

• Motive

• Why is the audience there to hear you speak?

COMING UP WITH A TOPIC

• Brainstorming

• Write down any and all topic ideas that come to mind within a small time frame.

• Self-inventory

• What are your hobbies? What interests you? What do you like? What do you know a lot about?

IS MY TOPIC RIGHT FOR ME? • Why do I want to speak about this?

• Pick something you want to talk about and are passionate about.

• What do I know about this?

• Speak about something that you are knowledgeable about and that will give you credibility.

• What does my audience know about this?

• Are they extremely knowledgeable about your topic, or not at all?

• Does this topic meet the requirements?

• Make sure you can reach your time limit without cutting out important points, make sure your speech is conducive to the type of speech, etc.

EYE CONTACT

Good eye contact helps you

• Engage the audience

• Display confidence

• Ease tensions

EYE CONTACT TIPS• See people.

• Be sure to actually look and make eye contact with individuals in your audience. Look at their facial expressions for reactions to what you’re saying.

• Shrink the room.

• Imagine that the room is really quite small and you’re having a conversation with just one person. Not only will your presentation take a conversational tone, but you’ll find yourself less nervous.

• Find out how long it takes to make genuine eye contact.

• Practice your presentation with a group of friends. Ask them to indicate when they feel you have made an eye connection with them.

• Move to another person at an appropriate time.

• Typically you’ll find that it takes about a sentence to make genuine eye contact. It’s a great idea to move from person to person making eye contact with each changing sentence.

EYE CONTACT TIPS• Look for the reaction.

• Look for your presentation participant to nod. If and when they do, you’ll know that you have made a connection and that they are processing the information you have presented.

• Keep your eyes up at the end.

• At the end of the sentence be sure to keep your eyes up, even if it’s habit to look down at your notes to see what the next point may be. Wait to look at your notes until you have stopped talking at the end of the sentence and then look back up to begin your next sentence.

• Don’t be a lighthouse or a tennis umpire.

• A lighthouse presenter is predictable – they go around the room in a systematic fashion. Similarly, a tennis umpire looks left, then right, then left, etc. Be sure to add variety to your presentation.

• Respect people who are uncomfortable.

• It may be obvious to you that a presentation participant is uncomfortable. It may be the topic you’re presenting, a differing cultural norm or something you may have nothing to do with. Be respectful by giving them less attention, but don’t ignore them.

LANGUAGE TO AVOID• Slang

• informal words and phrases that are more common in speech than writing, and are typically restricted to a particular context or group of people

• ex. far out, I can’t even, on fleek, YOLO, frenemy

• Jargon

• special words or expressions that are used by a particular profession or group and are difficult for others to understand

• Ex. medical terms, legal terms, IT terms, police terms, military terms

• Cliché

• an overused phrase that has lost it’s originality

• Ex. Pen is mightier than the sword, raining cats and dogs

• Paraphrasing

• restating an idea in your own words

SPEAKING

• Articulation

• production of sounds using tongue, teeth, and palate properly

• Pronunciation

• the correct way of saying a word

• Enunciation

• the marriage of articulation and pronunciation

• the clear and correct way to produce sounds and say words

FOUR P'S OF VOCAL VARIETY

• Pace: Speak too fast and it sounds like you're nervous or a used car salesman trying to pull a fast one. If the pace is too slow, you're going to sound like the village idiot.

• Pitch: Pit your voice too low and nobody will hear you. Speak too high and you sound nervous.

• Pauses: Build them into your speech--sparingly. If pauses are too short, it'll sound like you're scrambling for words. But a few well-timed pauses create a sense of intrigue and curiosity.

• Passion: This all-important quality will be the biggest selling point you have. Love your topic.

USING NOTES

• only outline your speech using bullets; don’t put your speech word for word

• use main points

• use facts and figures in notes if needed for accuracy

• avoid sounding mechanical; don’t use them as a crutch

PRESENTING YOURSELF

• The way you dress sets the tone

• jeans=relaxed vibe, full suit=professional vibe

• watch for wearing anything loud or distracting

• Abstain from nervous movements and fidgeting

WATCH YOUR TIME

• Keep the attention span of the audience in mind

• Leave enough time for your conclusion

• Don’t ramble to meet the time constraints