The Art of public speaking Essay

Chapter 1: Speaking in public Power of Public Speaking Greek Pericles: one who forms a judgment on any point but cannot explain it clearly might as well never had thought at all on the subject† Public speaking is consistently rated high on employers lists The Tradition of Public Speaking Historical people who used speaking effectively Similarities and Differences in Public Speaking and Daily Conversation Similarities Organizing your thoughts logically Tailoring your message to your audience Telling a story for maximum impact- building up your story Adapting to listener feedback Differences Speaking to groups is very highly structured Strict time restrictions Most don’t allow for question interruptions (must plan for and anticipate questions that might arise in listeners mind) Public Speaking requires more formal language No slang jargon bad grammar or curse words Highly structured Public Speaking requires a different method of delivery Proper posture, no vocalizing fillers for times ( uhh, urm, ehh) and avoid distracting mannerisms (hand talking) and verbal habits Developing confidence: In your speech class  40 % of people said public speaking was worst fear Everyone gets nervous at speaking, great speakers use this to help their speech Focus on transforming nervousness to one of positive nervousness ( controlled nervousness that helps energize a speaker for their presentation) Tricks to turn nervousness from negative to positive Get experience in speaking- the more you do it the les scary it will be  because its not new and threatening Be prepared- 1- hours for every minute spoken Pick topics that are close to you Think Positively: 5 positive thoughts for every negative one Visualize you speaking well You don’t look as nervous as you think Public Speaking and Critical Thinking Critical Thinking- focused organized thinking about such things as the logical relationships among ideas, the soundness of evidence and the difference between fact and opinion The Speech Communication Process Speaker Be enthusiastic for people to be engaged in your speech Message Have and intended message that will be actually be communicated Keep a narrowed topic Be aware of the message you are sending with your voice, appearance, gestures, facial expressions and eye contact. Don’t let your non verbal cues distract from your intended message Channel- the means by which a message is communicated by Listener-person receiving spoken messages Frame of reference- the total of the listeners knowledge, experience, goals, values, and attitudes Because the speaker and listener will never have the same meaning of a speech itll carry a different meaning for each of them Feedback- messages sent for listener to speaker Interferencee- anything impeding the communication of the message Extental- outside distracting noises or situations Internal- distractions cominmg from the inside of a listner Situation-time and place communication is going down Taioloring a speech to the context of the event (graduation, funeral, church) Public Speaking in a Multicultural World Language is the biggest barrier betweent difference in cultures Enthocentrisim- belief that ones own culture is superior Chapter 2: Ethics and Public Speaking The Importance of ethics Guidelines for ethical speaking Make sure goals are ethically sound Just because your ethical background makes you for an issue someoe who mamkes a descision against you based on their ethics doesn’t make them wrong Be fully prepared for a speech Be prepared because you not only was your time if you speak badly but you waste the individuals in the audiences’ times as well. Be Honest Hiding the truth to protect the vast community isn’t unethical but lying to protect yourself is Don’t juggle statistics, quote outa context, misrepresenting sources, painting tentative findings as finite, citing unique situations as normal representation or substitute innuendo and half-truths for proof Avoid Name calling and abusive language Name calling- the use of stereotypical labels meant to degrade and dehumanize and silence opposing sides. Using such language is a destructive social force and will also make your audience doubt you entire speech and message Plagiarism- passing off someone else’s work as your own without credit Global Plagiarism- copying an entire document or speech verbatim Patchwork Plagiarism- piecing together more than one document and passing of as your own. Can have some transitions but a vast majority is completely copied Incremental Plagiarism- failing to give credit to an author of a quotation or paraphrase of ideas Ways to stop accidental plagiarism Take note of title of document Group/person responsible for the document Date document was last updated Date site was accessed Guidelines for ethical listening Be courteous and attentive Avoid prejudging the speaker Maintain free and open expression of ideas Chapter 3: Listening Listening is Important Listening- pay close attention to and making sense of what we hear Good listening improves efficient, sales, customer satisfaction and employee morale Effective listening correlates to higher grades Listening and Critical Thinking Types of listeners Appreciative listening- listening for pleasure or enjoyment Music movies comedy Empathic listening- listening to provide emotional support for a speaker Friends, family, psychiatrist Comprehensive listening- listening to understand the message of a speaker Class room lecture, listening to directions Critical listening- listening to evaluate a message for purposes of accepting or rejoicing it Sales pitch, campaign speeches, sermons Four Causes of Poor Listening Not Concentrating Letting your mind wander and not focus on what is being said Listening too hard Trying to remember insignificant amounts of information verses the speakers main points Jumping to conclusions Instead of waiting for answers just assuming the worst and going with it Marking a speakers message as unimportant before even giving them a chance Focusing on delivery and personal appearance How to become a better Listener Take Listening Seriously Be an Active Listener Give your undivided attention to the speaker to genuinely try and understand their point of view Resist distractions Try anticipate what the speaker might say Review what the speaker has already said Don’t be Diverted by Appearance or Delivery Suspend judgment Until you hear the entire speech Set aside your own prejudices, frames of reference and desires to fully  appreciate what the speaker is trying to get across A closed mind is an empty mind Focus your Listening Listen for Main Points Listen for evidence Matched up with the main points to support them Questions to ask about evidence Is it accurate? Is it taken from objective sources? Is it relevant to the speaker’s claims? Is it sufficient to support the speaker’s point? Listen for technique Take note of any speakers techniques of delivering the speech to better your own speech techniques Developing good note taking skills Focus on important main points The key word outline- outline that briefly notes a speakers main points and supporting evidence in rough outline form Chapter 4: Giving Your First Speech Preparing Your Speech Developing your Speech Focusing Your Topic Don’t try and cover everything Stick to the time limit Developing Your Topic Be creative Only use humor if it comes natural and doesn’t offend any one Organizing the Speech Introduction Grab the interests of the audience Orient audience with subject matter of speech Body Organize either chronologically or topically Use effective transitions Limit and focus number of main points Conclusion Relate back to intro without restating Signal that you are concluding End strongly Delivering your Speech Speaking Extemporaneously (appears conversational) A hybrid between writing the whole speech and writing nothing Uses a brief structured outline but uses spontaneity to help fill in the gaps Rehearsing the Speech Presenting the Speech Starting Relaxed natural posture Look confident Plant your feet keep natural small gestures Eye contact Very important and will impress audience Voice Use inflections; don’t go over bored; don’t sound monotone Projection is key SLOW DOWN Chapter 5: Selecting a Topic and a Purpose Choosing a Topic Topics you know a lot about Draws from your own experiences and knowledge Think unusual and unique to you Topics you want to know more about Something you are interested in but have little knowledge in without research Something you have very strong opinions in Brain Storming Personal Inventory Write everything about you( hobbies, experiences, likes, opinions, everything) and decide where to go from there Clustering Make nine lists of about 4-5 entries (people places things events processes concepts natural phemonoms problems and plans) From that big list pick 3-4 entries that interest you and free- associate those out until you get a  unique interesting speech idea Internet Search Scan an online web site based encyclopedia like thing for possible topics Determining the General Purpose To inform Acting like a teacher giving a lecture To persuade Acting like a partisan or advocate Determining the Specific Purpose Narrow down into 1 sentence Tips for formulating the Specific purpose statement Write the Purpose as a complete sentence Express your purpose as a statement, not as a question Avoid Figurative Language Limit to one idea Make sure purpose isn’t vague/ general Phrasing the Central Idea Chapter 6: Analyzing the Audience Audience-Centeredness Important questions Who am I speaking to What do I want them to know/believe/or do as a result of my speech What is the most effective way to compose my speech to get this aim Your classmates as an audience The psychology of audiences People are egocentric and only care about what they are going to get from a speech Your audience will only grasp concepts in their frame of reference Demographic audience analysis Age Each generation has similar general values and experience that shape them differently from the rest Gender Men and woman are not alike in their beliefs so take account of that Religion Sexual Orientation Be inclusive and avoid derogatory terms like lifestyle and homosexual Race, ethnic and cultural Backgrounds Group Memberships BASICALLY BE GENERAL AF AND DON’T STEP ON ANYONES TOES EVER BCZ PEOPLE ARE SENSITIVE Don’t try to fully change their viewpoints just open their minds Situational audience analysis-audience analysis that focuses on situational factors such as size physical setting and the disposition of the audience to the speaker, topic, and occasion Size Larger=more formal Size effects.. Language Choice of appeals Visual aids Physical setting Disposition toward the topic Things that effect the likelihood your audience will be captivated Interest Knowledge and interest goes hand in hand Knowledge Attitude Disposition toward the speaker Talk about things you are an expert on and definitely stay away from things you cant relate to Disposition toward the occasion Don’t go against the norm of typical speeches recognized at such occasions Getting information about the audience Adapting to the audience Chapter 7: Gathering Materials Using your own knowledge and experience Doing library research Resources you should use Librarians Catalogue Reference books Encyclopedias Yearbooks Quotation books Biographical aids Newspaper and periodical databases Academic databases