4. Effective Speaking:

4. Effective Speaking: The Short Presentation. During your business career you
will be required to make a variety of oral presentations. These may be as short as three
minutes, such as for introducing a speaker, or as long as one hour, such as for making a
technical presentation. The size of the audience may vary from one individual to
hundreds, and the purpose may vary from informative to comparative to persuasive.
Planning Your Short Presentation: Like written communications, speeches must be well
planned. Analyze your audience and note how much time is allotted to you to speak.
Planning your talk in relationship with your allotted time and audience level is very
important. However, the critical factor in planning is the organization of the presentation
itself. Just as with a written report, the communicator must carefully determine the major
topics and minor areas, then integrate them in a logical order for the greatest impact on
the audience.
The presentation itself may be divided into 3 parts, as follows:
1. Introduction: Usually it is wise to introduce your speech by stating your
purpose, problem, and goal. This gives your audience an idea of what you will
be speaking about and how it relates to them.
2. Body: The bulk of your time should be spent on developing your main ideas
and arguments to support your central theme. The logic of the presentation is
increased by using a consistent order of development (deductive, inductive,
chronological, etc.). It is possible to use more than one order of development
in a presentation provided a logical sense is maintained.
3. Conclusion: The conclusion usually summarizes the main ideas and urges the
audience to adopt a specific course of action.
Principles of Effective Public Speaking:
o Knowledge: you should be completely familiar with your topic. This
has two advantages: first, you will be more confident as you address
your audience; second, you will be able to anticipate and answer
questions addressed to you.
o Organization: If you organize your presentation logically, you will be
able to stay on track, move rapidly through your key ideas, and thereby
maintain the attention and interest of your audience.
o Advance Preparation: improves effectiveness. Preparation of ideas,
supporting facts, visual aids, attention-catching statements, etc.
contributes to your confidence and helps you speak with force and
clarity.
o Honesty: when speaking, be yourself . no more, no less. If you can.t
answer a question, say so quickly and directly and move on. Do not try
to fool your audience.
o Vocabulary and Articulation: After analyzing your audience, select a
vocabulary level appropriate for your listeners. Define those terms that
may be unfamiliar to them. Pronounce your words clearly. Eliminate
¡°cuz,¡± ¡°dontcha,¡± ¡°comin.,¡± and so forth.
o Rate of Delivery: The rate of your delivery is critical in maintaining
and holding the interest of your audience. Audiences bore easily while
listening to a slow, monotonous speech. On the other hand, extremely

rapid speech tends to lose an audience. For maximum effectiveness,
vary the rate of your delivery at appropriate times to hold the audience
interest.
o Volume and Inflection: Vary the volume of your voice for emphasis
when necessary. Be sure you can be heard distinctly in every corner of
the room. On the other hand, be careful the volume is not so high as to
be disturbing. Use inflection to emphasize key points, ideas, and
concepts.
Rate of delivery, volume and inflection should vary with the content of
a presentation and the impact a speaker wants to make on the audience.
o Gestures: Always maintain eye contact with your audience. Avoid
looking out the window, at an open door, or at the floor. If you are
sitting, sit up straight. If you are standing, stand relaxed yet straight.
Use gestures and eye movements to communicate your ideas. A smile
is well received when it is made in keeping with the proper statement.