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| Welcome to the first lesson of this blog!!!! |
This time our topic is "How to Persuade Through Speech". In the following article, you will find some advice on how to persuade people using your speech. The idea is that your read the article and pay attention to all the advice they give you, so when it's time for you to carry on a persuasive speech, you will be able to do it effectively. Now, it is important to mention that before actually doing the speech, you'll have to rehearse and practice to be successful and accomplish your goal.
Something useful before doing a presentation is to do the speech in front of a group of friends or classmates, so they can give you feedback that can help you improve. It is also a way to reduce the nervousness we normally feel when speaking in public. If no one can help you, the mirror may be a great aid. By looking at yourself speaking, you can identify your weak and strong points.
At the end of the article, you'll find a link to the website from where the article was taken. In that web page, you can watch some videos of famous people persuading through their speech, so you can have a clearer idea of what you're expected to accomplish.
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| Well, let's get ready to start reading the article. |
Public Speaking Skills - How To Persuade People
Persuasion is the key to
accomplishment, not only for politicians or stockbrokers, but for everyone of
us. In a job interview, you have to persuade your interviewers why they should
hire you and not the other candidates. In a classroom presentation, you have to
convince your classmates and professor to believe that what you are talking
about is worth listening to, and your hard work deserves a good grade. In a
workplace, you need to be able to pitch your ideas persuasively in order to
prosper in your career. If you look at highly successful people, you will see
that they are not only hard workers and creative thinkers, but also great
persuaders.
In public speaking, it all
comes down to this question: how can you win over your audience? And the answer
is one word: CREDIBILITY.
Imagine Bill Gates saying the
following hypothetical sentences:
"Within ten years, all
laptop computers will also be used as televisions. The televisions we use
nowadays will turn into something completely old-fashioned."
Now imagine Britney Spears
saying the same thing. You would probably nod at Gates and shrug at Spears,
right? You would choose to trust his judgment rather than hers because you know
that he is a guru of the computer industry and she is not. This is called
"initial credibility", meaning the credibility that the speaker has
even before he/she begins speaking.
Initial credibility is a
blissful advantage for public speakers. If your audience already knows you are
an expert in something and already trusts you, you won't have to try so hard to
create credibility in your speech. But what if you are not really an expert in
anything and your audience doesn't even know who you are? The answer is simple:
you will have to build your credibility during your speech.
How to Build Your Credibility
1. Advertise your
competence - At the beginning of your presentation, tell your audience
about your expertise on the speech topic. If you have done a lot of research
about the topic, tell them so. If you have a certain experience that gives you
special knowledge or insight, go ahead and say so. But keep in mind; you don't
want to sound boastful to your audience. Do not over-advertise yourself. Keep
it short and simple. Say it as a matter of fact, not a boast.
2. Connect to the audience
- Try to identify with your audience early in your speech. Even if you are
going to talk about something very controversial or something your listeners
may disagree with, you still have to make them feel that you share the same
common ground and values.
Four years ago, I watched
Senator John Kerry give a speech about keeping women's rights to abortion in one
of the "red" states, in a room full of conservative voters who were
probably strongly against such an idea. At the start of his speech, he made a
very smart move by saying that he himself is also a true Christian who believes
abortion is not the right thing to do. Then he explained further that even
though that is what he believes, there are also a lot of people in America who
do not consider abortion a sinful thing; there are a number of Americans who
are not Christians and do not share his religious principles. And since America
is a democratic country, we have to respect those people's values as well.
I think Senator Kerry was
impressive that day. By establishing common ground with the audience early, he
was able to get off on the right foot. I don't know how many people in the
audience he had successfully convinced, but at least he pulled off that
extremely controversial speech with such poise and more importantly, without
getting booed.
3. Speak eloquently and
express your ideas with conviction - Practice your persuasive speech ahead
of time so that you can perform it well. Moderately fast speakers tend to be
considered more intelligent and confident than slow speakers. If you sound
hesitant or say "uh" and "um" too much, you will appear
less competent.
4. Use evidence - For
amateur public speakers with no initial credibility, it is very helpful to use
examples, statistics, facts or testimonies to support their ideas. No matter
what type of evidence you use in your speech, just remember these two things:
First, use specific evidence.
For example, if you use statistics, indicate the exact number. Saying "Ten
million Americans suffer from obesity" will make your point more
effectively than just saying "Millions of Americans suffer from
obesity." It will make your listeners aware that you have a good firm grip
of factual information. Second, always cite evidence from well-known, reliable
and non-biased sources.
5. Reason clearly and
persuasively - Even if you use a bunch of strong evidence, you still won't
be able to persuade your audience unless they grasp your reasoning. Don't
assume that supportive evidence is enough. Throwing a lengthy list of
statistics and examples at your listeners without drawing a logical conclusion
to your main idea won't do you any good.
6. Appeal to emotions -
Some people say that serious public speakers should avoid emotional appeal
entirely and only stick to reason. I disagree with that. Humans are not like
automatons or Mr. Spock in Star Trek. We think and feel at the same time. By
adding intensity of feeling to your logical speech, you can be a much more
compelling speaker. A rational persuasive speech that can change some people's
attitudes may not arouse those same people enough to take action. In order to
convince your listeners not only to agree with your ideas but also adopt them
in real life, you must evoke their passion.
How to create emotional appeal
- Use words or phrases that tend to reinforce emotional power. It is hard to pinpoint what words can sentimentally influence people more than others. It depends mostly on what topic you are talking about and what kind of emotion you would like to arouse in the audience. However, try not to be too wordy or say something overly melodramatic. Your passionate language must suit your speech, otherwise it may strike the audience as ridiculous.
- Use vivid personal experience. By telling the audience about your captivating real life story that is relevant to the speech topic, you automatically let your emotional appeal grow. The video below is a great example of how a public speaker can use one's personal experience to one's own advantage.
- Unless you are a really competent actor, don't act. Speak with sincerity and your true emotion. Using emotional language and vivid experience can be pointless if you don't actually feel the emotion yourself.
Ir a Hubpages.com: Public-Speaking-Skills1
Till nexttime ;)
