7 Ways to be a Great Speaker

1. Be Yourself

It's great to watch other successful speakers, to see what they do and how they do it. To be a great speaker in your own right requires you to develop your own style, to speak using your own voice. Be yourself when you speak and you can't help but be successful.

2. Be Bold

You might think that it takes boldness just to stand up and start talking, and it does, but there are plenty of speakers out there who come across like timid mice. Be bold as a speaker, confident in your abilities. Practice every day, give speeches whenever you can.

3. Be different

Successful speakers aren't like everybody else. There's something that sets them apart. Makes them stand out. They're the speakers who do more than just stand in the front of the room and talk at you.

4. Be funny

Successful speakers know how to be funny, that is: they know when and where to use humor in their presentations... and they aren't afraid to do so.

5. Be engaging

Listening to a speech is, for most people, a passive activity. Successful speakers involve their audiences and converse with them so that it's a conversation, not a talking-to.

6. Be positive

No matter what the subject, successful speakers are always positive with their audiences. They help their audiences learn what to do as opposed to what NOT to do. They focus on the upside, not the downside.

7. Be challenging.

Lastly, great speakers always challenge their audiences to do great things. And again, it doesn't matter what the subject. A successful speaker gives you the know-how and the challenge to make your life more enjoyable and more rewarding everyday.

©2001 Jim M. Allen