Public Speaking Fundamentals: Dominate a Speech with the Basics
“If you can speak in front of 5 people, then you can speak in front of 500 people.”
I once heard a Toastmasters mentor imply that.
I didn’t believe him.
The 2 scenarios had to be different.
The scale of the audience differs by a magnitude of 10!
As more years went on by, I started to see what he meant.
He wasn’t talking about the numbers…
He was focused on the fundamentals.
Some things never change.
This is the case with driving.
This is the case with public speaking.
In this article, you will learn the fundamentals of public speaking.
Learn what’s important so you can laugh at how you were overthinking the small things.
3 Fundamentals of Public Speaking
The basics are:
- Message.
- Delivery.
- Understanding.
The most important is #1.
The message is what you are talking about.
Why should others care?
#2 talks about the delivery of your message.
The speaker is talking to an audience.
The scale is up for grabs.
#3 is all about understanding.
Do the person or people in your audience UNDERSTAND what you are saying?
‘Wait Armani, you just said person. Doesn’t public speaking always require a herd of people?’
Not necessarily.
Sit on these 3 fundamentals that I just gave.
We will be coming back to them shortly.
I want to take a quick break to talk about how to view public speaking as a way of life.
Redefining Public Speaking
Words play a huge role on our perception.
Fix the words, fix the interpretations.
When I say, ‘public speaking,’ the first thing you may see is:
A speaker wearing a suit, holding a mic, talking in front of a large audience.
This isn’t necessarily wrong.
However, it’s not an inclusive image.
Mainly because the average person is normally not in a position where they are speaking in front of a herd of people.
It’s a rare occurrence.
When the occurrence is too rare, that’s when public speaking is viewed as an isolated activity.
The further the activity is from our lifestyle, the more we associate a negative perception with it.
It’s time to evolve the definition of public speaking.
‘What’s your definition?’
Public speaking is ANY time you are speaking in public.
This definition applies to:
- 1 on 1 conversations.
- Speaking in front of 4 people.
- Speaking in front of 500 people.
With this updated definition, public speaking is viewed as a gradient.
The lower part of the spectrum has a low number of people.
While the higher part of the spectrum has a large number of people.
Keep Reinforcing the Fundamentals
When a person is crafting their speech, it’s easy to become a bag that floats aimlessly in the wind.
Therefore, it’s smart to keep reminding yourself of the fundamentals.
- What is my message?
- How can I deliver it in a way where the audience understands?
These 2 questions are centered in a way where you tackle the fundamentals.
Do you notice something by the way?
‘Um… not really.’
You’re not making it all about you.
One of the top reasons for public speaking anxiety is when a speaker makes it all about themselves.
Rather than ask the 2 questions I proposed above, they ask questions like:
- Will the audience judge me?
- How can I get the audience to accept me?
- What if I mess up?
These questions are ‘me focused’ questions which automatically imply that the speaker has strayed away from the fundamentals.
Bring the mind back…
JOIN THE PUBLIC SPEAKING FOR DUMMIES CLASS.
Speaking for Beginners
“If you can speak in front of 5 people, then you can speak in front of 500 people.”
Let’s think about this.
I want to go in with the assumption that you are a complete novice.
No public speaking experience at all.
That’s when the 2 questions are asked:
-What is the message of the speech?
How to have a civil debate without creating an enemy.
-How can I deliver the message in a way where the audience understands?
Talk about the history of debating.
Importance of debating.
3 frameworks on how to debate.
Here’s a pro tip that has worked for me throughout my Toastmasters journey:
-Have conversations rather than talking to an audience.
When you talk to an audience, that’s when the delivery becomes awkward.
The speaker tries to look at too many people at the same time.
This causes the audience to feel like the speaker is rushing through the talk.
It’s much better to ‘lock & hold’ eye contact rather than ‘glaze’ when public speaking.
Conversations are easier to do if the speaker has had the correct definition of public speaking from the jump:
–Any opportunity to speak in public.
They’ve been prepping their mind for this.
3 People Is the Magic Number
As a beginner speaker, you only need to look at 3 people:
- 1 from the left side of the audience.
- 1 from the middle.
- And 1 from the right.
It’s preferred to find the most engaged audience members from each segment.
These are the ones who have a gentle smile on their face, open body language & do eager head nods as you speak.
‘But if the crowd has 50 people, wouldn’t it be awkward to only look at 3 of them? The others may feel disrespected.’
They will have no clue…
The way that our eyes are set up, it’s difficult to see exactly where someone is staring when there is a distance from the:
-speaker & crowd.
Therefore, if you are looking at Stacy from the left segment…
Then Jake, Ricky, & Lacy, who are sitting right by Stacy, will think you’re looking at them.
It’s much easier to converse with 3 people rather than trying to give 50 people fragments of attention.
- This allows your message to be delivered in a way where the audience understands.
The 3 bold words from the line above tackle the fundamentals.
PS: Feel free to gradually add in more people as you build public speaking experience.
3 people is simply a framework for beginners to start off with.
Practice Public Speaking & Fine Tune
An average person focuses on the trends.
A master focuses on the basics.
The basics were relevant 400 years ago.
The basics will be relevant 400 years from now.
Hopefully, now you understand that public speaking comes down to:
- Create a message.
- Deliver the message.
- Ensure that as many of the audience members are capable of understanding.
Remembering the fundamentals prevent you from getting cute & using a bunch of big words.
And more importantly, it prevents you from making the entire talk about yourself.
Slow and steady not only wins the race.
Slow and steady leads to exponential returns.
For a blueprint to navigate the world of public speaking, be sure to check out the Speaking Wizard.
This eBook is a comprehensive guide on:
-How to manage speech anxiety.
-How to craft your message with the utmost clarity.
-And how to deliver your speech to connect with your audience.
Learn More Here!
– ArmaniTalks 
