Here you are making an important speech or presentation, and you have an audience of dozens or even thousands. Whatever the situation, you see a sea of faces and know you'll address a large audience.
However, your speech or presentation will have more impact if you address just one individual at a time, even if it's a huge crowd? Now, speaking publicly to just one person may sound like a contradiction in terms, but in fact it's not.
I learned the lesson rather late in my radio career, to my regret. The idea goes this way: Although you may speak to a big audience, the message is being received by individual listeners or viewers. Every person, no matter how big the audience, hears the message for himself or herself -- just himself or herself.
When I finally did use the technique In radio, I spoke to just one person, rather than announce to thousands. That individual person could be my wife, perhaps a friend. It didn't really matter whom, so long as I spoke to the audience in the same way that I would speak to one other person. You may notice this in television interviews, when the person being interviewed responds only to the interviewer and not to the huge audience watching the program.
When making presentations or speaking publicly, I like a technique that many professional speakers recommend: Pick one person; speak a sentence or two of your speech to her, then pick someone in another part of the room and repeat the process with him. You'll do this over and over, and by the time you've finished, you'll have made direct contact with dozens of members of the audience. What'.
Behind all this, of course, is the goal of getting members of the audience to respond to your speech or presentation the way you intend. Whether that’s to understand something, or to accept an idea, or buy something, that’s the goal. And, by speaking to individuals you increase the odds you’ll get through to each of them, and in turn they’ll respond as you wish. And that's the whole point of every presentation or speech.
Robert F. Abbott is an online writer and publisher specializing in consumer information sites, including a QuickList on Cuisinart Mixers , and business communication, including articles that help you increase your communication skills and knowledge.
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