1. Holiday Workshop on
“EFFECTIVE SPEECH &
PRESENTATION SKILLS”
Dyslexia Association of
Singapore (DAS)
~Dhinesh CS
23rd – 27th June 2014

2. • Looking at the Past...
• The All Important Question
• glossophobia
• The 5 ‘P’s & 3 ‘V’s
• The ONE PS Commandment
• How do I Look?
• Tickle my “Funny Bone”
• Back, to the Future!
OUTLINE

3. Looking at the Past…
• The ‘Art’ of Public Speaking (PS) seems to first have been developed by the Ancient
Greeks.
Eg. Socrates, Plato & Aristotle.
• Early Training in PS seems to have taken place in Ancient Egypt.
• Greece --- Rome --- Latin Style --- ‘Modern Day’ PS
• Abraham Lincoln, Adolf Hitler, John F. Kennedy, Martin Luther King & Barack Obama

4. Q: WHY AM I HERE?
Related Q: How Are You Speaking Currently?
__________________________________________
Rating: _______________
Q: Why AM I HERE?
__________________________________
Potential Rating*: ____________
The All Important Question

5. • Glossophobia, also commonly known as “Speaker’s Nerves” is basically the fear
of public speaking.
• “Stage Fright” is popularly associated with this phobia.
• Other symptoms include: Feelings of panic, Feelings of suffocation, Cold, numb
or tingling sensations, Heart palpitations, Shakiness & trembling, Nausea,
Mental lapses, Cracking voice, Extreme sense of embarrassment, etc.
• These symptoms can vary according to external factors such as: Last minute
change in size/composition of audience, Location, Time of day, etc.
• Some intrinsic factors also can cause the onset of these symptoms, such as:
Speaker’s health, Stakes involved, Emotional well-being & of course, Experience.
glossophobia

6. Q: What do I do First…?
Related Q1: Why Are You Speaking?
Related Q2: Why Are YouSpeaking?
Related Q3: Why Are You Speaking?
glossophobia

7. • POSITIVITY – (as a state of MIND)
• PREPARATION – (with all your MIGHT)
• PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE –
(with all your HEART)!!!
The 5 ‘P’s

8. “KNOW THY AUDIENCE”
DO’s
1. Simple research prior to Talk, on your Audience.
2. Use info gathered, to tweak material & if possible
activities too accordingly.
3. Mingle with Audience members on the day itself, if
still not entirely comfortable.
4. Always request for feedback, as they will help you
identify your strengths & weaknesses as a speaker.
The ONE PS Commandment

9. • Visual – (grooming, stature &
disposition)
• Verbal – (diction, pronunciation & overall
language)
• Vocal – (pace, pause, pitch, intonation &
the all important projection)
The 3 ‘V’s

10. • Eye contact is of utmost importance.
• In-depth & Profound skill which many fail to master.
• A blank stare – Disinterest, “Blur”ness
• Too intent a stare – Hostility, Lewdness
• Ideally, a few audience members are picked who respond
well to speaker’s delivery to fix regular glances, especially
for new speakers.
• Experienced speakers can choose to look at random
audience members, so long as it’s more of a glance than a
stare & there is balance in the way they are engaged.
How do I ‘Look’?

11. • Humour is an excellent PS tool - when used in moderation
& in the right context.
• Jokes or humour derived from one’s own life experiences
- usually the most fail-proof, anyone can come up with
them!
• Even if humour is not your strength, try to keep Talks &
Presentations light-hearted at the very least.
• Avoid making a presentation or speech that seems purely
like a ‘robotic delivery of information’
• The last thing a speaker wants to do is ‘lose his/her
audience’ to the curse of monotony!
Tickle My “Funny” Bone

12. • All the books ever written on Public Speaking & all the
most Effective Speakers in the World share one common
viewpoint...
• “A Speaker is able to fine-tune his/her techniques better
& craft the speech best based on lessons learnt from
experience gained with every speech or presentation
delivered. Hence, there is nothing quite like a platform
offered to a Speaker to hone his/her talents & become a
more effective public speaker!”
• As such, the best way to improve on one’s PS skills is to
reflect on weaknesses in the form of mistakes done in
past speeches, rectify them to the best of one’s ability &
look towards the future for the next platform!
BACK, TO THE FUTURE!

13. Q: WHY AM I HERE?
Related Q: How Are You Speaking Currently?
__________________________________________
Rating: _______________
Q: Why AM I HERE?
__________________________________
Potential Rating: ____________
The All Important Question

14. 1. ‘UNLEASH THE PUBLIC SPEAKER IN YOU’ – Andy Pan
2. ‘Butterflies Be Gone: A Hands on Approach to Sweat-Proof
Public Speaking’ – Arthur H. Bell, Ph.D.
3. ‘public speaking and presentations DeMYSTiFieD: A SELF
TEACHING GUIDE’ – Melody Templeton
4. ‘PRESENTING AT CONFERENCES, SEMINARS & MEETINGS’
– Kerry Shephard
• And of course, not forgetting good ol’
Wikipedia! ;)
Books & References