The document discusses the core values and dimensions of credibility for effective public speaking. It outlines that great speakers connect genuinely with their audience through honest self-awareness, a belief in their message, openness to feedback, and commitment to ethical communication. Speaker credibility is determined by perceptions of their competence, trustworthiness, likability, and dynamism. Effective speakers demonstrate expertise, honesty, friendliness, and enthusiasm to motivate their audience.

1. Chapter 2.1
Speaker
Copyright © 2022 W. W. Norton & Company

2. Introduction
• As a speaker, you are the center of attention
• Your audience will respond to your gestures, tone of voice, and
personality as much as they will evaluate the content of your
message
2

3. An Effective Speaker’s Core Values
• Great speakers connect with their audience in a genuine way
• Speakers who succeed in making a genuine connection with
audience members are guided by core values
• Honest self-awareness
• A belief in the message
• An openness to feedback
• A commitment to ethical communication
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4. Honest Self-Awareness
• To be an effective speaker, you must have an understanding of
who you are and reflect it in your presentation
• You should have awareness of your personality, interests,
passions, values, limits, capabilities, and knowledge
• If you don’t care about your topic, your presentation may
come across as impersonal and insincere
• If you try and adopt a personality that is not your own, your
presentation will fall flat
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5. A Belief in Message
• Effective speakers genuinely believe they have something worth
saying
• A commitment to your audience affects their perception of you
• If they see your purpose as focused on sharing something
meaningful, your presentation is more likely to have a positive
impact
• If you appear motivated by a private agenda that doesn’t
address your audience’s needs, your presentation won’t be
effective
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6. An Openness to Feedback
• Effective speakers are open to others’ responses to their
presentations
• Feedback is an opportunity to:
• Understand yourself better
• Improve aspects of your presentation
• Connect with your audience
6

7. A Commitment to Ethical Communication
• Ethical speakers value truthfulness, fairness, responsibility, and
respect for others
• Committed to freedom of speech
• Fair and open-minded about differences/disagreements
• Committing to ethical communication also enhances your
credibility
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8. Core Values: Conclusion
• You should approach the act of speaking with a serious
commitment to being a good speaker
• First century CE Roman rhetorician Quintilian suggested that the
ideal speaker is a good person speaking well
• Communication scholars today study the two dimensions of
Quintilian’s good person speaking well: ethics and speaker
credibility
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9. The Dimensions of Speaker Credibility
• Speaker credibility is the extent to which an audience trusts you
and believes what you say
• Credibility is a perception that others have of you
• The four dimensions of speaker credibility are:
• Competence
• Trustworthiness
• Likability
• Dynamism
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10. Competence
• Competence is a speaker’s perceived expertise and abilities
• Use these strategies to demonstrate your competence
• Research your subject
• Plan for questions
• Use expert language
• Share interesting/surprising facts
• Highlight your experiences
• Explain how you learned what you know
• Cite reputable sources
• Practice your delivery and project confidence
10

11. Trustworthiness
• Trustworthiness is your perceived honesty, integrity,
and good character
• Employing the following strategies can enhance an
audience’s perception of your trustworthiness
• Have a reputation for reliability
• Respect different viewpoints
• Acknowledge inconvenient truths

12. Likability
• Likability refers to whether audience members perceive the
speaker as friendly, warm, and empathetic before, during, and
after a presentation
• Ways to improve likability:
• Ask Questions
• Project Friendliness and Openness
• Be Different—in a Good Way
• Tell a Story about Overcoming Adversity
• Demonstrate Empathy
• Respect Those Who Disagree
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13. Dynamism
• Dynamism is the ability to motivate and engage audiences with a
high level of energy, enthusiasm, vigor, and commitment; arouse
listener’s emotions and inspire them
• Dynamism has more to do with how you deliver a presentation
than what you say
• Be enthusiastic and animated as you speak
• Be assertive about what you say
• Radiate confidence and optimism
• Establish and maintain eye contact
• Do not overdo it
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14. Speaker Credibility
THE DIMENSIONS OF SPEAKER CREDIBILITY
Competence Trustworthiness Likability Dynamism
• Experienced
• Well prepared
• Qualified
• Up to date
• Knowledgeable
• Ethical
• Honest
• Fair
• Respectful
• Reliable
• Kind
• Friendly
• Warm
• Empathetic
• Sociable
• Energetic
• Confident
• Stimulating
• Bold
• Assertive

15. Notable Speaker: Meghan Markle, Part 1
Actress and humanitarian Meghan Markle became
a UN Women’s Advocate for Women’s Political
Participation and Leadership in 2015. In this role,
Markle has focused on ways to empower women
throughout the world to become leaders in their
communities. In her speech at the UN Women’s
Conference in 2015, she encouraged the world
community to embrace equality for women.

16. Notable Speaker: Meghan Markle, Part 2
16

17. Notable Speaker: Meghan Markle, Part 3
17

18. Notable Speaker: Meghan Markle, Part 4
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19. Notable Speaker: Meghan Markle, Part 5
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20. Credits
This concludes the Lecture PowerPoint presentation for Chapter 2.1.
For more resources, please visit The Norton Field Guide to Speaking:
http://digital.wwnorton.com/nfgspeaking.
Copyright © 2022 W. W. Norton & Company