Making Public Speaking FUN! Part 2
As public speakers, we all want to have an audience that’s engaged, sitting on the edge of their seats and paying attention to what we’re talking about.
There are a lot of ways to do that, of course. But for this series, we’re focusing on ways to have FUN! Ways for you to have FUN, ways for your audience to have FUN!
Here are some more examples of things that have worked, such as this presentation where the speaker wore several sets of clothing:
Terri “Ta-Dah Mom” Camp of DFW Homes Realty and TerryCamp.com says…
“One of the things I do in one of my talks to homeschool parents is that I begin wearing a stereotypical denim jumper. As I talk about differences, I unzip my jumper, letting it fall to the ground. Under the jumper I am wearing sweat pants and a t-shirt. More time goes by in this talk as I continue talking about how all of our children are different as are all of our teaching styles. I then begin removing my sweats to reveal that I am wearing pajamas. The audience roars with laughter, and I have made my point that we are all different. I always get the comment – I laughed so hard, tears were streaming down my face.”
What about appearing as a dead person? Well, hey, that’s worked, too:
Dick Cheatham of Living History Associates LTD. says….the method I employ is portraying dead people. True! Great fun and intellectually provocative! Here’s what an audience member said about a recent presentation…
“Your ability to deliver an educational topic, while in character as Mr. (John) Rolfe (Pocahontas’ husband) and to maintain a multi-way conversation with all of the attendees was remarkable. Your thought provoking questions to us and the observations you shared, had us speaking up and rethinking some of our philosophies and opinions. I believe that your characters are able to discuss an unlimited variety of topics, while maintaining a conversation with true and active participants in just about any setting the host supplies.” C. L. P. Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
Audrey Thomas, CPO® who calls herself a ‘Speaker, Author, Lean Office Expert’ tries a somewhat different approach – getting the audience loosed up immediately:
“I give them a pop quiz right off the bat. There’s always humor built in it. They’re not expecting it and it always “loosens” them up and gets them talking at their tables. (I’m a Professional Organizer and Lean Office Expert so I include questions that talk about their disorganization which they always have fun with!)
“For one of my keynotes, I put crayons on the table and incorporate using them on a handout. Most audience members haven’t picked up a crayon in a long time and there’s always members who ask if they can take their crayons home with them!
“Last week I presented to some HR professionals. I was warned that this group “is pretty serious and doesn’t always know how to have fun.” So I brought mini containers of play dough, slinkies, mini Etch-A-Sketches and extra large pipe cleaners. They LOVED all the toys! It really brought them out of their shells and they ended up being one of my best audiences ever.
“Many people learn best by having their hands busy so having toys on the tables help individuals get the most out of my presentations.”
Audrey is the Past-President of National Speakers Association-Minnesota and can be reached at 866-767-0455.
The ideas suggested here by Vicki Lynne Morgan, President RUSSMOR MARKETING GROUP are well, perhaps not for everyone:
“I teach many professional education classes in colleges and at business events. One topic is Networking Skills.
“I ask volunteers to stand and to follow my template for giving their 30 second elevator speech. It really gets the audience engaged and it can be quite entertaining as I coach them through their speeches.
“Another is Guerrilla Marketing. I wear a camouflage jacket, steel helmet, and carry a camo bag with signs on it reading, “Guerrilla Marketing Weapons”.
“Also Guerrilla Markering: I walked into a group wearing a rubber gorilla head and hands with signs, “If you think this is Guerrilla Marketing, we need to talk”.
“I also sometimes throw mini toy soldiers attached to my business card into the audience.”
Vicki Lynne Morgan can be reached at http://www.russmormg.com.
Cool stuff, huh? As a public speaker, I hope you’re taking notes…and yes, we have many more to come!
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