Making Public Speaking FUN! Part 8
Thanks to HelpAReporter.com, it seems we have an (almost) never-ending supply of stories and examples of what it takes to make public speaking FUN! It’s time for another installment:
Journalist/Author/Speaker Darlene Arden, Author of “The Angell Memorial Animal Hospital Book of Wellness and Preventive Care for Dogs,” “Unbelievably Good Deals and Great Adventures That You Absolutely Can’t Get Unless You’re a Dog,” “Small Dogs, Big Hearts,” and “Rover, Get Off Her Leg!” speaks about animal behavior. You can find her online at www.darlenearden.com
doG bless HARO! LOL
I am a certified animal behavior consultant as well as an author. One of my areas of expertise is Toy and Small dogs. I often have at least one puppy which I find much better than PowerPoint. I can make *my* point much better and we usually play “pass the puppy” so everyone has a chance to interact with the pup (without stressing the pup) and the pup gets more socialization. I also make my talks interactive and funny so no one falls asleep!!
We may have mentioned in our of our earlier installments of Making Public Speaking FUN! that you may have an opportunity to dress in costume, which is usually a good attention-getter. Lloyd Lofthouse, author of “My Splendid Concubine” says he gets into costume for his presentations:
When I am doing an author event in a bookstore (usually an hour or more), I dress in the costume for the time period and culture for my historical fiction novel, which is 19th century China. I’ve had some good results meaning no one walks out even when the event runs over (even with standing room only) an hour and the owner of the bookstore wants it to end so he can close and go home.
I’ve posted pictures of several of these author event’s on my Website. If you are interested, and you have difficulty finding those pages, I’ll direct you to the proper page. It’s a large Website–a planned portal to China that deals with more than just my novel. As a matter of fact, the novel takes up only a few of those fifty plus pages.
Tommy Hilcken, who bills himself as a Comedian / Motivational Teacher / LifeSuccess Consultant, uses props, sight gags and magic:
Hi Tim…Before I became a full time speaker I was a full time clown. I think that should say it all. I have done a talk on this subject – you can check it out on my site,
Check out this video of him at a Toastmasters presentation:
Marybeth A. Traut, author of “Diabetes In The Family” (her website is at www.marybethtraut.com says bringing food – which is a major part of her talk – is always a welcome sight:
I speak about Diabetes … a topic that not a lot of people want to talk about let alone hear about..so I always bring food…diabetes friendly of course and it seems to bring the people in! Go figure!
Next up, John Schulte, the President and Chairman of the National Mail Order Association (NMOA), incorporates a tried-and-true method of looking under your chair for a note or card. While he was delivering his speech in Moscow, it was being translated to his audience. Naturally, you might expect that any translation is opening itself up to errors…
I was in Moscow giving a talk about manufacturers using mail order to sell direct to the consumer.
To demonstrate the many different ways that direct marketing tactics can produce a measurable response and lead capture; before my presentation I had a business card taped to the bottom of a seat in the audience.
When my time came, I asked everyone put there hand under their seat to see if they can find the card, if they find it they get a book. It translated into their headpiece that everyone should reach under themselves and grab their butts. Funny.
Karen Pollak, Founder of Babies2Sleep: Helping Parents Help Their Babies Sleep is an infant/toddler sleep coach. She talks to groups every week (what a great way to comfortable with your presentation in front of different audiences!), and says her presentations use a lot of humor:
Making it fun for the audience is imperative! I like to use lots of visual analogies. For example I liken the internal Cortisol vs. Melatonin battle to David and Goliath. Milk consumption throughout the day is the “fuel that drives the car” Sleep training a baby who doesn’t have the foundation in place is’ like riding a bike without wheels’….you get the idea. All my seminars invoke humor and ALWAYS elicit lots of laughs; something that no one needs more than a sleep deprived parent. I receive rave reviews from my audiences because I reach out to them, relate and empathize and make them smile.
Props are always a good way to get the audience involved, and with this story from Allen Klein, MA, CSP (www.allenklein.com)comes a prop I don’t think I’ve seen used (yet):
I use a lot of props in my programs to illustrate my points. When talking about letting go of things that stress us out, I give everyone in the audience a balloon and ask them to blow their stress into it. Then, on the count of three, I ask them to let go of the balloon and let go of the stress they just blew into it.
Very visual. Very fun.
Then I make a point of how some people didn’t want to let go of their stress (those who might still be holding the balloon; those who got hit by other people’s stress; and those whose stress came back to them.
I’m talking about using humor, laughter, and play here to reduce stress. This playful interactive game illustrates that.
Finally – for this installment of “Making Public Speaking FUN!” a tale that shows you have to be able to think on your feet. This comes from Elizabeth A. Sears, PhD., President of Workplace Communication, Inc. in Scottsville, New York. What to do when the earth starts shaking?
I presented in Vegas last summer and was surprised at all the construction around our hotel. Part way through my presentation, the chandelier in the ballroom started tingling and I thought, “Oh, they are working on the roof.” A few seconds later, a piece of it fell on the table. Soon after a participant said, “Beth, we need to take a break, this is an earthquake!!” It was a shock from the quake in California. I was on my feet, so I did not feel it whereas people seated did. I had been speaking on the difference between being task focused and people focused, so when I got back on stage I said, “Pop quiz…. Was I task or people focused!” I got a good laugh and returned to my speech. Go with what happens and use it is my recommendation. Beth
Thanks again to all the great suggestions from our contributors. If you have a suggestion for our “Making Public Speaking FUN!” series, let us know!
