AAC
ment. Repeat a catchphrase; use a visual or a signature ges- ture that stays with your audience. When preparing, always ask yourself, “What do I want my audience to remember after my talk?” Most of the time Leonardo da Vinci had it right, “Simplic- ity is the ultimate sophistication.”
I fully understand the challenge of concise speaking. Concision is hard because many times I have lots of infor- mation to convey in a limited time. Most professionals are busy, meaning you must get your point across quickly and efficiently. Another reason it’s tough to be concise is more psychologi- cal: nervousness. Te vast majority of people are nervous about public speaking. When you’re nervous, you speak faster and your ideas are more disorganized. A nervous, disor- ganized speaker will take about four times more words to express what a calm and focused speaker will use. Te good news is that concise speaking is a skill that can be learned and improved. Concise speaking makes a huge difference in the quality of your presentations. To keep from rambling and make your presentation concise you will:
• Hone in on the important. If you give your audience too much information you make it too hard for them to know what is most important. But when you speak concisely, they will have an easier time separating the wheat from the chaff or the relevant from the fluff. You can manage their attention and focus better.
• Be memorable. It is fundamentally easier to remember a simple message than a complicated one — and one that has been bolstered with humor and examples.
• Be persuasive. Concise speaking increases what is called process fluency, or how easy it is for the brain to process a message.
• Speak slowly. If your presentation can be expressed in fewer words, you have the freedom to speak more slowly in the same amount of time. Speaking slowly has the added benefit of putting more emphasis and emotional expression on your words.
• Be professional and competent. A presenter who needs to take 500 words to say what another can say in 200 words demonstrates a lack of expertise, and a lack of familiarity with their subject-matter. Concision in com- munication indicates that the speaker has so much fa- miliarity with the topic that they have developed mental shortcuts and patterns to fully understand it. Remember the genius physicist Einstein? He said, “Te definition of genius is taking the complex and making it simple.”
To avoid rambling when you’re nervous about public speak- ing — or even if you’re not nervous — follow a presentation outline to keep you on task. Developing the outline is not that difficult but developing the presentation based on that outline
COUNTY LINES, SPRING 2021 • Impressive Introduction
• First Talking Point with Supporting Example(s) • Second Talking Point with Supporting Example(s) • Tird Talking Point with Supporting Example(s) • Compelling Conclusion
Start strong. Making a strong first impression on the audi- ence can leave a lasting memory because you get their atten- tion at the very beginning. And if you don’t get it, then you’ll probably never get it. If you are taking the time to prepare and present, surely you want the audience to have a good impression and remember. Notice I listed three talking points in the presentation outline. Audiences often remember only up to three talking points and supporting examples. Tis is the Rule of Tree. Remember all those three-point sermons your church minis- ter presents? Yep, the Rule of Tree because we have appar- ently told ourselves that’s all we can remember. Just like the GPS that requires a destination, we need to
know exactly how our presentation will end. Your conclusion should be compelling. It is the climax. And your conclusion should tie back to the beginning — like completing a circle. I teach an adult Sunday School Class and, as you know, I make numerous county government presentations. I always try to make that circle and tie the ending to the beginning, which is the theme or topic being taught or discussed. A perfect example of what I’m talking about is Dr. Martin
Luther King’s famous I Have a Dream speech where he begins and ends with his main theme: freedom. In the beginning of his speech he said, “I am happy to join with you today in what will go down in history as the greatest demonstration for freedom in the history of our nation.” Making the full circle and closing the loop, Dr. King concluded with that famous last sentence: “Free at last! Free at last! Tank God Almighty, we are free at last!” Tat is what I call a compelling conclusion. Your conclusion must remain focused. Remember that
your final words in a presentation leave a lasting impression, and you want that last impression to be a good impression. Always end with excellence. Te ability to say much with fewer words is valuable. It takes practice and some experience, but it’s a powerful skill. Being concise enables you to speak with clarity, confidence and gives you credibility. People will seek out, anticipate, and value your contribution. Te next time you find yourself starting to ramble, re- member — “Ramblin’ Man was a hit song, but becoming a rambling speaker can drop you to the bottom of the charts almost instantly. And lest I forget, Wolfgang Amadeus Mo- zart said, “To talk well and eloquently is a very great art, but an equally great one is to know the right moment to stop.”
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is more difficult and requires preparation and practice. Here is a very good presentation outline:
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