{"id":15138,"date":"2019-01-14T07:10:41","date_gmt":"2019-01-14T12:10:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/feminem.org\/?p=15138"},"modified":"2019-01-14T05:22:39","modified_gmt":"2019-01-14T10:22:39","slug":"what-i-learned-as-a-first-time-speaker-at-fix18","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/feminem.org\/2019\/01\/14\/what-i-learned-as-a-first-time-speaker-at-fix18\/","title":{"rendered":"What I Learned as a First Time Speaker at FIX18"},"content":{"rendered":"
Public speaking is a skill you develop. It is an essential tool each person should have in their toolbox. In this area, being a talkative extrovert does not really count. You do not have to be an expert. Everyone can learn how to communicate ideas in front of an audience clearly and effectively.<\/p>\n
This is a journey. A 10 minutes speech can take over 8 months to prepare. This is a journey on which you embark with many people alongside you. And a journey you have to own, embody – for what you have to say is important, and only you can say it.<\/p>\n
1. Find the core of your message<\/strong><\/p>\n Finding the core of your message is as important as finding your own voice.<\/p>\n The first key is to know your audience. A supportive audience will not be as reactive as a hostile one. Knowing who you are speaking to will help adjust how you deliver your note.<\/p>\n Often you may feel like you have a lot of important things you want to express, but it is paramount that you define it in one quintessential point.<\/p>\n Garr Reynolds, the keynote presenter and author of Presentation Zen<\/span><\/a> illustrates this in the famous test, the \u201c45 seconds elevator pitch.\u201d The goal is to summarize your idea in one sentence, one that should fit on the back of a business card. This can take quite some time to get to, and you may need cardboard, sticky notes, 4×4 tables, and listening to a few podcasts to get there, but it is an essential part of the creative work.<\/p>\n Once you have stripped your idea to its core, you rebuild around it by choosing only the examples and arguments that best illustrate your angle. This stage of the work may require you to \u201ckill your darlings.\u201d This concept, originally from the creative writing sphere, means that the writer must be prepared to cut off some of his favorite sentences, chapters or paragraphs if doing so improves the clarity of the work. Remember, that some parts of your speech may be for different talks altogether that can still be used later at different times.<\/p>\n 2. Ask for help<\/strong><\/p>\n Make a list of your strengths and your weaknesses. Whether it is a tendency to procrastinate,\u00a0 your Imposter Syndrome, or an inflammatory subject you do not know how to best approach. Identify your obstacles then ask for help. In the end, like any big task and first experience, you need others\u2019 insights and helpful ideas. It is a real team work. And it is a process.<\/p>\n Like Bren\u00e9 Brown said, coaches are kind of like midwives. They provide full support, on a practical, motivational, and emotional level. My coaches helped me birth my ideas and my stage self without judgment. Thanks to them, my written piece went from an \u201caudio book to a live talk\u201d.<\/p>\n