The Art of Public Speaking and Persuasion 'Obama style'

Hello again

You have to admit it, whatever your politics, President Barak Obama is an polished and highly confident public speaker, persuader and motivator. I happen to believe that it was those 'skills' as much as his policies that won him the US Presidency in 2009.

His public speeches have an easy delivery, relaxed manner and supreme self confidence with every word delivered with meaning and depth. He shares a remarkable aptitude with all great leaders in the ability to get his audiences to hang on to his every word. Think of Nelson Mandela, Winston Churchill or John Kennedy, they all had the same ability to move their audiences to action.

Of course the ability to speak well in public gives people incredible powers of persuasion and greater success in life more generally. Getting people to really listen to you can help in terms of inspiring one's children to perform better at school, landing a dream job or the next big contract for your business !

So are great speakers born or made ? Well I suppose a few are naturally gifted speakers from a young age. However the majority of people who have great skills in this area have learned the art of public speaking along with other enhanced communication skills such as persuasion, influencing, sales, presentation etc. They all come under the same portfolio.

So it stands to reason that if one can master the art of public speaking 'Obama style' then one can achieve greater success in all areas of one's life, including home life with family and relations and , in one's job and career with more influence or in promoting one's business.

Sadly, however, the fear of public speaking holds many people back in life and causes them many missed opportunities. Indeed the fear of public speaking is ranked higher than the fear of death. Now that is thought provoking is it not ?

So what can you do to ease the fear of public speaking and learn to embrace it with confidence and enthusiasm ?

Toastmasters International (the world's largest public speaking training organisation) suggests the following top 10 tips :

1)Know your material. Pick a topic you are interested in. Know more about it than you include in your speech. Use humor, personal stories and conversational language - that way you won't easily forget what to say.

2)Practice. Practice. Practice! Rehearse out loud with all equipment you plan on using. Revise as necessary. Work to control filler words; Practice, pause and breathe. Practice with a timer and allow time for the unexpected.

3)Know the audience. Greet some of the audience members as they arrive. It's easier to speak to a group of friends than to strangers.

4)Know the room. Arrive early, walk around the speaking area and practice using the microphone and any visual aids.

5)Relax. Begin by addressing the audience. It buys you time and calms your nerves. Pause, smile and count to three before saying anything. ("One one-thousand, two one-thousand, three one-thousand. Pause. Begin.) Transform nervous energy into enthusiasm.

6)Visualize yourself giving your speech. Imagine yourself speaking, your voice loud, clear and confident. Visualize the audience clapping - it will boost your confidence.

7)Realize that people want you to succeed. Audiences want you to be interesting, stimulating, informative and entertaining. They're rooting for you.

8)Don't apologize for any nervousness or problem - the audience probably never noticed it.

9)Concentrate on the message - not the medium. Focus your attention away from your own anxieties and concentrate on your message and your audience.

10)Gain experience. Mainly, your speech should represent you - as an authority and as a person. Experience builds confidence, which is the key to effective speaking.

I do hope these top tips help you. Remember for most public speaking is skill that gets better the more you practice it. Do not let fear hold you back !

Just remember that President Obama went from little known senator to the highest public office in the world in just four years ! Learning to speak in public and become more persuasive will enrich your life and of those about you for the better. If you would like to find out more on President Obama's successful public speaking and persuasion techniques please copy and paste this link into your web browser : http://tiny.cc/eoqun

Qualified Life Coach MA
FREE Mindset Success Strategies @ www.inspiredlivingdaily.co.uk
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