What They Don't Tell You About Public Speaking • Hacker News Board

Re: What They Don't Tell You About Public Speaking

#41

Post by groby_b » Tue, Jun 19, 2012, 10:46 PM UTC

silverbax88 wrote: post #23

It's tougher to be a solid public speaker than it looks. I've given talks to big rooms, gyms and moderately sized conference rooms. I rarely get nervous but occasionally it hits us all. I do have some notes on watching great speakers in person and learning from my own mistakes. 1. Do NOT ask for a 'show of hands' from the audience. Even some practiced speakers do this. They think that it engages the audience, but it…

#1: Yes, yes I am going to modify my speech. Or use the reply to weave in an anecdote, or do something with that info. Otherwise, you would be right, and it would be an exercise in futility.

#2: Absolutely. It's better if you can do without, but it's also a matter of how much time you have to prepare, and how dense the material is. If I'm giving a hard-core technical talk for 45 minutes, I'll sure as heck have a few notes handy. I prefer to go without, but that requires a lot of rehearsals. (45 minutes without notes is probably ~8-10 days of solid work. With notes, 4-5 days)

#3 That just means you've got to get better at reading your audience :) Seriously, if you feel a disconnect, shake things up. Do something unexpected. Have a joke ready. You do not want to lose your audience, ever. It's very hard to get them back.

Re: What They Don't Tell You About Public Speaking

#42

Post by WalterBright » Tue, Jun 19, 2012, 10:48 PM UTC

I find that engaging the audience into a back-and-forth has been very successful for me, and I get more positive feedback on the talks afterwards, too.

Re: What They Don't Tell You About Public Speaking

#43

Post by groby_b » Tue, Jun 19, 2012, 10:49 PM UTC

ebiester wrote: post #25

silverbax88 wrote: post #23

It's tougher to be a solid public speaker than it looks. I've given talks to big rooms, gyms and moderately sized conference rooms. I rarely get nervous but occasionally it hits us all. I do have some notes on watching great speakers in person and learning from my own mistakes. 1. Do NOT ask for a 'show of hands' from the audience. Even some practiced speakers do this. They think that it engages the audience, but it…

+1 on the 'death valley.' I think it's when you realize that this is the piece of the talk that is more interesting to the audience than myself. However, in my head, the doubting self-talk of "I'm boring everyone!" comes up. The beginning is fun - that's the point you're trying to hook the audience. The end is fun - that's the point you're trying to give the audience a final take away. That middle point? That's what…

Even better, keep in mind that ideally, your presentation has a story arc that ties things together. It should flow naturally. If you have a death valley, ask yourself if you really have a coherent and interesting story.

Re: What They Don't Tell You About Public Speaking

#44

Post by stretchwithme » Tue, Jun 19, 2012, 11:02 PM UTC

Exceptional advance. Thanks.

I would add that one should not try to get excited about a topic that does not excite you. Authenticity is important. Rather, give talks about topics that you are excited about.

Re: What They Don't Tell You About Public Speaking

#45

Post by munificent » Tue, Jun 19, 2012, 11:27 PM UTC

apitaru wrote: post #31

Great post. I used to often speak publicly. Last week I gave my first talk in years, to a large crowd. I was nervous because of how long has passed since I've last done it, but then I remembered my old habit. Before my talks I used to spend time with the conference goers in the hall, just chatting with them about whatever comes up. This seems to play a trick on the mind, making me feel like I'm speaking to friends ra…

This is absolutely brilliant.

Re: What They Don't Tell You About Public Speaking

#46

Post by follower » Tue, Jun 19, 2012, 11:55 PM UTC

holman wrote: post #6

postwait wrote: post #4

"Talks should always be reactionary rather than anticipatory: they’re going to come off as more natural, more interesting, and above all, more valuable." I think that's not true at all. There is room for both. I would say do not mix them. Talks can either share what's been done or share what can be from a visionary perspective.

Admittedly I slipped an "always" in there when I shouldn't have; I agree that anticipatory talks can be great, too. Let's put it this way, though: for a beginning or first-time speaker, I'll maintain that talks should be reactionary. There are more than enough other things to worry about going into your first talk that it's really comforting to talk about your past experiences than try to prepare a new project or a "…

I would recommend you seriously consider re-wording the "reactionary rather than anticipatory" sentence on your blog. (The number of confused/questioning comments here on HN about the use of those terms suggests I'm not the only one. :) )

The sentence in your post above explains your intention much more clearly:

"There are more than enough other things to worry about going into your first talk that it's really comforting to talk about your past experiences than try to prepare a new project or a 'what-if' for an arbitrary conference date."

As I understand it, what you're wanting to convey is that it's better to choose a topic where you can talk about "what I've done" rather than "what I hope to do". The "reactionary"/"anticipatory" terms don't clearly convey that intention and seem to me to be incorrect terms to use.

(I don't have a specific suggestion for replacement terms--"retrospective" is one option but has a slightly negative connotation.)

Aside from that, thanks for sharing your experiences. :)

Re: What They Don't Tell You About Public Speaking

#47

Post by pacaro » Wed, Jun 20, 2012, 12:13 AM UTC

apitaru wrote: post #31

Great post. I used to often speak publicly. Last week I gave my first talk in years, to a large crowd. I was nervous because of how long has passed since I've last done it, but then I remembered my old habit. Before my talks I used to spend time with the conference goers in the hall, just chatting with them about whatever comes up. This seems to play a trick on the mind, making me feel like I'm speaking to friends ra…

I love it, I have no problems presenting to people I know - however vaguely - but a room full of strangers fills me with cold dread.

Re: What They Don't Tell You About Public Speaking

#48

Post by dctoedt » Wed, Jun 20, 2012, 12:38 AM UTC

gruseom wrote: post #27

dctoedt wrote: post #17

Legendary senior partner at a law-firm sandwich seminar: "The most important thing about public speaking is to say it with confidence !" Young associate (me), raising hand: "But what if you really aren't confident?" Senior partner, fiercely: "FAKE it!"

Totally off-topic but: I wish you'd comment more often here.

I'm flattered! (Ditto to Thomas.)

I do lurk here a lot.

Re: What They Don't Tell You About Public Speaking

#49

Post by sopooneo » Wed, Jun 20, 2012, 1:03 AM UTC

ctdonath wrote: post #3

My breakthrough in being comfortable with public speaking came from a quote: "...though it cannot hope to be useful or informative on all matters, it does make the reassuring claim that where it is inaccurate, it is at least _definitively_ inaccurate." - Douglas Adams If I am to make a mistake while presenting, then by gum I'm going to make that mistake with the most confidence and gusto I can muster. I will own up t…

Three thousand cheers to you. Of all the good things about my generation (early thirties) nothing bothers me more than the trend of never standing up tall in the wind and planting your flag. Always always it seems that people are infinitely hedging everything they say under the implied assumption that gusto and principal are hopelessly old fashioned. It is so refreshing when people are willing to risk being knocked over and smile while they're at it.

Re: What They Don't Tell You About Public Speaking

#50

Post by esrauch » Wed, Jun 20, 2012, 1:06 AM UTC

nostromo wrote: post #14

"There’s one mistake I consistently see made by speakers both novice and experienced: they’re not excited about their talk." I'm a nervous presenter. The way I used to combat this was with a poker face. No smiles, no laughing, no gestures, monotone voice... I'd do anything not to clue them in to my nervousness. This is a flawed approach for me. People are very forgiving of humanizing nerves and foibles. People aren't…

This is a bit off topic, but according to wikipedia; "Adverse reactions to adrenaline include palpitations, tachycardia, arrhythmia, anxiety, headache, tremor, hypertension, and acute pulmonary edema."

I've always thought that a true straight-edge person wouldn't deliberately trigger adrenaline releases. The fact that your body produces it given a particular stimulus doesn't seem to really be relevant to the "goodness" of the substance. If your body produced cocaine when you get in a mosh pit is that different than just taking cocaine?