Repository navigation
Expand file tree
/
Copy pathpublic-speaking-problems.html
More file actions
240 lines (212 loc) · 19.3 KB
/
Copy pathpublic-speaking-problems.html
File metadata and controls
240 lines (212 loc) · 19.3 KB
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83
84
85
86
87
88
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113
114
115
116
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128
129
130
131
132
133
134
135
136
137
138
139
140
141
142
143
144
145
146
147
148
149
150
151
152
153
154
155
156
157
158
159
160
161
162
163
164
165
166
167
168
169
170
171
172
173
174
175
176
177
178
179
180
181
182
183
184
185
186
187
188
189
190
191
192
193
194
195
196
197
198
199
200
201
202
203
204
205
206
207
208
209
210
211
212
213
214
215
216
217
218
219
220
221
222
223
224
225
226
227
228
229
230
231
232
233
234
235
236
237
238
239
240
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang="en-US">
<head>
<title>Common Public Speaking Problems and Exercises to Fix Them</title>
<meta charset="utf-8">
<meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1">
<link rel="alternate" type="application/rss+xml" title="RSS Feed" href="rss.xml">
<!-- SEO Description -->
<meta name="author" content="Nicholas S. Selby">
<meta name="description" content="Swallow a tablespoon of honey. Then, rehearse while laying flat on the ground facing upward with a heavy object on your belly. Whenever you inhale, force the object to rise. While speaking, force the object to fall.">
<link rel="canonical" href="https://rupumped.github.io/public-speaking-problems.html">
<script type="application/ld+json">
{
"@context": "https://schema.org",
"@type": "BlogPosting",
"headline": "Common Public Speaking Problems and Exercises to Fix Them",
"image": [
"https://rupumped.github.io/blog/public-speaking.jpg",
"https://rupumped.github.io/blog-posts/speaking-cover.jpg"
],
"datePublished": "2020-07-25T00:00:00+00:00",
"author": [{
"@type": "Person",
"name": "Nicholas S. Selby",
"url": "https://rupumped.github.io/"
}]
}
</script>
<!-- Open Graph Tags -->
<meta property="og:title" content="Common Public Speaking Problems and Exercises to Fix Them">
<meta property="og:description" content="Swallow a tablespoon of honey. Then, rehearse while laying flat on the ground facing upward with a heavy object on your belly. Whenever you inhale, force the object to rise. While speaking, force the object to fall.">
<meta property="og:image" content="https://rupumped.github.io/blog/public-speaking.jpg">
<meta property="og:image:width" content="364">
<meta property="og:image:height" content="364">
<meta property="og:image:alt" content="Me speaking publicly">
<meta property="og:url" content="https://rupumped.github.io/public-speaking-problems.html">
<meta property="og:type" content="article">
<!-- Favicon -->
<link rel="icon" href="./favicon.svg" type="image/svg+xml">
<link rel="icon" href="./favicon.ico" sizes="any">
<!-- Fonts -->
<link rel="preconnect" href="https://fonts.googleapis.com">
<link rel="preconnect" href="https://fonts.gstatic.com" crossorigin>
<link href="https://fonts.googleapis.com/css2?family=Bricolage+Grotesque:opsz,wght@12..96,200..800&family=Literata:ital,opsz,wght@0,7..72,300..700;1,7..72,300..700&display=swap" rel="stylesheet">
<!-- Custom CSS -->
<link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="main.css">
<link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="secondary.css">
<link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="blog-posts/blog-post.css">
</head>
<body>
<header>
<div class="header-content">
<a href="index.html" id="name">NICHOLAS S SELBY</a>
<nav>
<input class="menu-btn" type="checkbox" id="menu-btn">
<label class="menu-icon" for="menu-btn" tabindex="0"><span class="navicon"></span></label>
<ul class="menu">
<li><a href="index.html">HOME</a></li>
<li><a href="about.html">ABOUT</a></li>
<li><a href="selected-work.html">PROJECTS</a></li>
<li><a href="scholarship.html">SCHOLARSHIP</a></li>
<li><a href="service.html">SERVICE</a></li>
<li><a href="blog.html">BLOG</a></li>
</ul>
</nav>
</div>
</header>
<main>
<h1>Common Public Speaking Problems and Exercises to Fix Them</h1>
<p class="date">Posted on July 25, 2020 • 5-minute read</p>
<figure class="cover">
<img loading="lazy" src="blog-posts/speaking-cover.jpg" alt="Photo CC BY-NC: Rostron, Allan. 'Audience.' 2013.">
<figcaption>Photo CC BY-NC: Rostron, Allan. "Audience." 2013.</figcaption>
</figure>
<section class="odd">
<h2>Swaying</h2>
<p>Stand on something precarious, like a stool, and rehearse your speech. The difficulty of balancing will keep your mind focused on standing still.</p>
</section>
<section class="even">
<h2>Pacing or Nervous Feet</h2>
<p>Rehearse with heavy objects on your feet. Whenever you try to lift your foot, the weight will provide an instant reminder not to do that.</p>
</section>
<section class="odd">
<h2>Nervous Hands</h2>
<p>Rehearse while holding dumbbells or other heavy objects in your hands. Holding something heavy will keep your mind focused on keeping your hands still by your sides.</p>
</section>
<section class="even">
<h2>Poor Enunciation</h2>
<p>Rehearse while biting down on a wooden pencil with your back molars. The pencil will force every movement of your tongue to be strategic and intentional, developing muscle memory that will help you enunciate more clearly.</p>
</section>
<section class="odd">
<h2>Insufficient Volume or Frequently Losing Your Voice</h2>
<p>Rehearse while laying flat on the ground facing upward with a heavy object on your belly. Whenever you inhale, force the object to rise. While speaking, force the object to fall. Try to relax your throat. Doing so forces you to rely more your diaphragm, taking pressure off of your throat and helping you project your voice more effectively.</p>
</section>
<section class="even">
<h2>Frequently Losing Your Voice</h2>
<p>Often, this is caused by relying on the throat instead of the diaphragm to increase volume. In addition to the above projection exercise, swallow a tablespoon of honey before performing. Try to keep the honey in your throat from vibrating. The honey will coat your throat and provide temporary relief, and minimizing its vibration will help you pay attention to how much you are relying on your throat to increase volume instead of your diaphragm.</p>
</section>
<section class="odd">
<h2>Monotone Voice, Invariant Vocal Pattern, or Sounding Rehearsed</h2>
<p>Recite each line using three drastically different vocal patterns, even if some of them are ridiculous. This will help your brain break subconscious habits in your cadence. As a bonus, you may find a new way of speaking a line that you want to keep.</p>
</section>
<section class="even">
<h2>Repetitive or Insufficient Hand Gestures</h2>
<p>Recite each line using three different hand gestures, even if some of them don't make sense. This will help your brain break subconscious habits in your gesturing. Remember that there are generally three binary choices for each hand gesture: one or two hands, palms facing up or down, and hands inside or outside the frame of the torso. </p>
</section>
<section class="odd">
<h2>Forgetting Lines</h2>
<p>Recite the first line. Then recite the first line followed by the second line. Then recite the first and second lines followed by the third line. Repeat the pattern. Whenever you forget a line, repeat it three times, then start over from the beginning. This method is optimized for helping you remember lines by creating mental links between them.</p>
</section>
<section class="even">
<h2>Insufficient Eye Contact</h2>
<p>Rehearse while standing uncomfortably close to a mirror, staring into your own eyes. Then, rehearse while standing uncomfortably close to a friend, staring into their eyes the entire time. The exposure therapy should help you get used to eye contact with an audience.</p>
</section>
<section class="odd">
<h2>Insufficient Eye Contact Due to Staring at Slides</h2>
<p>Allow yourself exactly one glance at each slide. Assign one spoken line per slide and glance at the slide only during that line. Not just the words you speak, but also the movement of your body is a memorized part of your performance.</p>
</section>
<section class="even">
<h2>Minor Stuttering</h2>
<p>Do each of the following consecutively, not simultaneously: stop speaking, close your eyes, take a breath, imagine yourself saying the line without stuttering, then say the line. Visualizing success is a tried-and-true cognitive trick to achieving success.</p>
</section>
<section class="odd">
<h2>Using Filler Words like "um," "uh," or "like"</h2>
<p>Memorize. Write a script if necessary. It's easier to fix sounding rehearsed than beating this habit.</p>
</section>
<section class="even">
<h2>Talking Too Fast</h2>
<p>While watching a stopwatch, recite each line by speaking one word every five seconds. This will help break the hurried speaking pattern and allow you to invent a new, more paced cadence.</p>
</section>
<section class="odd">
<h2>Standing Behind a Lectern</h2>
<p>The only reason to stand behind a lectern is if you need to speak into a microphone that is mounted in the lectern. Instead, stand in front of the lectern. If you have notes, rehearse until you don't need them. If you need to change a slide, carry a clicker or mouse or walk back to the lectern when you need to advance.</p>
</section>
<section class="even">
<h2>Problems Using a Hand-Held or Mounted Microphone</h2>
<p>With any microphone, you need to rehearse with it before performing. Most work best when the head of the microphone is held approximately eight inches from the lips, about the distance from the tip of your thumb to the tip of your pinky while signing the ASL letter "Y". For best results, hold the head of the microphone 30 degrees down from the horizontal.</p>
</section>
<section class="odd">
<h2>Problems Using a Lavalier Microphone</h2>
<p>With any microphone, you need to rehearse with it before performing. Most work best when pinned approximately eight inches below the lips, about the distance from the tip of your thumb to the tip of your pinky while signing the ASL letter "Y". Don't try to speak down into the microphone.</p>
</section>
<section class="even">
<h2>Getting Distracted</h2>
<p>Ask a friend to help you do a "distraction round." While you perform for them, have your friend talk loudly over you, play music, dance, and generally distract you from your performance. Force yourself to continue no matter what. Rehearsing with over-the-top distractions prepares you to deal with more reasonable ones during your full performance.</p>
</section>
<section class="odd">
<h2>Speaking for Too Long</h2>
<p>"Running overtime" annoys your audience. If your speech is scheduled to last ten minutes, every second past the ten minute mark damages your credibility and actively turns your audience against you. In addition to thorough and repeated rehearsal, you can take steps during your performance to ensure you stay on schedule. Watching a clock is okay, but I would recommend asking a friend near the back of the audience beforehand to give you subtle time signals, such as lifting up one finger when you have a minute remaining and a fist when your time is up.</p>
</section>
<section class="even">
<h2>Lack of Clear Distinction Between Points or Arguments</h2>
<p>Signpost. When transitioning between points, summarize, then introduce your next topic. For example, "Now that we have a good understanding of the problem, let's explore some solutions." Signposting helps your audience mentally organize the information you give them.</p>
</section>
</main>
<footer>
<div id="top-footer">
<div id="footer-socials">
<a aria-label="My LinkedIn profile" rel="external" href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicholas-selby-5278b334/" target="_blank">
<svg viewBox="0 0 448 512" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" aria-labelledby="LinkedIn-title LinkedIn-desc">
<title id="LinkedIn-title">LinkedIn</title>
<desc id="LinkedIn-desc">LinkedIn icon</desc>
<path d="m416 32h-384.1c-17.6 0-31.9 14.5-31.9 32.3v383.4c0 17.8 14.3 32.3 31.9 32.3h384.1c17.6 0 32-14.5 32-32.3v-383.4c0-17.8-14.4-32.3-32-32.3zm-280.6 384h-66.4v-213.8h66.5v213.8zm-33.2-243c-21.3 0-38.5-17.3-38.5-38.5s17.2-38.5 38.5-38.5c21.2 0 38.5 17.3 38.5 38.5 0 21.3-17.2 38.5-38.5 38.5zm282.1 243h-66.4v-104c0-24.8-.5-56.7-34.5-56.7-34.6 0-39.9 27-39.9 54.9v105.8h-66.4v-213.8h63.7v29.2h.9c8.9-16.8 30.6-34.5 62.9-34.5 67.2 0 79.7 44.3 79.7 101.9z"/>
</svg>
</a>
<a aria-label="My Google Scholar Profile" rel="external" href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=SKcs1pEAAAAJ" target="_blank">
<svg viewBox="0 0 448 512" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" aria-labelledby="Google-Scholar-title Google-Scholar-desc">
<title id="Google-Scholar-title">Google Scholar</title>
<desc id="Google-Scholar-desc">Google Scholar icon</desc>
<path d="m48 32c-26.5 0-48 21.5-48 48v352c0 26.5 21.5 48 48 48h352c26.5 0 48-21.5 48-48v-352c0-26.5-21.5-48-48-48zm140.69531 64h178.24024l-16.47071 12.85938v22.69335c6.1159.78532 5.46875 4.46019 5.46875 8.85743v107.22265c0 4.96563-4.06205 9.0293-9.02734 9.0293h-3.32422c-4.96563 0-9.0293-4.06403-9.0293-9.0293v-107.22265c0-4.40781-.63995-8.08659 5.52149-8.86133v-14.26563l-47.42383 38.89258c.54795 1.01573 1.06775 1.6675 1.5625 2.51953 4.16684 7.37735 6.28906 16.54919 6.28906 27.75977 0 8.59325-1.43204 16.31497-4.33593 23.13086-2.89082 6.81736-6.4066 12.38451-10.50782 16.67383-4.10119 4.30429-8.21545 8.23614-12.33008 11.77734-4.11326 3.54813-7.62906 7.24664-10.50781 11.08789-2.90139 3.82814-4.34765 7.78747-4.34765 11.88867 0 4.10814 1.87594 8.28085 5.61328 12.48633 3.72386 4.2186 8.30529 8.30635 13.72265 12.34375 5.42938 4.01043 10.84634 8.46278 16.26368 13.30664 5.42904 4.83584 9.98706 11.06107 13.71093 18.62109 3.75047 7.58518 5.625 15.93732 5.625 25.11719 0 12.10928-3.08756 23.04599-9.24609 32.7793-6.17204 9.69317-14.21877 17.42887-24.10156 23.09961-9.90904 5.70939-20.50722 10.00631-31.8086 12.91015-11.32797 2.87733-22.56501 4.32227-33.78906 4.32227-7.08423 0-14.23265-.5475-21.42187-1.66602-7.21219-1.12-14.43823-3.09828-21.7168-5.88476-7.29167-2.80655-13.75106-6.25079-19.34961-10.39063-5.61205-4.09467-10.12984-9.38173-13.59375-15.82031-3.46392-6.43852-5.18359-13.67857-5.18359-21.71875 0-9.53863 2.65694-18.38532 7.98242-26.63476 5.32512-8.18928 12.3823-15.02552 21.1582-20.44141 15.31325-9.52549 39.33645-15.4113 72.03125-17.63672-7.47326-9.34283-11.22266-18.13975-11.22266-26.36914 0-4.68271 1.22186-9.69984 3.64454-15.11719-3.90652.54687-7.9286.85352-12.03125.85352-17.56273 0-32.39541-5.70952-44.43946-17.20703-12.04402-11.47856-18.05859-25.8462-18.05859-43.2168 0-1.81599.05219-3.41866.18164-5.18945h-71.378907zm31.37891 38.33398c-11.19892 0-19.79186 4.02906-25.78125 12.07032-5.9879 8.02012-8.98438 17.73465-8.98438 29.14648 0 9.71981 1.64061 19.61644 4.92188 29.70703 3.2681 10.08548 8.62123 19.08948 16.12109 27.02539 7.47324 7.95594 16.17192 11.92578 26.05469 11.92578 11.01591 0 19.62286-3.68944 25.79492-11.07226 6.14505-7.37043 9.23047-16.67343 9.23047-27.87891 0-9.54517-1.6264-19.537-4.89453-29.98633-3.25608-10.46247-8.68505-19.90262-16.26367-28.30664-7.55234-8.4321-16.30333-12.63086-26.19922-12.63086zm18.51758 172.08008c-8.03469 0-15.93905.71228-23.69922 2.13086-7.76017 1.37996-15.41675 3.70986-22.96875 6.99805-7.57861 3.26958-13.69819 8.07499-18.35938 14.42969-4.68784 6.34667-7.01953 13.82169-7.01953 22.42187 0 8.19582 2.05913 15.50628 6.17383 21.87305 4.10265 6.32768 9.51795 11.28394 16.25 14.83203 6.73201 3.55471 13.78885 6.23613 21.1582 8 7.3828 1.75184 14.89682 2.66406 22.55274 2.66406 15.14262 0 28.17578-3.41115 39.11328-10.22851 10.91054-6.8159 16.38086-17.34206 16.38086-31.54883 0-2.98812-.41689-5.93201-1.23828-8.80274-.85861-2.90389-1.70365-5.3892-2.53711-7.45312-.83345-2.02525-2.42173-4.4673-4.76563-7.2793-2.33081-2.81861-4.11569-4.90255-5.31445-6.28906-1.2239-1.43208-3.51215-3.47703-6.88672-6.17969-3.34426-2.71375-5.48032-4.40548-6.43164-5.03125h-.00195c-.93771-.65762-3.3717-2.4355-7.29102-5.32031-3.9189-2.91084-6.06651-4.45407-6.44531-4.63672-2.05736-.37077-4.94607-.58008-8.66992-.58008z"/>
</svg>
</a>
<a aria-label="My GitHub profile" rel="external" href="https://github.com/rupumped" target="_blank">
<svg viewBox="0 0 448 512" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" aria-labelledby="GitHub-title GitHub-desc">
<title id="GitHub-title">GitHub</title>
<desc id="GitHub-desc">GitHub icon</desc>
<path d="M400 32H48C21.5 32 0 53.5 0 80v352c0 26.5 21.5 48 48 48h352c26.5 0 48-21.5 48-48V80c0-26.5-21.5-48-48-48zM277.3 415.7c-8.4 1.5-11.5-3.7-11.5-8 0-5.4.2-33 .2-55.3 0-15.6-5.2-25.5-11.3-30.7 37-4.1 76-9.2 76-73.1 0-18.2-6.5-27.3-17.1-39 1.7-4.3 7.4-22-1.7-45-13.9-4.3-45.7 17.9-45.7 17.9-13.2-3.7-27.5-5.6-41.6-5.6-14.1 0-28.4 1.9-41.6 5.6 0 0-31.8-22.2-45.7-17.9-9.1 22.9-3.5 40.6-1.7 45-10.6 11.7-15.6 20.8-15.6 39 0 63.6 37.3 69 74.3 73.1-4.8 4.3-9.1 11.7-10.6 22.3-9.5 4.3-33.8 11.7-48.3-13.9-9.1-15.8-25.5-17.1-25.5-17.1-16.2-.2-1.1 10.2-1.1 10.2 10.8 5 18.4 24.2 18.4 24.2 9.7 29.7 56.1 19.7 56.1 19.7 0 13.9.2 36.5.2 40.6 0 4.3-3 9.5-11.5 8-66-22.1-112.2-84.9-112.2-158.3 0-91.8 70.2-161.5 162-161.5S388 165.6 388 257.4c.1 73.4-44.7 136.3-110.7 158.3zm-98.1-61.1c-1.9.4-3.7-.4-3.9-1.7-.2-1.5 1.1-2.8 3-3.2 1.9-.2 3.7.6 3.9 1.9.3 1.3-1 2.6-3 3zm-9.5-.9c0 1.3-1.5 2.4-3.5 2.4-2.2.2-3.7-.9-3.7-2.4 0-1.3 1.5-2.4 3.5-2.4 1.9-.2 3.7.9 3.7 2.4zm-13.7-1.1c-.4 1.3-2.4 1.9-4.1 1.3-1.9-.4-3.2-1.9-2.8-3.2.4-1.3 2.4-1.9 4.1-1.5 2 .6 3.3 2.1 2.8 3.4zm-12.3-5.4c-.9 1.1-2.8.9-4.3-.6-1.5-1.3-1.9-3.2-.9-4.1.9-1.1 2.8-.9 4.3.6 1.3 1.3 1.8 3.3.9 4.1zm-9.1-9.1c-.9.6-2.6 0-3.7-1.5s-1.1-3.2 0-3.9c1.1-.9 2.8-.2 3.7 1.3 1.1 1.5 1.1 3.3 0 4.1zm-6.5-9.7c-.9.9-2.4.4-3.5-.6-1.1-1.3-1.3-2.8-.4-3.5.9-.9 2.4-.4 3.5.6 1.1 1.3 1.3 2.8.4 3.5zm-6.7-7.4c-.4.9-1.7 1.1-2.8.4-1.3-.6-1.9-1.7-1.5-2.6.4-.6 1.5-.9 2.8-.4 1.3.7 1.9 1.8 1.5 2.6z"/>
</svg>
</a>
<a aria-label="My RSS feed" href="rss.html">
<svg height="800px" width="800px" version="1.1" id="Layer_1" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" viewBox="-143 145 512 512" xml:space="preserve" aria-labelledby="RSS-title RSS-desc">
<title id="RSS-title">RSS</title>
<desc id="RSS-desc">RSS icon</desc>
<path d="M329,145h-432c-22.1,0-40,17.9-40,40v432c0,22.1,17.9,40,40,40h432c22.1,0,40-17.9,40-40V185C369,162.9,351.1,145,329,145z M43.1,518.7c-6.2,6.2-14.7,9.9-24.1,9.9c-9.4,0-17.8-3.8-24-9.9c-6.2-6.2-10-14.6-10-23.9c0-9.4,3.8-17.8,10-24s14.6-10,24-10 c9.4,0,17.9,3.8,24,10c6.2,6.2,10,14.6,10,24C53,504.2,49.2,512.6,43.1,518.7z M104.8,529c-0.1-32.1-12.5-62.3-35.1-84.9 c-22.6-22.6-52.8-35.2-84.7-35.2V360c46.6,0,88.7,19,119.3,49.6c30.6,30.6,49.5,72.8,49.6,119.4H104.8z M192,529 c-0.1-114.2-92.8-207.1-206.9-207.1V273c70.6,0,134.5,28.7,180.8,75.1c46.3,46.4,75,110.3,75.1,180.9H192z"/>
</svg>
</a>
</div>
<div id="footer-initials">
NSS
</div>
<div id="footer-nav">
<a href="mailto:nicholas.selby@renewvia.com">CONTACT</a>
<a href="index.html">HOME</a>
<a href="sitemap.html">SITEMAP</a>
</div>
</div>
<p id="copyright">
© 2018–2026 This work by <a href="https://rupumped.github.io" property="cc:attributionName" rel="cc:attributionURL">Nicholas S. Selby</a> is licensed under a <a rel="license" target="_blank" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License</a>. Feel free to fork the <a rel="external" target="_blank" href="https://github.com/rupumped/rupumped.github.io">source code</a> from GitHub and create your own website using this template.
</p>
<!-- Tarpits -->
<div style="display:none;">
<a href="tarpit/entry.html">Archived Content</a>
</div>
<a href="tarpit/entry.html" style="opacity:0;position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:1px;height:1px;">Archive</a>
<div style="position:absolute;left:-9999px;width:1px;height:1px;overflow:hidden;" aria-hidden="true">
<a href="tarpit/trap-1.html">Legacy Documentation</a>
<a href="tarpit/trap-2.html">Historical Posts</a>
<a href="tarpit/trap-3.html">Old Resources</a>
</div>
</footer>
</body>
</html>