Public Speaking Tip: Authenticity

Is that person going up on stage to give a speech the same person as the one hanging out with your friends?

Often times we create different personas or masks that we put on to suit each occasion as we see fit.  But how well do we carry each of that persona?

Many people feel that if they are going to put themselves out there, be seen in public, getting all that attention focused on them for 7 minutes, then they need to become someone very different from the person who is just hanging out with friends eating roti canai at the local makak.

There are people who feel they have to ramp up the drama to get attention.  Some feel they need to scale back a little of their personality so that people can take them seriously.  Others try to be a little silly or cute because they think it will make them more likeable.

And there is absolutely nothing wrong with that.

In fact, go for it!  Good speakers will bring out different sides of their personality that will best serve their speech topic in order to deliver the biggest impact.  You can’t be a one trick pony all the time.  People will get bored and you will just be predictable.

“Here comes the drama queen/king again,” people will say if all you do is call on thunder and lightning and hail storms in every speech.

However, the big question is, how comfortable are you behind all these personas.  Do you believe in this character you play enough to make him or her believable?

Believe it or not, delivering a speech is just like acting on stage.  People buy your story based on how believable the character you play is.  Similarly, people buy your speech based on how “real” or “authentic” you appear to them.  You sincerity and conviction will be the driving force that will make a difference in your delivery.

So again, the question – how comfortable are you delivering your speech in this persona you hide behind?

One way or another, people can spot that you are faking it.  You can call it nerves or even stage fright, but it all comes down to how real this character you play when delivering your speech is to you.  How comfortable are you with this character?  Do you believe that this person is real and is an extension of your personality?

You may think that you need to call on the hail storms, lightning and thunder to be effective but if this much drama or “presence” doesn’t feel like it’s part of you, then you will fall flat.  The crack in your voice or lack of conviction in your body language will give you away.

The easiest way to overcome that?

You either become that character or you become yourself.

You either embody this onstage persona that you want to create or you don’t.  There is no halfway point.

At the end of the day, authenticity is the thing that is going to set you apart.  So regardless of who you choose to be on stage, this person needs to be real to you first, before he/she can be real to the audience.

And if you despair in ever being able to create an onstage persona that is believable, just remember – there is always the real you that you can turn to, even if you think that you are not interesting enough *wink*

Fighting stage fright, remembering your speech and everything you practiced is already a handful without the pressure to “stay in character”.  So unless you are an accomplished actor, this is probably another headache you don’t need.

As the saying goes – be real, be you, because that is the person that the audience came to see.

If you would like to learn effective communication skills as well as learn leadership skills that you can put in practice immediately, join us for our bi-monthly meetings on every 1st and 3rd Wednesdays of the month.  Please refer to our Next Meeting page for information on our next meeting or contact us directly to see how we can help you achieve your goals.