I'm an accountant how do I make my public speaking engaging?
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The document provides tips for becoming an engaging speaker, emphasizing the importance of confidence, practice, and storytelling. It suggests using personal stories and humor to connect with the audience and overcome stereotypes associated with professions such as accounting. The author, Rae A. Stonehouse, shares his experience as a Toastmasters member and offers insights on improving public speaking skills.
I'm an accountant how do I make my public speaking engaging?
- 1. I am an accountant, any ideas to make my speech or public speaking engaging? It doesn’treallymatterif youare a funeral director,atow truck driver,a cosmeticianorevenanaccountant,the same rulesapplytobecominganengaging speaker. The firsttwo caveatsare likelythatyouhave tosomethingworthwhile talking aboutand secondlyyouneedanaudience i.e.somebodywhoisinterestedorcould benefitfromyourmessage. The secretto becominganengagingspeakeristobe confidentinyourspeaking.DarrenLacroix,the 2001 WorldChampionof PublicSpeaking,oftensaysthatthe secretto becomingconfidentinyour speakingis“stagetime,stagetime,stagetime”whichcanalsobe interpretedas“practice,practice, practice!” Anylocal Toastmastersclubwill give youample opportunitiestohone yourspeakingskillsandinturn increase yourself-confidence.Fellowclubmemberswillprovide constructive feedbackthatwill help hone yourskills.Asa22 yearmemberof Toastmasters,sofar,I have certainlybenefittedfromthe opportunitiesthatmyclubmembershiphasprovided.Ihave alsoacceptedmanyspeakingopportunities out inthe publicthat alsocontinue tohelpme hone myspeakingskills. Let’sfocuson the how to become more engagingaspectof the question.Eachand everyone of ushas unique skillsandexperiences.The storiesthatwe tell atfamilygatherings,the storiesthatwe share at work,the onesthat we learnedanimportantlessonfromare all gems.People enjoyhearingagood story.I wouldsuggestbecomingacollectorof yourpersonal stories.Createajournal of yourstories. These are great resourcesforwhenyouwantto deliveralongpresentation.Yourstoryshouldbe tied intoa specificlearningpoint.Rule of thumbwhenusingastoryinyour speech:tell astory,make a point, tell anotherstory,make anotherpoint.The storiesbecome the backboneforthe pointsyouwantto make.Your audience maynotactuallyrememberthe pointthatyoumade buttheymay verywell rememberhowtheyfeltaboutyourstory. Anothersecrettobeingan engagingspeakeristouse humourin yourpresentation.Self-deprecating humourisrecommendedasitdrawsattentiontoyou,makesyou feel more humantothe audience and it doesn’tputshame orundue focusor criticismonsomeone else.Youdon’twanttoalienate your audience. Leverage whatyouknow.Asan accountant,it setsup a seriesof stereotypical thinkinginyouraudience. Example:1) Accountantsare all shyintroverts2) Accountants are boring3) Accountantshave nosense of humour.Ibelieve thatwhenanindividualisintroducedasanaccountant,manypeople will have these preconceivedviewsof whatanaccountantis.This can be great material foryourpresentations, especiallyin youropeningcomments. Last year I facilitatedapowernetworkingtrainingsessionforabout50 or so accountants.I leveraged the stereotypical thinkingmentionedabove.Yes,mostinthe roomwere actuallyshyintroverts,many
- 2. extremelyshy.Some couldtell jokes…well marginally.However,whenwatching50accountants struttingaroundthe room as “funky”chickens,itistrulya magical sight. Everyone likestohave fun.Asyourself-confidence increasesandyourspeakingskillsincrease,youwill truly be in positiontobe engagingtoyouraudience.If youhave fun,youraudience will have fun. To coin a phrase froma fellow ToastmastersDistrictGovernor,“have some seriousfun!” Seriously,have some funwithbecominganengagingspeakeranda writeranda storytelleranda presenter… As originallyansweredon Quora.com Rae A. Stonehouse (1954- ) is a Canadian born author & speaker. His professional career as a Registered Nurse working predominantly in psychiatry/mental health, has spanned four decades. Rae has embraced the principal of CANI (Constant and Never-ending Improvement) as promoted by thought leaders such as Tony Robbins and brings that philosophy to each of his publications and presentations. Rae has dedicated the latter segment of his journey through life to overcoming his personal inhibitions. As a 20+ year member of Toastmasters International he has systematically built his self-confidence and communicating ability. He is passionate about sharing his lessons with his readers and listeners. His publications thus far are of the self-help, self-improvement genre and systematically offer valuable sage advice on a specific topic. His writing style can be described as being conversational. As an author Rae strives to have a one-to-one conversation with each of his readers, very much like having your own personal self-development coach. Rae is known for having a wry sense of humour that features in his publications. To learn more about Rae A. Stonehouse, visit the Wonderful World of Rae Stonehouse at http://raestonehouse.com . Author of Self-Help Downloadable E-Books: Power Networking for Shy People: Tips & Techniques for Moving from Shy to Sly! PROtect Yourself! Empowering Tips & Techniques for Personal Safety: A Practical Violence Prevention Manual for Healthcare Workers. E=Emcee Squared: Tips & Techniques to Becoming a Dynamic Master of Ceremonies. Power of Promotion: On-line Marketing for Toastmasters Club Growth
- 3. Phone: Rae 250-451-6564 or info@raestonehouse.com Rae’s social … are you? Twitter: http://twitter.com/RaeStonehouse Linkedin? Rae is http://www.linkedin.com/in/raestonehouse Copyright 2016 Rae Stonehouse. The above document may be freely copied and distributed as long as the author’s name and contact info remain attached. Shar eShareWhat istheimportanceof SpeechCommunicat ionintheBusinessSector ?