92 Delivering with Confidence (7.2.4)

Delivery: Not Too Much, Not Too Little

How you speak (verbal) and move or act (nonverbal) can help your audience understand you better, or it can confuse or bore them. You don’t want to be too dramatic, and you don’t want to be too quiet or still. The best way to find the right balance is to practice. Over time, you’ll learn what works best for you.

Think about the story of Goldilocks: one chair was too big, one too small, and one was just right. Your presentation delivery should also be just right—not too much or too little. This takes practice and experience. In the following sections, you’ll learn about different parts of your delivery and what to think about when you give a presentation.

Watch this Video 11.12 to learn how to use body language more effectively when presenting:

Video 11.12: Body Language for Presentations | Running Time: 10:09

^{Use Body Language to Rock Your Next Presentation | Published by Stanford Graduate School of Business | Jul 26, 2016}

Body Language

Hands: Use your hands naturally, like you do in everyday conversation. If you feel nervous, rest them on the lectern or gently fold them in front of you. Try not to clench your fists or make the same gesture repeatedly.

Feet: Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and your knees slightly bent. If you feel comfortable, walk a little when making a point. Avoid bouncing or shifting your weight back and forth.

Objects: Only bring what you need for your presentation. Leave personal items like phones or tablets out of sight and ensure they are turned off or silenced.

Clothing: Wear clean, professional clothing that suits your workplace. Avoid noisy jewelry, uncomfortable shoes, or anything distracting you or the audience. Tie back long hair if it might tempt you to touch it during your speech.

Eye Contact

Making eye contact helps your audience feel connected to you. Try to look at the people in the audience about 80% of the time during your presentation (Lucas, 2015, p. 250). Don’t just scan the room—look at different people briefly, one at a time. Watch this Video 11.13 for tips on making eye contact during a presentation. Watch Video 11.14 to learn how to practice your eye contact skills with increasing difficulty.

Video 11.13: How to Make Eye Contact When Presenting | Running Time: 4:46

^{How to Make Eye Contact When Presenting | Published by Communication Coach Alexander Lyon | Nov 5, 2016}

Video 11.14: Four Difficulty Levels of Eye Contact | Running Time: 8:20 

^{Video For Practicing Eye Contact: FOUR Difficulty Levels | Published by Improvement Pill | Jul 19, 2017}

Your Voice

Volume: Speak loud enough for everyone to hear, especially in a large room.

Rate (Speed): Talk at a steady, comfortable pace. Don’t rush. Speak slowly at the beginning of your speech to help people get used to your voice.

Vocalized Pauses: Words like “um,” “uh,” and “like” are normal, but too many can distract the audience. Try to notice when you use them and slowly reduce how often you say them.

Takeaways

These tips are the most important things to remember for your delivery, but there are more you’ll learn as you gain experience.

One last reminder: Even if you practice a lot, something might still go wrong. That’s normal! If you make a mistake, don’t stop and don’t tell the audience. Most of the time, they won’t even notice. Just keep going confidently.

Attribution

This section contains material from Chapter 11.5 “What to Do When Delivering Your Speech” in Introduction to Professional Communication and is used under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

References

References are at the end of this chapter.