{"id":117,"date":"2015-08-13T22:27:43","date_gmt":"2015-08-13T22:27:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/courses.candelalearning.com\/standupspeakoutxmaster\/?post_type=chapter&#038;p=117"},"modified":"2015-08-13T22:33:24","modified_gmt":"2015-08-13T22:33:24","slug":"practicing-for-successful-speech-delivery","status":"publish","type":"chapter","link":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/suny-fmcc-standupspeakout\/chapter\/practicing-for-successful-speech-delivery\/","title":{"raw":"Practicing for Successful Speech Delivery","rendered":"Practicing for Successful Speech Delivery"},"content":{"raw":"<div class=\"bcc-box bcc-highlight\">\r\n<h3 class=\"im_title\">Learning Objectives<\/h3>\r\n<ul id=\"wrench_1.0-ch14_s04_l01\" class=\"im_orderedlist\">\r\n\t<li>Explain why having a strong conversational quality is important for effective public speaking.<\/li>\r\n\t<li>Explain the importance of eye contact in public speaking.<\/li>\r\n\t<li>Define vocalics and differentiate among the different factors of vocalics.<\/li>\r\n\t<li>Explain effective physical manipulation during a speech.<\/li>\r\n\t<li>Understand how to practice effectively for good speech delivery.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/div>\r\nThere is no foolproof recipe for good delivery. Each of us is unique, and we each embody different experiences and interests. This means each person has an approach, or a style, that is effective for her or him. This further means that anxiety can accompany even the most carefully researched and interesting message. Even when we know our messages are strong and well-articulated on paper, it is difficult to know for sure that our presentation will also be good.\r\n\r\nWe are still obligated to do our best out of respect for the audience and their needs. Fortunately, there are some tools that can be helpful to you even the very first time you present a speech. You will continue developing your skills each time you put them to use and can experiment to find out which combination of delivery elements is most effective for you.\r\n<div id=\"wrench_1.0-ch14_s04_s01\" class=\"im_section\">\r\n<h2 class=\"im_title im_editable im_block\">What Is Good Delivery?<\/h2>\r\nThe more you care about your topic, the greater your motivation to present it well. Good delivery is a process of presenting a clear, coherent message in an interesting way. Communication scholar Stephen E. Lucas tells us:\r\n<blockquote>Good delivery\u2026conveys the speaker\u2019s ideas clearly, interestingly, and without distracting the audience. Most audiences prefer delivery that combines a certain degree of formality with the best attributes of good conversation\u2014directness, spontaneity, animation, vocal and facial expressiveness, and a lively sense of communication.<span id=\"wrench_1.0-fn14_002\" class=\"im_footnote\">[footnote]Lucas, S. E. (2009). <em class=\"im_emphasis\">The art of public speaking<\/em> (9th ed.). Boston, MA: McGraw-Hill, p. 244.[\/footnote]<\/span><\/blockquote>\r\nMany writers on the nonverbal aspects of delivery have cited the findings of psychologist Albert Mehrabian, asserting that the bulk of an audience\u2019s understanding of your message is based on nonverbal communication. Specifically, Mehrabian is often credited with finding that when audiences decoded a speaker\u2019s meaning, the speaker\u2019s face conveyed 55 percent of the information, the vocalics conveyed 38 percent, and the words conveyed just 7 percent.<span id=\"wrench_1.0-fn14_003\" class=\"im_footnote\">[footnote]Mehrabian, A. (1972). <em class=\"im_emphasis\">Nonverbal communication<\/em>. Chicago, IL: Aldine-Atherton.[\/footnote]<\/span> Although numerous scholars, including Mehrabian himself, have stated that his findings are often misinterpreted,<span id=\"wrench_1.0-fn14_004\" class=\"im_footnote\">[footnote]Mitchell, O. (n.d.). Mehrabian and nonverbal communication [Web log post]. Retrieved from <a class=\"im_link\" href=\"http:\/\/www.speakingaboutpresenting.com\/presentation-myths\/mehrabian-nonverbal-communication-research\" target=\"_blank\">http:\/\/www.speakingaboutpresenting.com\/presentation-myths\/mehrabian-nonverbal-communication-research<\/a>[\/footnote]<\/span> scholars and speech instructors do agree that nonverbal communication and speech delivery are extremely important to effective public speaking.\r\n\r\nIn this section of the chapter, we will explain six elements of good delivery: conversational style, conversational quality, eye contact, vocalics, physical manipulation, and variety. And since delivery is only as good as the practice that goes into it, we conclude with some tips for effective use of your practice time.\r\n<div id=\"wrench_1.0-ch14_s04_s01_s01\" class=\"im_section\">\r\n<h2 class=\"im_title im_editable im_block\">Conversational Style<\/h2>\r\n<span class=\"im_margin_term\"><span class=\"im_glossterm\">Conversational style<\/span><\/span> is a speaker\u2019s ability to sound expressive and to be perceived by the audience as natural. It\u2019s a style that approaches the way you normally express yourself in a much smaller group than your classroom audience. This means that you want to avoid having your presentation come across as didactic or overly exaggerated. You might not feel natural while you\u2019re using a conversational style, but for the sake of audience preference and receptiveness, you should do your best to appear natural. It might be helpful to remember that the two most important elements of the speech are the message and the audience. You are the conduit with the important role of putting the two together in an effective way. Your audience should be thinking about the message, not the delivery.\r\n\r\nStephen E. Lucas defines <span class=\"im_margin_term\"><span class=\"im_glossterm\">conversational quality<\/span><\/span> as the idea that \u201cno matter how many times a speech has been rehearsed, it still <em class=\"im_emphasis\">sounds<\/em> spontaneous\u201d [emphasis in original].<span id=\"wrench_1.0-fn14_005\" class=\"im_footnote\">[footnote]Lucas, S. E. (2009). <em class=\"im_emphasis\">The art of public speaking<\/em> (9th ed.). Boston, MA: McGraw-Hill, p. 247.[\/footnote]<\/span> No one wants to hear a speech that is so well rehearsed that it sounds fake or robotic. One of the hardest parts of public speaking is rehearsing to the point where it can appear to your audience that the thoughts are magically coming to you while you\u2019re speaking, but in reality you\u2019ve spent a great deal of time thinking through each idea. When you can sound conversational, people pay attention.\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n<div id=\"wrench_1.0-ch14_s04_s01_s02\" class=\"im_section\">\r\n<h2 class=\"im_title im_editable im_block\">Eye Contact<\/h2>\r\n<span class=\"im_margin_term\"><span class=\"im_glossterm\">Eye contact<\/span><\/span> is a speaker\u2019s ability to have visual contact with everyone in the audience. Your audience should feel that you\u2019re speaking to them, not simply uttering main and supporting points. If you are new to public speaking, you may find it intimidating to look audience members in the eye, but if you think about speakers you have seen who did not maintain eye contact, you\u2019ll realize why this aspect of speech delivery is important. Without eye contact, the audience begins to feel invisible and unimportant, as if the speaker is just speaking to hear her or his own voice. Eye contact lets your audience feel that your attention is on them, not solely on the cards in front of you.\r\n\r\nSustained eye contact with your audience is one of the most important tools toward effective delivery. O\u2019Hair, Stewart, and Rubenstein note that eye contact is mandatory for speakers to establish a good relationship with an audience.<span id=\"wrench_1.0-fn14_006\" class=\"im_footnote\">[footnote]O\u2019Hair, D., Stewart, R., &amp; Rubenstein, H. (2001). <em class=\"im_emphasis\">A speaker\u2019s guidebook: Text and reference.<\/em> Boston, MA: Bedford\/St. Martin\u2019s.[\/footnote]<\/span> Whether a speaker is speaking before a group of five or five hundred, the appearance of eye contact is an important way to bring an audience into your speech.\r\n\r\nEye contact can be a powerful tool. It is not simply a sign of sincerity, a sign of being well prepared and knowledgeable, or a sign of confidence; it also has the power to convey meanings. Arthur Koch tells us that all facial expressions \u201ccan communicate a wide range of emotions, including sadness, compassion, concern, anger, annoyance, fear, joy, and happiness.\u201d<span id=\"wrench_1.0-fn14_007\" class=\"im_footnote\">[footnote]Koch, A. (2010). <em class=\"im_emphasis\">Speaking with a purpose<\/em> (8th ed.). Boston, MA: Allyn &amp; Bacon, p. 233.[\/footnote]<\/span>\r\n\r\nIf you find the gaze of your audience too intimidating, you might feel tempted to resort to \u201cfaking\u201d eye contact with them by looking at the wall just above their heads or by sweeping your gaze around the room instead of making actual eye contact with individuals in your audience until it becomes easier to provide real contact. The problem with fake eye contact is that it tends to look mechanical. Another problem with fake attention is that you lose the opportunity to assess the audience\u2019s understanding of your message. Still, fake eye contact is somewhat better than gripping your cards and staring at them and only occasionally glancing quickly and shallowly at the audience.\r\n\r\nThis is not to say that you may never look at your notecards. On the contrary, one of the skills in extemporaneous speaking is the ability to alternate one\u2019s gaze between the audience and one\u2019s notes. Rehearsing your presentation in front of a few friends should help you develop the ability to maintain eye contact with your audience while referring to your notes. When you are giving a speech that is well prepared and well rehearsed, you will only need to look at your notes occasionally. This is an ability that will develop even further with practice. Your public speaking course is your best chance to get that practice.\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n<div id=\"wrench_1.0-ch14_s04_s01_s03\" class=\"im_section\">\r\n<h2 class=\"im_title im_editable im_block\">Effective Use of Vocalics<\/h2>\r\n<span class=\"im_margin_term\"><span class=\"im_glossterm\">Vocalics<\/span><\/span>, also known as paralanguage, is the subfield of nonverbal communication that examines how we use our voices to communicate orally. This means that you speak loudly enough for all audience members (even those in the back of the room) to hear you clearly, and that you enunciate clearly enough to be understood by all audience members (even those who may have a hearing impairment or who may be English-language learners). If you tend to be soft-spoken, you will need to practice using a louder volume level that may feel unnatural to you at first. For all speakers, good vocalic technique is best achieved by facing the audience with your chin up and your eyes away from your notecards and by setting your voice at a moderate speed. Effective use of vocalics also means that you make use of appropriate pitch, pauses, vocal variety, and correct pronunciation.\r\n\r\nIf you are an English-language learner and feel apprehensive about giving a speech in English, there are two things to remember: first, you can meet with a reference librarian to learn the correct pronunciations of any English words you are unsure of; and second, the fact that you have an accent means you speak more languages than most Americans, which is an accomplishment to be proud of.\r\n\r\nIf you are one of the many people with a stutter or other speech challenge, you undoubtedly already know that there are numerous techniques for reducing stuttering and improving speech fluency and that there is no one agreed-upon \u201ccure.\u201d The Academy Award\u2013winning movie <em class=\"im_emphasis\">The King\u2019s Speech<\/em> did much to increase public awareness of what a person with a stutter goes through when it comes to public speaking. It also prompted some well-known individuals who stutter, such as television news reporter John Stossel, to go public about their stuttering.<span id=\"wrench_1.0-fn14_008\" class=\"im_footnote\">[footnote]Stossel, J. (2011, March 2). An Academy Award\u2013winning movie, stuttering and me [Web log post]. Retrieved from <a class=\"im_link\" href=\"http:\/\/www.humanevents.com\/article.php?id=42081\" target=\"_blank\">http:\/\/www.humanevents.com\/article.php?id=42081<\/a>[\/footnote]<\/span> If you have decided to study public speaking in spite of a speech challenge, we commend you for your efforts and encourage you to work with your speech instructor to make whatever adaptations work best for you.\r\n<div id=\"wrench_1.0-ch14_s04_s01_s03_s01\" class=\"im_section\">\r\n<h2 class=\"im_title im_editable im_block\">Volume<\/h2>\r\n<span class=\"im_margin_term\"><span class=\"im_glossterm\">Volume<\/span><\/span> refers to the loudness or softness of a speaker\u2019s voice. As mentioned, public speakers need to speak loudly enough to be heard by everyone in the audience. In addition, volume is often needed to overcome ambient noise, such as the hum of an air conditioner or the dull roar of traffic passing by. In addition, you can use volume strategically to emphasize the most important points in your speech. Select these points carefully; if you emphasize everything, nothing will seem important. You also want to be sure to adjust your volume to the physical setting of the presentation. If you are in a large auditorium and your audience is several yards away, you will need to speak louder. If you are in a smaller space, with the audience a few feet away, you want to avoid overwhelming your audience with shouting or speaking too loudly.\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n<div id=\"wrench_1.0-ch14_s04_s01_s03_s02\" class=\"im_section\">\r\n<h2 class=\"im_title im_editable im_block\">Rate<\/h2>\r\n<span class=\"im_margin_term\"><span class=\"im_glossterm\">Rate<\/span><\/span> is the speed at which a person speaks. To keep your speech delivery interesting, your rate should vary. If you are speaking extemporaneously, your rate will naturally fluctuate. If you\u2019re reading, your delivery is less likely to vary. Because rate is an important tool in enhancing the meanings in your speech, you do not want to give a monotone drone or a rapid \u201cmachine-gun\u201d style delivery. Your rate should be appropriate for your topic and your points. A rapid, lively rate can communicate such meanings as enthusiasm, urgency, or humor. A slower, moderated rate can convey respect, seriousness, or careful reasoning. By varying rapid and slower rates within a single speech, you can emphasize your main points and keep your audience interested.\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n<div id=\"wrench_1.0-ch14_s04_s01_s03_s03\" class=\"im_section\">\r\n<h2 class=\"im_title im_editable im_block\">Pitch<\/h2>\r\n<span class=\"im_margin_term\"><span class=\"im_glossterm\">Pitch<\/span><\/span> refers to the highness or lowness of a speaker\u2019s voice. Some speakers have deep voices and others have high voices. As with one\u2019s singing voice range, the pitch of one\u2019s speaking voice is determined to a large extent by physiology (specifically, the length of one\u2019s vocal folds, or cords, and the size of one\u2019s vocal tract). We all have a normal speaking pitch where our voice is naturally settled, the pitch where we are most comfortable speaking, and most teachers advise speaking at the pitch that feels natural to you.\r\n\r\nWhile our voices may be generally comfortable at a specific pitch level, we all have the ability to modulate, or move, our pitch up or down. In fact, we do this all the time. When we change the pitch of our voices, we are using <span class=\"im_margin_term\"><span class=\"im_glossterm\">inflections<\/span><\/span>. Just as you can use volume strategically, you can also use pitch inflections to make your delivery more interesting and emphatic. If you ordinarily speak with a soprano voice, you may want to drop your voice to a slightly lower range to call attention to a particular point. How we use inflections can even change the entire meaning of what we are saying. For example, try saying the sentence \u201cI love public speaking\u201d with a higher pitch on one of the words\u2014first raise the pitch on \u201cI,\u201d then say it again with the pitch raised on \u201clove,\u201d and so on. \u201c<em class=\"im_emphasis\">I<\/em> love public speaking\u201d conveys a different meaning from \u201cI love <em class=\"im_emphasis\">public<\/em> speaking,\u201d doesn\u2019t it?\r\n\r\nThere are some speakers who don\u2019t change their pitch at all while speaking, which is called <span class=\"im_margin_term\"><span class=\"im_glossterm\">monotone<\/span><\/span>. While very few people are completely monotone, some speakers slip into monotone patterns because of nerves. One way to ascertain whether you sound monotone is to record your voice and see how you sound. If you notice that your voice doesn\u2019t fluctuate very much, you will need to be intentional in altering your pitch to ensure that the emphasis of your speech isn\u2019t completely lost on your audience.\r\n\r\nFinally, resist the habit of pitching your voice \u201cup\u201d at the ends of sentences. It makes them sound like questions instead of statements. This habit can be disorienting and distracting, interfering with the audience\u2019s ability to focus entirely on the message. The speaker sounds uncertain or sounds as though he or she is seeking the understanding or approval of the listener. It hurts the speaker\u2019s credibility and it needs to be avoided.\r\n\r\nThe effective use of pitch is one of the keys to an interesting delivery that will hold your audience\u2019s attention.\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n<div id=\"wrench_1.0-ch14_s04_s01_s03_s04\" class=\"im_section\">\r\n<h2 class=\"im_title im_editable im_block\">Pauses<\/h2>\r\n<span class=\"im_margin_term\"><span class=\"im_glossterm\">Pauses<\/span><\/span> are brief breaks in a speaker\u2019s delivery that can show emphasis and enhance the clarity of a message. In terms of timing, the effective use of pauses is one of the most important skills to develop. Some speakers become uncomfortable very quickly with the \u201cdead air\u201d that the pause causes. And if the speaker is uncomfortable, the discomfort can transmit itself to the audience. That doesn\u2019t mean you should avoid using pauses; your ability to use them confidently will increase with practice. Some of the best comedians use the well-timed pause to powerful and hilarious effect. Although your speech will not be a comedy routine, pauses are still useful for emphasis, especially when combined with a lowered pitch and rate to emphasize the important point you do not want your audience to miss.\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n<div id=\"wrench_1.0-ch14_s04_s01_s03_s05\" class=\"im_section\">\r\n<h2 class=\"im_title im_editable im_block\">Vocal Variety<\/h2>\r\n<span class=\"im_margin_term\"><span class=\"im_glossterm\">Vocal variety<\/span><\/span> has to do with changes in the vocalics we have just discussed: volume, pitch, rate, and pauses. No one wants to hear the same volume, pitch, rate, or use of pauses over and over again in a speech. Your audience should never be able to detect that you\u2019re about to slow down or your voice is going to get deeper because you\u2019re making an important point. When you think about how you sound in a normal conversation, your use of volume, pitch, rate, and pauses are all done spontaneously. If you try to overrehearse your vocalics, your speech will end up sounding artificial. Vocal variety should flow naturally from your wish to speak with expression. In that way, it will animate your speech and invite your listeners to understand your topic the way you do.\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n<div id=\"wrench_1.0-ch14_s04_s01_s03_s06\" class=\"im_section\">\r\n<h2 class=\"im_title im_editable im_block\">Pronunciation<\/h2>\r\nThe last major category related to vocalics is <span class=\"im_margin_term\"><span class=\"im_glossterm\">pronunciation<\/span><\/span>, or the conventional patterns of speech used to form a word. Word pronunciation is important for two reasons: first, mispronouncing a word your audience is familiar with will harm your credibility as a speaker; and second, mispronouncing a word they are unfamiliar with can confuse and even misinform them. If there is any possibility at all that you don\u2019t know the correct pronunciation of a word, find out. Many online dictionaries, such as the <a href=\"http:\/\/wiktionary.org\">Wiktionary<\/a>, provide free sound files illustrating the pronunciation of words.\r\n\r\nMany have commented on the mispronunciation of words such as \u201cnuclear\u201d and \u201ccavalry\u201d by highly educated public speakers, including US presidents. There have been classroom examples as well. For instance, a student giving a speech on the Greek philosopher Socrates mispronounced his name at least eight times during her speech. This mispronunciation created a situation of great awkwardness and anxiety for the audience. Everyone felt embarrassed and the teacher, opting not to humiliate the student in front of the class, could not say anything out loud, instead providing a private written comment at the end of class.\r\n\r\nOne important aspect of pronunciation is <span class=\"im_margin_term\"><span class=\"im_glossterm\">articulation<\/span><\/span>, or the ability to clearly pronounce each of a succession of syllables used to make up a word. Some people have difficulty articulating because of physiological problems that can be treated by trained speech therapists, but other people have articulation problems because they come from a cultural milieu where a dialect other than standard American English is the norm. Speech therapists, who generally guide their clients toward standard American English, use the acronym SODA when helping people learn how to more effectively articulate: <span class=\"im_margin_term\"><span class=\"im_glossterm\">substitutions<\/span><\/span>, <span class=\"im_margin_term\"><span class=\"im_glossterm\">omissions<\/span><\/span>, <span class=\"im_margin_term\"><span class=\"im_glossterm\">distortions<\/span><\/span>, and <span class=\"im_margin_term\"><span class=\"im_glossterm\">additions<\/span><\/span>.\r\n<ul id=\"wrench_1.0-ch14_s04_s01_s03_s06_l01\" class=\"im_itemizedlist im_editable im_block\">\r\n\t<li><strong class=\"im_emphasis im_bold\">Substitutions<\/strong> occur when a speaker replaces one consonant or vowel with another consonant (<em class=\"im_emphasis\">water<\/em> becomes <em class=\"im_emphasis\">wudda<\/em>; <em class=\"im_emphasis\">ask<\/em> becomes <em class=\"im_emphasis\">ax<\/em>; <em class=\"im_emphasis\">mouth<\/em> becomes <em class=\"im_emphasis\">mouf<\/em>).<\/li>\r\n\t<li><strong class=\"im_emphasis im_bold\">Omissions<\/strong> occur when a speaker drops a consonant or vowel within a word (<em class=\"im_emphasis\">Internet<\/em> becomes <em class=\"im_emphasis\">Innet<\/em>; <em class=\"im_emphasis\">mesmerized<\/em> becomes <em class=\"im_emphasis\">memerized<\/em>; <em class=\"im_emphasis\">probably<\/em> becomes <em class=\"im_emphasis\">prolly<\/em>).<\/li>\r\n\t<li><strong class=\"im_emphasis im_bold\">Distortions<\/strong> occur when a speaker articulates a word with nasal or slurring sounds (<em class=\"im_emphasis\">pencil<\/em> sounds like <em class=\"im_emphasis\">mencil<\/em>; <em class=\"im_emphasis\">precipitation<\/em> sounds like <em class=\"im_emphasis\">persination<\/em>; <em class=\"im_emphasis\">second<\/em> sounds like <em class=\"im_emphasis\">slecond<\/em>).<\/li>\r\n\t<li><strong class=\"im_emphasis im_bold\">Additions<\/strong> occur when a speaker adds consonants or vowels to words that are not there (<em class=\"im_emphasis\">anyway<\/em> becomes <em class=\"im_emphasis\">anyways<\/em>; <em class=\"im_emphasis\">athletic<\/em> becomes <em class=\"im_emphasis\">athaletic<\/em>; <em class=\"im_emphasis\">black<\/em> becomes <em class=\"im_emphasis\">buhlack<\/em>; <em class=\"im_emphasis\">interpret<\/em> becomes <em class=\"im_emphasis\">interpretate<\/em>).<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\nAnother aspect of pronunciation in public speaking is avoiding the use of <span class=\"im_margin_term\"><span class=\"im_glossterm\">verbal surrogates<\/span><\/span> or \u201cfiller\u201d words used as placeholders for actual words (like <em class=\"im_emphasis\">er<\/em>, <em class=\"im_emphasis\">um<\/em>, <em class=\"im_emphasis\">uh<\/em>, etc.). You might be able to get away with saying \u201cum\u201d as many as two or three times in your speech before it becomes distracting, but the same cannot be said of \u201clike.\u201d We know of a student who trained herself to avoid saying \u201clike.\u201d As soon as the first speech was assigned, she began wearing a rubber band on her left wrist. Each time she caught herself saying \u201clike,\u201d she snapped herself with the rubber band. It hurt. Very quickly, she found that she could stop inflicting the snap on herself, and she had successfully confronted an unprofessional verbal habit.\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<div id=\"wrench_1.0-ch14_s04_s01_s04\" class=\"im_section\">\r\n<h2 class=\"im_title im_editable im_block\">Effective Physical Manipulation<\/h2>\r\nIn addition to using our voices effectively, a key to effective public speaking is <span class=\"im_margin_term\"><span class=\"im_glossterm\">physical manipulation<\/span><\/span>, or the use of the body to emphasize meanings or convey meanings during a speech. While we will not attempt to give an entire discourse on nonverbal communication, we will discuss a few basic aspects of physical manipulation: posture, body movement, facial expressions, and dress. These aspects add up to the overall physical dimension of your speech, which we call self-presentation.\r\n<div id=\"wrench_1.0-ch14_s04_s01_s04_s01\" class=\"im_section\">\r\n<h2 class=\"im_title im_editable im_block\">Posture<\/h2>\r\n\u201cStand up tall!\u201d I\u2019m sure we\u2019ve all heard this statement from a parent or a teacher at some point in our lives. The fact is, posture is actually quite important. When you stand up straight, you communicate to your audience, without saying a word, that you hold a position of power and take your position seriously. If however, you are slouching, hunched over, or leaning on something, you could be perceived as ill prepared, anxious, lacking in credibility, or not serious about your responsibilities as a speaker. While speakers often assume more casual posture as a presentation continues (especially if it is a long one, such as a ninety-minute class lecture), it is always wise to start by standing up straight and putting your best foot forward. Remember, you only get one shot at making a first impression, and your body\u2019s orientation is one of the first pieces of information audiences use to make that impression.\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n<div id=\"wrench_1.0-ch14_s04_s01_s04_s02\" class=\"im_section\">\r\n<h2 class=\"im_title im_editable im_block\">Body Movement<\/h2>\r\nUnless you are stuck behind a podium because of the need to use a nonmovable microphone, you should never stand in one place during a speech. However, movement during a speech should also not resemble pacing. One of our authors once saw a speaker who would walk around a small table where her speaking notes were located. She would walk around the table once, toss her chalk twice, and then repeat the process. Instead of listening to what the speaker was saying, everyone became transfixed by her walk-and-chalk-toss pattern. As speakers, we must be mindful of how we go about moving while speaking. One common method for easily integrating some movement into your speech is to take a few steps any time you transition from one idea to the next. By only moving at transition points, not only do you help focus your audience\u2019s attention on the transition from one idea to the next, but you also are able to increase your nonverbal immediacy by getting closer to different segments of your audience.\r\n\r\nBody movement also includes gestures. These should be neither overdramatic nor subdued. At one extreme, arm-waving and fist-pounding will distract from your message and reduce your credibility. At the other extreme, refraining from the use of gestures is the waste of an opportunity to suggest emphasis, enthusiasm, or other personal connection with your topic.\r\n\r\nThere are many ways to use gestures. The most obvious are hand gestures, which should be used in moderation at carefully selected times in the speech. If you overuse gestures, they lose meaning. Many late-night comedy parodies of political leaders include patterned, overused gestures or other delivery habits associated with a particular speaker. However, the well-placed use of simple, natural gestures to indicate emphasis, direction, size is usually effective. Normally, a gesture with one hand is enough. Rather than trying to have a gesture for every sentence, use just a few well-planned gestures. It is often more effective to make a gesture and hold it for a few moments than to begin waving your hands and arms around in a series of gestures.\r\n\r\nFinally, just as you should avoid pacing, you will also want to avoid other distracting movements when you are speaking. Many speakers have unconscious mannerisms such as twirling their hair, putting their hands in and out of their pockets, jingling their keys, licking their lips, or clicking a pen while speaking. As with other aspects of speech delivery, practicing in front of others will help you become conscious of such distractions and plan ways to avoid doing them.\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n<div id=\"wrench_1.0-ch14_s04_s01_s04_s03\" class=\"im_section\">\r\n<h2 class=\"im_title im_editable im_block\">Facial Expressions<\/h2>\r\nFaces are amazing things and convey so much information. As speakers, we must be acutely aware of what our face looks like while speaking. While many of us do not look forward to seeing ourselves on videotape, often the only way you can critically evaluate what your face is doing while you are speaking is to watch a recording of your speech. If video is not available, you can practice speaking in front of a mirror.\r\n\r\nThere are two extremes you want to avoid: no facial expression and overanimated facial expressions. First, you do not want to have a completely blank face while speaking. Some people just do not show much emotion with their faces naturally, but this blankness is often increased when the speaker is nervous. Audiences will react negatively to the message of such a speaker because they will sense that something is amiss. If a speaker is talking about the joys of Disney World and his face doesn\u2019t show any excitement, the audience is going to be turned off to the speaker and his message. On the other extreme end is the speaker whose face looks like that of an exaggerated cartoon character. Instead, your goal is to show a variety of appropriate facial expressions while speaking.\r\n\r\nLike vocalics and gestures, facial expression can be used strategically to enhance meaning. A smile or pleasant facial expression is generally appropriate at the beginning of a speech to indicate your wish for a good transaction with your audience. However, you should not smile throughout a speech on drug addiction, poverty, or the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. An inappropriate smile creates confusion about your meaning and may make your audience feel uncomfortable. On the other hand, a serious scowl might look hostile or threatening to audience members and become a distraction from the message. If you keep the meaning of your speech foremost in your mind, you will more readily find the balance in facial expression.\r\n\r\nAnother common problem some new speakers have is showing only one expression. One of our coauthors competed in speech in college. After one of his speeches (about how people die on amusement park rides), one of his judges pulled him aside and informed him that his speech was \u201ccreepy.\u201d Apparently, while speaking about death, our coauthor smiled the entire time. The incongruity between the speech on death and dying and the coauthor\u2019s smile just left the judge a little creeped out. If you are excited in a part of your speech, you should show excitement on your face. On the other hand, if you are at a serious part of your speech, your facial expressions should be serious.\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n<div id=\"wrench_1.0-ch14_s04_s01_s04_s04\" class=\"im_section\">\r\n<h2 class=\"im_title im_editable im_block\">Dress<\/h2>\r\nWhile there are no clear-cut guidelines for how you should dress for every speech you\u2019ll give, dress is still a very important part of how others will perceive you (again, it\u2019s all about the first impression). If you want to be taken seriously, you must present yourself seriously. While we do not advocate dressing up in a suit every time you give a speech, there are definitely times when wearing a suit is appropriate.\r\n\r\nOne general rule you can use for determining dress is the \u201cstep-above rule,\u201d which states that you should dress one step above your audience. If your audience is going to be dressed casually in shorts and jeans, then wear nice casual clothing such as a pair of neatly pressed slacks and a collared shirt or blouse. If, however, your audience is going to be wearing \u201cbusiness casual\u201d attire, then you should probably wear a sport coat, a dress, or a suit. The goal of the step-above rule is to establish yourself as someone to be taken seriously. On the other hand, if you dress two steps above your audience, you may put too much distance between yourself and your audience, coming across as overly formal or even arrogant.\r\n\r\nAnother general rule for dressing is to avoid distractions in your appearance. Overly tight or revealing garments, over-the-top hairstyles or makeup, jangling jewelry, or a display of tattoos and piercings can serve to draw your audience\u2019s attention away from your speech. Remembering that your message is the most important aspect of your speech, keep that message in mind when you choose your clothing and accessories.\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n<div id=\"wrench_1.0-ch14_s04_s01_s04_s05\" class=\"im_section\">\r\n<h2 class=\"im_title im_editable im_block\">Self-Presentation<\/h2>\r\nWhen you present your speech, you are also presenting yourself. Self-presentation, sometimes also referred to as poise or stage presence, is determined by how you look, how you stand, how you walk to the lectern, and how you use your voice and gestures. Your self-presentation can either enhance your message or detract from it. Worse, a poor self-presentation can turn a good, well-prepared speech into a forgettable waste of time. You want your self-presentation to support your credibility and improve the likelihood that the audience will listen with interest.\r\n\r\nYour personal appearance should reflect the careful preparation of your speech. Your personal appearance is the first thing your audience will see, and from it, they will make inferences about the speech you\u2019re about to present.\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<div id=\"wrench_1.0-ch14_s04_s01_s05\" class=\"im_section\">\r\n<h2 class=\"im_title im_editable im_block\">Variety<\/h2>\r\nOne of the biggest mistakes novice public speakers make is to use the same gesture over and over again during a speech. While you don\u2019t want your gestures to look fake, you should be careful to include a variety of different nonverbal components while speaking. You should make sure that your face, body, and words are all working in conjunction with each other to support your message.\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<div id=\"wrench_1.0-ch14_s04_s02\" class=\"im_section\">\r\n<h2 class=\"im_title im_editable im_block\">Practice Effectively<\/h2>\r\nYou might get away with presenting a hastily practiced speech, but the speech will not be as good as it could be. In order to develop your best speech delivery, you need to practice\u2014and use your practice time effectively. Practicing does not mean reading over your notes, mentally running through your speech, or even speaking your speech aloud over and over. Instead, you need to practice with the goal of identifying the weaknesses in your delivery, improving upon them, and building good speech delivery habits.\r\n\r\nWhen you practice your speech, place both your feet in full, firm contact with the floor to keep your body from swaying side to side. Some new public speakers find that they don\u2019t know what to do with their hands during the speech. Your practice sessions should help you get comfortable. When you\u2019re not gesturing, you can rest your free hand lightly on a lectern or simply allow it to hang at your side. Since this is not a familiar posture for most people, it might feel awkward, but in your practice sessions, you can begin getting used to it.\r\n<div id=\"wrench_1.0-ch14_s04_s02_s01\" class=\"im_section\">\r\n<h2 class=\"im_title im_editable im_block\">Seek Input from Others<\/h2>\r\nBecause we can\u2019t see ourselves as others see us, one of the best ways to improve your delivery is to seek constructive criticism from others. This, of course, is an aspect of your public speaking course, as you will receive evaluations from your instructor and possibly from your fellow students. However, by practicing in front of others before it is time to present your speech, you can anticipate and correct problems so that you can receive a better evaluation when you give the speech \u201cfor real.\u201d\r\n\r\nAsk your practice observers to be honest about the aspects of your delivery that could be better. Sometimes students create study groups just for this purpose. When you create a study group of classroom peers, everyone has an understanding of the entire creative process, and their feedback will thus be more useful to you than the feedback you might get from someone who has never taken the course or given a speech.\r\n\r\nIf your practice observers seem reluctant to offer useful criticisms, ask questions. How was your eye contact? Could they hear you? Was your voice well modulated? Did you mispronounce any words? How was your posture? Were your gestures effective? Did you have any mannerisms that you should learn to avoid? Because peers are sometimes reluctant to say things that could sound critical, direct questions are often a useful way to help them speak up.\r\n\r\nIf you learn from these practice sessions that your voice tends to drop at the ends of sentences, make a conscious effort to support your voice as you conclude each main point. If you learn that you have a habit of clicking a pen, make sure you don\u2019t have a pen with you when you speak or that you keep it in your pocket. If your practice observers mention that you tend to hide your hands in the sleeves of your shirt or jacket, next time wear short sleeves or roll your sleeves up before beginning your speech. If you learn through practice that you tend to sway or rock while you speak, you can consciously practice and build the habit of <em class=\"im_emphasis\">not<\/em> swaying.\r\n\r\nWhen it is your turn to give feedback to others in your group, assume that they are as interested in doing well as you are. Give feedback in the spirit of helping their speeches be as good as possible.\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n<div id=\"wrench_1.0-ch14_s04_s02_s02\" class=\"im_section\">\r\n<h2 class=\"im_title im_editable im_block\">Use Audio and\/or Video to Record Yourself<\/h2>\r\nTechnology has made it easier than ever to record yourself and others using the proliferation of electronic devices people are likely to own. Video, of course, allows you the advantage of being able to see yourself as others see you, while audio allows you to concentrate on the audible aspects of your delivery. As we mentioned earlier in the chapter, if neither video nor audio is available, you can always observe yourself by practicing your delivery in front of a mirror.\r\n\r\nAfter you have recorded yourself, it may seem obvious that you should watch and listen to the recording. This can be intimidating, as you may fear that your performance anxiety will be so obvious that everyone will notice it in the recording. But students are often pleasantly surprised when they watch and listen to their recordings, as even students with very high anxiety may find out that they \u201ccome across\u201d in a speech much better than they expected.\r\n\r\nA recording can also be a very effective diagnostic device. Sometimes students believe they are making strong contact with their audiences, but their cards contain so many notes that they succumb to the temptation of reading. By finding out from the video that you misjudged your eye contact, you can be motivated to rewrite your notecards in a way that doesn\u2019t provide the opportunity to do so much reading.\r\n\r\nIt is most likely that in viewing your recording, you will benefit from discovering your strengths and finding weak areas you can strengthen.\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n<div id=\"wrench_1.0-ch14_s04_s02_s03\" class=\"im_section\">\r\n<h2 class=\"im_title im_editable im_block\">Good Delivery Is a Habit<\/h2>\r\nLuckily, public speaking is an activity that, when done conscientiously, strengthens with practice. As you become aware of the areas where your delivery has room for improvement, you will begin developing a keen sense of what \u201cworks\u201d and what audiences respond to.\r\n\r\nIt is advisable to practice out loud in front of other people several times, spreading your rehearsals out over several days. To do this kind of practice, of course, you need to have your speech be finalized well ahead of the date when you are going to give it. During these practice sessions, you can time your speech to make sure it lasts the appropriate length of time. A friend of ours was the second student on the program in an event where each student\u2019s presentation was to last thirty to forty-five minutes. After the first student had been speaking for seventy-five minutes, the professor in charge asked, \u201cCan we speed this up?\u201d The student said yes, and proceeded to continue speaking for another seventy-five minutes before finally concluding his portion of the program. Although we might fault the professor for not \u201cpulling the plug,\u201d clearly the student had not timed his speech in advance.\r\n\r\nYour practice sessions will also enable you to make adjustments to your notecards to make them more effective in supporting your contact with your audience. This kind of practice is not just a strategy for beginners; it is practiced by many highly placed public figures with extensive experience in public speaking.\r\n\r\nYour public speaking course is one of the best opportunities you will have to manage your performance anxiety, build your confidence in speaking extemporaneously, develop your vocal skills, and become adept at self-presentation. The habits you can develop through targeted practice are to build continuously on your strengths and to challenge yourself to find new areas for improving your delivery. By taking advantage of these opportunities, you will gain the ability to present a speech effectively whenever you may be called upon to speak publicly.\r\n<div class=\"bcc-box bcc-success\">\r\n<h3>Key Takeaways<\/h3>\r\n<ul>\r\n\t<li>Conversational style is a speaker\u2019s ability to sound expressive while being perceived by the audience as natural. Conversational quality is a speaker\u2019s ability to prepare a speech and rehearse a speech but still sound spontaneous when delivering it.<\/li>\r\n\t<li>Eye contact helps capture and maintain an audience\u2019s interest while contributing to the speaker\u2019s credibility.<\/li>\r\n\t<li>Vocalics are the nonverbal components of the verbal message. There are six important vocalic components for a speaker to be aware of: volume (loudness or softness), pitch (highness or lowness), rate (fastness or slowness), pauses (use of breaks to add emphasis), vocal variety (use of a range of vocalic strategies), and pronunciation (using conventional patterns of speech formation).<\/li>\r\n\t<li>Physical manipulation is the use of one\u2019s body to add meaning and emphasis to a speech. As such, excessive or nonexistent physical manipulation can detract from a speaker\u2019s speech.<\/li>\r\n\t<li>Good delivery is a habit that is built through effective practice.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<div class=\"bcc-box bcc-info\">\r\n<h3>Exercises<\/h3>\r\n<ol>\r\n\t<li>Find a speech online and examine the speaker\u2019s overall presentation. How good was the speaker\u2019s delivery? Make a list of the aspects of delivery in this chapter and evaluate the speaker according to the list. In what areas might the speaker improve?<\/li>\r\n\t<li>Record a practice session of your speech. Write a self-critique, answering the following questions: What surprised you the most? What is an area of strength upon which you can build? What is <em class=\"im_emphasis\">one<\/em> area for improvement?<\/li>\r\n<\/ol>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/div>","rendered":"<div class=\"bcc-box bcc-highlight\">\n<h3 class=\"im_title\">Learning Objectives<\/h3>\n<ul id=\"wrench_1.0-ch14_s04_l01\" class=\"im_orderedlist\">\n<li>Explain why having a strong conversational quality is important for effective public speaking.<\/li>\n<li>Explain the importance of eye contact in public speaking.<\/li>\n<li>Define vocalics and differentiate among the different factors of vocalics.<\/li>\n<li>Explain effective physical manipulation during a speech.<\/li>\n<li>Understand how to practice effectively for good speech delivery.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<p>There is no foolproof recipe for good delivery. Each of us is unique, and we each embody different experiences and interests. This means each person has an approach, or a style, that is effective for her or him. This further means that anxiety can accompany even the most carefully researched and interesting message. Even when we know our messages are strong and well-articulated on paper, it is difficult to know for sure that our presentation will also be good.<\/p>\n<p>We are still obligated to do our best out of respect for the audience and their needs. Fortunately, there are some tools that can be helpful to you even the very first time you present a speech. You will continue developing your skills each time you put them to use and can experiment to find out which combination of delivery elements is most effective for you.<\/p>\n<div id=\"wrench_1.0-ch14_s04_s01\" class=\"im_section\">\n<h2 class=\"im_title im_editable im_block\">What Is Good Delivery?<\/h2>\n<p>The more you care about your topic, the greater your motivation to present it well. Good delivery is a process of presenting a clear, coherent message in an interesting way. Communication scholar Stephen E. Lucas tells us:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>Good delivery\u2026conveys the speaker\u2019s ideas clearly, interestingly, and without distracting the audience. Most audiences prefer delivery that combines a certain degree of formality with the best attributes of good conversation\u2014directness, spontaneity, animation, vocal and facial expressiveness, and a lively sense of communication.<span id=\"wrench_1.0-fn14_002\" class=\"im_footnote\"><a class=\"footnote\" title=\"Lucas, S. E. (2009). The art of public speaking (9th ed.). Boston, MA: McGraw-Hill, p. 244.\" id=\"return-footnote-117-1\" href=\"#footnote-117-1\" aria-label=\"Footnote 1\"><sup class=\"footnote\">[1]<\/sup><\/a><\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Many writers on the nonverbal aspects of delivery have cited the findings of psychologist Albert Mehrabian, asserting that the bulk of an audience\u2019s understanding of your message is based on nonverbal communication. Specifically, Mehrabian is often credited with finding that when audiences decoded a speaker\u2019s meaning, the speaker\u2019s face conveyed 55 percent of the information, the vocalics conveyed 38 percent, and the words conveyed just 7 percent.<span id=\"wrench_1.0-fn14_003\" class=\"im_footnote\"><a class=\"footnote\" title=\"Mehrabian, A. (1972). Nonverbal communication. Chicago, IL: Aldine-Atherton.\" id=\"return-footnote-117-2\" href=\"#footnote-117-2\" aria-label=\"Footnote 2\"><sup class=\"footnote\">[2]<\/sup><\/a><\/span> Although numerous scholars, including Mehrabian himself, have stated that his findings are often misinterpreted,<span id=\"wrench_1.0-fn14_004\" class=\"im_footnote\"><a class=\"footnote\" title=\"Mitchell, O. (n.d.). Mehrabian and nonverbal communication [Web log post]. Retrieved from http:\/\/www.speakingaboutpresenting.com\/presentation-myths\/mehrabian-nonverbal-communication-research\" id=\"return-footnote-117-3\" href=\"#footnote-117-3\" aria-label=\"Footnote 3\"><sup class=\"footnote\">[3]<\/sup><\/a><\/span> scholars and speech instructors do agree that nonverbal communication and speech delivery are extremely important to effective public speaking.<\/p>\n<p>In this section of the chapter, we will explain six elements of good delivery: conversational style, conversational quality, eye contact, vocalics, physical manipulation, and variety. And since delivery is only as good as the practice that goes into it, we conclude with some tips for effective use of your practice time.<\/p>\n<div id=\"wrench_1.0-ch14_s04_s01_s01\" class=\"im_section\">\n<h2 class=\"im_title im_editable im_block\">Conversational Style<\/h2>\n<p><span class=\"im_margin_term\"><span class=\"im_glossterm\">Conversational style<\/span><\/span> is a speaker\u2019s ability to sound expressive and to be perceived by the audience as natural. It\u2019s a style that approaches the way you normally express yourself in a much smaller group than your classroom audience. This means that you want to avoid having your presentation come across as didactic or overly exaggerated. You might not feel natural while you\u2019re using a conversational style, but for the sake of audience preference and receptiveness, you should do your best to appear natural. It might be helpful to remember that the two most important elements of the speech are the message and the audience. You are the conduit with the important role of putting the two together in an effective way. Your audience should be thinking about the message, not the delivery.<\/p>\n<p>Stephen E. Lucas defines <span class=\"im_margin_term\"><span class=\"im_glossterm\">conversational quality<\/span><\/span> as the idea that \u201cno matter how many times a speech has been rehearsed, it still <em class=\"im_emphasis\">sounds<\/em> spontaneous\u201d [emphasis in original].<span id=\"wrench_1.0-fn14_005\" class=\"im_footnote\"><a class=\"footnote\" title=\"Lucas, S. E. (2009). The art of public speaking (9th ed.). Boston, MA: McGraw-Hill, p. 247.\" id=\"return-footnote-117-4\" href=\"#footnote-117-4\" aria-label=\"Footnote 4\"><sup class=\"footnote\">[4]<\/sup><\/a><\/span> No one wants to hear a speech that is so well rehearsed that it sounds fake or robotic. One of the hardest parts of public speaking is rehearsing to the point where it can appear to your audience that the thoughts are magically coming to you while you\u2019re speaking, but in reality you\u2019ve spent a great deal of time thinking through each idea. When you can sound conversational, people pay attention.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"wrench_1.0-ch14_s04_s01_s02\" class=\"im_section\">\n<h2 class=\"im_title im_editable im_block\">Eye Contact<\/h2>\n<p><span class=\"im_margin_term\"><span class=\"im_glossterm\">Eye contact<\/span><\/span> is a speaker\u2019s ability to have visual contact with everyone in the audience. Your audience should feel that you\u2019re speaking to them, not simply uttering main and supporting points. If you are new to public speaking, you may find it intimidating to look audience members in the eye, but if you think about speakers you have seen who did not maintain eye contact, you\u2019ll realize why this aspect of speech delivery is important. Without eye contact, the audience begins to feel invisible and unimportant, as if the speaker is just speaking to hear her or his own voice. Eye contact lets your audience feel that your attention is on them, not solely on the cards in front of you.<\/p>\n<p>Sustained eye contact with your audience is one of the most important tools toward effective delivery. O\u2019Hair, Stewart, and Rubenstein note that eye contact is mandatory for speakers to establish a good relationship with an audience.<span id=\"wrench_1.0-fn14_006\" class=\"im_footnote\"><a class=\"footnote\" title=\"O\u2019Hair, D., Stewart, R., &amp; Rubenstein, H. (2001). A speaker\u2019s guidebook: Text and reference. Boston, MA: Bedford\/St. Martin\u2019s.\" id=\"return-footnote-117-5\" href=\"#footnote-117-5\" aria-label=\"Footnote 5\"><sup class=\"footnote\">[5]<\/sup><\/a><\/span> Whether a speaker is speaking before a group of five or five hundred, the appearance of eye contact is an important way to bring an audience into your speech.<\/p>\n<p>Eye contact can be a powerful tool. It is not simply a sign of sincerity, a sign of being well prepared and knowledgeable, or a sign of confidence; it also has the power to convey meanings. Arthur Koch tells us that all facial expressions \u201ccan communicate a wide range of emotions, including sadness, compassion, concern, anger, annoyance, fear, joy, and happiness.\u201d<span id=\"wrench_1.0-fn14_007\" class=\"im_footnote\"><a class=\"footnote\" title=\"Koch, A. (2010). Speaking with a purpose (8th ed.). Boston, MA: Allyn &amp; Bacon, p. 233.\" id=\"return-footnote-117-6\" href=\"#footnote-117-6\" aria-label=\"Footnote 6\"><sup class=\"footnote\">[6]<\/sup><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<p>If you find the gaze of your audience too intimidating, you might feel tempted to resort to \u201cfaking\u201d eye contact with them by looking at the wall just above their heads or by sweeping your gaze around the room instead of making actual eye contact with individuals in your audience until it becomes easier to provide real contact. The problem with fake eye contact is that it tends to look mechanical. Another problem with fake attention is that you lose the opportunity to assess the audience\u2019s understanding of your message. Still, fake eye contact is somewhat better than gripping your cards and staring at them and only occasionally glancing quickly and shallowly at the audience.<\/p>\n<p>This is not to say that you may never look at your notecards. On the contrary, one of the skills in extemporaneous speaking is the ability to alternate one\u2019s gaze between the audience and one\u2019s notes. Rehearsing your presentation in front of a few friends should help you develop the ability to maintain eye contact with your audience while referring to your notes. When you are giving a speech that is well prepared and well rehearsed, you will only need to look at your notes occasionally. This is an ability that will develop even further with practice. Your public speaking course is your best chance to get that practice.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"wrench_1.0-ch14_s04_s01_s03\" class=\"im_section\">\n<h2 class=\"im_title im_editable im_block\">Effective Use of Vocalics<\/h2>\n<p><span class=\"im_margin_term\"><span class=\"im_glossterm\">Vocalics<\/span><\/span>, also known as paralanguage, is the subfield of nonverbal communication that examines how we use our voices to communicate orally. This means that you speak loudly enough for all audience members (even those in the back of the room) to hear you clearly, and that you enunciate clearly enough to be understood by all audience members (even those who may have a hearing impairment or who may be English-language learners). If you tend to be soft-spoken, you will need to practice using a louder volume level that may feel unnatural to you at first. For all speakers, good vocalic technique is best achieved by facing the audience with your chin up and your eyes away from your notecards and by setting your voice at a moderate speed. Effective use of vocalics also means that you make use of appropriate pitch, pauses, vocal variety, and correct pronunciation.<\/p>\n<p>If you are an English-language learner and feel apprehensive about giving a speech in English, there are two things to remember: first, you can meet with a reference librarian to learn the correct pronunciations of any English words you are unsure of; and second, the fact that you have an accent means you speak more languages than most Americans, which is an accomplishment to be proud of.<\/p>\n<p>If you are one of the many people with a stutter or other speech challenge, you undoubtedly already know that there are numerous techniques for reducing stuttering and improving speech fluency and that there is no one agreed-upon \u201ccure.\u201d The Academy Award\u2013winning movie <em class=\"im_emphasis\">The King\u2019s Speech<\/em> did much to increase public awareness of what a person with a stutter goes through when it comes to public speaking. It also prompted some well-known individuals who stutter, such as television news reporter John Stossel, to go public about their stuttering.<span id=\"wrench_1.0-fn14_008\" class=\"im_footnote\"><a class=\"footnote\" title=\"Stossel, J. (2011, March 2). An Academy Award\u2013winning movie, stuttering and me [Web log post]. Retrieved from http:\/\/www.humanevents.com\/article.php?id=42081\" id=\"return-footnote-117-7\" href=\"#footnote-117-7\" aria-label=\"Footnote 7\"><sup class=\"footnote\">[7]<\/sup><\/a><\/span> If you have decided to study public speaking in spite of a speech challenge, we commend you for your efforts and encourage you to work with your speech instructor to make whatever adaptations work best for you.<\/p>\n<div id=\"wrench_1.0-ch14_s04_s01_s03_s01\" class=\"im_section\">\n<h2 class=\"im_title im_editable im_block\">Volume<\/h2>\n<p><span class=\"im_margin_term\"><span class=\"im_glossterm\">Volume<\/span><\/span> refers to the loudness or softness of a speaker\u2019s voice. As mentioned, public speakers need to speak loudly enough to be heard by everyone in the audience. In addition, volume is often needed to overcome ambient noise, such as the hum of an air conditioner or the dull roar of traffic passing by. In addition, you can use volume strategically to emphasize the most important points in your speech. Select these points carefully; if you emphasize everything, nothing will seem important. You also want to be sure to adjust your volume to the physical setting of the presentation. If you are in a large auditorium and your audience is several yards away, you will need to speak louder. If you are in a smaller space, with the audience a few feet away, you want to avoid overwhelming your audience with shouting or speaking too loudly.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"wrench_1.0-ch14_s04_s01_s03_s02\" class=\"im_section\">\n<h2 class=\"im_title im_editable im_block\">Rate<\/h2>\n<p><span class=\"im_margin_term\"><span class=\"im_glossterm\">Rate<\/span><\/span> is the speed at which a person speaks. To keep your speech delivery interesting, your rate should vary. If you are speaking extemporaneously, your rate will naturally fluctuate. If you\u2019re reading, your delivery is less likely to vary. Because rate is an important tool in enhancing the meanings in your speech, you do not want to give a monotone drone or a rapid \u201cmachine-gun\u201d style delivery. Your rate should be appropriate for your topic and your points. A rapid, lively rate can communicate such meanings as enthusiasm, urgency, or humor. A slower, moderated rate can convey respect, seriousness, or careful reasoning. By varying rapid and slower rates within a single speech, you can emphasize your main points and keep your audience interested.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"wrench_1.0-ch14_s04_s01_s03_s03\" class=\"im_section\">\n<h2 class=\"im_title im_editable im_block\">Pitch<\/h2>\n<p><span class=\"im_margin_term\"><span class=\"im_glossterm\">Pitch<\/span><\/span> refers to the highness or lowness of a speaker\u2019s voice. Some speakers have deep voices and others have high voices. As with one\u2019s singing voice range, the pitch of one\u2019s speaking voice is determined to a large extent by physiology (specifically, the length of one\u2019s vocal folds, or cords, and the size of one\u2019s vocal tract). We all have a normal speaking pitch where our voice is naturally settled, the pitch where we are most comfortable speaking, and most teachers advise speaking at the pitch that feels natural to you.<\/p>\n<p>While our voices may be generally comfortable at a specific pitch level, we all have the ability to modulate, or move, our pitch up or down. In fact, we do this all the time. When we change the pitch of our voices, we are using <span class=\"im_margin_term\"><span class=\"im_glossterm\">inflections<\/span><\/span>. Just as you can use volume strategically, you can also use pitch inflections to make your delivery more interesting and emphatic. If you ordinarily speak with a soprano voice, you may want to drop your voice to a slightly lower range to call attention to a particular point. How we use inflections can even change the entire meaning of what we are saying. For example, try saying the sentence \u201cI love public speaking\u201d with a higher pitch on one of the words\u2014first raise the pitch on \u201cI,\u201d then say it again with the pitch raised on \u201clove,\u201d and so on. \u201c<em class=\"im_emphasis\">I<\/em> love public speaking\u201d conveys a different meaning from \u201cI love <em class=\"im_emphasis\">public<\/em> speaking,\u201d doesn\u2019t it?<\/p>\n<p>There are some speakers who don\u2019t change their pitch at all while speaking, which is called <span class=\"im_margin_term\"><span class=\"im_glossterm\">monotone<\/span><\/span>. While very few people are completely monotone, some speakers slip into monotone patterns because of nerves. One way to ascertain whether you sound monotone is to record your voice and see how you sound. If you notice that your voice doesn\u2019t fluctuate very much, you will need to be intentional in altering your pitch to ensure that the emphasis of your speech isn\u2019t completely lost on your audience.<\/p>\n<p>Finally, resist the habit of pitching your voice \u201cup\u201d at the ends of sentences. It makes them sound like questions instead of statements. This habit can be disorienting and distracting, interfering with the audience\u2019s ability to focus entirely on the message. The speaker sounds uncertain or sounds as though he or she is seeking the understanding or approval of the listener. It hurts the speaker\u2019s credibility and it needs to be avoided.<\/p>\n<p>The effective use of pitch is one of the keys to an interesting delivery that will hold your audience\u2019s attention.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"wrench_1.0-ch14_s04_s01_s03_s04\" class=\"im_section\">\n<h2 class=\"im_title im_editable im_block\">Pauses<\/h2>\n<p><span class=\"im_margin_term\"><span class=\"im_glossterm\">Pauses<\/span><\/span> are brief breaks in a speaker\u2019s delivery that can show emphasis and enhance the clarity of a message. In terms of timing, the effective use of pauses is one of the most important skills to develop. Some speakers become uncomfortable very quickly with the \u201cdead air\u201d that the pause causes. And if the speaker is uncomfortable, the discomfort can transmit itself to the audience. That doesn\u2019t mean you should avoid using pauses; your ability to use them confidently will increase with practice. Some of the best comedians use the well-timed pause to powerful and hilarious effect. Although your speech will not be a comedy routine, pauses are still useful for emphasis, especially when combined with a lowered pitch and rate to emphasize the important point you do not want your audience to miss.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"wrench_1.0-ch14_s04_s01_s03_s05\" class=\"im_section\">\n<h2 class=\"im_title im_editable im_block\">Vocal Variety<\/h2>\n<p><span class=\"im_margin_term\"><span class=\"im_glossterm\">Vocal variety<\/span><\/span> has to do with changes in the vocalics we have just discussed: volume, pitch, rate, and pauses. No one wants to hear the same volume, pitch, rate, or use of pauses over and over again in a speech. Your audience should never be able to detect that you\u2019re about to slow down or your voice is going to get deeper because you\u2019re making an important point. When you think about how you sound in a normal conversation, your use of volume, pitch, rate, and pauses are all done spontaneously. If you try to overrehearse your vocalics, your speech will end up sounding artificial. Vocal variety should flow naturally from your wish to speak with expression. In that way, it will animate your speech and invite your listeners to understand your topic the way you do.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"wrench_1.0-ch14_s04_s01_s03_s06\" class=\"im_section\">\n<h2 class=\"im_title im_editable im_block\">Pronunciation<\/h2>\n<p>The last major category related to vocalics is <span class=\"im_margin_term\"><span class=\"im_glossterm\">pronunciation<\/span><\/span>, or the conventional patterns of speech used to form a word. Word pronunciation is important for two reasons: first, mispronouncing a word your audience is familiar with will harm your credibility as a speaker; and second, mispronouncing a word they are unfamiliar with can confuse and even misinform them. If there is any possibility at all that you don\u2019t know the correct pronunciation of a word, find out. Many online dictionaries, such as the <a href=\"http:\/\/wiktionary.org\">Wiktionary<\/a>, provide free sound files illustrating the pronunciation of words.<\/p>\n<p>Many have commented on the mispronunciation of words such as \u201cnuclear\u201d and \u201ccavalry\u201d by highly educated public speakers, including US presidents. There have been classroom examples as well. For instance, a student giving a speech on the Greek philosopher Socrates mispronounced his name at least eight times during her speech. This mispronunciation created a situation of great awkwardness and anxiety for the audience. Everyone felt embarrassed and the teacher, opting not to humiliate the student in front of the class, could not say anything out loud, instead providing a private written comment at the end of class.<\/p>\n<p>One important aspect of pronunciation is <span class=\"im_margin_term\"><span class=\"im_glossterm\">articulation<\/span><\/span>, or the ability to clearly pronounce each of a succession of syllables used to make up a word. Some people have difficulty articulating because of physiological problems that can be treated by trained speech therapists, but other people have articulation problems because they come from a cultural milieu where a dialect other than standard American English is the norm. Speech therapists, who generally guide their clients toward standard American English, use the acronym SODA when helping people learn how to more effectively articulate: <span class=\"im_margin_term\"><span class=\"im_glossterm\">substitutions<\/span><\/span>, <span class=\"im_margin_term\"><span class=\"im_glossterm\">omissions<\/span><\/span>, <span class=\"im_margin_term\"><span class=\"im_glossterm\">distortions<\/span><\/span>, and <span class=\"im_margin_term\"><span class=\"im_glossterm\">additions<\/span><\/span>.<\/p>\n<ul id=\"wrench_1.0-ch14_s04_s01_s03_s06_l01\" class=\"im_itemizedlist im_editable im_block\">\n<li><strong class=\"im_emphasis im_bold\">Substitutions<\/strong> occur when a speaker replaces one consonant or vowel with another consonant (<em class=\"im_emphasis\">water<\/em> becomes <em class=\"im_emphasis\">wudda<\/em>; <em class=\"im_emphasis\">ask<\/em> becomes <em class=\"im_emphasis\">ax<\/em>; <em class=\"im_emphasis\">mouth<\/em> becomes <em class=\"im_emphasis\">mouf<\/em>).<\/li>\n<li><strong class=\"im_emphasis im_bold\">Omissions<\/strong> occur when a speaker drops a consonant or vowel within a word (<em class=\"im_emphasis\">Internet<\/em> becomes <em class=\"im_emphasis\">Innet<\/em>; <em class=\"im_emphasis\">mesmerized<\/em> becomes <em class=\"im_emphasis\">memerized<\/em>; <em class=\"im_emphasis\">probably<\/em> becomes <em class=\"im_emphasis\">prolly<\/em>).<\/li>\n<li><strong class=\"im_emphasis im_bold\">Distortions<\/strong> occur when a speaker articulates a word with nasal or slurring sounds (<em class=\"im_emphasis\">pencil<\/em> sounds like <em class=\"im_emphasis\">mencil<\/em>; <em class=\"im_emphasis\">precipitation<\/em> sounds like <em class=\"im_emphasis\">persination<\/em>; <em class=\"im_emphasis\">second<\/em> sounds like <em class=\"im_emphasis\">slecond<\/em>).<\/li>\n<li><strong class=\"im_emphasis im_bold\">Additions<\/strong> occur when a speaker adds consonants or vowels to words that are not there (<em class=\"im_emphasis\">anyway<\/em> becomes <em class=\"im_emphasis\">anyways<\/em>; <em class=\"im_emphasis\">athletic<\/em> becomes <em class=\"im_emphasis\">athaletic<\/em>; <em class=\"im_emphasis\">black<\/em> becomes <em class=\"im_emphasis\">buhlack<\/em>; <em class=\"im_emphasis\">interpret<\/em> becomes <em class=\"im_emphasis\">interpretate<\/em>).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Another aspect of pronunciation in public speaking is avoiding the use of <span class=\"im_margin_term\"><span class=\"im_glossterm\">verbal surrogates<\/span><\/span> or \u201cfiller\u201d words used as placeholders for actual words (like <em class=\"im_emphasis\">er<\/em>, <em class=\"im_emphasis\">um<\/em>, <em class=\"im_emphasis\">uh<\/em>, etc.). You might be able to get away with saying \u201cum\u201d as many as two or three times in your speech before it becomes distracting, but the same cannot be said of \u201clike.\u201d We know of a student who trained herself to avoid saying \u201clike.\u201d As soon as the first speech was assigned, she began wearing a rubber band on her left wrist. Each time she caught herself saying \u201clike,\u201d she snapped herself with the rubber band. It hurt. Very quickly, she found that she could stop inflicting the snap on herself, and she had successfully confronted an unprofessional verbal habit.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"wrench_1.0-ch14_s04_s01_s04\" class=\"im_section\">\n<h2 class=\"im_title im_editable im_block\">Effective Physical Manipulation<\/h2>\n<p>In addition to using our voices effectively, a key to effective public speaking is <span class=\"im_margin_term\"><span class=\"im_glossterm\">physical manipulation<\/span><\/span>, or the use of the body to emphasize meanings or convey meanings during a speech. While we will not attempt to give an entire discourse on nonverbal communication, we will discuss a few basic aspects of physical manipulation: posture, body movement, facial expressions, and dress. These aspects add up to the overall physical dimension of your speech, which we call self-presentation.<\/p>\n<div id=\"wrench_1.0-ch14_s04_s01_s04_s01\" class=\"im_section\">\n<h2 class=\"im_title im_editable im_block\">Posture<\/h2>\n<p>\u201cStand up tall!\u201d I\u2019m sure we\u2019ve all heard this statement from a parent or a teacher at some point in our lives. The fact is, posture is actually quite important. When you stand up straight, you communicate to your audience, without saying a word, that you hold a position of power and take your position seriously. If however, you are slouching, hunched over, or leaning on something, you could be perceived as ill prepared, anxious, lacking in credibility, or not serious about your responsibilities as a speaker. While speakers often assume more casual posture as a presentation continues (especially if it is a long one, such as a ninety-minute class lecture), it is always wise to start by standing up straight and putting your best foot forward. Remember, you only get one shot at making a first impression, and your body\u2019s orientation is one of the first pieces of information audiences use to make that impression.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"wrench_1.0-ch14_s04_s01_s04_s02\" class=\"im_section\">\n<h2 class=\"im_title im_editable im_block\">Body Movement<\/h2>\n<p>Unless you are stuck behind a podium because of the need to use a nonmovable microphone, you should never stand in one place during a speech. However, movement during a speech should also not resemble pacing. One of our authors once saw a speaker who would walk around a small table where her speaking notes were located. She would walk around the table once, toss her chalk twice, and then repeat the process. Instead of listening to what the speaker was saying, everyone became transfixed by her walk-and-chalk-toss pattern. As speakers, we must be mindful of how we go about moving while speaking. One common method for easily integrating some movement into your speech is to take a few steps any time you transition from one idea to the next. By only moving at transition points, not only do you help focus your audience\u2019s attention on the transition from one idea to the next, but you also are able to increase your nonverbal immediacy by getting closer to different segments of your audience.<\/p>\n<p>Body movement also includes gestures. These should be neither overdramatic nor subdued. At one extreme, arm-waving and fist-pounding will distract from your message and reduce your credibility. At the other extreme, refraining from the use of gestures is the waste of an opportunity to suggest emphasis, enthusiasm, or other personal connection with your topic.<\/p>\n<p>There are many ways to use gestures. The most obvious are hand gestures, which should be used in moderation at carefully selected times in the speech. If you overuse gestures, they lose meaning. Many late-night comedy parodies of political leaders include patterned, overused gestures or other delivery habits associated with a particular speaker. However, the well-placed use of simple, natural gestures to indicate emphasis, direction, size is usually effective. Normally, a gesture with one hand is enough. Rather than trying to have a gesture for every sentence, use just a few well-planned gestures. It is often more effective to make a gesture and hold it for a few moments than to begin waving your hands and arms around in a series of gestures.<\/p>\n<p>Finally, just as you should avoid pacing, you will also want to avoid other distracting movements when you are speaking. Many speakers have unconscious mannerisms such as twirling their hair, putting their hands in and out of their pockets, jingling their keys, licking their lips, or clicking a pen while speaking. As with other aspects of speech delivery, practicing in front of others will help you become conscious of such distractions and plan ways to avoid doing them.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"wrench_1.0-ch14_s04_s01_s04_s03\" class=\"im_section\">\n<h2 class=\"im_title im_editable im_block\">Facial Expressions<\/h2>\n<p>Faces are amazing things and convey so much information. As speakers, we must be acutely aware of what our face looks like while speaking. While many of us do not look forward to seeing ourselves on videotape, often the only way you can critically evaluate what your face is doing while you are speaking is to watch a recording of your speech. If video is not available, you can practice speaking in front of a mirror.<\/p>\n<p>There are two extremes you want to avoid: no facial expression and overanimated facial expressions. First, you do not want to have a completely blank face while speaking. Some people just do not show much emotion with their faces naturally, but this blankness is often increased when the speaker is nervous. Audiences will react negatively to the message of such a speaker because they will sense that something is amiss. If a speaker is talking about the joys of Disney World and his face doesn\u2019t show any excitement, the audience is going to be turned off to the speaker and his message. On the other extreme end is the speaker whose face looks like that of an exaggerated cartoon character. Instead, your goal is to show a variety of appropriate facial expressions while speaking.<\/p>\n<p>Like vocalics and gestures, facial expression can be used strategically to enhance meaning. A smile or pleasant facial expression is generally appropriate at the beginning of a speech to indicate your wish for a good transaction with your audience. However, you should not smile throughout a speech on drug addiction, poverty, or the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. An inappropriate smile creates confusion about your meaning and may make your audience feel uncomfortable. On the other hand, a serious scowl might look hostile or threatening to audience members and become a distraction from the message. If you keep the meaning of your speech foremost in your mind, you will more readily find the balance in facial expression.<\/p>\n<p>Another common problem some new speakers have is showing only one expression. One of our coauthors competed in speech in college. After one of his speeches (about how people die on amusement park rides), one of his judges pulled him aside and informed him that his speech was \u201ccreepy.\u201d Apparently, while speaking about death, our coauthor smiled the entire time. The incongruity between the speech on death and dying and the coauthor\u2019s smile just left the judge a little creeped out. If you are excited in a part of your speech, you should show excitement on your face. On the other hand, if you are at a serious part of your speech, your facial expressions should be serious.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"wrench_1.0-ch14_s04_s01_s04_s04\" class=\"im_section\">\n<h2 class=\"im_title im_editable im_block\">Dress<\/h2>\n<p>While there are no clear-cut guidelines for how you should dress for every speech you\u2019ll give, dress is still a very important part of how others will perceive you (again, it\u2019s all about the first impression). If you want to be taken seriously, you must present yourself seriously. While we do not advocate dressing up in a suit every time you give a speech, there are definitely times when wearing a suit is appropriate.<\/p>\n<p>One general rule you can use for determining dress is the \u201cstep-above rule,\u201d which states that you should dress one step above your audience. If your audience is going to be dressed casually in shorts and jeans, then wear nice casual clothing such as a pair of neatly pressed slacks and a collared shirt or blouse. If, however, your audience is going to be wearing \u201cbusiness casual\u201d attire, then you should probably wear a sport coat, a dress, or a suit. The goal of the step-above rule is to establish yourself as someone to be taken seriously. On the other hand, if you dress two steps above your audience, you may put too much distance between yourself and your audience, coming across as overly formal or even arrogant.<\/p>\n<p>Another general rule for dressing is to avoid distractions in your appearance. Overly tight or revealing garments, over-the-top hairstyles or makeup, jangling jewelry, or a display of tattoos and piercings can serve to draw your audience\u2019s attention away from your speech. Remembering that your message is the most important aspect of your speech, keep that message in mind when you choose your clothing and accessories.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"wrench_1.0-ch14_s04_s01_s04_s05\" class=\"im_section\">\n<h2 class=\"im_title im_editable im_block\">Self-Presentation<\/h2>\n<p>When you present your speech, you are also presenting yourself. Self-presentation, sometimes also referred to as poise or stage presence, is determined by how you look, how you stand, how you walk to the lectern, and how you use your voice and gestures. Your self-presentation can either enhance your message or detract from it. Worse, a poor self-presentation can turn a good, well-prepared speech into a forgettable waste of time. You want your self-presentation to support your credibility and improve the likelihood that the audience will listen with interest.<\/p>\n<p>Your personal appearance should reflect the careful preparation of your speech. Your personal appearance is the first thing your audience will see, and from it, they will make inferences about the speech you\u2019re about to present.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"wrench_1.0-ch14_s04_s01_s05\" class=\"im_section\">\n<h2 class=\"im_title im_editable im_block\">Variety<\/h2>\n<p>One of the biggest mistakes novice public speakers make is to use the same gesture over and over again during a speech. While you don\u2019t want your gestures to look fake, you should be careful to include a variety of different nonverbal components while speaking. You should make sure that your face, body, and words are all working in conjunction with each other to support your message.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"wrench_1.0-ch14_s04_s02\" class=\"im_section\">\n<h2 class=\"im_title im_editable im_block\">Practice Effectively<\/h2>\n<p>You might get away with presenting a hastily practiced speech, but the speech will not be as good as it could be. In order to develop your best speech delivery, you need to practice\u2014and use your practice time effectively. Practicing does not mean reading over your notes, mentally running through your speech, or even speaking your speech aloud over and over. Instead, you need to practice with the goal of identifying the weaknesses in your delivery, improving upon them, and building good speech delivery habits.<\/p>\n<p>When you practice your speech, place both your feet in full, firm contact with the floor to keep your body from swaying side to side. Some new public speakers find that they don\u2019t know what to do with their hands during the speech. Your practice sessions should help you get comfortable. When you\u2019re not gesturing, you can rest your free hand lightly on a lectern or simply allow it to hang at your side. Since this is not a familiar posture for most people, it might feel awkward, but in your practice sessions, you can begin getting used to it.<\/p>\n<div id=\"wrench_1.0-ch14_s04_s02_s01\" class=\"im_section\">\n<h2 class=\"im_title im_editable im_block\">Seek Input from Others<\/h2>\n<p>Because we can\u2019t see ourselves as others see us, one of the best ways to improve your delivery is to seek constructive criticism from others. This, of course, is an aspect of your public speaking course, as you will receive evaluations from your instructor and possibly from your fellow students. However, by practicing in front of others before it is time to present your speech, you can anticipate and correct problems so that you can receive a better evaluation when you give the speech \u201cfor real.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Ask your practice observers to be honest about the aspects of your delivery that could be better. Sometimes students create study groups just for this purpose. When you create a study group of classroom peers, everyone has an understanding of the entire creative process, and their feedback will thus be more useful to you than the feedback you might get from someone who has never taken the course or given a speech.<\/p>\n<p>If your practice observers seem reluctant to offer useful criticisms, ask questions. How was your eye contact? Could they hear you? Was your voice well modulated? Did you mispronounce any words? How was your posture? Were your gestures effective? Did you have any mannerisms that you should learn to avoid? Because peers are sometimes reluctant to say things that could sound critical, direct questions are often a useful way to help them speak up.<\/p>\n<p>If you learn from these practice sessions that your voice tends to drop at the ends of sentences, make a conscious effort to support your voice as you conclude each main point. If you learn that you have a habit of clicking a pen, make sure you don\u2019t have a pen with you when you speak or that you keep it in your pocket. If your practice observers mention that you tend to hide your hands in the sleeves of your shirt or jacket, next time wear short sleeves or roll your sleeves up before beginning your speech. If you learn through practice that you tend to sway or rock while you speak, you can consciously practice and build the habit of <em class=\"im_emphasis\">not<\/em> swaying.<\/p>\n<p>When it is your turn to give feedback to others in your group, assume that they are as interested in doing well as you are. Give feedback in the spirit of helping their speeches be as good as possible.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"wrench_1.0-ch14_s04_s02_s02\" class=\"im_section\">\n<h2 class=\"im_title im_editable im_block\">Use Audio and\/or Video to Record Yourself<\/h2>\n<p>Technology has made it easier than ever to record yourself and others using the proliferation of electronic devices people are likely to own. Video, of course, allows you the advantage of being able to see yourself as others see you, while audio allows you to concentrate on the audible aspects of your delivery. As we mentioned earlier in the chapter, if neither video nor audio is available, you can always observe yourself by practicing your delivery in front of a mirror.<\/p>\n<p>After you have recorded yourself, it may seem obvious that you should watch and listen to the recording. This can be intimidating, as you may fear that your performance anxiety will be so obvious that everyone will notice it in the recording. But students are often pleasantly surprised when they watch and listen to their recordings, as even students with very high anxiety may find out that they \u201ccome across\u201d in a speech much better than they expected.<\/p>\n<p>A recording can also be a very effective diagnostic device. Sometimes students believe they are making strong contact with their audiences, but their cards contain so many notes that they succumb to the temptation of reading. By finding out from the video that you misjudged your eye contact, you can be motivated to rewrite your notecards in a way that doesn\u2019t provide the opportunity to do so much reading.<\/p>\n<p>It is most likely that in viewing your recording, you will benefit from discovering your strengths and finding weak areas you can strengthen.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"wrench_1.0-ch14_s04_s02_s03\" class=\"im_section\">\n<h2 class=\"im_title im_editable im_block\">Good Delivery Is a Habit<\/h2>\n<p>Luckily, public speaking is an activity that, when done conscientiously, strengthens with practice. As you become aware of the areas where your delivery has room for improvement, you will begin developing a keen sense of what \u201cworks\u201d and what audiences respond to.<\/p>\n<p>It is advisable to practice out loud in front of other people several times, spreading your rehearsals out over several days. To do this kind of practice, of course, you need to have your speech be finalized well ahead of the date when you are going to give it. During these practice sessions, you can time your speech to make sure it lasts the appropriate length of time. A friend of ours was the second student on the program in an event where each student\u2019s presentation was to last thirty to forty-five minutes. After the first student had been speaking for seventy-five minutes, the professor in charge asked, \u201cCan we speed this up?\u201d The student said yes, and proceeded to continue speaking for another seventy-five minutes before finally concluding his portion of the program. Although we might fault the professor for not \u201cpulling the plug,\u201d clearly the student had not timed his speech in advance.<\/p>\n<p>Your practice sessions will also enable you to make adjustments to your notecards to make them more effective in supporting your contact with your audience. This kind of practice is not just a strategy for beginners; it is practiced by many highly placed public figures with extensive experience in public speaking.<\/p>\n<p>Your public speaking course is one of the best opportunities you will have to manage your performance anxiety, build your confidence in speaking extemporaneously, develop your vocal skills, and become adept at self-presentation. The habits you can develop through targeted practice are to build continuously on your strengths and to challenge yourself to find new areas for improving your delivery. By taking advantage of these opportunities, you will gain the ability to present a speech effectively whenever you may be called upon to speak publicly.<\/p>\n<div class=\"bcc-box bcc-success\">\n<h3>Key Takeaways<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Conversational style is a speaker\u2019s ability to sound expressive while being perceived by the audience as natural. Conversational quality is a speaker\u2019s ability to prepare a speech and rehearse a speech but still sound spontaneous when delivering it.<\/li>\n<li>Eye contact helps capture and maintain an audience\u2019s interest while contributing to the speaker\u2019s credibility.<\/li>\n<li>Vocalics are the nonverbal components of the verbal message. There are six important vocalic components for a speaker to be aware of: volume (loudness or softness), pitch (highness or lowness), rate (fastness or slowness), pauses (use of breaks to add emphasis), vocal variety (use of a range of vocalic strategies), and pronunciation (using conventional patterns of speech formation).<\/li>\n<li>Physical manipulation is the use of one\u2019s body to add meaning and emphasis to a speech. As such, excessive or nonexistent physical manipulation can detract from a speaker\u2019s speech.<\/li>\n<li>Good delivery is a habit that is built through effective practice.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"bcc-box bcc-info\">\n<h3>Exercises<\/h3>\n<ol>\n<li>Find a speech online and examine the speaker\u2019s overall presentation. How good was the speaker\u2019s delivery? Make a list of the aspects of delivery in this chapter and evaluate the speaker according to the list. In what areas might the speaker improve?<\/li>\n<li>Record a practice session of your speech. Write a self-critique, answering the following questions: What surprised you the most? What is an area of strength upon which you can build? What is <em class=\"im_emphasis\">one<\/em> area for improvement?<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t <section class=\"citations-section\" role=\"contentinfo\">\n\t\t\t <h3>Candela Citations<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t <div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t <div id=\"citation-list-117\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t <div class=\"licensing\"><div class=\"license-attribution-dropdown-subheading\">CC licensed content, Shared previously<\/div><ul class=\"citation-list\"><li>Public Speaking: Practice and Ethics. <strong>Authored by<\/strong>: Anonymous. <strong>Provided by<\/strong>: Anonymous. <strong>Located at<\/strong>: <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/2012books.lardbucket.org\/books\/public-speaking-practice-and-ethics\/\">http:\/\/2012books.lardbucket.org\/books\/public-speaking-practice-and-ethics\/<\/a>. <strong>License<\/strong>: <em><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"license\" href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc-sa\/4.0\/\">CC BY-NC-SA: Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike<\/a><\/em><\/li><\/ul><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t <\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t <\/div>\n\t\t\t <\/section><hr class=\"before-footnotes clear\" \/><div class=\"footnotes\"><ol><li id=\"footnote-117-1\">Lucas, S. E. (2009). <em class=\"im_emphasis\">The art of public speaking<\/em> (9th ed.). Boston, MA: McGraw-Hill, p. 244. <a href=\"#return-footnote-117-1\" class=\"return-footnote\" aria-label=\"Return to footnote 1\">&crarr;<\/a><\/li><li id=\"footnote-117-2\">Mehrabian, A. (1972). <em class=\"im_emphasis\">Nonverbal communication<\/em>. Chicago, IL: Aldine-Atherton. <a href=\"#return-footnote-117-2\" class=\"return-footnote\" aria-label=\"Return to footnote 2\">&crarr;<\/a><\/li><li id=\"footnote-117-3\">Mitchell, O. (n.d.). Mehrabian and nonverbal communication [Web log post]. Retrieved from <a class=\"im_link\" href=\"http:\/\/www.speakingaboutpresenting.com\/presentation-myths\/mehrabian-nonverbal-communication-research\" target=\"_blank\">http:\/\/www.speakingaboutpresenting.com\/presentation-myths\/mehrabian-nonverbal-communication-research<\/a> <a href=\"#return-footnote-117-3\" class=\"return-footnote\" aria-label=\"Return to footnote 3\">&crarr;<\/a><\/li><li id=\"footnote-117-4\">Lucas, S. E. (2009). <em class=\"im_emphasis\">The art of public speaking<\/em> (9th ed.). Boston, MA: McGraw-Hill, p. 247. <a href=\"#return-footnote-117-4\" class=\"return-footnote\" aria-label=\"Return to footnote 4\">&crarr;<\/a><\/li><li id=\"footnote-117-5\">O\u2019Hair, D., Stewart, R., &amp; Rubenstein, H. (2001). <em class=\"im_emphasis\">A speaker\u2019s guidebook: Text and reference.<\/em> Boston, MA: Bedford\/St. Martin\u2019s. <a href=\"#return-footnote-117-5\" class=\"return-footnote\" aria-label=\"Return to footnote 5\">&crarr;<\/a><\/li><li id=\"footnote-117-6\">Koch, A. (2010). <em class=\"im_emphasis\">Speaking with a purpose<\/em> (8th ed.). Boston, MA: Allyn &amp; Bacon, p. 233. <a href=\"#return-footnote-117-6\" class=\"return-footnote\" aria-label=\"Return to footnote 6\">&crarr;<\/a><\/li><li id=\"footnote-117-7\">Stossel, J. (2011, March 2). An Academy Award\u2013winning movie, stuttering and me [Web log post]. Retrieved from <a class=\"im_link\" href=\"http:\/\/www.humanevents.com\/article.php?id=42081\" target=\"_blank\">http:\/\/www.humanevents.com\/article.php?id=42081<\/a> <a href=\"#return-footnote-117-7\" class=\"return-footnote\" aria-label=\"Return to footnote 7\">&crarr;<\/a><\/li><\/ol><\/div>","protected":false},"author":9,"menu_order":5,"template":"","meta":{"_candela_citation":"[{\"type\":\"cc\",\"description\":\"Public Speaking: Practice and Ethics\",\"author\":\"Anonymous\",\"organization\":\"Anonymous\",\"url\":\"http:\/\/2012books.lardbucket.org\/books\/public-speaking-practice-and-ethics\/\",\"project\":\"\",\"license\":\"cc-by-nc-sa\",\"license_terms\":\"\"}]","CANDELA_OUTCOMES_GUID":"","pb_show_title":"on","pb_short_title":"","pb_subtitle":"","pb_authors":[],"pb_section_license":""},"chapter-type":[],"contributor":[],"license":[],"class_list":["post-117","chapter","type-chapter","status-publish","hentry"],"part":112,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/suny-fmcc-standupspeakout\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/117","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/suny-fmcc-standupspeakout\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/suny-fmcc-standupspeakout\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/chapter"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/suny-fmcc-standupspeakout\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/9"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/suny-fmcc-standupspeakout\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/117\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":491,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/suny-fmcc-standupspeakout\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/117\/revisions\/491"}],"part":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/suny-fmcc-standupspeakout\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/parts\/112"}],"metadata":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/suny-fmcc-standupspeakout\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/117\/metadata\/"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/suny-fmcc-standupspeakout\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=117"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"chapter-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/suny-fmcc-standupspeakout\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapter-type?post=117"},{"taxonomy":"contributor","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/suny-fmcc-standupspeakout\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/contributor?post=117"},{"taxonomy":"license","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/suny-fmcc-standupspeakout\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/license?post=117"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}