It’s been said that practice makes perfect. And while that may be true for many things, it’s not true in public speaking. In public speaking, practice does not make perfect … it simply makes permanent.
Don’t get me wrong. To stand in front of a group without practicing is to invite failure. I would never advise any speaker to get up and give a speech or presentation without having practiced. But if you have bad habits which you’re unaware of, you’ll end up practicing and reinforcing those bad habits. In effect, practicing those bad habits will make them permanent, not perfect.
If you want to avoid reinforcing bad habits when you present, I suggest recording yourself on video.
Do you remember the fable, “The Emperor’s New Clothes“? You’ll often find colleagues may not want to tell you about your bad habits, but the video camera won’t lie. Like the innocent child who pointed out the obvious to the emperor, the video camera will reveal EVERYTHING you do.
You may be surprised to see yourself jingling change in your pockets, rocking from side to side like a pendulum, assuming the “fig leaf” position, scratching your back against the wall or hugging yourself for dear life. Good, bad or ugly, it will show up on your recording. Consider this a good thing.
Once you’ve identified your bad habits, you can work on modifying them or eliminating them altogether. In some cases, you’ll be able to fix your bad habits on your own. In other cases, you’ll need the advice of someone who has experience as a presenter or a coach. Depending on your budget and goals, you have a few options.
Option 1: Get advice from an experienced presenter in your organization. If there is an individual in your organization who is recognized for his or her presentation skills, you may want to ask that person to critique you and give you some suggestions and/or feedback.
Option 2: Join Toastmasters. If you want to get frequent opportunities to practice speaking in public, Toastmasters is the place to be. You can find Toastmasters groups who meet regularly all over the world. Check out their website to find a Toastmasters group in your area.
Option 3: Hire a speaking coach. If you want to eliminate bad habits and move your presentation skills to a higher level, you should give serious consideration to hiring a speaking coach. As with any discipline, not all speaking coaches are created equal. This means it’s important for you to work with a coach who is capable of bringing out the best in you without trying to change who you are as a presenter.
In any case, it’s always a good idea to practice your speech before you deliver it … just make sure the video camera is rolling.
If you have any other tips for identifying and eliminating bad habits, feel free to comment.
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Just a couple of things. I would place option 2, “Join Toastmasters” as the primary option, unless experienced presenter in your organization has been in Toastmasters. Often, the “experienced presenter” just happened to have the most experience in presenting. Even professionally paid speakers who have not been in Toastmasters may get paid for speaking, but they don’t necessarily are good mentor (or mentees).
One way to reduce the bad habits, particularly saying filler words like “ahs” and “ums,” is to really listen to others on TV (talk shows or ministers on Sunday), at work, at your local city council meetings, essentially everywhere and count their “ahs” and “ums,” notice their eye contact, their body language voice quality, and their speech organization. As you hear and evaluate others, you will pick up your bad habits. They’ll become more noticeable, and in turn, you will start to reduce, minimize and perhaps eliminate your bad habits.
Frank
Well said and I agree. You’re right: one must practice speaking the right way. One must identify one’s mistakes, learn how to correct them and practice the presentation the right way.
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Hi Frank,
Thanks for posting your comment. I wasn’t ranking them in terms of which option was best, because I think it all depends on what your skill level is as a presenter. I do agree Toastmasters is good for people who don’t have a foundation in speaking (that’s why I mentioned them), but I don’t believe you need to have taken Toastmasters courses to properly mentor a presenter. I’ve never been through the Toastmasters program.
I do agree that not all experienced presenters know how to give effective feedback. It’s sort of like sports … great players don’t necessarily make great coaches. That’s another reason I’ve given the three options.
Your point about watching other speakers for bad habits is a good one. Watching what others do and noting their distracting behaviours is a good way to alert yourself to what you may be doing in your presentations.
Thanks again for the feedback!
John
Frank,
I like the way you framed it: practice makes permanent not perfect. What this means is that you have to practice right.
I had a baseball coach in high school who said, “You play the way that you practice.” What most people forget though is that it is equally important to practice non-verbal delivery skills as well. It is important to do so as practicing your non-verbal skills will help cement them in your muscle memory. If you do not practice that way, you are less likely to meet with success.
Another thing I would suggest is that you don’t stop yourself in your practice sessions. What would you do if you made a mistake or misspoke? Practice it like you would in front of an audience. Then you’ll be more adept at reacting and thinking on your feet.
There is no substitute for practicing your presentation on your feet before you deliver it. Mark Twain said it best, “It usually takes more than three weeks to prepare a good impromptu speech.”
And you are right, videotaping yourself is invaluable.
Actually there is another side to over practicing. It can cause you to lose the naturalness of your delivery. Although it is necessary to know the material, practicing it too much can result in a stiff, unnatural delivery. Even worse, it can result in mind fog. Memorizing the lines can result in forgetting the lines all together.
There are times when it may be necessary to memorize a lecture word for word and deliver with out notes. Such are the exception and a rare one at that.
Practice is good. Just do not over practice.
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