Kemisha Salvant Blog Post #1

 When a speaker is presenting to an audience, it is best to converse rather than read or speak to them. As a speaker, having a conversation with the audience and treating them as close friends will influence the listeners to engage with the speaker. There are five arts of public speaking, invention making listeners focus on what is being said. Arrangement how to organize ideas towards listeners. Style the use of visual cues to draw attention to the speech. Memory and delivery. Practicing public speaking allows you to gain life skills such as credibility, storytelling, confidence, and idea invention. There are several ways to deliver a speech; these are referred to as “spheres of communication”. One of these ways includes mass media, which is less engaging since listeners cannot provide immediate feedback. Examples of mass media include newspapers, radio, and TV. Mediated interpersonal communication is a new form of communication the public uses regularly; you may communicate with people instantaneously via texting, emailing, or phone calls. Expressive technology is a creative form of communication that allows people to express themselves through arts such as TikTok and YouTube. Lastly, face-to-face communication is the most often used and traditional way of delivering a speech.  

Selecting topics that the speaker is most familiar with will aid in the delivery of a strong speech. Practicing speaking clearly will help reduce tension and anxiety. Having a positive attitude on the day of the speech will help deliver a strong speech. Furthermore, it is common to learn how to become a great speaker, but not so much how to be a good audience member. There are six essential components that are required to be a good listener hearing, understanding, remembering, interpreting, evaluating, and responding. Being able to ask questions regarding what was discussed or provide answers to the speaker is a skill that comes with attentive listening. However, there are several barriers that may interfere with listening, such as thoughtless listening, pseudo-listening or daydreaming, outside distractions, and beliefs. Belief plays a crucial role due to individuals are reluctant to pay attention to what they do not believe in.  

Additionally, as a presenter, it is your responsibility to determine a purpose and theme for your presentation. Whether speaking to inform, expand the listeners’ understanding of a topic, issue, or message. Persuading the audience to believe something or speaking for a special occasion. Brainstorming your subject, ideas, delivery strategy, and reference list is the first stage in delivering your speech. Research your speech topics; you must become an expert on the subject and gather materials from a variety of sources. Learning more about your subject can make you feel more at ease when it comes time to give your presentation. A speech is identical to writing an essay, it is just an oral presentation. Your speech should be divided into three segments the introduction, the body, and the conclusion. The body is the speech’s meat and potatoes. The audience is informed, entertained, and the main points are developed within the body. With that said, the law of primacy and recency states that we often recall the speech’s beginning and conclusion, but rarely the middle. Making your presentation engaging is your responsibility as a presenter. To ensure that the audience does not forget what they have just heard. If you lost a few of audience members throughout your speech, your conclusion should be where you lure them back in. Your conclusion should capture the audience’s attention, reinforce your main points, and give a closing that answers the questions they previously held. Moreover, language and culture influence how we communicate with the rest of the world. In everyday conversation, we come across slang; informal language. Jargon phrases that are related to a specific profession. Cliches are overused expressions that have lost their original meaning and idioms are common saying with a different meaning than what the words make up. Euphemisms are used to soften or replace harsh words. This is something to keep in mind when making a speech or speaking with professionals. 

In addition to this, utilizing visual design tools such as PowerPoint improves public speaking by showcasing information through slides, videos, and audio, which may boost audience engagement and retention. While helping visual learners understand the message better. Although presentation media can be used as a tool, the quality of your message should come first when creating visual slides. Slides should be used to emphasize important points or provide information in an understandable manner. Keeping your presentation’s main focus on your message. With the COVID-19 pandemic, it demonstrated to the world communication could still take place but, virtually online instead of the traditional face-to-face contact. PowerPoint and other presentation tools have been developed to effectively accommodate online presentations. Using digital slides and other material allows you to effectively express your important points and keep your distant audience interested.  

Now that you have your speech written out, it's time to deliver. This important step is often missed given that there are no instructions on how to conduct a presentation. There are four delivery methods to choose from impromptu which is speaking freely from your mind with little to no preparation. Extemporaneous the complete opposite of impromptu is this research and rehearsed based. Manuscript reading a written speech word for word and lastly, memorized delivering a speech from memory. Once you have determined your preferred delivery style, it’s time to speak. The secret to giving a presentation that makes an impression is controlling your voice and body language throughout. To add interest and passion, vary your voice in terms of pitch, pace, and volume. Steer clear of vocalized pauses and filler words. Make sure you speak properly, to prevent losing credibility and pronounce words correctly. Maintain eye contact with the audience, keep your posture straight, walk purposefully, and stay clear of physical barriers. Do some audience research and tailor your message to their requirements. A positive audience reaction is fostered by a speech that is both captivating and meaningful.