You know watching a bunch of TED talks and YouTube videos will not make us expert speakers. Like how behind every successful person there is an amazing mentor, behind every expert speaker, there is an amazing coach. Public Speaking is one of the most desired skills in top colleges and employers, yet the least practiced skill in schools. Studies suggest that effective presentations are 38% your voice, 55% non-verbal communication and only 7% your content. Clearly, we cannot underestimate the impact of good delivery skills!
The goal of Public Speaking is not just to make a speech in front of a big audience. When we present a speech anywhere, our goal should be that after the presentation, our audience to come up to us to ask more questions or thank us for sharing ideas or solving a problem, motivating them to take an action, or wanting to do business with us. These outcomes determine how successful we will be in accomplishing our future goals. If we make a list of all the opportunities we lost in past, we will be amazed as to how many of those relate to our inability to communicate effectively.
Even great authors can’t edit the books they write, similarly, children can’t make mind-blowing speeches without some help and guidance. It takes several years of consistent practice to become confident speakers for life.
So here a few tips for parents:
1. Get your children to learn and practice Public Speaking now. The sooner you get them to practice public speaking, the easier it gets to seize great opportunities and boost their chances of success in all areas of life.
2. Get a coach, especially, if your child is shy, hesitant or uncomfortable, this coach can be anyone - a senior in school, a teacher, or even a close friend or a family member.
3. Get them signed up for any speaking engagements such as speech and debate clubs in school or online community.