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Call it anything you want. It's still talking: A ROSE
BY ANY OTHER NAME
What's the difference between a formal speech, a sales presentation,
and a technical presentation?
The simple answer: the audience. If you're comfortable with
any one of the formats, you can do the other two with very
little in the way of new knowledge about speaking.
Let's look at what they have in common. The mental preparation
is the same: you're there for a purpose. So first, focus
on that.
The organization is essentially the same: the opening should
get them to listen. You need to know where you're going
and get there. There needs to be a logical flow from point
to point. The close should leave them feeling complete-you've
given them a reason for listening and a connection to their
work or lives.
As always, it should be credible, conversational, convincing.
And you need to be sincere. If you use visual aids, they
need to be relevant and meaningful to your audience.
So any differences are audience-driven. Who are they? Why
are they there? How much do they know? What's the reason
for their being together? What are they expecting from you?
What kind of people are they?
Whatever the answers are, your approach should be conversational
because you're more believable and credible. Your version
of conversational may vary with the audience, but that doesn't
mean giving up being yourself. If you start using words
and word patterns that aren't natural for you, you'll succeed
in making yourself stiff, unnatural, and paranoid.
Your own natural speech patterns vary depending on whether
you're talking to a 5 year-old, your brother, your grandmother,
a coworker or your boss. They're all you; you just adjust
your style, your words, and your examples based on the audience.
Keep that in mind when you're organizing any kind of talk.
Get off yourself. Focus on the audience and how you can
help them. You'll find there's not that much difference
in the rest of the process.
For more information, contact:
Barbara Rocha and Associates
PO Box 60521, Pasadena, California 91116
(626) 792-8075 or toll free at (888) 800-2001
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