“Grace Under Pressure — A Masterclass in Public Speaking” by Lisa Wentz (LID Publishing, $19.95).
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“Grace Under Pressure — A Masterclass in Public Speaking” by Lisa Wentz (LID Publishing, $19.95).
There are three sections to the book: 1. “What holds us back” deals with identifying and quelling pre-speech jitters. 2. “Vocal Training” speaks to how voice and demeanor can make or break your point. 3. “Delivery” involves structuring for effective communication. They’re interrelated; fail in one and you’ll fail in all. Here are highlights:
“What holds you back” — Trying to emulate someone else doesn’t work. Authenticity sells the audience. Your voice and manner are uniquely yours. Example: I’ve watched Willie Nelson and Luciano Pavarotti sing “Ave Maria.” Totally different sound and delivery, yet they wowed their audiences singing it their way. Imagine the audience response if Nelson tried to sing it like Pavarotti and vice versa. When preparing to go on-stage, I recite these song lyrics: “I gotta be me, I gotta be me. The dream that I see makes me what I am.”
“Vocal training” — Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes stated: “Speak clearly, if you speak at all; carve every word before you let it fall.” When you listen to many rock and hip-hop songs, you miss the meaning of their lyrics because it’s difficult to decipher them. The same holds true for presenters who speak like they’re racing to be done.
Those who take their time to clearly articulate every word “communicate clear thinking and confidence.” The audience actively listens because they understand the importance of the message.
“Delivery” — “Stories are powerful tools for sharing information.” Every speech should tell a story to explain what was, what is and what could be. Stories add context to content. Make-a-point stories within the presentation allows an audience to connect the dots to the speaker, shared experiences and what they must do.
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“What’s Your Problem? To Solve Your Toughest Problems, Change the Problems You Solve” by Thomas Wedell-Wedellsborg (Harvard Business Review Press, $35).
As management guru Peter Drucker observed, “There’s nothing more dangerous than the right answer to the wrong question.” When you answer the wrong question, the “faux solution” exacerbates the real problem and wastes effort, time and money.
Part of the “wrong questions” syndrome stems from the fact that problems demand immediate, straight-line action based upon the obvious. Wedell-Wedellsborg believes that “finding a new problem to solve” identifies “aha” alternatives, which leads to better solutions.
“Reframe is where you challenge your initial understanding of the problem.” Think of it as an access ramp on an expressway — you can get off to explore points of interest and get back on the expressway easily. Reframing seeks answers to some basic questions: “What are we missing?” “Where is the problem not?” “Is there a better objective to pursue?” “What is my/our role in creating the problem?”
Example: BarkBox helped solve the problem of too few dogs being adopted because animal shelters don’t have funds to advertise adoptable dogs in their care. BarkBox reframed the problem from “no advertising money” to “how to raise awareness.” For $8,000, it created BarkBuddy, a free “Find fluffy singles in your area” app, profiling dogs from shelters nationwide. It’s been downloaded over 250,000 times. Awareness problem solved — if shelters upload and update profiles.
