如何搞定公眾演講

如何搞定公眾演講

在眾人面前發(fā)表演講，對大多數(shù)人來說都是頭疼不已的挑戰(zhàn)。甚至有笑話說有人在葬禮上寧愿待在棺材中也不愿被叫去發(fā)表悼詞。然而，公眾演講是一項非常重要的高附加值技能。那么，有哪些實用的小竅門？

測試中可能遇到的詞匯和知識：

casket 棺材

eulogy 悼詞

itch 癢，渴望

pare 削減

veneer 外表；虛飾

閱讀即將開始，建議您計算一下閱讀整篇文章所用時間，并對照我們在文章最后給出的參考值來估算您的閱讀速度。

Public speaking, private fears（782 words）

By Rhymer Rigby

The comedian Jerry Seinfeld once joked about a study that suggested people’s number one fear was public speaking: “Go to a funeral, you’re better off in the casket than doing the eulogy.”

“It is significantly outside the average person’s comfort zone,” says Michael Crom, chief learning officer of Dale Carnegie Training. He recalls giving a talk to a medical conference: “I was the last speaker. It was late and the person before me ran over and they were starting to shut things down. So I suddenly had no PowerPoint or visuals.”For many people, losing the help of PowerPoint in front of an audience itching to get away would be a nightmare come true.

“Stage fright comes from all sorts of sources, but mainly a lack of experience,” says Paul Edwards, a professor at the school of information and department of history at University of Michigan. “One of the [other] reasons people are bad is that they see bad models – other poor speakers around them – and they learn bad habits and patterns.”

Also, because most people have to to do it infrequently, they tend to view public speaking as children view exams – as an ordeal to get over, rather than an opportunity to shine.

Another problem is that businesspeople tend to view themselves as good communicators. They often are good in meetings or social situations but these are not the same as public speaking.

Nick Smallman of Working Voices, a communication and presentation skills consultancy, says few people do anything to tackle their fears because they fail to appreciate fully the value of good speaking.

Moreover, Prof Edwards notes that the rewards are likely to grow because the proliferation of online video presentations and things such as TED talks means we are moving towards a more oral culture.

Mr Smallman likens the skill to learning to ride a bicycle: “You just need to retrain your brain. You need to practise, but once you learn, you never fall below that line.”

Furthermore, because most people are so bad at it, you merely need to be OK in order to shine. “People assume that if you can speak well you are a leader, regardless of whether you are or not.”explains Mr Church of Dramatic Resources, a business training company, “You put the slides in the right order and people will say it’s fine. And so if you actually do it well, people think you’re brilliant.”

Here are some tips to help you prepare for a talk or speech:

● Make sure you know your audience and then write with them in mind. “Sentences which are good on paper are often bad when spoken as they can be long and complex,” notes Prof Edwards.

● Think in terms of narrative, such as personal stories that bring subjects alive, and repetition. Most people will only take away three points from your speech, so there is no point covering nine.

● Prepare more material than you need. This will make you confident and will come in handy if there is a Q&A afterwards.

● Practise – whether alone or in front of colleagues and family. It is the best way to deal with nerves. Bob Etherington, author of Presentation Skills for Quivering Wrecks says: “When practising, videoing it can be a good idea, but don’t practise in the mirror as watching what you’re doing while you’re doing it can be very distracting.”

● Do not read off a script. Doing so will make it difficult to connect with your audience. Notes are OK.

● Recognise the difference between formal and informal communication. One of the biggest things here is getting rid of “vocalised pauses” – ums and ahs.

● Make the signposting very clear. When you speak in a group, the thread of your conversation is shaped by questions, queries and interjections from others. Public speakers need to compensate for the lack of this.

● Anticipate questions your audience might have and address them during your talk. This way people feel as if they are having a conversation with you.

● Dump or at least pare back the PowerPoint presentation. This often acts as the visual equivalent of management jargon, providing a veneer of professionalism – and complex slides are distracting. “A presentation comes alive when you stop using PowerPoint,” says Mr Etherington.

● You need a strong finish. Most people get to the end and say, “I guess that’s it”, and their body language collapses. Mr Etherington suggests a summary, then a call to action: “People expect to be told to do something at the end of a speech.”

請根據(jù)你所讀到的文章內(nèi)容，完成以下自測題目：

1. What is the main source of fear in public speaking, according to the scholars?

a. Lack of experience.

b. There are so many bad models around.

c. People tend to view public speaking as exams.

d. Business people are distracted by meetings and social situations.

2. What is the value of good speaking?

a. The rise of online video presentations such as TED.

b. Help business people emerge as communicators.

c. Avoid the ordeal of preparing for a speech.

d. Let people know your abilities and gain popularity.

3. Which of the following tip is correct?

a. Make sure you prepare a personal story.

b. Rehearse in front of a mirror.

c. Anticipate questions your audience might have.

d. End the speech as simple as possible.

4. What should be avoided during a public speech?

a. Preparing more material than you need.

b. Covering as many points as possible.

c. Videoing when practising.

d. Writing down beautiful sentences.

[1] 答案a. Lack of experience.

解釋：這是最先提到的最首要的原因。后面幾個是其他的“演講恐懼的來源”。

[2] 答案d. Let people know your abilities and gain popularity.

解釋：shine這個詞在文中出現(xiàn)了兩次：an opportunity to shine，in order to shine，可以推斷是提升知名度和向他人展示自己能力的意思。再加上后面Mr Church說，由于能做好公眾演講的人很少，你只要做的還行，就會讓人覺得你能力超群，是個領(lǐng)袖人物。

[3] 答案c. Anticipate questions your audience might have.

解釋：A只是一種可行的方案，專家們建議用講故事的思維，而不是列舉冗長的要點的形式來做演講，準(zhǔn)備個人有關(guān)的故事是辦法之一。B是不推薦的做法，因為這會干擾自己。D也不推薦，艾瑟靈頓建議a call to action: “People expect to be told to do something at the end of a speech.”

[4] 答案b. Covering as many points as possible.

解釋：AC是推薦的做法，D是不被推薦的，因為優(yōu)美的書面語言往往是長句，用于口頭表達并不適合。