Powerful public speaking can drive business growth
Writing Benjamin Thiele-Long
Believe it or not, Warren Buffett – the investor and philanthropist worth an estimated $149 billion – started his career with a crippling fear of public speaking. To overcome it, he took a $100 Dale Carnegie course in 1951 – a move he has since credited as “the best investment I made in my life.”
He’s not alone. Studies have shown that as many as 77% of people have a fear of speaking in public. But the need for strong presentation skills isn’t going away any time soon. Powerful public speaking skills are a fundamental of leadership – and can directly influence business growth.
Fortunately, with practice, it’s possible to leave behind the nerves and start building a reputation as an influential and noteworthy speaker.
Leadership voice, market choice
Whether you’re focused on fiscal growth as a company or personal growth as a leader, success is dependent on your ability to articulate a clear and compelling vision that people want to invest in.
In one major recent study, researchers analyzed 29,000 earnings calls and found that where chief executives and chief financial officers spoke clearly, company shares saw higher returns and greater trading volume.
Buffet has expressed his belief that excellent communications skills can increase your net worth up to 50%, while research by LinkedIn found that good communication skills were linked to 11% faster promotions.
Fortunately, becoming an effective and compelling public speaker isn’t just about innate talent; it’s a learnable skill, achievable through tried and tested techniques. The problem is that most of us have never been taught them. Demystifying these skills will both make you a more effective communicator and help you to manage your nerves. Here’s what you need to know.
Setting the course for brilliance
There are three golden rules for public speaking that instantly make a world of difference when you give them thought and time before standing up to speak. First, identify who you’re speaking to, why you’re speaking to them, and the narrative that will make what you have to say persuasive and compelling. As motivational speaker Jim Rohn put it, “the goal of effective communication should be for listeners to say, ‘me, too!’ versus ‘so what?’”
Taking the time to apply these rules every time you need to speak, whatever the scenario, gives you a cohesive and solid starting point. They set the direction for persuasive public speaking because they define what you’re going to say and how you’re going to say it.
Secondly, be sure to organize your ideas in an easy-to-follow structure. The better you do this, the more your audience will retain and implement the information you give them. There is no ‘one size fits all’ approach, but consistently applying a simple methodology will not only organize your own thoughts – even if you have only minutes to prepare – but give you a rock-solid foundation for speaking with conviction.
It’s just like driving a car. When you first drive, it takes conscious thought to check the mirror, work out the clutch, remember to indicate, and so on. But a year on, it’s almost automatic.
Finally, harness your nerves rather than let them get in your way. Nerves can be your rocket fuel – but you want the energy directed into what you have to say, not seeping away on distractions. Avoid notes full of prose, squinting at a phone screen, pacing, and dense slides: all reduce your energy and detract from what you’re saying.
You want what you’re saying to be the main event, so if you can get rid of the ‘noise,’ you’ll give yourself a fighting chance to let your nerves become an asset, not a distraction.
Getting these foundations right, instead of skipping to questions like “What slide template am I using?” is guaranteed to unlock your potential as a brilliant speaker.
Pass the microphone
While perfecting your own skills is key, no business leader can be in all places at once. You have work to do, after all – and presenting and public speaking is only part of the job. Besides, investors need to know that a company’s fortunes don’t rise and fall because of just one person.
It’s therefore a smart move to ensure that multiple senior leaders and internal experts are capable of persuasively presenting your strategy to external audiences. Not only is it good for business growth, it provides stakeholders with multiple and consistent touchpoints for your message.
For most leaders, equipping your direct reports with powerful speaking skills is also useful for improving the internal cascade of information and communication of your strategy. Improving your team’s skills helps ensure that your messages are articulated effectively to everyone in your business. Plus, it means that those coming up through the business witness their senior leaders speaking effectively; they can aspire to similar standards.
Raising standards across a team doesn’t happen by osmosis, however. It requires a mindset shift to a long-term approach that understands the value of the team as an extension of your communications strategy and amplifiers of your message – not a challenge to your dominance. It means both giving team members the tools to be confident and persuasive public speakers, and, more importantly, giving them the opportunity.
Let colleagues develop their own style and skills, and they will develop their confidence while they grow their career. Just as that speaking course was Warren Buffet’s best investment, this could be the greatest investment you can make in your future leaders.
Words worth millions
Buffett attributed his business success to the mantra that people don’t invest in businesses; they invest in people. Establishing you and your team as persuasive and compelling communicators is vital. The methods are easier than you think: it’s about applying basic skills and then putting them into practice. Science and art.
A simple application of these skills can unlock exponential value, whether it’s winning investment dollars, winning customers, or winning hearts and minds. Whatever your aim, the key to being utterly brilliant at public speaking can come from even the smallest improvement. Before you know it, you’ll wonder what you were ever worried about in the first place.
Benjamin Thiele-Long is a barrister, communications consultant, and author of How to Be Utterly Brilliant at Public Speaking, Presenting and Talking to the Media (LID Publishing)
