There are lots of things you can learn by reading a book. Becoming an effective keynote speaker isn’t one of them.
Speaking requires doing. It requires standing up in front of 200 people over and over again until you’re so comfortable with speaking, you can’t wait to go on. It requires a certain generosity of spirit, a willingness to be close to the audience; to share more than just your expertise.
I’ve given scores of keynote speeches, and the five points below are my “rules” whenever I step up on stage.
But before I share those five, let me first share with you the most terrifying experience I ever had while giving a speech. It still makes my palms sweat just thinking about it.
The speech, on the topic of leadership, was for a Fortune 100 company. In the audience were 120 executives plus the company’s legendary CEO. Four speakers were scheduled to speak to the group, but no one in the audience knew who–the speakers were to be a surprise. I didn’t know who the other speakers were either. I only knew that I was to speak last.
I watched from the back of the amphitheater as the first speaker went on: Hoda Kotb, former co-anchor of NBC’s The Today Show. She was funny, irreverent, witty, and the audience loved her. I started to get nervous. The next speaker was the model Christy Turlington who talked about her philanthropy work with children and mothers. She was beautiful and compassionate. Now I was getting really nervous thinking about the famous women I was to follow. Could I do as great a job as they just had?
After Christy left the stage, an odd hush came over the room. From where I was sitting I could see that men in dark suits with earpieces had taken up posts at all the exits and around the perimeter of the room. The host announced speaker Number 3: Laura Bush. My heart sank. I was to follow the First Lady.
Laura Bush had once been a librarian. And you could tell. She was reserved, polite, and quiet. She stood stock still behind the podium and read a short, neutral-sounding speech from her notes; her head down the whole time.
I watched the audience as Mrs Bush spoke. You could feel their respect for her but also their slight disappointment. They wanted more. They wanted the person Laura Bush to be there with them. They wanted to learn something from her, be inspired by her, take away some nugget of truth they’d remember forever.
I knew right then what I had to try to do when it was my turn to speak. And in that moment five “rules” crystalized for me. They’ve guided every other keynote speech I’ve given since.
- Connect emotionally. No matter what your topic is, the audience is never fully there for the topic alone. The audience needs to feel who you are, what matters to you, and what you care about.
- Look in people’s eyes. This helps you connect with them, and helps you know if what you’re saying is engaging. If people don’t meet your eyes, it means you’re losing them and need to shift gears. Looking in people’s eyes also helps you control the room.
- Never use a podium if you can help it. Using a podium is often a sign you’re scared, and an audience can sense that. When you stand fully in front of an audience, you allow yourself to be vulnerable. In my experience, audiences respect that. They feel your humanity.
- Move on the stage; don’t stand in one position. It’s natural for human minds to wander every few minutes. To keep the audience focused on you and what you’re saying, you have to keep their minds from wandering. This is as easy as moving around so that the audience continues to (literally) follow you with their eyes.
- Remember that subject expertise is not the same as being a great speaker. A lot of people are experts in their fields, but that’s no guarantee that they can captivate an audience. Speaking is a skill unto itself. It takes years of practice. But leaving an audience feeling entertained, amazed, inspired, educated—that’s the goal that every great speaker hopes to achieve.
Karen MacNeil is the CEO and President of Karen MacNeil & Company LLC. She gives keynote addresses for companies around the country. You can find out more and contact her at www.karenmacneil.com
