Restating Numbers In Visual Ways

Proverbs are almost all visual sayings, which make them easy to remember and act on. The similes that have been passed on for centuries are also visual:

You may speak very eloquently with good posture and clear voice but you will not impact if you don’t use picture language and involve your audience.

Picture-Building Words

The speaker who is easy to listen to sets colourful, dynamic images floating before our eyes. The person who uses foggy, abstract, colourless words sets the audience nodding.

Sprinkle pictures throughout your talk. The picture words just leap up, almost as if they are smiling at you, before going scampering off and feeding the imagination of your audience. A novel you just cannot put down has become a vivid dynamic movie in your head. You, too, will be a captivating speaker if you stir the imaginations and touch the hearts of the audience. This is the secret of people who are considered charismatic.

Be Boring And Be Zapped!

People today are used to channel surfing – flicking backwards and forward through the TV channels, searching for interesting programmes. If your presentation lacks variety, is not visual or involving, you will be boring and the audience would probably love to fast-forward the presentation. However, they will probably just change channels by daydreaming.

Beware of creating a passive audience. Look at people who fall asleep in front of the TV despite the noise. This is because they are inactive and uninvolved, which leads to lowered energy and disinterest.

People Forget Fast

People forget 40% of what was said within twenty minutes of hearing your presentation. Within half a day, they lose 60% and, within one week, 90% of it is gone.

No matter how well delivered and entertaining your presentation, most of what you will say will be quickly forgotten. Aim to capture the essence of your message in a way that makes it easy to remember and act on after your presentation. A clever take-away slogan will help to make your key point more memorable in the minds of your listeners.

We remember best what is:

Words That Get Attention

Here is a selection of words that seem to grab people’s attention. Use them to inject verbal energy into your presentation:

Energy Phrases

The following phrases similarly inject verbal energy into your presentation:

Non-Words

Generally speaking, avoid jargon and cliches:

Talking In Positive Terms

Have you ever noticed when you go on a diet and decide not to eat chips and cream cakes what it is you become obsessed with? Yes those chips and cream cakes just won’t leave your mind.

The mind does not seem to be able to handle negatives except as positives. For example, ‘Don’t think of a pink elephant’ and what do you get? Yes, a pink elephant. The human mind seems to need to create the elephant first and then erase it.

If you phrase things in negative terms to your audience, you may just communicate the opposite of what you want to achieve:

Keep the focus on what you want rather than on what you don’t want. Otherwise it will be like the golfer who says to him or herself as they are about to strike the ball ‘I don’t want to hook the ball’. The chances are he or she will hook the ball precisely because of what they are telling themselves. Keep the focus of your audience on what you want rather than on what you don’t want.

Rule Of Three

There is a rhythm of three, which seems to work well in speaking. The most powerful and influential phrases of history reflect this grouping of three:

The Preface to this book uses this rule of three, and you may find it will add to the strength and power of your spoken words.

Summary

"To impact on your audience, pay attention to the wrapping for your ideas.
Add variety to sustain the interest of your audience.
Powerful messages can be made in thirty-second bites.
You may have to give people dry information but there is no need to make a dull presentation.
Use picture words and involve the audience if you don’t want to be boring.
People remember what is first and last in a session.
Draw the attention of the audience to what you want rather than what you don’t want.
The rule of three will add power to your words."