Being Sprezzatura — How To Become An Effortless Speaker & Presenter!
“Speech is power, speech is to persuade, to convert, to compel.”
Ralph Waldo Emerson
To Begin At The Beginning
Which according to one well known Bear is always the best place to start.
And,
“Before beginning a Hunt, it is wise to ask someone what you are looking for before you begin looking for it.” A. A. Milne
So, what are you looking for?
Would you like to speak with insight, the weight of granite, and a soupcon of Tupelo Honey?
Would you like to create an eager want in everyone in your audience, and not only inform when you speak, but engage and inspire too?
If yes, then you want to be Sprezzatura and become an effortlessly brilliant speaker and presenter!
And just in case you’re wondering, Sprezzatura is an Italian word for being effortlessly brilliant at something!
Simple. Capisce?
But Here’s The Rub
Does the thought of speaking in front of people, whether in a team meeting, larger group, or conference setting, cause you more than just a little angst?
Does your mouth go dry? Your stomach lurch? The ground open? And your vision blur, whilst a low hum begins in your inner ear and builds to the raging roar of a storm-tossed sea?
Well, you’re not alone!
Each of these physiological and psychological reactions are perfectly normal and can be experienced in any order and at any time you step-up to speak or present to more than one or two people, and in whatever setting.
The Brain Is A Wonderful Thing
And it’s doing exactly what 400 million years has programmed it to do.
Did you know that there are over 6,800 languages, dialects, and sub-dialects spoken across the globe and that you are born with the mental scaffolding to make every sound in every one of these?
Did you also know that there are more neurons and synaptic connections in your wonderful brain than stars in the Milky Way?
It is, in fact, the most complex organization of matter we know of in the universe, and an awesome example of vertical integration.
The oldest part, known as the Inner Brain Stem or Reptilian Brain, dates back over 400 million years, while the newer bit, the New Bark or Neocortex, is around 200 million years old.
And forming part of the limbic system along with the hypothalamus, thalamus, and hippocampus is the amygdala.
When you feel overly anxious, threatened, or afraid, the hypothalamus stimulates the sympathetic nervous system, and this triggers the amygdala to activate the fight-or-flight response by sending out signals to release stress hormones that prepare your body to fight or run away.
At the same time the parasympathetic nervous system can create a brain-fogging or freezing response.
Sound familiar?
One way to train and prevent this happening is to take-up cold-water swimming, and I would thoroughly recommend it.
However, using my alternative technique will keep you warmer and certainly dryer — Just remember and execute these ‘Five P’s:
“Proper Preparation Prevents Poor Performance.”
So, Preparation Is Everything
Indeed! And you must give it your full attention.
Our minds typically wander 47% of the time and we rarely give anything more than 40% of our full attention.
So, do I have your Attention?
Then there are two more P’s we must add to our original ’Five P’s’ — And they are Practice and Perseverance.
In his book, ‘Outliers’, Malcom Gladwell proposed that it takes 10,000 hours of practice to master a new and complex skill, and if you want to dig a little deeper into the thinking around Mastery, then read Robert Greene’s book with the same Title.
Now I’m not suggesting that you need to Practice for 10,000 hours for each presentation, or speech, but you do need to remember all of these ‘Seven P’s’:
“Proper Preparation, Practice & Perseverance, Prevents Poor Performance.”
Practice — The world champion golfer Gary Player famously said he couldn’t believe that the more he practiced the luckier he got.
I think he was being ironic 😊
But the difference between an amateur and a professional is simply this, “An amateur practices until they get something right, a professional practices until they get nothing wrong.”
And Perseverance — On the 17th of August 1851, Charles Dickens wrote, “I begin to be pondering afar off, a new book. Violent restlessness and vague ideas of going I don’t know where, I don’t know why, are the present systems of disorder.”
But Mr Dickens got his head down, he persevered, and that book would be ‘Bleak House’.
So, make time, be courageous in your conviction, Practice, Persevere, and in the words of Cato, The Elder –
“Grasp the subject and the words will follow.”
And then marshal them into a succinct and logical arc of events.
But as Cicero advises the ‘The Artist’, you must also –
“Learn to lay by the pencil.”
Wise words, because to work with your endpoint in mind is just as important as finding the right place to begin.
And to create a compelling, winning presentation is to create a piece of art with the hand and eye. Whilst to deliver it in a compelling and engaging way is also an artistry that requires heart, and together these three things combine in what the Japanese call ‘Hau Kinsa’.
Time Is Your Friend But Avoid The Classic Error!
“It usually takes me more than three weeks to prepare a good impromptu speech.” Mark Twain
Time is your friend, but you’ve got to do those hard yards beforehand.
Once in the room, or on-screen though, with the audience there, waiting in eager expectation for you to breathe life into the moment and make their very existence worthwhile, time is of the essence.
And you have just a short-while to gain and hold the attention.
It is said that 60 Seconds is all we have to make an impact on meeting someone for the 1st time and, of course, it only takes a minute to fall in love, according to the lyrics of at least one multi-million selling pop song.
The most engaging speakers do an excellent job of quickly introducing the topic, explaining why they care so passionately about it and convincing their audience that they should too!
So don’t waste time with an elongated personal introduction or telling everyone how hard you’ve worked.
Rather, start with a ‘Wow’ statement, then tell the story of what you’ve learned, how it makes you feel and why your audience needs to now hang on every word you are going to say.
And What To Say?
A wise person speaks because they have something to say, a fool speaks because they have to say something.” Plato
And he may have continued…”You can’t summarise an entire career in a single talk!”
But we have all heard plenty people try!
So, you’ve sought first to understand and then be understood. You’ve conceptualised and framed what you want to say, which is perhaps the most vital part of all the preparation you will do.
You’ve persevered, done those hard yards, and you’ve –
“Crafted in poetry, grafted in prose.”
You understand that as a species we are hard-wired to listen to stories, but the metaphors and linguistic constructs which you use must work very hard to engage us.
Because when listening to a piece of music or to someone speaking, our Brains go through two stages. First anticipation. The Caudate Nucleus anticipates the build-up, the swell of the music, or the power and cogency of the words we hear, and we are moved.
Second, expectation and its fulfilment. Here, the Nucleus Accumbens is triggered, and endorphins are released.
Ideas and stories fascinate us; organisations bore us!
So, the challenge is can you create a fascination and a song beneath the words you speak, which creates that eager want in your audience with your tone and rhythms of speech.
Be precise with the language you use, because “A Chestnut Horse is not the same as a Horse Chestnut.”
One is an animal, the other is a nut!
And don’t forget, every word counts, so don’t waste any of them — You must “Sell the Sizzle!”
And How To Say It?
You want to be memorable. To make an immediate impact. To embrace the Restorff Effect i.e., be that stand-out red apple in a bucket full of green apples!
And avoid the “Glass Screen Syndrome.”
Body Language conveys a substantial additional impact when we are speaking. Some suggests it accounts for up to 80%, so, it’s useful to learn to be comfortable with yourself, or as the French say, “Adapte une Peau.”
However, we tend to overestimate the importance of the physical act of being on stage, or just talking in front of a group of people.
Paradoxically our words i.e., what is said by the same measure accounts for only 7%.
But getting the words, story and substance right are much bigger factors in how your presentation will be viewed, then whether you are visibly nervous, or how you stand.
To be able to connect and engage with your audience effectively, it helps to develop your presence, give yourself permission to make eye contact, which is incredibly important, and become a ‘Zen Master’ in the art of emoting — bringing together emotion, heart, and stomach!
Part of developing your presence is to be open and charming, because charm is the difference between you wanting something magical to happen when you’re speaking in front of people, and your audience willing it to happen.
Another important part is being self-aware and socially aware. These are two of the four key quadrants of the Psychologist Daniel Goleman’s ‘Emotional Intelligence Framework.’
Also practice standing tall, allowing yourself to feel powerful, and not fidgeting with your hands, shifting your weight from one side to the other, or swaying from side to side, as you speak. These will all distract and only weaken how you come across
Then there’s intonation i.e., how it’s said.
This accounts for 13% of your impact. Practice dropping in tone at the end of a sentence unless it’s a question. This implies authority and a certainty in what you’re saying.
Pacing when speaking is also important. Practice pausing for two beats at the end of every sentence before “energising” the beginning of the next.
Try inserting “mental commas” into what you’re saying. Basically, this means pausing a lot in all the places you would have never imagined doing so.
And don’t forget to breathe.
We take on average 22,000 breaths every day. So, make those you take before speaking really count as you draw in deep through your nose for the count of seven, and feel the breath reaching down to the pit of your stomach and warming up as you exhale for the count of six.
Do this this exercise discretely, as you wait to go on. It will really help!
Then as you speak use the act of returning to your breath to anchor you in the present moment.
All the practice you’ve been doing will allow you to relax into a state which in Japanese is called ‘Mushin No Sin’, which literally translates as “No Mind.”
And because it has all become the perfect fit and second nature, you’ll find that it is at this point you will feel wholly in command and Effortlessly Brilliant as you speak!
Remember You Can’t Make An Omelet Unless You Break Some Eggs
The art of public speaking is evolving all the time, but here is a summary of some of my top tips, which will all hold you in good stead:
- Achieve “Hau Kinsa”!
- Appreciate your surroundings and be positive about the space you will inhabit as you speak!
- Be Memorable & embrace the ‘Restorff Effect’. You are that ‘Red Apple’!
- Create a dialogue, which at its best is not just people talking, but people listening and thinking!
- Don’t forget to breathe. Sounds obvious, but it’s also awfully important
- Don’t waste precious time at the start with an “Elephant’s Sufficiency of ‘background”, or bigging yourself up!
- Dramatise your ideas!
- Ensure your facts fit the case!
- Find the right place to begin!
- If possible be introduced, rather than introducing yourself!
- Practice. Practice. Practice & you’ll avoid that “Valley Of Awkwardness”!
- Preparation is Everything! But so is the Quality of the Thinking you do beforehand!
- Raise expectations, remove self-doubt, and relax!
- Regard the audience as your ‘Thinking Partner’ and let their attention nurture you!
- Remember a compelling presentation is a journey and a successful presentation a wee miracle!
- Sell The Sizzle!
- Start with a WOW! Wear your passion on your sleeve. Be energetic and consuming, and in turn you will consume your audience’s attention!
- Start at the Beginning, but make sure you have a Middle & End too!
- Throw down a challenge; &
- Don’t just start Big — End Bigger!!
And Finally, Lest We Forget
“Talent hits a target no one else can hit. Genius hits a target no one else can see.” Arthur Schopenhauer
Practice really can make perfect! Just ask Gary Player!
And you can check out recent recommendations and testimonials for the updated 2021 “Being Sprezzatura — How To Become An Awesome & Effortless Speaker & Presenter,” programme by clicking here and scrolling down.
About The Author
Having written a million plus published words over the past couple of years on leadership excellence, navigating complexity, working with change, wellbeing, well doing and Mindfulness, Paul Mudd is about making the complicated less complex, the tough stuff not so tough and putting the unreachable within reach of everyone.
He is also a Trusted Adviser, Leadership Rockstar (Apparently), Savvy Thinker, International Keynote Speaker, Best Selling Mindfulness Author, Global Well Being & Well Doing Influencer, Co-Founder and Director of the Mudd Partnership and Co-Creator of the new tMP Hexagon Leadership & Coaching programme #ThinkHexagon © 2021
