Monthly Archives: January 2013

In My Own Hand

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I rarely blog about written communication, but a quotation I read in a recent Wall Street Journal motivated me to write this.

My mother died many years ago, but recently I had a personal connection with her. In one of my files, I found a letter she wrote to me in the 70s. She wrote like she talked. I could almost hear her voice. I treasure that piece of paper because of that personal connection. Her handwriting was as unique as her personality.

Letter writing has become a lost art. According to a recent article in the Wall Street Journal, The Lost Art of the Handwritten Note, “A British survey found that the average time since an adult wrote anything at all by hand was 41 days.” A veteran elementary teacher told me, “It is a rare elementary school teacher who teaches handwriting skills.”

As long ago as 54 C. E., the Apostle Paul wrote to the Corinthians, “I, Paul, write this greeting in my own hand,” implying that it was unusual.

I find that writing notes helps to develop a personal relationship with a client or to enhance a relationship with spouse or child. The personal hand-written note will help people remember you. When I write a thank-you note, a thinking-of-you note, or a note of encouragement, I think more about what I am going to say and usually have a more specific and personal message than if I am emailing or texting.

We want to have a professional website, an attractive business card, and always look our best when working with a prospective client. An added competitive edge is to make use of the personal note.

My mother wrote me once a week for years after I left home. I looked forward to the weekly epistle on Tuesday or Wednesday; her letters gave me a weekly boost.

When looking through her papers after her death, I found a letter I’d written, thanking her for all she had done for me. I guess the letter writing meant a lot to her as well.

A Special Use for a Note Card

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A point of discussion when talking about public speaking is whether or not to use notes. And if you do use notes, should they be a manuscript, a sentence outline, or key words on note cards that you refer to during your presentation?

The one time when you want to use a note card is when you are delivering a significant quotation or piece of evidence.

Here are a couple of reasons. When you have the data written on a card and pull it out and read the line to the audience, you will create more credibility with your piece of evidence. We assume that if you have it written on paper, you did not manufacture the proof.

A second reason is that you take pressure away from yourself by not having to remember the exact figure or wording of the testimonial. You will be less uncertain and more confident in delivery.

What I often do if I have several pieces of data to quote is to put all the quotations on one card and then simply lay the note on the lectern and only pick it up to read the line or statistic.

Keeping things simple in speechmaking is critical since you already have too many variables that you can’t control. Not having to remember an exact number(s) or testimonial simply makes your work easier in front of an audience. Add to that the increased credibility and you have justification for using a note card effectively.

Engage Your Audience!

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At a presentation skills workshop I conducted for a group of executives recently, I asked each what they wanted to gain from the program. The most common response was “How can I engage my audience?” As you begin a new year of presentations, you may have the same question. Here are some of the suggestions I made.

Get the audience to do things in unison. I use a posture-related exercise where I have everyone stand and then tell them to put the weight of their bodies equally on the balls of their feet. I say, “This habit will help you have good posture as you begin your presentation and will aid you in not swaying back and forth or slouching as you begin.”

Ask questions that are easy to answer. I ask, for example, what some of the physical manifestations of stage fright are. Since practically everyone has had most of the common symptoms, lots of people will offer answers. That easily leads to our discussion of dealing with stage fright. (See a previous article on stage fright.)

Do paper and pencil exercises. In my listening workshops, I have them make a “to do” list on paper as I tell them a story. I want them to write the list and listen to my story at the same time. This is very difficult to do effectively and gives evidence to my point that multi-tasking affects the quality of your listening.

Give away prizes during your program. When I discuss paying attention, I often conclude by pointing out someone in the audience who has been paying careful attention and say, “I can tell by the nonverbal feedback from John that he is paying careful attention, so I am going to reward him by giving him a copy of my book.” After I give away the book, I find that audiences are more involved because there might be another gift in the offing.

Finally, move and change positions as you speak. Audiences can’t resist watching as you move away from the lectern to one side of the room for a few seconds or walk down the aisle to emphasize a point or answer a question from someone in the back of the room. Movement attracts attention, but of course pacing back and forth has a negative effect. Be sure your movement is connected with a point change or the beginning of a story.

You can never engage all the audience members all the time. However, these suggestions can go a long way in encouraging most of the people to pay attention most of the time.