Dilbert once again takes aim at corporate communicators, humorously making us realize that our impact is more than a show.
Delivery skills (such as the charismatic tone of a deep, confident voice!) are VITALLY important. They create impressions (good or bad). They make it easy (or hard) to listen and put emphasis on the important points. They manage time and space and draw the audience to attention (or bore them to tears).
But a great voice alone isn’t enough. You must have CONTENT. Good, organized, pertinent, relevant, well-timed, interesting, and accurate content.
And lest you walk away thinking that’s it, there is still more!
If we fail to CONNECT with our audience, we fail to make them want to even listen. Many a speaker gave accurate information delivered well, and never got the audience to pay attention. It’s the perfect intersection of delivery, content, AND connection that makes GREAT speakers.
Don’t focus solely on one aspect of speaking.
Alan,
Hope you are doing well.
How do you define “Connection” and how does one know when they have achieved it with their audience?
Thanks,
John
Hey John,
Connection is the human-to-human relationship between speaker and audience that causes interest and attention. Close synonyms: Engagement, interaction. When you have connection, an audience wants to listen. It is best verified by watching, although a warning is in order: people can (and do) hide their true feelings. I’ve seen people who appeared disengaged who told me later they hung on every word, and people can appear attentive and be completely tuned out. The techniques that drive Connection are humor, stories, effective visuals, powerful questions, and answers.
Many times, connection is driven most by a great topic. For instance, if you love animals, a presentation on how to pick the right breed of dog could be right in your sweet spot. A horrible presenter might still seem interesting to you simply because you connect with the topic.
Thanks for reading. Alan