NW National Service Symposium

Thinking about presenting? Feeling a bit unsure about your public speaking skills?
If so, you’re in luck, because we have a great guest blogger, Jil Freeman, posting here to lend her years of experience as a Professor of Communications at Portland State University. Check out her tips below for presenting an interesting and engaging session at the Symposium:

“The best way to prepare for a presentation is practice, practice, practice! Yes, it is common sense to practice before your presentation, but you’d be amazed how many people a) don’t practice at all or b) practice inefficiently.

1) Practice your content, but don’t memorize it. Folks who memorize their presentations often end up sounding phony and overly rehearsed. Moreover, memorizers are completely thrown by the tiniest mistakes and struggle to recover. Instead, practice for familiarity. Practice having a conversation about your topic, using a detailed outline that highlights the key points and flow of your presentation. This will allow your presentation to feel fresh and you will be focused on the message instead of boring your audience by reciting a script.

2) Practice with people. Give your presentation to your friends and family to make sure you that you are being relevant, interesting and engaging. Ask them what parts of your talk were most interesting and why. Ask them what information would help them understand your topic better and how they feel about the topic. Ask them what would make the presentation more interesting and engaging. Ask what parts of your presentation were least interesting. And, most importantly, incorporate this feedback into your presentation. Being an effective speaker means you adapt to your audience, not the other way around.

3) Practice for style. I’ve seen it a million times: nervous speakers pacing back and forth looking at the floor as they mouth the words to their presentations. They think they are practicing. They are wrong. People will listen to your words, but first they have to believe in you as a speaker; they have to think you are credible. Much of establishing your credibility comes from your nonverbal communication and presentation style. Focusing on style can best be accomplished by practicing your presentation in front of a mirror while doing the following:

• Look at yourself in the mirror as you talk through (notice I didn’t say memorize) your topic so that you are comfortable making eye contact with something other than your notes and encourage you to make eye contact with your audience when the time comes. Looking at yourself will also allow you to become mindful of the nonverbal behaviors that could detract from your presentation.

• Clear your hands and eliminate your fidget potential. Pens, pencils, pointers, papers or other playthings will distract your audience from what you are saying. This also goes for playing with things in your pockets, fidgeting with your hair or jewelry or wringing your hands. Practice placing your hands at your sides, relaxing your hands and use natural gestures that enhance your presentation.

• Record yourself if possible. Even an audio recording is useful, as you will be able to check your tone, pace and enunciation. Your tone needs to be in-line with your topic (you don’t want to sound inappropriately happy or upset). If you find yourself talking too quickly, imagine yourself pausing for one second (count out “one Mississippi” in your head) at each punctuation mark in your presentation. If you find yourself mumbling or tripping over words, try this speaker’s trick: find a cork from a wine bottle and place it, standing on end, between your back teeth. Practice your presentation while biting down on the cork. This will be difficult, but will help open up your jaw muscles and will improve your enunciation.

• Time yourself. If you go over time, you should cut some of your presentation so that you aren’t rushed or going over the time allotted to you. If you are considerably under time, consider adding some more details to your presentation. Remember that most speakers who are nervous increase their speed as they speak, so you need to account for this in your timing.

Finally, the best public speakers practice multiple times. Each time you practice, you will become more comfortable with your topic and with being a presenter. Five full practices (minimally) in front of the mirror will calm your nerves, improve your credibility, and make you sound like an old pro at presenting.”

So, your project (or maybe multiple projects!) got accepted to the 2011 NW National Service Symposium.

You know you want to attend. But, did you know that you can also present a session at the event for your peers?

This can look like a roundtable discussion, a how-to-sculpt-your-reflection-in-clay session, or a more traditional stand-up presentation on your project and year in service (Note: we do discourage bland reading-your-powerpoint-slides sessions; ask us why).

We have more info on possible session formats up on the website to get your brainstorming started.  This is a great way to get creative about how you can invite participants  to engage with your experience, your story, and your talents!

Can more than one person present a session?  Yes!

Do presenters get a discounted registration?  Also yes! (up to three people)

Is this often one of the most rewarding and engaging highlights of the Symposium, for presenters and participants alike?  Definitely.

Click here to get more guidelines about presenting, and sign up once you have your idea fleshed out! And remember, we’re here to help you come up with ideas, think about your session format, and help you translate your experience into engaging your audience.

The deadline to sign up to present is Monday, May 2, so get your thinking caps on, and don’t hesitate to call Avery at 503-275-0652 or email him at avery.welkin@educationnorthwest.org with any ideas or questions. Stay tuned for more tips and ideas!