Pitch-Perfect Delivery

• Author: Faith Dianne Pincus
• Profession: Attorney and former Federal Law Clerk
• Pages: 81-95

81

CHAPTER SEVEN

Pitch-Perfect Delivery

Everyone has their own style of speaking in public. And while different

settings might call for different approaches (changes in tone or in

seriousness), the same “persona” is usually present with each speaker.

Think of the great public speakers of the past fifty years (a number

of presidents and candidates might spring to mind). When you think

of their speeches and how effective they were, you can see that they

all managed to project a positive image of themselves and their own

charismatic persona.

There are several tried-and-true delivery techniques that are

guaranteed to improve your delivery style and the impact you have on an

audience—any audience.

Let’s get started.

Eye Contact Means Everything

Making eye contact with your audience throughout your entire presenta-

tion is the number one way you can improve your delivery style.

Eye contact is the primary way to connect with your audience. It

enhances your presence. It makes you appear confident, credible, and in

control. A speaker who studiously reads from prepared remarks and rarely

looks up to the audience can be seen as either shifty, boring, or both. The

simple rule is: talk directly to people and they will listen to you.

So how do you do it? To begin with, let’s start with the size of your

audience. If it is small (fewer than fifty people or so), you will find many

opportunities to make eye contact with virtually every member of your

audience. As you speak, vary your eye contact with different parts of the

room. In other words, make sure you don’t focus on one side only, which

I’ve seen speakers do time and again.

Pincus51873_Ch07.indd 81 6/15/18 11:38 AM