Who are public speakers? They are people just like you and me. Speakers are wonderful people. People who are more experienced than us in different fields of life. They have gone through different experiences and along the way, have learnt a multitude of different lessons on life. As such, they believe it to be a moral obligation to share those experiences with us – their audience. This, I believe, is a noble action and one that we must learn to appreciate and respect. Here are 5 ways to do exactly that.
1) Let them speak without interruption
The very fact that these people have the moral strength to come up to the podium and talk about something that they believe they are knowledgeable about is in itself, a very daring deed. Lend them your ears, listen to them and reserve any questions or queries that you have for the time allocated after the session is over. This allows them to speak freely and confidently without the fear of interruption.
2) Offer them constructive criticism
Though it might seem contrary to the whole point of this article, constructive criticism is a very helpful way of letting the speaker know what they lack in their presentation and in addition it shows them that the audience has been attentive and the message that they wanted to convey hasn’t fallen on deaf ears.
3) Give them a heads up about the audience
Let your speaker know what kind of an audience they are expected to deal with, whether the audience is friendly, neutral or hostile. A hostile audience is quite likely when the topic that the speaker is going to deliver on is controversial or sensitive. This helps them to prepare effectively for their presentation.
4) Always provide them with some form of contact information
A lot of things can go wrong when a speaker is expected to deliver a presentation to an audience, especially if the speaker lives far away. Their flight might get cancelled or they might end up with no place to stay at for the duration of the visit. They might not be familiar with the local environment or culture, particularly when they are from another country. Providing them with your contact information enables them to contact you in the case of any emergency.
5) Provide them with the right equipment
To effectively deliver a speech or a presentation, the speaker needs access to a wide variety of multimedia tools. This includes everything from the humble microphone to the all-important projector. Some speakers prefer there to be no podium on stage so that they can walk around freely during the presentation. This just their style: a very effective one at that. Don’t consider it weird, appreciate their style and cooperate with them.
Remember, speakers are amazing people and they have a lot share with you but only if you appreciate their efforts and help them in every way possible will this act of spreading knowledge on all aspects of life keep on continuing.