The word “leadership” brings to mind many things.
- A political leader, who wants to convince you to support their cause.
- An explorer, cutting a swath for you to follow her through the jungle.
- An executive, developing his strategy to help you and your colleagues beat the competition.
Being a leader means helping others, and themselves, do the right things. A leader sets the direction for their team, drives innovation, and builds a vision for the future. Being a leader is about lighting the way to mutual goals, and it’s dynamic, exciting, and inspiring.
According to a fantastic article by Sunnie Giles from the Harvard Business Review, these are the most important leadership competencies from around the world.
If you read this the way we did, then communication is clearly one of the most vital components of leadership. If you want to become a leader, you MUST become a good communicator… and that’s where honing your public speaking skills comes in. Every aspect of leadership encompasses public speaking.
It all boils down the three C’s: Leaders challenge, they change, and they connect.
Challenge
A person that is willing to step forward and speak will have a more recognised voice. When people see you standing up in front of 20, 40, or 400 people to give a speech, they will turn to you as the leader and spokesperson
The more people that see your face standing in front of the crowd will provide more opportunities for your career. People will remember you and begin to see you with authority, putting you center stage with the new pitch or new client. You begin to appear as the spokesperson in your community of business professionals, being looked to as a leader.
Your name comes up more and more when members of your organization are looking for new team members or to spearhead new opportunities. Inspiring public speaking allows to you to be more visible, thereby making you the “go-to” guy or gal.
If you manage to represent your organization as powerful in your public speaking you will be seen as more trustworthy, that you won’t drop the ball when the pressure is on. More opportunities will come to you as a result.
Change
In standing up and speaking in a way that is powerful, you’re speaking in a way that will change peoples minds about something. If you’re able to master that skill, changing hearts and minds and learning how to persuade, you will be already honing one of the major aspects of leadership.
If you’re able to do it in public to a group of people, chances are you’ll be able to do it in a more individualized setting. Leaders require the capacity to drive change, public speaking skills are vital in learning that ability.
Who do we listen to more; the convincing voice spoken to our faces, or the convincing email sent straight to our inbox?
The person speaking is always going to be more convincing than a note sent across the interwebs. You could spend your time going from person to person, if that is your comfort zone. But think about how many more people you could reach if you stood up on stage and had them all gathered together in an audience!
If you’re speaking to an audience of 500 versus one-on-one, then you’re driving serious change. The more people you’re able to speak to, the more change you can implement.
Connect
People “buy” people. As an inspiring speaker you will learn how to be passionate in the right moments and vulnerable in the right moments. People will be able to relate to you more as a human being. Public speaking can definitely serve you in your career by promoting more alliances, liking and trusting you more as they see you being empathetic.
If you speak in a way that is honest, public speaking can make you the ‘people’s champion’ in your organisation. Connect with your personal stories, share who you are and you’ll be amazed at how your audience will connect with you.
Read more about empathy: Part 1, Part 2, AND Part 3. (yes… it’s THAT important.)
To learn how to inspire your organisation, we have an incredible programmes just for you. Ginger’s public speaking training develops authentic, inspiring speakers who can lead change.
Our training is known for its fun, human and insightful atmosphere. Whether you’re a nervous speaker, keynote speaker, pitch maker, or thought leader, we seek out your brilliance and help you bring it to your public.
We offerpublic,onlineandin-housetraining courses.
Ginger’s public speaking training offering includes: general and advanced public speaking skills, influence training, TED style speech giving, keynotes & conference speaking, speaking to the media, executive presence, speaking with charisma, story-telling, train the trainers and even stand-up comedy skills for public speakers.
Courses relevant to you:
Leadership and Communications Skills
