How should I start my presentation?
Improving eye contact when public speaking
Using pauses in presentations is a powerful tool. This short article explores why and how you can use the power of the pause.
There is a famous piece of verse called Desiderata that begins with the line
'Go placidly amid the noise and the haste and remember what peace there may be in silence.'
As speakers, we're often so obsessed with getting our message across as quickly and as powerfully as possible, that we forget what peace there may be in silence.
We forget about the power of using pauses in our presentations.
An effective pause is a great way to highlight the most important points within your speech.
Want to watch this article as a video?
A timely pause is a good method of making sure that a presentation point hits home or that a rhetorical question is as effective as it can be, by giving your audience time to contemplate the answer to the question that you have just asked them.
A pause is also an excellent way to come across as a confident, engaging presenter. Even if you're not feeling that on the inside and your heart is racing, a nice pause gives you time to think and collect your thoughts and gather yourself ready to powerfully and successfully continue to deliver your presentation. To your audience, this moment of collection will appear simply as you being supremely confident as a speaker, pausing for impact. Result!
So next time you are writing your presentation or speech, don't just get out as many words as you can onto the page. Don't just focus on delivering as many words as you can to your audience.
Take a moment to stop, pause, and review the draft of your presentation. Annotate it and add in some relevant pauses. Pauses that will enhance your message and give you time to gather your thoughts.
The outcome will be a powerful, poignant presentation that is easier for you to deliver confidently, and an audience that has time to absorb and contemplate your key points.
Remember what peace (or maybe power) there may be in silence!
Want to watch this article as a video?
All of our recent blog posts are recorded as videos too. Click the video to watch this blog post narrated by Rich Watts, public speaking expert and 2x national public speaking champion.
To watch all our public speaking tips videos, visit the Rich Public Speaking Youtube channel here.
