I am attending one of my clients company meetings. There are 200 employees in the room. You can feel the buzz and excitement in the room. Upbeat music is playing, and a slick Power Point presentation is spinning, doing action packed transitions on a big screen. The music slowly fades down, and the group leader confidently strides to the lectern. In a few short minutes, the energy and enthusiasm in the room is dead, the unfortunate victim of a horrible presentation. The speaker stumbles over her words, stares at the audience uncomfortably, and grips the lectern with white knuckles. Meanwhile, everyones interest flatlines. This speaker is a leader, but she (obviously) doesnt present like one. This should never happen. As I travel around the country, I see leaders at all levels who are absolutely disastrous speakers. If youre in a leadership role, youve got to be able to speak and present well.

Leaders in any organization have to be strong presenters and public speakers. They are required to speak in prepared speeches, Q&A sessions and extemporaneous speaking. If you are in a leadership role and you arent great at public speaking, you need help immediately. If you cant speak and present well, you may be killing your career as a leader. You need help, stat. Here are two compelling reasons why you should take your presentation abilities seriously:

●Perception, perception, perception- a critical aspect of leadership (like it or not) is perception. When people present and speak, the audience forms immediate perceptions about them. Is this person competent, confident, clear, thoughtful, and articulate? Whether its fair or not, groups will make judgments about your competency as a leader based on how well you speak.

●Communication- speaking and presenting helps to provide effective communication in a leadership role. It is one tool that can make it easier for leaders to make a connection with the group. Presenting can get them to be enthusiastic about the team, goals, objectives, and organization. It is a way to inspire and motivate. If a leader cant communicate in a clear, compelling way, then the team will not follow them as a leader. In some larger organizations, the only time employees are exposed to a leader is when they hear them speak at a meeting. So which is it, brilliant or boring? Dull or dynamic? Articulate or anesthetic?

Here are five tips any leader can use today to get better at presenting and speaking.

1.Get an idea as to where you are- have a colleague that you trust observe you while you are speaking or presenting. Have them agree to give you honest, unvarnished feedback on what you are doing well and on what you could improve. Someone else needs to observe you, because you cant be objective. You cant see yourself when youre presenting, and may not have an awareness of habits and idiosyncrasies. You may use certain hand motions repeatedly. You may say okay twenty times in five minutes. Having an objective observer help you to identify both your strengths and areas for improvement.

2.Study and read- when was the last time you worked on your own development? If you have to stop and think about it, its been too long. Get some books or audio programs on public speaking. A quick search of Amazon.com revealed that there were 1,929 books listed on public speaking alone! Start studying the art and science of speaking and presenting. Write down specific ideas and techniques you want to incorporate and try the next time you speak.

3.Watch other speakers- Every time you see other speakers, notice the techniques theyre using, what they are doing well, and, in your opinion, what doesnt work. Notice what they are doing vocally. Notice their body language. Take note of any visuals that they may use. Observe how they organize their content. Notice how the audience is reacting. Try to determine if some of the techniques they are using would work for you. Great speakers always study other great speakers and emulate them.

4.Videotape yourself- as the old saying goes, the camera doesnt lie. Set up a camera and film your next presentation. When you record yourself giving a speech or a presentation, you get a picture of what the audience is seeing and hearing. No editing or polishing, you see it all. Take some quiet, uninterrupted time and watch the video. Set aside your ego and your pride. Write down what went well. It is important to know your strengths because, obviously, you want to keep dong them and build on them. What do you see on the video that makes you unique and compelling? Write down areas for improvement, and, more importantly, what you can do to change them. (If youve been studying and reading, as suggested in step 2 above, this will be a lot easier for you.)

5.Get outside help- there are many valuable resources to help improve your speaking and presenting skills.

●Option #1- Toastmasters- Toastmasters is a non-profit organization dedicated to helping people improve their speaking and leadership skills. Here is how it works: they have regular meetings in your area. At each meeting, people give prepared speeches and get feedback from predetermined evaluators. There is also a portion of each Toastmasters meeting called Table topics and this gives people practice with speaking off the cuff. Toastmasters is inexpensive, (under $100 per year) and very effective, because people who attend Toastmasters are all there for the same reason to get better at speaking. Find a club near you at www.toastmasters.org.

●Option #2- Get a private speaking coach who can work with you one on one. It is an expensive, but highly effective, method, because you get individual attention.

●Option#3- Find the hundreds of training organizations that offer public seminars on public speaking, and attend them.

I believe the future will require these skills to be even more important in a leadership role. Leaders must be great communicators, and when they speak they have to make an instant impression a positive one. If you dont feel that you can make a strong impression now, then get help before its too late. Dont become another statistic.

Shawn Doyle is the President of New Light Learning and Development (http://www.newlightlearning.com) a company specializing in Leadership Development. He has also authored five books on leadership sales and motivation. His latest book The Managers Pocket Guide to Training has just been published by HRD Press. Sldoyle1@aol.com

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