The Sound of Your Voice | "Emergency Speech Coaching" Article

The Case for Emergency Speech Coaching
By Dr. Carol Fleming

The voice on the phone sounded normal except when it sounded hysterical. "Dr. Fleming, I'm at a Hambrecht and Quist meeting where my company is going to make a major presentation. My boss always does the speaking, but I just got a call from Boston that he's not coming and he wants me to handle it. I would rather eat razor blades than give a speech. I need some help."

"Fine. If you can you get yourself to my office at the corner of Montgomery and Market, I can give you a two-hour block of time to work with your presentation. Starting right now, I want you to expect that you're going to learn some tips and tricks that are easy to apply and will make all the difference. Expect to do a fine job. So, grab a cab and get down here!".

Would I tell you a story that didn't have a happy ending? This story has a great ending. We worked together with his materials, he discovered that the task was not nearly as formidable as he thought, and best of all, that I had no interest in helping him be 'OK'; I wanted to shoot for 'great'. The punch line of this story is that he was in fact, 'great'. He felt ten feet tall, and he's now the guy that does all the road shows.

Emergencies abound in the presentation world:

Do you have to give an oral report in front of the Board?
Is there a media appearance in your near future?
Are you getting ready for your oral exams as part of a degree or certification program, or as part of your entry application for a school?
Did the minister ask you to do the lesson from the pulpit next Sunday?
Do you have to testify in court?

What if this appearance is of great importance to you? What if you've had some pretty devastating experiences in your past, and you're scared to death of blowing it?

May I suggest that this is the perfect time to get yourself a personal communication coach who will take your situation seriously, who can help you figure out how to ace the appearance, and who knows how to guide you out of fear and paralysis into fluency and confidence? Doesn't this sound like a good idea?

If you've acquainted yourself with my work at all, you know that I relish the application of communication knowledge to many different interactional situations, but nothing gives me more personal pleasure than to turn 'terrified' into 'terrific'. Its life changing in its effect on confidence and that person will never be the same, because their view of themselves as a competent speaker has been changed forever.

Of course, more systematic training over time is better for the development of communication fluency, clarity and confidence- when you have the forethought and time to devote to it. It is so much more comfortable to be prepared for demands before they arise.

For those people who do not have this luxury, please do what you can to ensure an excellent experience. That memory of competence will last a long time, but not as long as a memory of disaster. There are demands that require (and deserve) emergency coaching. Go for it!

Contact us today to discuss how our workshops, coaching and training products can improve your Personal Professionalism and Communication Impact.

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