Public speaking is a life-long skill.
No matter what career you choose, having the confidence and experience to moderate or present at any event will give you an edge and a great platform to share your knowledge.
The week’s webinar was on Body Language and Public Speaking hosted by Emily Han. A great continuation of last week’s webinar on Body Language and Nonverbals! Emily is a rising junior in the Bay Area, California. Her passions lie in Public Speaking, Graphic Design, Law/International Relations and Business/Entrepreneurship- the amalgamation of which inspired her formidable list of extracurriculars.
She has been a debate competitor on the national circuit for 5 years now
Is a pro bono public speaker
Is an executive administrator on Rishi Kumar’s congressional candidate campaign
*One of the projects she led was the Water Project, in which the team successfully decreased the costs of the water bill by around 8% for thousands of citizens in the pandemic.*
Is a part-time debate coach assistant
Is a student member of MIT LaunchX
Is a shadowing intern at a local law office
Lastly, she is the co-founder of a worldwide nonprofit, Make a Statement (@projectmakeastatement), focusing on educating youth and low-income students about public speaking. You can find their website and contact information in the resource section below.
The Importance of Body Language
Body language is the combination of your gestures and non-verbal cues that inform others on many things about you. This language can divulge whether you’re confident, meek, knowledgeable, charismatic, opinionated etc. It’s a facet of communication that is deeply present in all of our lives.
Some reasons it’s important are:
It creates good impressions - It can look professional or engaging when you yourself are engaged in your conversation through hand gestures, voice intonations and overall demeanor.
It helps you drive home a point through:
- repetition (of phrases of hand gestures)
- contradiction of gestures and words (good for irony or sarcasm)
- substitution (substitutes verbal message, has more nuanced communication than words)
- being complementary to your verbal message
- accenting (emphasizing your verbal message, similar to complimenting)
Types of Body Language and Position
Emily went over the ways that different types of body language affect our overall image and communication. They are as follows:
Facial Expression: very, very expressive, very universal.
Body movement & posture
Gestures: where you point/wave, how you express yourself (unconsciously at times)
Eye contact: important in maintaining the flow of your conversation, shows deep engagements.
Touch: hugs, hand holding, hand shakes, shoves...
Space: closeness in a conversation shares a lot about the interaction and variation of space accentuates points throughout a more formal presentation.
Voice: It’s not about what you say, it’s about how you say it. Tonality is 38% of communication! Raising pitch, altering speed, strategizing pauses...
For detailed examples of nonverbal (body language) gestures, check out our previous webinar run by Shreshth. They’re organized by body part, from the hair on your head to the tips of your toes.
Real-life Applications
The first link is to a 2 minute video watched by Emily’s webinar attendees dissecting the body language of America’s previous presidents, Obama and Trump, during their meeting.
Some Takeaways:
Steepling is a very intimidating gesture, (when you press the pads of your fingers together without your palms touching) the higher the steeple the stronger the intimidation.
Eye contact expresses interest and liking.
Your blinking speed may betray your true feelings!
The second link expands upon some important body language considerations as explained by Dananjaya Hettiarachchi, the 2014 Toastmasters International world champion of public speaking. It’s also 2 minutes long and worth the watch!
Keep your body open (no crossing arms over chest/vital organs, crossing legs)
Have your palms open
Be comfortable with the stage
Don’t. Touch. The. Podium. If you’re using one, keep a comfortable distance away that allows for hand gesturing.
Final Tips
In her Q&A session, Emily left us with some final tips.
Understand that being nervous before a public speaking event is completely normal.
Compound your preparation: Don’t cram information and force memorization in a short period of time before your presentation (2h for example). It will not stick.
Don’t take criticism from people who you wouldn’t go for advice to.
If it interests you and you’re willing to dedicate time and effort to it, it’s a valid endeavor. Keep going!
Resources
If Emily’s webinar interested you, definitely check out the rest of the resources she provided.
A detailed profile on Emily:
Other contact info:
@emilyhan on Instagram
Project Make A Statement:
@projectmakeastatement on Instagram
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