Nick R Thomas - A Public Speaker's Blog

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Saturday, April 25

Public speaking: eye contact and Iron Maiden!

by Nick R Thomas A.L.A.M. (Public Speaking) on Sat 25 Apr 2009 12:38 PM BST

Rownhams Ladies' Night, Hampshire

My last booking in March was a talk on My Life as a Freelance Comedy Writer for a ladies' group at Rownhams, just outside Southampton.

I speak in all sorts of venues: town halls, hotels, restaurants, golf clubs, churches, business premises, colleges, schools, libraries, private homes, social clubs, village halls, community centres...

The community centre at Rownhams is a really attractive setting for a speaker to work in. It was, at one time, the village school and the largest room used for events must have been the main classroom. It's big enough to accommodate a fair-sized audience but still small enough to be intimate.

A speaker should try to make regular eye contact with all visible sections of the audience, whatever the seating arrangements. Usually, when you speak in a rectangular room, you are placed at the head of it and you address an audience who are seated in a number of short rows but there may also be occasions when the audience are seated across such a room (I once gave a talk at a village hall in Surrey where an audience of 45 WI members were seated in just two rows). Making eye contact in this situation might seem a little more tricky at first (you might feel a little like someone watching a game of tennis!) but, with practice, you get used to it.

In a recent article in the Times, the rock singer Bruce Dickinson gave a fascinating insight into how he makes eye contact, even when he's performing for thousands at a stadium gig:

He...began performing in small clubs, and learnt from one of his childhood heroes, Ian Gillan, the Deep Purple singer, how to bring your audience in. “I said to him one night, ‘What's your secret?' And he said, ‘Always look 'em in the eyes.' I thought, OK, I'll try it - but how far can I actually see? And I discovered it was entirely possible to look right the way to the back of a show and see somebody. I thought, well, if you grab that person, then everybody around them suddenly goes ‘Wow' and you energise that whole area suddenly. I started working that - in the end you can do it in stadiums.”

(Now, what other public speaking blog brings you insights from the lead singer of Iron Maiden?) Seriously, Bruce's story shows that a certain level of eye contact is usually possible, whatever the seating arrangements!

Public Speaking Tip #303: Making at least some eye contact with as many of your visible audience as possible when you speak helps to draw them in; it makes everyone feel more involved and demonstrates confidence on your part.

And don't forget about #8 in my Thomas's Twelve Tips for Terrified Speakers...

My Life as a Freelance Comedy Writer is a talk that I have been delivering and constantly honing since January 1996 so I am used to it going wll. Even so, the 50-or-so ladies at Rownhams were an exceptionally receptive audience, picking up on every nuance and humorous aside.

A great evening. My thanks to Sandra Burnage for the lifts from and back to Southampton Central and her sister June for the refreshments.

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Monday, April 20

Hearty Laughter

by Nick R Thomas A.L.A.M. (Public Speaking) on Mon 20 Apr 2009 11:11 PM BST

Poole Heart Support Group

On 19 March, I gave an evening talk about the Power of Humour in Everyday Life for the Poole Heart Support Group in the Graduate Centre at Poole General Hospital. There were around 35 there and they were an excellent audience.

Many of my talks are for groups associated with particular medical conditions: MS, visual impairment, arthritis... They may have some speakers who are experts in research/treatment but they also book others like myself who speak about unrelated subjects for their entertainment and, perhaps, escapism. They are just like any other audience although it is a good idea to review your material for any references which may seem insensitive (in this case, I made a slight revision to one of the anecdotes).

My Power of Humour talk is about extracting the comic value from seemingly negative experiences but I do not speak in depth about the physical benefits of humour which are so often mentioned in the press because I am not an expert in this field and besides, I much prefer delivering anecdotes about my embarrassments - of which there are so many!

Once, after I had done a stand-up spot at a London comedy club many years ago, another comic told me I was wrong to use self-effacing humour because he felt that putting myself down somehow detracted from my authority as a performer. I disagreed then - and do so even more now.

Public Speaking Tip #302: Self-deprecating anecdotes can make a speaker seem more human rather than taking away from your credibility.

My thanks to Gary Lee for running me back to Bournemouth and for this testimonial letter:

"It is a pleasure to write and thank you for a simply super talk. How good to hear spontaneous laughter, see smiling faces and hear of situations which at first sight are bad but from which humour can result or help to make things better.

Great stuff! I'm sure I reflect the thoughts of all the audience that it was well worth being part of it.

...I will get back to you about a booking for next year.

...Once again, thanks on behalf of PHSG for a really good evening".

I think they liked me!

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Saturday, April 4

Salisbury Strain

by Nick R Thomas A.L.A.M. (Public Speaking) on Sat 04 Apr 2009 05:06 AM BST

Sarum U3A AGM, Salisbury

On 18 March, I set off to deliver another talk for Sarum U3A in Salisbury (always a great audience).

Once again, it was an example of how the biggest stress of public speaking for me is not the business of standing up in front of an audience but rather the journey trying to get there!

An accident involving a single car on the A338 Spur Road into Bournemouth led to Dorset Police closing off that section of the dual carriageway - for nearly fours, for some reason, a decision which led to a great deal of negative local press for them.This meant that the Wilts and Dorset X3 service was diverted on its journey into town before it could pick up passengers going back into Salisbury. It was therefore 30 minutes' late and as we travelled to Salisbury, we passed a massive tailback the other way, despite it now being two-and-a-half hours since the accident. I wonder if any of those people had presentations to get to?

As with the problems caused by the snow in February, there was nothing anyone could do.

Public Speaking Tip #301: Just occasionally, a booking to speak will be affected by factors that are beyond anyone's control. All you can do is focus on your doing your best when you get there if you are late - or on your next engagement if this one is cancelled.

I was met at Salisbury bus station by Ena and Tony Baldock. Ena has booked me for a large number of talks in Salisbury over the years, not just for the U3A. She is also a writer herself, having edited an authoritative book for bereaved parents.

The meeting was held in the hall behind St Francis Church. Here I am just after arriving, looking a little drawn! But after relaxing with a cup of coffee from Ena, I was well into 'speaker mode' and, when the 15-minute AGM meeting was over, I was introduced. I did about 35 minutes on The Power of Humour in Everyday Life and the audience of around 120 were terrific, as always.

Afterwards, I sold booklets, chatted to members and looked at the impressive displays of the various U3A sections' activities. I didn't spend too much time looking around Salisbury as I usually like to when I am in the area because I had an afternoon session coaching a speaker...

Testimonial: "Next up was guest speaker and “Authentic Gag Master” Nick Thomas, a freelance comedy writer whose credits include 23 series of the BBC’s “News Huddlines”. He gave us his take on “The Power of Humour in Everyday Life”, a gentle observation on the therapeutic value of humour. His talk was peppered with amusing anecdotes which kept his attentive audience continually chuckling". From the Sarum U3A website.

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