Your Body Language

When you are on the platform, your audience bases their judgment of you and your message on what they see, hear, and feel. Your Body Language is one of your handy tools for adding clarity and emphasis to your words. It is also one of your most useful instrument for convincing audiences of your sincerity, earnestness, and enthusiasm. Audiences always remember what you were doing when you said what you were saying.

Body language can fall into any of the three following categories – Facial Expressions – Gestures and Whole Body Movement. Your face expresses your feelings to the audience. Combine with your voice, gestures, and stance; you can communicate to your audience any or all of the six emotions, we all respond to as humans. Those emotions are happiness, sadness, anger, fear, surprise, and disgust. Your facial expression is often the key determinant of the meaning behind the words and your message. If you are talking about a terrible tragedy but smiling, you will undoubtedly leave your audience confused. Your facial expressions should always match your spoken words.

Eye contact is especially an important part of your body language. Eye contact works both ways. It can make your audience feel comfortable or uncomfortable. In everyday life, we often associate eye contact with honesty, sincerity, interest, or nervousness — the same goes when you are on the platform. Your eye contact should be steady and not be darting from side to side or up and down. Focus on one individual until you complete your though then move to another person. Develop the technique of speaking – One to Many. Pretend you are talking to only one individual, and then shift to someone on the left or right to make your next statement. This technique makes your audience feel like you are communicating in a personal and sincere manner.

Gestures are specific body movements that reinforce a speaker’s verbal message. There are three basic types of gestures. Conventional gestures – symbols for words such as raised hand for the word “stop” or two raised fingers for the number two. Descriptive gestures – when describing, large or small, short, or tall. Then there are the Emotional gestures, which we all know only too well – clenched fists to show anger, or a huge smile, to display happiness. Your Whole Body Movement will communicate to your audience if you are confident, alert, and in command of yourself and the platform. Use your entire body to work the room with confidence and poise.

Your visual presentation plays a significant role in your speech’s success. According to many experts, more than 60 percent of our communication is nonverbal. The way you stand, your facial expressions, hand gestures, and how you use your entire body communicates more to your audience than your spoken words. When you are on the platform, it is natural to display some discomfort through nervous energy and habits which detract from your presentation. That is why you must make Using Your Body Language an essential part of preparation and practice. When you are comfortable with your body language, your speeches will resonate with your audience long after you have spoken your last words on the platform.