The Art of Public Speaking: Chapter 1

The means by which a message is communicated.

channel

The belief that one's own group or culture is superior to all other groups or cultures.

ethnocentrism

The messages, usually nonverbal, sent from a listener to a speaker.

feedback

Whatever a speaker communicates to someone else .

message

Mental imaging in which the speaker vividly pictures himself or herself giving a successful presentation.

visualization

1. Be at your best physically and mentally. 2. As you are waiting to speak, quietly tighten and relax your leg muscles, or squeeze your hands together and then release them. 3. Take a couple slow, deep breaths before you start speaking. 4. Work especially hard on your introduction. 5. Make eye contact with members of the audience. 6. Concentrate on communicating with your audience rather than worrying about your stage fright. 7. Use visual aids.

Helpful Tips

1. Aquire Speaking Experience. 2. Prepare, Prepare, Prepare. 3. Think Positively 4. Use the Power of Visualization 5. Know That Most Nervousness Is Not Visible. 6. Don't Expect Perfection.

How can you control your nervousness and make it work for you in your speeches?

1. Public speaking is more highly structured. 2. Public Speaking requires more formal language. 3. Public speaking requires a different method of delivery.

How is public speaking different from everyday conversation?

1. Organizing your thoughts logically. 2. Tailoring your message to your audience. 3. Telling a story for maximum impact. 4. Adapting to listener feedback.

How is public speaking similar to everyday conversation?

1. Most essential skill in the workplace 2. Civic engagement 3. Verbal communication skills

In what ways is public speaking likely to make a difference in your life?

1. Speaker 2. Message 3. Channel 4. Listener 5. Feedback 6. Interference 7. Situation. In order to be successful you must try to hold the listeners' attention despite various kinds of interference.

What are the seven elements of the speech communication process? How do they interact to determine the success or failure of a speech?

The belief that one's own group or culture is superior to all other groups or cultures. It can lead to prejudice and hostility between diverse cultural, racial, or ethical backgrounds.

What is ethnocentrism? Why do public speakers need to avoid ethnocentrism when addressing audiences with diverse cultural, racial, or ethnical backgrounds?

Being nervous means that you are "psyched up." You feel anxious before a speech because your body is responding as it would to any stressful situation-- by producing extra adrenaline.

Why is it normal (even desirable) to be nervous at the start of a speech?

a hormone released into the bloodstream in response to physical or mental stress.

adrenaline

Focused, organized thinking about such things as the logical relationships among ideas, the soundness of evidence, and the differences between fact and opinion.

critical thinking

The sum of a person's knowledge, experience, goals, values, and attitudes. No two people can have exactly the same frame or reference.

frame of reference

Anything that impedes the communication of a message. Interference can be external or internal to listeners.

interference

The person who receives the speakers message.

listener

Controlled nervousness that helps energize a speaker for her or his presentation.

positive nervousness

The time and place in which speech communication occurs.

situation

The person who is presenting an oral message to a listener.

speaker

Anxiety over the prospect of giving a speech in front of an audience.

stage fright