For Leaders, 5 Hacks To Energize Your Speaking Style

Faltering speech, mumbling, sentences that led nowhere: if there was one thing that came through loud and clear in 2024’s earth-shaking presidential debate between Joe Biden and Donald Trump, it was this: your message doesn’t matter if you are unable to communicate it in an effective way.

The lesson is as true for CEOs as it is for presidents. Whether in person or online, strong communication skills are hallmarks of an effective leader.

But what are strong communication skills? Here are a few to get you started.

1. Volume, inflection, and tone.

Variations in volume add a dynamic contrast to the sound of your voice and should be used to emphasize a point. Avoid monotone, which will send your audience into dreamland (unless that’s what you want). Variations in tone – upbeat and positive one minute, serious the next, jokey at other times – will keep your audience on their feet, so to speak.

A great example is Simon Sinek, author and inspirational speaker on leadership. A self-proclaimed “unshakable optimist,” Sinek uses a conversational tone in his presentations, including his Ted Talk “How Great Leaders Inspire Action” (65+m views). He varies his pitch and speed to maintain interest and convey passion, shifting from calm and reflective to enthusiastic and inspiring.

2. Facial expressions.

Facial expressions communicate alertness, enthusiasm, focus, positivity and engagement with the subject. No deck, slide show, or other visual prop? Facial expressions give your audience something to focus on.

Take Seth Godin. The champion marketer’s facial expressions reflect his innate curiosity and thoughtfulness. And he uses raised eyebrows, inquisitive looks, and smiles to provoke his audience into reconsidering their positions.

3. Eye contact.

Eye contact conveys confidence in the material and helps build rapport with the audience. It also makes others less nervous. If you do have props – a laptop, a deck – spending too much time looking at them can make you come across as unqualified and unprepared. According to public speaking coach Rosemary Ravinal, “To build rapport, your eyes should connect with a cross-section of your audience about 50 to 70 percent of the time.”

Barack Obama exemplifies this speaking virtue. The former president is a pro when it comes to making sustained eye contact with different sections of his audience. This gives the impression of direct engagement with individuals. In his 2008 victory speech, Obama’s deliberate eye contact creates a personal connection with his listeners and conveys sincerity.

4. Body language.

Movement while presenting, and alternating between pacing and standing still, will help engage the audience. Perhaps the most effective body language is hand gestures. According to researcher Vanessa Van Edwards, “the most popular TED Talkers use an average of 465 hand gestures in 18 minutes,” while the least averaged 272. Why is this? They’re showing that they’re friendly, and that they know their content so well they can talk to the audience on two different tracks – words and hand gestures.  And studies show that gestures increase the value of spoken words by up to 60%. Some powerful hand gestures include:

  • Showing the number: Any time you mention a number, use your fingers to add a visual element of that amount.
  • Increasing or decreasing: Spread your hands closer or farther away to demonstrate the intensity of a conversation point. For “this is a small problem,” close your hands together to show a small space.
  • Guiding your explanations: Use your hands to illustrate complex explanations. For example, if you’re discussing two opposing viewpoints you might gesture to the right for Point 1 and to the left for Point 2.
  • Emblems: Cultural hand motions like thumbs up, A-OK, or pointing with an open hand can be used to highlight specific talking points.

Tony Robbins excels at incorporating body language. The motivational speaker uses dynamic movement, powerful gestures, and direct interaction in his high-energy presentations. He also involves the audience directly by asking questions and encouraging physical participation.

5. Practice, rehearse and record.

You can practice your voice intonation and volume by reading books or articles out loud. Tony Robbins recommends practicing in front of a mirror, delivering your speech to a friend and even recording yourself to look for areas of improvement. An effective exercise is to practice tongue twisters to improve enunciation.

And if none of these work? Well … lifelike AI avatars for speaking already here. Got cold feet? Just send your bot instead!

Curious How Your Company’s CEO is Doing on LinkedIn?

We specialize in helping executives put their best foot forward.  If you’re curious how your company’s CEO is doing on LinkedIn, share a link to their profile, and we’ll prepare a customized CEO LinkedIn Impact Report Card like this. Follow this link to see how your CEO stacks up.


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