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As facilitators, trainers, and group leaders, our role includes
many of the challenges of public speaking. We must, bydefinition, be in front of the room addressing our groups as
leaders to help align and serve their collective purpose. This
role requires that we get and command attention, motivate and
inspire, and garner the respect required for us to effectively
lead.
With that said, most of us dread speaking in public. But this is
true only to the degree we believe that we have to be somebody
we're not. When we operate from our authentic selves, we
discover magical connections to our audience and ourselves, and
we express ourselves effortlessly.
The following 10 questions take the concept of "Becoming an
Authentic Performer" to a deeper, more practical level. Read
these, try them on, and let us know how they resonate with you.
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10 Questions to Discovering Your 'Authentic Performer.'
So how do you become an authentic performer? Ask yourself the
following 10 questions - when you can say 'yes' to each of
these, public speaking will become one of your greatest joys.
1. Do I feel
good in front of an audience?
When you're "on," it feels good. It feels right. You're at your
best when you feel good, and being at your best makes you and
others feel good. It's a feedback loop provided byyour biology
to let you know that you're in the flow of life. Any struggle,
pushing, or forcing goes against the flow and is off course.
2. Is my audience feeling good? The same rule in #1
above, applies to your audience. If you're having fun and
feeling good, it's contagious. You're audience will pick up on
this. When you are connected to your audience and they feel your
positive feelings, your energies converge and you grow together.
3. Am I rediscovering myself as I speak? Speaking in
public, and hearing your own voice and words, is a process of
self-discovery. When we slow down and speak from our passionate
heart, we are in touch with ourselves, and what we say is often
quite surprising. This is very different from the fast-paced,
mind-chatter that we are used to hearing inside our heads. The
heart is always more revealing. Speaking from our heart before
an audience is a high-speed personal growth experience.
4. Are my words coming through as if they were from another
source? The excitement of being on stage, the energy of your
audience, and the group consciousness is all directed to and
through you. Maintaining the observer position allows you to
witness the flow of energy, emotions and thoughts, and with
this, your soul is presented with an opportunity to speak. Take
it. When you relax and speak from the "witness," you will be
surprised to see that your soul shows up. And what your soul
says is always perfect for you and for your audience in the
moment.
5. Is my speech almost poetic or prose-like? When your
soul is speaking, your voice tone, cadence, and rhythm will be
different than your usual dialogue. This deeper self is in
service to delivering your message. And the message is from a
higher source. No wonder it sounds like poetry. Your energetic
self communicates with fewer words more efficiently. Your
audience "gets it" and so do you.
6. Is my voice peaceful, direct, harmonic, and clear?
When you're speaking from an authentic place, you feel no fear.
You speak from deep in your belly, from your natural soul voice,
without the distraction of "filler" words. You speak your truth
as it occurs to you in the moment without apology. You are the
conductor and your words the symphony.
7. Do new creative ideas of the "group mind" arise from
nowhere? When you operate from your authentic presence,
every performance will be different, even when presenting the
same information. We are all different people every day, at
least in subtle ways, and our different audiences bring a unique
blend of energy to the room. When we are attuned to our
environment, and ourselves, we will express new creative ideas
and insights that are even new to us. You are at the source of
creation.
8. Are most of the participants onboard? When you're
speaking, you can tell when your audience is with you and when
they're not. There are of course non-verbal cues and there are
subtle energetic cues. When you are attuned to your audience,
you feel their support, you know they are getting what the came
for.
9. Are the silences powerful and synchronistic? The use
of silence in your presentations is a powerful tool. Without
space between the notes, music just isn't possible. When you
stop at appropriate times, there is a quality to the silence
between your words--a fullness--that let's you know what you say
is resonating with your audience.
10. Do I feel my energy expanding beyond previous boundaries,
including others in the group? There are times when people
align, open, and unite in such a way as to experience the "group
mind". This is a tangible and accessible entity. Learn to be
open to, appreciate, and create this in your relationships. Let
the universal group mind lead your energy and awareness beyond
your perceived boundaries. When this happens, your authentic
presence is bigger than life!
These are subtle questions - you obviously can't stop and think
about the answers in the midst of a group session, but you can
get into the habit of using these questions to evaluate each
group situation. The more you do this, the more conscious you'll
become of what distracts you from being an authentic performer,
allowing you to improve the next time around. Soon, there will
be nothing in the way - your authenticity will simply be a part
of who you are as a public speaker.
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