Why Your Ears Need to Hear Your Speech Before Others Do (Teaching Tips Series)
Make sure you hear your talk before they do.
I’ve recommitted myself to a rule of practice: Speaking my talks out loud before I speak in public. It’s a discipline that I saw my dad, a pastor, do every Saturday as he “practice-preached” to the garden plants while he weeded or he went over to the church to preach to the pews. So, early in my ministry days I took on that practice as well and found it very helpful.
But I haven’t always done it, thinking “I’ve got this down and ready to go.” Almost every time in those instances I’ve paid the price for poor preparation. So, I’m committing myself to letting my ears hear what I’m going to say before others do. I’m committing myself to practice speaking my talks out loud before I speak in public, no matter how long or short the talk and no matter how large or small the audience.
Something happens as we move into “veteran” status and we come to a crossroads: Do we continue in the practices that we’ve valued through the years or do we put our lives in neutral and choose to coast along? We’ve all seen leaders who’ve chosen these different roads – and the results. I don’t want to coast.
There are numerous benefits to practicing your talk (and by talk, I don’t automatically mean a 35-minute lecture. I advocate thinking in 7-minute segments) out loud before your audience hears it. Your ears (it’s your mind, of course) will tell you when a phrase sounds clunky or when two points don’t line up. Your ears will reveal when a particular PowerPoint slide or two (or three as in my last talk!) you’re using don’t align with the tight 5-minute “Ted talk” you’re supposed to be doing. Perhaps one of the greatest benefits of this practice is that you’re opening and closing elements of your talk will be stronger as you hear and correct them.
What routine do you engage in before your speak? What other tips have been helpful to you in your speaking and teaching?
Photo from @thinkmedialabs via Flickr, used with permission.
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