Public Speaking ‒ Soft Skills Are The New Hard Skills
- Feb 23, 2022
- 5 min read
Written by: Maria Tecce, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
Make no mistake.
Your public speaking skills are no longer relegated to the 'soft skills' department. They are 100% hard skills and you need to master them if you want to engage your audience, keep them listening, and show up like a rock star in your business.
Soft skills have always been thought of as less defined skills that can't be measured. And hard skills as measurable talents and abilities you can learn through schooling or on-the-job training. Well, here’s the rub: Public speaking skills are just as much about ability as hard skills are AND are learned through schooling and experience on the job. The process of learning soft skills vs. hard skills is the SAME. And measuring success is just as palpable in both.
Here are three reasons why public speaking skills are hard skills and must-haves in order to grow your business. 1. Public Speaking Helps You Connect With Your Audience
One of the key factors that separate good speakers from great ones is emotional connection with your audience. This might seem like a soft skill but connecting with your audience leads to Know/Like/Trust and in turn, sales.
What you are selling matters very little if your audience isn’t listening to you. You could have degrees in three different sciences and a business degree from Harvard but if your delivery is flat, boring, and lifeless, people just aren’t going to listen to your message or buy from you.
People respond to people, human beings. The more an audience feels like they are having a conversation with you rather than sitting through a presentation, the more chance they will hear your story and invest in you and your service.
Also, when you are able to connect with your audience and help them listen to you they will hear your message that much more clearly. Audiences decide who they are going to follow and trust their money with according to how easily they can connect with and hear you.
2. Public Speaking Powers Your Brand Visibility
You are your brand. Every time you go online, speak in front of one or more people, or create video content you are putting yourself in the spotlight. People are going to associate you and your brand success with the confidence you show in all your physical and vocal presence.
Accordingly, it’s important that you embody what you believe. Your audience is going to see and hear only what you give us, so make sure you give us your best every time you step in front of us.
Note that I do not say, ‘Be perfect every time you step in front of us.’. This is NOT about being perfect. It’s about the Know/Like/Trust relationship you build with the audience.
You represent your brand and your brand is you. Mastering your physical and vocal presence, as well as your nerves, allows you to give the audience more of the best of yourself more of the time.
When you master public speaking skills, you are more able to be present with the audience and articulate what you’re about, why you do what you do. That is hugely attractive to an audience and whether or not they invest in you.
If you’re racked with nerves, stumbling over your words, or closed off physically, we are not going to hear you. And if we can’t hear you, we can’t hear about your brand. And we want to hear about your brand. We want to because it makes trusting and buying from you that much easier.
3. Public speaking skills make you a better storyteller
You are a storyteller. Every time you open your mouth to one or more people online or in person, you are telling a story And storytelling is the buzzword in business today. Why?
Because as human beings we are hardwired to love hearing stories from other human beings. We trust people we can relate to. If you want to make an instant connection with an audience, tell them a story. All the best storytellers have great public speaking skills, ie. vocal presence, they use their body to communicate, and they craft their stories with clarity and care.
The stories that come from a place of truth and honesty are the ones that always grab us the most. That’s because we are human beings hearing about another human experience.
Make note of one very important caveat: When telling stories, there is a big difference between trying to be interesting and being interested.
When you try to be interesting and are there just to be funny and entertaining, you’re making it all about you. And the kicker is that it’s never about you. It’s always about the audience and the experience they are going to have.
Conversely, when are interested in your audience and what you can give them in that moment instead of what you can get, everything in your story turns to gold. Audiences are selfish. They want it all to be about them. They want you to tell a great story not because you want to look good but because you think it will somehow help them and give them something to take away that will benefit them.
Public speaking skills are the new hard skills
Public speaking skills boost your connection with your clients and your audience, power your brand visibility, and help you to be a better storyteller on EVERY communication platform.
In turn, you can connect better with your audience and help them Know/Like/Trust you and then invest their hard earned cash in you and your services. So forget ‘soft’ anything when it comes to public speaking and your speaker efficacy. Whether you're a guest speaker, creating video content, speaking to a high stakes client, or showing up on social media... those are most definitely hardcore situations because all of those situations drive sales. So don’t get left behind. Get learning, get speaking, and get practicing. Ignore it at your peril.
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Maria Tecce, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine
Maria Tecce is a leader in public speaking & voice and speech coaching. After making her living as a professional actor and singer for 20 years, Maria began coaching business professionals and performers a decade ago in the same skills that professional performers use every day. C-Suite and Senior Executives work with her when they want to up their game and show up as powerful, confident, passionate, joyful speakers in their businesses and for the people around them. Her clients include Google, Diageo, Ulster Bank, Bank Of Ireland, Ericsson, KPMG, Smurfit Business School, Johnson & Johnson, Salesforce, and Virgin Media. Maria is dedicated to helping powerful men and women take ownership of their confidence, authentic voice, and joy as speakers and communicators. Her mission states, "Own your voice, own your story, own your space."
