Bizkids: Public Speaking Advice from the Experts

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In this column, Bizkids, we will feature interviews with successful entrepreneurs and various professionals and share their advice to aspiring kids with entrepreneurial spirits. To send in your questions or advice, email [e-mail].

Public speaking is an invaluable skill that can be applied to a multitude of fields ranging from academia, business, and the arts, to everyday life. Therefore, improving one’s public speaking skills should not be put off until a later age, and should be emphasized as early as possible. With that in mind, beijingkids interviewed three experts in the field of public speaking to share their ideas and opinions about the importance of public speaking for children, and what it takes to become a more effective public speaker.

Martin Barnes

This week, we have asked Martin Barnes to share his ideas. Martin Barnes is a London-trained graphic designer with 18 years of creative experience in advertising, graphic design, branding, events, pitching, and presentations: four years in London and 14 years in Beijing. In 2010 he was invited to give a TEDx Beijing talk. He now runs a creative studio, Mountains of Imagination (MoI), which specializes in presentation consultancy.

beijingkids: What would you say are the most critical first steps that someone should take to become more skilled in this area?

Martin Barnes (MB):  Have fun. The results are so much better, as your audience will enjoy your performance, and you will make an excellent impression. Then, tell a story that relates to people, and let the people you are talking to see themselves in the solution so they can receive a really clear insight. Remember to prepare and warm-up. This is massively underrated; the best way to do this is with breathing and stretching.

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Do you believe that there is a growing tendency (among adults and kids) to communicate through social media or other digital platforms and that this has damaged our ability to communicate publicly?

MB: In some sense we communicate more now than ever — writing messages, sending photos like postcards, and it is emotional. The exciting thing with public speaking is it is an evergreen skill, it will always be essential to generate awareness. Social media is a channel of engagement and communication that we are using now; it will change, but our desire to communicate will keep as it is.

What are some simple things parents can do to help their kids build foundational skills in public speaking outside of school?

MB: Ask them fun, interesting questions and ask them to explain why they made their choice. Let them know it is not a right or wrong answer question, but about sharing ideas. It is not about facts but storytelling and connecting.

What do you feel are the most essential elements of crafting a good speech and communicating clearly to an audience?

MB: The best thing you can do to improve your presentation skills is to spend five minutes and really think about your audience and ask these six questions: What story do you want them to tell about you afterward? What key insight do you want them to connect with? How long are you presenting for? How will they describe you to other people? What insight will swim around their head for a week? How long is the presentation? Don’t overpitch. Moreover, pitch yourself to your phone, and listen back to your performance, and think about one thing you want to improve.

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Photos: Unsplash, Courtesy of Martin Barnes 

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