Chapter One
Becoming a
Public Speaker
Chapter One
Table of Contents
The Many Benefits of Public Speaking
Public Speaking as a Form of
Communication
Public Speaking and the Communication
Process
Learning to Speak in Public*
The Many Benefits of Public
Speaking
Becoming a More Knowledgeable Person
Honing Critical Thinking and Listening
Skills
Enhancing Your Career as a Student
Accomplishing Professional and Personal
Goals
Exploring and Sharing Values*
The Many Benefits of Public Speaking:
Becoming a More Knowledgeable
Person
By studying public speaking you will learn
about the craft itself and be exposed to a
wide range of speech situations you are
likely to experience in life.
Grappling with the challenge of explaining
things to others will make you possess a
greater understanding of the topics you
choose to talk about.*
The Many Benefits of Public Speaking:
Honing Critical Thinking and Listening
Skills
Public speaking training sharpens your
ability to reason or think critically.
You learn to make claims and then
present evidence and reasoning that
logically support them.
Also, listening skills are improved, which
enables you to separate fact from
falsehood.*
The Many Benefits of Public Speaking:
Enhancing Your Career as a Student
Preparing speeches
involves numerous skills
that you can use in other
courses:
Research
Oral presentation
Basic communication
Creative thinking*
The Many Benefits of Public Speaking:
Accomplishing Professional and
Personal Goals
Professional Goals:
People at work use public speaking to convey
information, to persuade and motivate others,
and even to celebrate their special skills.
Skill in public speaking tops the list of
sought-after skills by many organizations.
Personal Goals
Public speaking offers a way to communicate
your personal concerns to others.*
The Many Benefits of Public Speaking:
Exploring and Sharing Values
Public speaking enables you to express values
and explore those of others in a civil dialogue,
regardless of whether or not the audience
shares your viewpoint.*
Public Speaking as a Form of
Communication
 Dyadic communication
A form of communication between two people
 Small group communication
Involves a small number of people who can see and
speak directly with each other
 Mass communication
Occurs between a speaker and a large audience of
unknown people
 Public speaking
A speaker delivers a message with a specific purpose
to an audience of people who are present during the
delivery*
Public Speaking as a Form of
Communication
Similarities between Public Speaking
and Other Forms of Communication
Differences between Public Speaking
and Other Forms of Communication*
Public Speaking as a Form of Communication:
Similarities between Public Speaking
and Other Forms of Communication
Like small group communication, public
speaking requires you to clearly address issues
that are relevant to the topic and occasion.
Like mass communication, you have to appeal
to a listener’s interest, attitudes, and values.
Like in conversations, you have to attempt to
make yourself understood, involve and respond
to the listeners, and take responsibility for what
you say.*
Public Speaking as a Form of Communication:
Differences between Public Speaking
and Other Forms of Communication
Feedback in public speaking is more
restrictive.
Preparation must be careful and
extensive.
The degree of formality tends to be
higher.*
Public Speaking and the
Communication Process
Communication is an interactive process
in which people exchange and interpret
messages with one another.*
Public Speaking and the Communication
Process
Elements of Communication
Special Speaker Considerations:
Speech Context, Goals, and Outcome*
Public Speaking and the Communication Process:
Elements of Communication
 Source
Person who creates a message
Encoding
• Physical process of delivering a message
 Receiver
Recipient of the source’s message
Decoding
• The process of interpreting the speaker’s message
 Message
Content of the communication process; thoughts
and ideas*
Public Speaking and the Communication Process:
Elements of Communication
 Channel
The medium through which the speaker sends a
message
Noise
• The interference that serves as a barrier to communication
 Audience Perspective
The needs, attitudes, and values of your audience*
Public Speaking and the Communication Process:
Elements of Communication
Shared Meaning
Mutual understanding of a message between speaker
and audience*
Public Speaking and the Communication Process:
Special Speaker Considerations
Critical Factors to ensure your speech
message is effective:
Keeping in mind the specific context.
Speech context is anything that influences the
speaker, the audience, the speech, the occasion,
or the situation.
Maintaining a clear focus on your goal.
Making sure afterward that you have
accomplished the goal you set out to reach.*
Learning to Speak in Public
Draw on Familiar Skills
Recognize Public Speaking’s Unique
Requirements
Aim to Become a Culturally Sensitive
Speaker*
Learning to Speak in Public
Public speaking is an acquired skill.
People who fear it, as well as those with
a natural proclivity to it, have to devote
time and effort to improvement.*
Learning to Speak in Public:
Draw on Familiar Skills
There are many skills to public speaking
that you have used unknowingly
throughout your life, in conversation and
writing.*
Learning to Speak in Public:
Draw on Familiar Skills
Although public speaking requires more
thought and effort than ordinary
conversations, the two have the same
principles.
For example:
Checking to make certain of understanding and
adjusting accordingly.
Discussing things that are appropriate for specific
circumstances.
Trying to ascertain the interests and attitudes of
your listener.*
Learning to Speak in Public:
Draw on Familiar Skills
Writing and public speaking also have
many similarities.
Like:
Depending on having a focused sense of who the
audience is.
Often requiring research and documentation.
Using effective transitions to signal the logical
flow of ideas.
Relying on persuasion tactics.
Learning to Speak in Public:
Recognize Public Speaking’s Unique
Requirements
Use familiar words and straightforward
syntax.
Use a conversational tone along with a
formal style.*
Learning to Speak in Public:
Aim to Become a Culturally Sensitive
Speaker
Every audience member wants to feel that
the speaker has his or her particular
needs and interests at heart.
To reach everyone, create a sense of
inclusion. You can accomplish this by
assuming cultural differences and
addressing them with interest and
respect.*