The Art of Public Speaking - Emerging Nurse Leader

By Rose O. Sherman, EdD, RN, FAAN

As you advance in your career as a nurse leader, you may be asked to do presentations for professional groups or public audiences. Does the thought of public speaking strike fear in your heart? I find it does for many of our graduate students who tell me that doing presentations is an area of weakness. I always give the same advice – public speaking is a learned skill and the more you do it the better you will get. Leadership is all about communication. An effective presentation can have a very positive impact in helping you as a leader to achieve your goals.

The 10 following tips will help you to give presentations like a pro:

1. Begin with the end in mind

Prior to preparing your presentation, you should develop about 3-4 goals/objectives. Most presenters either seek to inform or motivate an audience. Ask yourself what you would like your audience to know as an outcome of your presentation. A second key question is whether there is something you would like the audience to do differently as a result of your presentation. Your goals should guide how you develop your presentation. This guidance is important whether you are doing a 10 minute presentation to staff nurses, a one hour presentation to a professional group or a budget presentation to senior management. When you state your goals at the beginning of your presentation, your audience has a clear idea about what to expect and it will guide how they listen to your content.

2. Consider your target audience

One size does not fit all with presentations. Understanding your target audience is very important. Ask yourself how much background your audience has regarding your topic. Should the presentation be a beginner level or more advanced. Is your audience large or small. What is their motivation for attending your presentation?

3. Think carefully about how to present the content

The use of power point slides by speakers has become quite common. Slides can be a very effective way of communicating, but they are not the only way. For very short presentations ,where you have strict time limits, the use of technology can waste valuable time. A short handout is often more effective. If you do use slides, don’t cram too much material into your slides. Use large fonts (30 points or more). Choose the color of the background and content wisely so they can be read from a distance.

4. Don’t read your slides – elaborate on them

The purpose of your slides should be to illustrate your key points. Don’t be a slave to your slides. Audiences lose interest when speakers stand up and read their slides verbatim. If you are running out of time with your presentation, it is important to skip slides if needed to focus on your key points. Always proof read your slides for spelling, grammar and content errors.

5. Use story to illustrate a key point

The use of story can be very powerful to both engage the audience and to help you make key points. Story is not appropriate in every situation. If you are a nurse leader giving a budget presentation to senior management, your presentation will need to be less emotional and more factual.

6. Get the audience involved

The most successful presenters find ways to involve their audience. People like opportunity to react to presentations and express their viewpoints. A great way to do this is to ask questions of your audience during the presentation such as: How many of you have experience with this?, Have you found this to be true in your experience working with your patients?, Does this resonate or do you have a different viewpoint about what we are discussing? Using interactive case scenarios to help teach key points can be very effective especially with smaller groups.

7. Practice your presentation prior to giving it

Rehearsing your presentation in advance will help you to gain confidence as a presenter. If you have an important presentation, you might want to consider asking one or more professional colleagues to sit through a rehearsal and give you feedback. If you are using slides, you will want to take the time to go through your slides at least three times. This will help you to become very comfortable with the content, and you will be less likely to read your slides.

8. Dress to give you confidence and for the audience

First impressions are very important. If you want to present yourself as an authority, you need to look the part. This will also boost your confidence in yourself. As a general rule of thumb, you should dress slightly better than your audience.

9. Less is More

For most presentations, you will have a limited time frame to present your ideas. Many presenters overwhelm their audiences with too much information. This is ineffective. Stick to your key points and be sure to leave 5-10 minutes for audience reaction and questions. Be respectful of the audience’s time and don’t exceed the time you have been given to do the presentation.

10. Debrief with an attendee after the presentation

Doing presentations like a pro is a learned skill. You can learn a great deal by watching effective speakers. You can also learn from either having yourself taped, or by asking a trusted attendee for feedback. Even the most experienced speakers can exhibit ticks and tendencies that interfere with their presentations. It is important that you are aware of any habits that could interfere with effective communication during your presentation. If attendees formally evaluate your presentation, ask for a summary of the evaluations. This will help you to learn what you have done well and areas for improvement.

With preparation and practice, you can learn to do presentations like a pro. I would urge you to watch TED talks for excellent examples of how speakers are able to deliver powerful messages to an engaged audience in less than 20 minutes. Accept the challenge when you are given the opportunity to present. You will grow as leader and become influential with your colleagues.

Read to Lead

Gallo, C. (2014). Talk like Ted: The Nine Public Speaking Secrets of the World’s Top Minds. New York City: St. Martins Press.

The HP Learning Center. How to give a great presentation