Written by: Katja Schleicher, 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.
The classic "I'm going to talk for 45 minutes and you're going to hang on my every word" all hands meeting, Keynote or demo has -luckily- not made it into the post-pandemic age. Much more appreciated and effective: start a conversation at eye level with your audience. This way, the speakers personality and what is said are remembered equally well. To achieve this, it is worth taking a closer look at a hitherto little-used resource: unconscious communication effects: Used skillfully, they give our words more impact. Not paying attention, they can have a backfiring effect and will cost you more time and energy to put things right. Communication expert & international renowned Public Speaking trainer Katja Schleicher shows the strengthening or weakening influence of some of these effects.
Prevailing (audience) opinion
This communication effect looks at the influence of the recipient's attitude on the message content. For example, if a sports mental coach is speaking to a completely movement-averse audience, her messages may land hard. Being able to roughly gauge these prevailing opinions in advance helps in the decision to either "brush against the grain" ("yes, I am aware, many here in this auditorium think differently") or reinforce prevailing opinions ("you know how important exercise is.").
Wear-and-tear appearances
"Boah, them again" or "Is there really no other topic?": typical audience reactions when a topic has been overused in public. The same face or topic too often leads to those signs of wear and tear: whether it's Helene Fischer or the 150th lecture on mindfulness. A preliminary check provides clarity: How big is the novelty value in my KeyNote? How strong is the promise behind the topic? How new your perspective on an evergreen topic? These aspects also help the pre-marketing of the KeyNote: it should be right AND attractive at the same time.
"Spill in - carry over"
"See, that's what the CEO said in the meeting last week, cool"... A communication effect that describes the temporal or spatial transfer of effects from one period/place to the next. Often by chance (because the staff meeting was just a week before the conference), but more often it is a "thematic wave" that is rolling through the industry or society anyway. This thematic wave can be ridden wonderfully and the message can be anchored more deeply. Important: Cite sources and clarify your own point of view. This increases credibility and enables the audience to better understand the speaker. Also check with yourself: what prevailing opinions manifest themselves in your communicative offer? How sustainable the keynote topic can be anchored also depends on the corresponding news and the prevailing social opinion: If there is a fundamentally open attitude towards NFTs, for example, which is supported by the media, the corresponding keynote will land better. Particularly helpful: scan the industry's own trade media.
Broadcasting and piggybacking
On a small scale as well as on a large scale: What is being discussed at similar conferences in other sectors? What of it is useful/obstructive? What comparisons to what products/companies do I use (Am I like Apple, only cheap? Disruptive for an industry like Tesla was for the car industry? When speaking we often leave this effect unused, out of fear of being compared (uniqueness!) and/or fear of negative spill-over effects.
Boomerang
The more vehemently someone insists on an opinion, the less convinced the audience is - they have a strong rejection of promotional paternalism. This is an important point, especially in panel discussions. If you present your own opinion as one of several options, you give the audience leeway and are perceived more positively.
Katja Schleicher supports people in entrepreneurial contexts so that the heart puts the right words into the head's mouth. As a trainer for public speaking and media coach, the language enthusiast gets people talking well and with pleasure. She builds bridges between generations, paradigms, leadership styles and cultural clusters. katjaschleicher.com
Katja Schleicher, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine
“TALKING IS GOLD AND SILENCE THE BEGINNING OF ALL TROUBLES”.
Katja is a sought after Communications Trainer and Coach. She heads IMPACT! Communication Coaching, a pan-European training office focusing on communication coaching, media & public speaking training & business storytelling. She gets managers, teams, women and men to talk ‒ and improves their communicative impact in Public Speeches, conversations and media interviews.
Words, what they mean and how they “come across" to the audience are her passion and business model. In this order. That's why she studied linguistics and psychology. After a long career in PR, advertising, TV and corporate communications for high-tech companies, she has been on the road for over a decade as a trainer, consultant & coach to the (intercultural) communication shallows and misunderstandings throughout Europe.
