How can you use public speaking to share your design leadership experiences?

1 Define your purpose

Before you start crafting your presentation, you need to define your purpose. What is the main goal of your talk? What do you want your audience to learn, feel or do after listening to you? How will you connect your design leadership experiences to their needs, interests and challenges? Your purpose will guide your content, structure and tone of your presentation and help you focus on the most relevant and impactful aspects of your story.

2 Choose your format

Depending on the context and the platform of your public speaking opportunity, you will have to choose the most suitable format for your presentation. For example, if you are invited to speak at a conference, you might have a limited time slot, a large and diverse audience and a formal setting. In this case, you will need to craft a concise, clear and engaging presentation that showcases your main points and provides some actionable takeaways. On the other hand, if you are hosting a webinar, you might have more flexibility, a smaller and more targeted audience and an interactive setting. In this case, you will need to create a more conversational, informative and collaborative presentation that invites your audience to participate, ask questions and share feedback.

3 Structure your content

Once you have defined your purpose and chosen your format, you need to structure your content in a logical and coherent way. A popular and successful structure for public speaking includes an introduction to grab attention, establish credibility, state the purpose, and preview the main points; a body to develop the main points with evidence, examples, and stories; and a conclusion to reinforce the main points, restate the purpose, provide a call to action, and thank the audience. Additionally, transitions, signposts, and summaries should be utilized in the body of the speech to help guide the audience through the content.

4 Practice your delivery

Once you have structured your content, it's time to practice your delivery. Practicing will help you become more confident, fluent and clear. You can practice by yourself or with a friend, colleague or mentor, and even record yourself and watch your performance. When practicing, try to use notes or cue cards without reading from them or memorizing your script. Speak slowly, clearly and loudly enough for the audience to hear and understand you. Pause, use intonation and emphasize key messages to create interest. Use gestures, eye contact and facial expressions to convey emotions and connect with the audience. Lastly, avoid filler words, jargon and slang that might confuse or distract them.