Lessons Learned about Teaching Presentation Skills to the Young People in P4P

In 1978 I was a graduate student at the University of Minnesota and got my first opportunity to teach the Public Speaking course. I taught five sections of that course that year and in the ensuing 43 years I taught that course more often than any other Communication Studies course and taught it at a variety of colleges and universities. The principles and standards I used in teaching the course and evaluating speeches were primarily based on the teachings of the ancient Greek philosopher, Aristotle. Aristotle wrote “The Rhetoric” over 2500 hundred years ago, yet despite monumental changes in the world since then, Public Speaking courses and textbooks have changed little. Differences in gender, race, ethnicity, socio-economic class, age, and technology are addressed, but have minimally affected the belief in what constitutes an “effective” speech.

​During the summers of 2017, 2019 and 2021 I taught Public Speaking workshops for the P4P Leadership Training Conferences, providing guidance on creating and performing informative, persuasive, and motivational speeches. I imparted my knowledge of public speaking principles to young adults who were hopeful of becoming part of P4P. What I learned from hearing and seeing the speeches they prepared gave me new insight into what really is critical to delivering an effective speech.

​Genuineness, sincerity, passion, and a strong desire on the part of the speaker for the audience to understand their experiences were the most important elements of the superior speeches.​ Audiences can sense when a speaker is being real, being their true self. They know when the words are coming from the heart. The speaker is not acting a part, putting on some artificial performance like an actor in a play. When the audience senses that the speaker is sharing her or his truth, speaking with genuine emotions, it resonates in a very powerful way. The speaker’s credibility is enhanced and there is a greater opportunity for the audience to understand, believe, and often be persuaded by what the speaking is saying.

​The perceived motivation of the speaker is also very critical to the presentation’s effect on the audience. If the speaker makes it clear that they are saying this to help people in the audience, to provide them with information or lived experiences that they can apply to their own lives, that they can relate to, then the speaker has succeeded. The focus always needs to be on the audience. The presentation is for them, not the speaker. The most valuable advice given in Public Speaking textbooks is to be “audience centered.” Attention-getting introductions, central ideas, main points, transitions, summaries, use of stylistic language, supporting one’s claims---all of that can be useful, but if the speaking is not perceived as being genuine and sincere, or not caring about their audience, then the speech loses its effectiveness.

​My advice to speakers is to be themselves, to speak from the heart, to talk to the audience like you would talk to your closest friend or significant other, or family member. Let them get to know you through your experiences. This does not mean disclosing every bit of who you are and what you have experienced—only what you feel comfortable sharing and what you believe will be helpful and useful for others to know. Practice, practice, practice. Being as prepared as possible is to the best way to manage any potential nervousness while speaking. And an added bonus is that if speaker follows this advice, they will learn more about who they are, too.

Blog Written by:

George Gaetano, Ph.D, P4P Board Member

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