Making a Valentine’s Day Connection
Whether you celebrate Valentine’s Day with a significant other or not, this is a day for making a connection with someone. You never know what kind of impact you will make.
Successful speakers know how critical it is to make a connection with their audience for their message to be heard. Here are three ways to ensure you are making a connection:
- Make eye contact. In our culture (the U. S.), eye contact of approximately 3 seconds is an appropriate amount of time to make eye contact. When an audience member feels as though you are looking right at them, a connection is made. Eye contact allows audience members to trust us and enables them to feel included in the conversation we are having with the entire audience. Even if you are on a big stage and cannot see you audience due to the stage lights, look at your audience, not over them.
- Use the word “YOU”. The word “you” adds a personalized touch to your message and makes your listeners feel that you are speaking to them as individuals. Remember, your audience members are asking themselves “what’s in it for me?” By framing what they will receive from your speech, “…you will learn…”, instead of saying, “…I’m going to share…”, you are putting your focus on the audience. It’s all about them, and using the word “you” will serve you in making a stronger connection with them.
- Tell stories. Because stories are the currency of how we relate to one another, stories make an emotional connection with your audience. Stories allow our audience to relate to us in a personal way – that’s where we find common ground. Stories connect us because we share similar experiences and the same emotions with someone who is telling the story. A well-structured story that ties into your message will keep you connected with your audience.
Audience attention spans are short these days, however, you can maintain an audience’s attention by keeping your connection with them. Are you using these three tips to make and keep a connection?