Developing The Traits Of Confident Speakers

Modelling successful people so that you can be successful too is something that has worked for centuries. It can be a great way to shortcut your success and it certainly applies to becoming a confident speaker.

 

You need to know what the most common traits of confident speakers are and then develop these in yourself. So, in this article we will reveal the most important traits that confident speakers possess so that you can work on developing the same traits.

 

Confident Speakers are Confident

 

Yes, this is obvious, but it is essential that you realize that confidence is the number one trait that you need to possess to be a successful speaker. When you are confident with your speaking you will attract many people that will hang on your every word.

 

If you do not feel that your confidence level is sufficient enough then there are several ways that you can give your self-confidence a boost. You do need to put in some effort on a consistent basis to improve your confidence though. Watch videos of confident speakers and check their delivery, their body language and more.

 

Confident Speakers tell Stories

 

People love to listen to good stories and confident speakers know this. They always use a storytelling approach when they are speaking because they know that it works so well. You will be able to drive a high level of engagement when you tell a good story.

 

A lot of people avoid telling stories because they don’t feel like they have any stories from their own life that are worth telling. This is usually not the case in reality and we recommend that you dig deep to uncover some good stories about yourself. 

 

Another thing that you can do is to search online for good stories of someone else’s life that will relate to what you are going to speak about. The bottom line is that there is no excuse not to tell good stories.

 

Confident Speakers have Passion in their Voice

 

The most successful speakers will use passion in their voice and this is great for audience engagement. Would you sooner listen to a passionate speaker or one that has a monotone delivery when they are speaking? You already know the answer to this.

 

If you are not passionate about your subject then how can you expect others to be? Confident speakers are able to inject the right amount of passion whenever they are speaking. It may take you a while to emulate this trait but it will certainly be worth it.

 

Confident Speakers are Concise

 

A confident speaker will always use the least number of words possible to get their message across. They respect the time of others (and their own) and they never want to be perceived as someone who just talks for the sake of it.

 

If you need to work on this then you must do that. Nobody will want to listen to you if you just ramble on and on repeating yourself several times. 

 

Confident Speakers can read the Signs

 

A confident speaker can tell if their message is being received and whether their speech is being well received or not. You can develop this trait too as it is so important. If the signs are telling you that things are not going that well then you can change your approach to improve things.

 

Why Planning Is So Important For Confident Speaking

Planning what you are going to talk about will help you to be a more confident speaker. Of course, we are not expecting you to plan every conversation that you have. But it is a good idea to plan for the important ones. It is especially important when you are addressing a group of people such as a large audience on a webinar.

 

It can be tempting just to “wing it” and skip any preparation. The problem with this is unless you are supremely confident with your speaking it is not likely to turn out well. In this article, we will discuss why it is important to be prepared.

 

You will have more Options

 

The worst possible thing that can happen to you when you are speaking in any situation is to run out of things to say. Imagine addressing a large number of people and then having to deal with an awkward silence because you don’t know what to say next. Your reputation will take a nose dive if this happens.

 

When you plan your important conversations and presentations you can identify a number of options that you can take should you need to do this. Yes, it does take effort to plan and prepare, but the results that you will achieve will justify this effort.

 

Your Words will Flow better

 

A major benefit of planning what you are going to say is that it should result in a better flow of your words. When you practice your speaking, you should find that you develop a more natural flow with your words.

 

Practicing will also help to boost your confidence. When you have rehearsed everything, you will feel a lot more in control. There is no need for you to create a script and read from it. It is better to create an outline and refer to this.

 

You will be more Focused

 

Staying on topic is a very important thing to do and confident speakers are masters of this. It helps to avoid not having enough to say or saying too much. Unfortunately, there are a lot of speakers that do not have the right focus when they are speaking and things can quickly come off the rails in this situation.

 

Create a Backup Plan

 

What are you going to do if something goes wrong when you are speaking? Maybe you notice that your audience is not as engaged as you want them to be for example. If you plan what you are going to say then you can come up with ideas for a backup plan if something goes wrong.

 

When you Plan it will help you to Anticipate

 

Confident speakers are usually able to anticipate the questions that their audience is going to ask them. Some of this comes from experience and some from the planning that they do. During the planning of their speech, they think about the type of questions that are likely to come up and prepare to answer these questions.

 

Planning helps to minimize speaking errors

 

We recommend that you record yourself speaking when you are in the planning stage and look for errors. Maybe you have repeated yourself or you are using too many “ums” and “ahs” when you speak. You need to be critical when you watch your recordings back so that you can minimize these errors on the day.

 

Benefits Of Focusing On One Task At A Time

There will be people that try to convince you that multitasking is the right thing to do and that it will increase your productivity. The truth is that this is rarely the case. You are not likely to achieve more by multitasking and we believe that there are several benefits to focusing on one task at a time.

 

Focusing on one Task at a time can Rebuild your Focus

 

Most people switch around the things that they focus on a lot on a daily basis. They see no problem with switching between multiple websites and the different apps that they have installed on their phones. The problem with this is that each of these switches comes with a cost to your focus.

 

By focusing on one task at a time you will drastically reduce the number of switches that you are making. It is a lot easier to rebuild your focus when you keep these switches down to a minimum. You will find that you can improve your focus and how long you sustain it by regularly concentrating on one task at a time.

 

Multitasking is the opposite of this. You need to make a number of switches to try and get everything done when you are multitasking. This is not good for your focus and will probably not produce the results that you want.

 

Reduce your Stress by Focusing on one Task at a time

 

One of the major downsides of multitasking is that it requires a great deal of energy to achieve a number of things at once. This is because you are consistently spreading your attention and focus. Usually, even the simplest of tasks take longer to complete when you are multitasking. Taking longer to complete your tasks can increase your stress levels.

 

When you focus on a single task at a time you will be able to keep your stress levels low. You can enjoy tackling each of your tasks in turn and find the process a lot more satisfying. If you decide to multitask then you are more likely to raise your stress levels.

 

Get More Done by Focusing on one Task at a time

 

You may think that multitasking is a good way to increase your productivity but, in most cases, this never turns out to be true. The truth is that multitasking can often slow things down a lot. When you focus on one task at a time you can enter a flow state of deep focus that will help you to complete the task in the fastest amount of time.

 

When you are in a flow state it is an amazing experience and you are likely to lose all notion of time and any distractions that are around you. By getting into a flow state, you can increase your productivity by as much as 500%.

 

Focus on one Task at a Time and be more Creative

 

There have been a number of cases where people have reported an increase in their creativity when they focused on one task at a time and entered a flow state. Your brain wants you to concentrate on one task at a time and when you do this you can unlock the potential it has to offer you.

 

You can experience a state of deep thought a lot easier when you decide to focus on a single task at a time. With this deep thought you are likely to discover different options and find paths that you would not have found if you were trying to multitask.

 

The Benefits Of Improving Your Focus

In order to improve your focus and attention significantly, you are going to have to put in consistent effort each day. To give you the inspiration and the high levels of motivation to do this, it is essential that you are aware of the benefits of increasing your focus.

 

It places you in Control of your Life

 

When you have a higher level of focus you will have a greater amount of control over your life. You will know that you can accomplish many things because you have the power to focus on them and maintain your focus until you complete a task.

 

You will be able to set challenging goals for yourself and have the belief that you can achieve them thanks to your increase in focus. Taking control of your life is very satisfying and your increased focus will play a significant role in you being able to do this.

 

You will be more Positive

 

With an increase in your focus, you are going to harvest more positive energy. Whenever you experience negative thoughts, you will be able to neutralize them a lot more effectively as you can easily focus on positive thoughts.

 

People that have a poor level of focus tend to concentrate on the negative things in life. They find it easier to focus on the negative things and this can make them overwhelmed. Small problems become big problems very quickly.

 

You will be more Self-Aware with Increased Focus

 

By increasing your focus, you can connect to your inner self and raise your self-awareness. You will be able to see yourself continually growing as you move beyond your comfort zone and take on new things. With a higher level of focus you will have the confidence to tackle new things which you would not have done before.

 

Improve Problem Solving

 

Having a higher level of focus will help you to improve your problem-solving skills. If your focus is poor then even the smallest problems will be a challenge for you to solve. You will find that you move away from focusing on the problem which will just raise your stress levels, to focusing on the solution.

 

Be a Better Decision Maker

 

With a poor level of focus it is going to be difficult to make decisions. Making the best possible decisions requires you to focus on the problem and use critical thinking. We all need to make small and large decisions in our life and with an increased focus you will be able to do this faster and easier.

 

Reduce your Stress Levels

 

If you are totally focused on completing a task then you will not be thinking about other negative things that could cause your stress levels to rise. When you have poor focus you will tend to focus on the negative more and this can make you anxious and drive up your stress levels.

 

Additional Clarity

 

A lot of people have no direction in their life due to poor focus skills. When you have a high level of focus you can easily determine what you want to achieve and then set challenging goals. You will be able to achieve your goals because you have good focus skills.

 

Build Momentum

 

If you have higher level focus skills then you will be more productive and get more things done each day. Once you start focusing and completing your tasks you will build momentum to move on to the next and complete all of your tasks.

 

How To Regain Focus When You Lose It

There are going to be times when you lose your focus for whatever reason. It could be some form of distraction that causes this to happen. The techniques that we provide to you below will help you to regain your focus when you lose it. 

 

Minimize or Eliminate Distractions

 

You know that some things are likely to distract you and cause you to lose your focus more than others. Take steps to minimize these or if you can, eliminate them altogether. These days, people are glued to their phones and need to jump on any notification that they receive. Receiving a notification when you are focusing on something will definitely distract you.

 

Turn off all of the messenger services, including email, on your phone when you are working on your tasks. If you are used to responding to every notification immediately then let people know that you are going to change this. Just because someone wants to waste your time and chat with you on instant messenger doesn’t mean that you have to respond immediately.

 

A lot of people think that it is important to look busy all of the time. They spend time on the lowest priority tasks to ensure that they keep up this appearance of being busy. This is not helpful as it means that you are not prioritizing your most important tasks and completing these first.

 

It’s all about Quality and not Speed

 

Some people want to complete all of their tasks as fast as possible. They derive a lot of satisfaction from ticking off the tasks on their list and breath a big sigh of relief when they are all done. You need to be careful with this as you are likely to be putting speed before quality.

 

If you do not complete a task in a quality way then you will probably have to do it again. Maybe you are overwhelmed by the number of tasks on your list. Be calm and examine your tasks properly. Focus on a quality outcome and don’t worry about carrying forward some low priority tasks to the next day.

 

Be Organized

 

Not being able to find something fast that you need to complete a task can cause you to lose your focus. If you are disorganized with your computer and your life in general then you will increase the chances of this happening.

 

It is not a difficult thing to get organized. You create a place for everything and ensure that everything is in its place. When you are able to find anything that you need quickly it will be a lot easier for you to regain your focus for the task.

 

Use a Refocusing Object

 

You can add an object to your work environment that will remind you to refocus if your focus is broken. This can be a simple object such as a candle, a toy, a small statue or anything else that will do the job.

 

Be sure to form a strong association with regaining your focus easily with this object. If you lose your focus then a quick glance at this object will tell you that you need to get your focus back. It may take a while for this to work for you but in a short time you will find that your refocusing object can really help you.

 

Improve Your Focus With A Challenging Goal

The reason why setting a challenging goal that you are passionate about will help to increase your focus is because you will be more likely to enter a “flow state”. When you are passionate about something you are likely to experience intense focus with it and you will find the whole thing very engaging.

 

If you try and force your focus then you are unlikely to maintain it for very long. Forcing your focus takes a lot of energy and can make you very tired quickly. It is much better to get into a flow state where you will just maintain your focus for as long as you want effortlessly.

 

Identify what you really want

 

The reason that most people do not have at least one challenging goal in their life is because it takes effort to think about what they really want. Most people cannot be bothered to do this and they think that it is too hard. This is not the case and you can find out what you really want pretty easily.

 

Go to a place where you will not be disturbed and take some paper and a pen with you. Think about the different areas of your life such as health, wealth, relationships, skills and so on. Ask yourself what you really want from these different areas of your life.

 

Write down everything that comes to mind and do not make any judgments here. When you have finished asking yourself questions about your different life areas you should have a list of things that you would like to achieve.

 

Go through each of these things and imagine that you have already achieved them. How does this make you feel? Make a note of the emotions that you experience when you do this. The thing that produces the strongest feelings within you is what you will choose for your challenging goal.

 

Add an Emotional Driver to your Goal

 

It is essential that you have an inspiring WHY for your goal. Why do you really want to achieve it? How will you feel once you have achieved your goal? A strong emotional driver will provide you with high levels of motivation to work on the tasks that will deliver your goal.

 

Use the SMART Goal Setting Process

 

You need to set your challenging goal in the right way and the best way to do this is to use the proven SMART goal setting process. This stands for:

 

·      Specific

·      Measurable

·      Achievable

·      Related

·      Timed

 

Any goal that you set must be specific. It is no use setting a goal to make more money for example. You need to decide on a specific amount of money that you want to make. All goals need to be measurable so that you can track your progress towards achieving them.

 

Achievable means that you are not setting a goal that will not be possible for you to achieve. Related is all about your goal fitting perfectly with your core values. If there is an issue here then you will not achieve your goal. Make sure that your goal has a time associated with it. For example, your goal could be to make an additional $100,000 in the next year.

 

Create a Plan to Achieve your Goal

 

You need to create a plan to achieve your goal. Ideally, you want a list of tasks that you need to complete on a daily basis that will move you closer to your goal.

Proven Ways To Increase Your Focus

You may find a number of different ways that other people claim will help you to improve your focus online, but the methods we will reveal in this article are all backed by scientific research. It is essential that you only use proven methods to increase your focus for the best results.

 

Participate in Brain Training Activities

 

There is a lot of research to support that certain brain training activities can help to increase your focus. Consider your focus as a muscle that you need to work on a consistent basis to develop it. You can play chess for real or online, solve Sudoku puzzles, play memory games, solve crossword puzzles and even complete jigsaw puzzles for good brain training.

 

Get the Sleep that you need

 

If you do not get the right amount of sleep then you are going to find it difficult to focus the next day. A lack of sleep will also inhibit some of your other cognitive functions as well. Sleep deprivation on an occasional basis is OK, but if you consistently fail to get enough sleep then you need to take steps to fix this to ensure your focus is sharp.

 

Participate in Regular Exercise

 

How do you feel about regular exercise? If this fills you with dread then there is no need to worry. You do not have to start running for miles each day or kill yourself in the gym with high intensity workouts. Gentle exercise such as walking is a very good place to start.

 

A healthy body is a healthy mind. Studies have shown that people have improved their focus by participating in regular exercise. When you get up in the morning, perform some simple stretching exercises. Take a walk rather than getting in your car.

 

Improve your Focus with Mindfulness Meditation

 

Mindfulness meditation is a great way to improve your focus. It is not difficult to learn and practice mindfulness meditation. You can find videos online that will show you how to do this. Just spend a few minutes practicing mindfulness meditation each day wherever you are and it will work wonders for your focus and concentration.

 

Take Mental Breaks

 

If you are working on a task and get stuck with it you can take a short mental break which should enable you to easily refocus on the task and complete it when you return. There are a number of scientific studies that support taking mental breaks to improve focus.

 

So, the next time that you feel your focus waning for whatever reason, take a short mental break. Go outside and take a short walk as this will definitely help you. Eat something nutritious and drink some caffeinated beverage for example. Get into the habit of taking short mental breaks to boost your focus.

 

Eat a Healthier Diet

 

The foods that you consume during the day will have a big impact on your ability to focus. Make sure that you avoid processed foods and anything that is high in sugar or fat content. Instead, you want to eat foods that will provide your brain with the right kind of fats and other nutrients that it needs to function correctly. Here are a few examples:

 

·      Salmon

·      Nuts

·      Spinach

·      Blueberries

·      Eggs

 

Don’t dismiss your diet as a way to improve your focus. It is vitally important, so get into the habit of eating the right things.

 

Ways To Develop Your Self-Discipline

You know that there is a direct link between self-discipline and your ability to focus and remain focused on tasks that you need to complete. Self-discipline will ensure that you keep your emotions in check and that you take consistent action. Here are some proven ways that you can develop your self-discipline:

 

Get Started with the Countdown Method

 

If you are struggling with getting started on a task then you can kick your focus into gear by using the countdown method. Here you will countdown from 10 and then make an immediate start on the task when you reach “1”. 

 

The reason that the countdown method works so well is because it creates a shift in your mental state as you are counting down. This in turn changes your motivation levels and you will be ready to start as soon as you reach the number 1.

 

Write your Goal Down and make it Visible

 

When you have decided on your challenging goal you need to write it down and make copies of it so that you will be able to see it everywhere that you go throughout the day. Place a copy of your goal in your kitchen on the refrigerator, in your bathroom, next to your computer, in your office and so on.

Find and refer to Self-Discipline Quotes

 

With an online search it will be easy for you to find inspirational self-discipline quotes that will motivate you. You need to print these out and place them next to your goal. Every time that you see these quotes you will be inspired to carry on and complete all of your tasks.

 

Remind yourself why you Started

 

By setting a challenging goal for yourself you are going to experience some bad times. Things are not going to work out as you planned them at times and you need to get over this and keep going. Remind yourself why you set your goal for inspiration to carry on.

 

Just set a Single Goal to Start with

 

When you are just starting out with self-discipline, we recommend that you only set one challenging goal for yourself. It can be tempting to set more than one goal, but this is likely to cause you problems as you do not have the necessary self-discipline to achieve all of them. You can quickly become overwhelmed when you are trying to achieve more than one goal.

 

Be a Prioritization Master

 

If you look at your daily task list, there are going to be some tasks that are much more important for you to complete than others. You need to review your tasks each day and decide which ones are the most important. When you can prioritize your tasks effectively you can avoid the threat of procrastination.

 

Identify and Overcome your Weaknesses

 

People that have a high level of self-discipline have identified their weaknesses and taken the appropriate action to overcome them. This will not be easy for you to do but you must do it if you want to develop your self-discipline.

 

Set Up some Accountability

 

If you keep your challenging goal to yourself then you are not accountable to anyone for achieving it or not. There will be nobody there to motivate you when you need a boost to complete your tasks. Find a suitable person and share your goal with them so that they can be your point of accountability.

 

Understanding The Science Of Focus

Please don’t worry – we are not going to use a lot of medical jargon in this article. But we do believe that it is important for you to know how focus works in your brain. So, we will explain the different processes that take place in the simplest terms for you.

 

When you Focus you Increase Neurotransmitters

 

When you focus there are a lot of things happening in your brain. You will create a lot more neurotransmitters such as acetylcholine, dopamine and norepinephrine. These will change your state and put your memory on alert.

 

The neurotransmitters that you produce while focusing are similar to those that you will produce if you are in a state of “fight or flight”. This is a good thing as they will make you feel a lot more alert and engaged with what you are doing. Your memory will be on alert and you should be able to remember more things.

 

It’s all going on in your Prefrontal Cortex

 

A number of neurotransmitters will form in the prefrontal cortex area of your brain when you focus. This is essential as it is the area of your brain which has access to such things as deep thought, planning, remembering things and other higher cognitive functions. These areas are collectively known as your “attention network”.

 

The attention network is very important and as you focus you change the brain waves there. Focusing hard on something produces beta waves in your prefrontal cortex. Determining what is important for you to focus on is the job of the “salience network”. This area of your brain includes the anterior cingulate cortex or ACC.

 

Salience Network

 

Your salience network is responsible for determining what is really important for you to focus on. When the salience network makes this decision, it will direct the attention network to increase your level of focus for this particular thing.

 

One of the great things about the salience network is that it has a strong connection to your motivation. This in turn will help you to keep focusing on a task as your motivation levels increase. There have been a number of experiments with animals where the salience network was removed. The result was that the animals gave up very easily even when hunting for food.

 

As soon as your salience network decides what you need to focus on it will release a flood of dopamine and norepinephrine and this will excite your limbic system and reach the hippocampus area of your brain. The result of this is that you will commit more of what you are experiencing to your long-term memory.

 

Your Attention can be Directed by Internal or External Factors

 

There have been a number of scientific studies that have proven that both internal and external factors can direct your attention. When you make a decision to focus on something important, this is called a “top down” attention direction. This is activated in the dorsal area of your brain.

 

It is also possible to direct your attention through an external factor such as a loud noise or some other distraction in your environment. This results in a switch in your attention through reflex process. Your ventral network will then direct your attention using a “bottom up” process.