I do a lot of public speaking – at library conferences and for my library in our community. I like it and think it’s sorta fun.
If you don’t like public speaking, or if you have just never really done it – why learn to speak in public?
Here are some reasons for public speaking:
- Learning a new skill. Public speaking is definitely a skill, and as such it can be learned. And improved upon.
- Resume builder. Employers like people who can confidently deliver a presentation.
- Organizing thoughts. The process of creating a presentation – organizing thoughts, arranging them in a logical way, sharing next steps, etc – is a great way to organize thoughts and ideas.
- Confidence builder. Apparently a LOT of people get wigged out by the idea of standing in front of people and talking. So what’s the best way to face those fears and build up that confidence? Yep – taking the leap and sharing thoughts in front of a group of people.
- Public Speaking translates well to other areas. If you can organize and give a public presentation, you also have the skillset to lead training sessions and lead meetings.
- Learn how before you need to do it. If you move up in your organization or in your career, most likely you will eventually have to deliver some type of presentation – in front of a board or government officials (city council, state government, etc), or even share something in the news on a local tv station. It’s a good thing to learn how to do BEFORE you need to actually do it.
- Sharing is good! My favorite reason – I’ll bet you or your library has done something cool, or inspiring, or innovative, or just different. Other librarians want to know about it! A great way to share what you did is to give a presentation at a regional, state, or national conference.
That’s what I think, anyway. What should I add here? Let me know! Also – here are a couple of other articles on reasons to improve public speaking:
- 7 Reasons Why You Should Improve your Public Speaking – by Skip Prichard, CEO at OCLC.
- Communication Skills: 7 reasons inspiring public speaking is good for your career – From Ginger Public Speaking
Justin Hoenke says
I always feel like I end up learning more than the attendees when I speak! Seriously, I love speaking at library conference because it is a great chance to meet new people and have great chats with them
davidleeking says
Me too! I almost always learn when I speak – people ask questions I’ve never thought of quite a bit, and others int he audience have answers or examples. It’s awesome!
Ned Potter says
I enjoyed this and agree you can get so much from speaking. In terms of what you should add – what about reasons *not* to speak?
davidleeking says
NOT to speak! That could be a good post! What would that look like – terrified of standing in front of people, don’t have any ideas, you don’t care, you aren’t invested/passionate about the topic, issues at home/work that are keeping you busy elsewhere … ? What’s missing?
Ned Potter says
Those are all good reasons – I think the first one you just need to do it anyway to overcome the fear, but not feeling it about the topic is a good enough reason not to speak! And having too much else on too – feeling able to say ‘no’ to what is a good opportunity, because it’s just not the right time, is really important (and underrated).
I was also thinking about letting other voices be heard – as a white male I know I’m over-represented at Library conferences (among speakers) as it is. So I like to enquire, when I’m asked to speak, about who else is speaking. If the only other keynotes are also white males, I’d politely suggest they address this issue by getting someone other than me…