Command a room: How to improve speaking skills

说话是每个人在某种程度上做的事情。普通人可能希望在任何一天都会说出数千个单词。但是，一些工作环境需要更多。如果您提高了口语能力，您会发现各种各样的门可能会突然为您开放。

不幸的是，有效的口语技巧经常被视为您要么或不拥有的东西。结果，我们中的许多人安定接受一定程度的口语能力并留在那里。但是，当然有可能成为更好的演讲者，并且您可以采用许多策略将您的口语技能提升到一个新的水平。

What are speaking skills?

有效的讲话意味着将一系列不同的技能汇集在一起​​，以进行交流和产生影响。至少，您需要找到正确的单词，以适当的顺序放置它们，并正确发音，以便您可以理解。

重点，节奏和交付等其他方面也至关重要。只是想想一个出色的站立喜剧演员 - 简单地记住这些单词并重复它们就不足以提供令人信服的表演并与观众建立联系。

您甚至可以扩展“有效的口语技能”保护伞，以涵盖其他沟通的元素，例如肢体语言和手势。您还需要能够听取其他人在说什么。我们已经在博客上如何提高您的沟通技巧- 但是现在让我们特别关注讲话。

说话技巧的重要性

Effective speaking skills can improve your life in myriad ways. They’ll allow you to inform, persuade and entertain, much as a great performer can. So, where might this come in handy?

better social life

如果您正在社交，那么您可能需要讲话。对自己的讲话能力充满信心，您可以参加一系列对话，并帮助您判断何时停止讲话和倾听。对话往往是最成功的关系和友谊的根源。能够清楚地说话可能不能保证实现社会关系，但这可能是一个绝佳的基础。

职业发展

Conversational skills are essential in the workplace, too, and are also useful for meetings and presentations. Speaking well can be so important that most employers won’t even consider hiring you until they’ve had a long, formalised chat with you.

The job interview isn’t just a way of seeing how prospective hires react when they’re put under stress. It’s also a test of your ability to listen and communicate. Having great ideas isn’t enough – you also need to be able to convey them.

by developing your skills and experience in an interview format, you might find that you develop broader speaking skills that can be applied to other areas of your professional life. If you’re hoping to develop your interview skills, then why not look at the University of Sheffield’s如何在面试中取得成功课程。

Some career paths will require more specialised forms of speaking than others. For example, if you’reworking in a call centre， 或者as a journalist。You’ll find specialised courses for both on the FutureLearn site.

Politics and activism

It isn’t just in the workplace that you might want to communicate your ideas. Suppose there’s a cause to which you’d like to dedicate your time and energy. Speaking skills will help you to spread the message. This applies whether you’re looking toraise awareness about the state of the environment或者筹集资金修理当地教堂或社区中心的屋顶。

如果您致力于推进一系列原则或政策，那么您应该努力学习有效地进行交流。吸引人们的兴趣可能会产生更好的结果，而不是简单地喊出口号。

Those wishing to learn more about effective activism might look into the University of Nottingham’s course onpropaganda and ideology或密歇根大学的课程影响人们。

How to improve your speaking skills

So, exactly how might we develop our speaking skills? The answer usually involves incremental improvement that is supported by helpful habits. Let’s look at a few of those habits.

1. Pronounce words correctly

英语中的几个单词在发音时臭名昭著。常见的单词通常包括夸张，缩影，浓缩咖啡，子爵和调皮。即使很多人这样做，也可能会遇到尴尬的危险。如果您在工作面试中错误地发音单词，这一点尤其重要。

如果您不是以英语为母语的人，那么某些单词（例如优势）可能需要一些认真的练习。但这是值得的。拥有一个支持英语学生的支持小组可以依靠英语，这可能会很有帮助，英语课程可能会有所帮助。国王学院伦敦的课程basic English是一个很好的例子。它是在中东和北非难民的需求中设计的。

能够发音您所说的单词将确立您的权威，并消除沟通不畅。正确发音单词将使您充满信心，并使听众的信心使您知道自己在说什么。

2.听英语

Listening to a language is the primary means through which we learn to speak it. This generally applies in adulthood as well as childhood. When it comes to the availability of the spoken word, we’ve never had it so good. With podcasts, audiobooks, talk radio, and television, you can easily absorb hours of English every day, and develop an ear for the language.

You should listen to the kind of material you’d like to replicate. Suppose you want to have productive discussions with colleagues. In that case, listening to informed debates between informed people might be a useful approach. If you want to be a bit more expressive, then listening to improvisational comedy, drama, or poetry might be the path to take.Chasing Time’s课程通过电视剧学习英语will help you to do this effectively.

最重要的是，尝试聆听您发现吸引人的内容。如果您感到无聊并停止关注，那么您不太可能从练习中获得很多收益。

3. Read aloud

总是值得一提的一个练习是大声朗读一些东西。许多经验丰富的作家推荐这一点作为编辑过程的一部分。如果一句话听起来不错，那可能是一个很好的句子。

Reading aloud also confers several key benefits in a more everyday context.加拿大研究人员发现大声朗读使您更容易记住您的阅读内容 - 这对于增强词汇量可能非常有用。

Additionally, reading aloud will allow you to practice and even troubleshoot your speaking skills. If there are specific phrases that you’re constantly tripping over, then there’s nowhere to hide when you’re reading aloud.

The practice might also help with yourpacing，以及您的能力自然而然的速度。

You don’t have to do all your reading aloud. It might be considered slightly intrusive if you’re doing it on a crowded train. But the benefits are tangible, so setting aside a portion of your reading time for out-loud practice might be highly desirable.

4.学会唱歌

by learning to sing, you’ll pick up a range of skills that can also be applied to more everyday conversation and speech. You’ll know when and how to project your voice, become more aware of what’s going on physiologically, and get the confidence that comes with performing in front of people.

The relationship between singing and reading is explored by Mark Sweetnam, of Trinity College Dublin,in this video。这是大学课程的一部分the History of the Book in the Early Modern Period，，，，that is, between 1450 and 1800. We’ve also got a range of音乐课程to check out.

5.学会行动

In a similar vein, learning to act can confer many benefits, even if it’s simply landing a supporting role in an amateur-dramatics society production. In addition, acting can help you to confront aspects of the language that you might not yet be familiar with. If you spend most of your time working with dry, technical concepts, then getting creative with the language might be more than worthwhile.

Luleå University of Technology’s表演简介provides a sound starting point for would-be thespians. You might also找到当地的AM-DRAM组看看您是否可以参与其中。这样做也将帮助您见面并与陌生人交谈 - 我们将看到，这也非常有帮助。

6.进入诗歌

Quite a few of us carry around preconceptions about poetry, which can get in the way of really enjoying and appreciating it. Unlike a novel or an essay, a poem is intended to be spoken aloud, in much the same way as song lyrics are meant to be sung. Getting to grips with the mechanics of what makes a good poem will help you speak more fluently.

纽卡斯尔大学澳大利亚大学的创意写作和诗学课程是使自己熟悉艺术形式的好地方。它持续六个小时，分布三个星期。约克大学的课程如何读一首诗也许也可以上诉。

7. Build your vocabulary

The more words you know, the more easily you’ll be able to reach for the right one when you need it. A strong vocabulary doesn’t just mean exposing yourself to as many words as possible, but being able to draw upon them, too. We’ve all found ourselves grasping at an elusive term now and again. By building your vocabulary, you’ll be able to ensure you have the necessary words foreffective communication。

You might think that a strong vocabulary is a product of reading widely. The more words we consume, the more we’re likely to absorb. When many of us read, we might be tempted to skim over the words we don’t quite understand or to infer their meaning from the context.

Understanding some words might require a little study. Do you know the difference between ‘which’ and ‘that’? What about ‘insure’ and ‘ensure’?

在某些情况下，您可能会假设您知道某些单词的含义，并且会无意中踩到它。在专业环境中滥用单词可能会令人尴尬，但是对于互联网，如果您不确定，就不难检查单词的含义。

8.与陌生人说话

Speaking effectively means taking into account the person with whom you’re in conversation. If you’re going to improve, you’ll want to talk to as broad and diverse a range of people as possible. That means talking to strangers whenever the opportunity arises. It might be that opportunities for speaking with many different people will occur quite frequently if you’re open to them.

如果您有兴趣向广泛的受众传达信息，那么萨里大学的四周课程与不同的受众沟通可能证明是无价的。

9. Work on any speech impediments

A speech impediment, or disorder, is a condition that prevents you from speaking clearly. In some cases, these develop in childhood. In others, you might begin to suffer later in life.

语音障碍可以采取多种形式。在某些情况下，可以通过实践，培训和心理帮助来减轻它们。如果您在处于特定的情绪状态时说话更大，那么处理情绪可能是控制这种疾病的必要部分。

In most cases, a speech impediment can be managed with the help of specific interventions, which may require specialist help. The support ofa qualified speech therapist可能是必要的。

10. Practice public speaking

在许多方面，在知情观众面前起床并提供独白是对您的沟通敏感的最终考验。如果您可以做到这一点，那么您应该能够应对大多数说话的挑战。

我们涵盖了公开讲话的各种挑战我们掌握公开演讲艺术的博客。我们向听众展示的话占我们生活中所说的单词的一小部分 - 即使您是多产的公开演讲者。但是，无论如何，变得擅长公开演讲会增强您的信心，压力下的韧性以及您有能力将句子串在一起的能力无论如何。

如果您对此感兴趣，格林威治的皇家天文台在公开演讲中开设三周课程。它将使您能够为自己的演讲注入一点天赋，并帮助您发展信心。

If you’d like a taster, be sure to check out our pointers onhow to make your presentation accessible，，，，audience interaction， 和出现问题时该怎么办。From the same course, we’ve also got一些主要技巧让您走上正确的轨道。

也可能值得看利兹大学的课程Presenting Your Work with Impact，，，，which provides a more rounded look at presentations in general.

Final thoughts

Communication is one of a handful ofcore soft skills这可以在生活的各个方面都产生重大影响。你可以阅读the importance of soft skills here.

对于我们许多人来说，有效的演讲技巧并不总是容易出现。对于某些人来说，他们需要工作，耐心和决心。您不能指望一夜之间变成令人惊叹的演说家。发展口才可能需要持续的努力，定期实践和加强几年甚至几十年来的有益习惯。

If this sounds disheartening, remember to focus on why you’re doing this. By improving your speaking skills, you’ll enjoy many benefits professionally and personally. Develop at your own pace and enjoy the sense of accomplishment that comes from expressing yourself well and participating in rewarding conversations. So, why not get started?