The 7 Principles of Public Speaking: Proven Methods from a PR Professional

by Richard Zeoli

Frequently cited as the number one fear among A proven, gimmick-free lesson guaranteed to business executives, public speaking doesn’t make anyone a better speaker and come naturally to most people. Pitching an idea, presenter. selling a product, or presenting a program doesn’t have to be a stomach-clenching experience to be struggled through. It can be an opportunity to relish and a chance to shine in front of a group. Whether you are selling an idea to two colleagues in a conference room or presenting a major corporate strategy to a ballroom filled with shareholders, the key to success is a clear, confident, memorable presentation.With The 7 Principles of Public Speaking, Richard Zeoli makes the common sense, gimmick-free program he’s offered to business leaders and political candidates available to everyone. Whether you are looking to position yourself as an industry expert, extend your sphere of influence, or gain the support and backing of vital constituencies, The 7 Principles of Public Speaking will give you the tools you need to achieve your goal. If you are a polished professional, it will help you hone your skills. If you are a novice communicator, it will help you overcome obstacles and convey your message with confidence, poise, and persuasiveness.

Genres: Self Help, Nonfiction, Leadership, Audiobook, Business, Communication, Personal Development

225 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 17, 2008

Reviews

[Rick Ruble · Rating 3 out of 5]

As someone who speaks in public on a regular basis, this book was a great reminder of the key basic principles that guide you in that process. It is designed primarily for someone who is very anxious about speaking in public and has the fundamentals down (gathering content, organizing content, identifying theme, etc.) but is wary of what happens when you execute those fundamentals. There are no silver bullets...and the gold nuggets aren't large, but still valuable.

[Edwin Cacayorin · Rating 5 out of 5]

In page 200 of the Book he said, "You view speaking as something you do everyday, so you think there's no need to practice. I view speaking as something you do every day, so you absolutely need to practice."

His 7 principles in public speaking are as follows:

1. When you speak, stop trying to be anything other than who you are.
2. When you make a mistake, no one cares but you. The audience did not even notice it.
3. Before the speaking engagement, prepare, practice and visualise how you will speak.
4. Treat public speaking not as a hobby, but as a necessary skill that you will only acquire through regular practice, like how Michael Jordan treat playing basketball.
5. To be an effective speaker, make it personal and become a story teller.
6. Your ultimate focus as speaker should be helping the audience. Make them feel comfortable, relaxed, and present the subject in such a way that they can relate--better if they can see the relevance of the subject, or their personal stakes in it.
7. Stay on the message. The audience is easily distracted, but the speaker can be much easier to be distracted by a tough question, a question that seems to come from the left field and throws the speaker for a loop. In short, you have to know your message, and be conscious of how the audience perceives you and what you are discussing.

The book is an easy read, full of sound and practical advises.

Thank you.

[Antoinette Perez · Rating 3 out of 5]

Oh, how I wish Goodreads had 1/2 star ratings. This one would get 2 1/2 stars.

I grabbed this book because, at first glance at the bookstore, the principles are solid. Turns out the writing isn't so great. It seems that author wanted to take a workshop format, with a lot of worksheets at the beginning, but the book evolves into a series of anecdotes and stories. He never comes back around to analyzing the work you did at the start and how to use that work to apply the principles. The stories and anecdotes about people the author coached are fine, but it would have been great for him to share the finished speeches as examples.

One of the best sections of the book explores the analogy of a speaker and audience to someone on the moon and everyone back at mission control. Very effective analogy.

There is an extraordinary amount of content in the middle focusing on lowering anxiety levels around public speaking, probably making this book very helpful for someone who doesn't do a lot of regular public speaking.

The ending floored me. The last chapter is the entire book, told in "parable" form. Wherein the subject of the parable masters all 7 principles in a short flashback / dream. This was otherwise a decent book, fallen prey to the primary trap of contemporary business nonfiction: the dreaded business fable.

[Fetcher · Rating 3 out of 5]

Listened to the audiobook, which interestingly was not read by the author. The performer was a bit dry. Which is ironic considering this is a book on public speaking.

I liked the 7 principles, they are mostly common sense, but I forget.

Here they are:

1- be yourself
2- no one cares if you make a mistake, move on
3- prepare, practice and visualize what you will say and how the speech will go
4- treat public speaking as a necessary skill. “You view speaking as something you do every day so there is no need to practice, I view speaking as something I do every day so I absolutely need to practice”.
5- make it personal, tell stories
6- serve the audience, relate to them, make them comfortable
7- stay on message, say as few words as possible to make your point

Few points - visualize, giving a great speech
- practice

[Gijs Limonard · Rating 2 out of 5]

Meh, no added value here. Some ok points, but the tone of the text is off-puttingly arrogant and paternalistic; “this is how you should go about giving a public speaking performance, you watch and learn.” Can’t even begin to count the number of times the author states, without any hint of irony; “trust me on this, I have…….” Factual error; the author refers to the concept of ‘the willing suspension of disbelief’ as coined by Shakespeare; off by about 2 centuries, this should be Samuel Taylor Coleridge.

[Dave Betts · Rating 2 out of 5]

The author’s arrogance is off putting and does little to win this reader over in a book filled with fluff and little else. Perhaps this would be a helpful blog post, but in book format, it adds very little to the world of public speaking.

[Andy · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book tries to be relevant by bashing the standard tips on public speaking, like loooking around the auditorium at the tops of people's heads to give the audience the feeling of eye contact. He suggests somehow making direct eye contact with everyone. I don't think this works for most beginners, who are scared of public speaking and need ways to make it easier to just get up there and talk at all.

Alternatively:
How to Give a Pretty Good Presentation: A Speaking Survival Guide for the Rest of Us

[AttackGirl · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’ve read it twice in the last few days to see if I’ve missed anything or if it’s just more each person opinions. Was there any provable supported science based ideas expressed or just another opinion book and I was taken for a minute with the visitor and his business card storyline and I do believe each time you speak even ordering dinner and actually before hand opinions and judgements are made anyway I’m rambling enjoy the book if you have issues speaking.

Perhaps the disrespectful comments used as an example I really didn’t appreciate nor do I think anyone educated or even working at a level where they would be asked to speak about someone would make such ignorant comments but that’s just me lost in a world outside of Mensa.

[Rima Chatterjee · Rating 2 out of 5]

I listened to the audiobook format for the book. To Be honest I didn't enjoy the book as much as I have hoped for. The narration was dry and uninteresting. Even though the points or the principles were more or less okayish the explanation was not that great. At certain points the author seemed to be a type of know it all and a bit arrogant, though it is what I perceived through the audiobook. I wanted a book which could helped me with certain tips on public speaking and confidence building. This certainly did not help me in that.

[Kevin McDaniel · Rating 4 out of 5]

I got this book to see if had any additional materials I could use with my public speaking class. The seven principles the author focuses on are great, and I am using them to design a student reflection journal for the course. The content around any principle, however, is covered in the textbook we already use for the course, meaning that I really didn't find any new mind-blowing insights from this book.

[Elvira Rizova · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall, the book is a good tool to have in your library when continuously improving your skills. As a person who is either leading a meeting or presenting to senior management, this book is helpful to remind myself of the key principles of effective communication. Performing the exercises shared in this book regularly will definitely help with my presentation skills, given my severe anxiety when public speaking.

[CJ · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book. It's the first book in public speaking I've read, so it was informative, I liked that the principles were kept simple and to the point. If you're looking to start somewhere to become a better public speaker, this book is great. If you're looking to further develop your public speaking skills, this might not be right for you, but it could serve as a great reminder of the basics.

[Raymond B. · Rating 4 out of 5]

A top self-improvement book in my opinion. While a simple read, the principles and associated activities are great starts for beginner speakers and reminders for the seasoned professional. The writing is simple and straightforward as would be expected by a great communicator.

[Sipho Ngidi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Basic tactics of public speaking

The lessons are simple. Throughout the book, I kept thinking but this is simple. Why did I not think of this before. This realization will make remembering and practicing the principles quite easy .

[Richard Mulholland · Rating 3 out of 5]

The principles themselves are sound and certainly helpful to know, however I found this book badly in need of a second edition. Everything from the narration style to the written felt a bit dated. I also felt like I was dying inside when he got to the ho-hum business allegory at the end.

[Merelam Ezems-Amadi · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you want to learn about public speaking, this book helps a lot. Clearly articulated points and valuable tips. He's made me feel less anxious about public speaking. It's not as difficult as my mind has made it up to be. I guess it's time to reprogramme my brain & mind. 😉

[Tronell Walker]

Loved it, he not only gives you the tools you need to be a productive public speaker but also lessons you can take with you throughout life.

[Rachel Troyer · Rating 5 out of 5]

(Audible) Great. Very insightful for anyone who is speaking to either one person or 1,000 people at a time!

[Kai Yang · Rating 2 out of 5]

outdated

[Julia · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great and succinct book on the basics of Public Speaking.

[Jaipal · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book doesn't provide anything new from other books but it's good as a refresher. The author provides a lot of examples which makes it easier for the reader to relate.

[George Murray · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good book for someone trying to start off in public speaking

[Youmna Gebril · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very enlightening, and the way the author summed up all the principles through the story at the end was impressive.

[Denae Christine · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked it but don't remember much about it.

Zeoli presented many of his main points as a story, which was a fun way to learn.

[Nada | ندى · Rating 4 out of 5]

I learned a lot.

[Ray Mathew · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good advice, but nothing new for anyone who’s dabbled in public speaking.

[Nikki Cummings · Rating 4 out of 5]

Informative and useful information. Easy and enjoyable read.

[Maresa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazingly helpful book that gets into detail about techniques while also providing important big picture perspectives on the point of public speaking. Wonderful read!

[Vidyasekar Subbukutty · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good book to understand public speaking and its impacts with a list if useful techniques

[Jacob Cruzan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Nothing behind breaking to me.