The Four Steps of Speaker Stance

What an incredible honor to conduct a leadership-level presentation skills training to this select group of Mississippi Highway Safety Patrol officers!

Throughout the afternoon, we tackled the Big Three: message, delivery, and nonverbal know-how. As a group we practiced speaker stance, which came in very handy when we posed for this group photo at the end.

Speaker stance comprises four steps:

Stand with your feet slightly under shoulders’ width apart
Imagine a string running from your feet all the way up to the ceiling, pulling you into straight posture
Concentrate your weight slightly forward in your stance, resting on the balls of your feet
Allow your arms to hang naturally at your sides (but not stiff like a toy soldier)

Speaker stance is the cure from rocking back and forth unknowingly when you speak. It prevents swaying and purposeless pacing. It also keeps you from locking your knees when you’re nervous, which can cause a speaker to pass out. I’ve seen it happen twice in my speaking career. Speaker stance to the rescue.

To customize a keynote or professional development session that will have your audience laughing and learning, contact Mandi Stanley.

Certified Speaking Professional Mandi Stanley works with business leaders who want to boost their professional image by becoming better speakers and writers through interactive high-content keynotes, breakout sessions, workshops, technical writing seminars, and fun proofreading classes.

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