How to Become Your Own Public Speaking Coach
“Again, with more pizzazz!”
If you found this article by googling around looking for speech coaches, your eyes probably perked up! “Wait, there’s a way to just do this all by myself, no outside help needed? Cool!” Well, not to be clickbaity, but I will still ask you to consider hiring me—because by working with a speaking coach for a little while, you can coach yourself forever after that! Especially if that coach’s process is designed to prepare you for self-driven long-term development, which mine is.
Without further ado, here are the three pillars of public speaking self-coaching:
Identify your speaking weaknesses
A lot of folks start with a reasonably good notion of what they need to work on. That could be what drew them to look for a coach in the first place—specific, known communication challenges. But of course other issues may be more subtle, & an expert eye can help you find them—as well as highlight previously unknown strengths.
“That’s what my purr sounds like? It’s not leonine at all!”
A great DIY method for this? Recording yourself speaking! If you can get past the cringe factor of seeing yourself on camera & listening to your voice on tape—an abhorrent prospect for many—there’s usually a lot you can learn about your speaking. & as you watch more, you’ll likely puzzle your way towards what works & sounds good for you, what doesn’t, & gradually figure out how to move from bad to good. (Of course, a coach can help you figure it out much faster. But there’s much to learn on your own too.)
2. Build your practice toolbox
For pretty much any speaking deficiency, there’s a practice speaking activity or three that can help you overcome it. Amass a collection of these, get acquainted with the various ways they can help you, & then use them as needed to hone your skills over time or ward off any re-emerging issues.
In sessions, I usually don’t spend a ton of time on any given exercise, or return to it more than once. Instead of laboriously re-attempting a difficult one until you Get It 100% Right, I’ll simply show you how to do it, give feedback on your performance, and share recommendations on how to do it at home & apply its underlying principles in live speaking settings. Then we hit the next exercise!
An old-timey toolbox with dramatic lighting, to be specific.
The reasons for this “keep it moving” mentality are, first, that I trust the student to put each activity in their practice toolbox & use it at home—both for short-term improvement and long-term skill maintenance. Second, I have a lot of material to share, and I want to help you squeeze as much value out of each session as possible! Third, the exercises and accompanying advice I provide aren’t complicated, and I don’t try to make them complicated. Once you’ve heard & tried them once or twice, you should be perfectly equipped to take ownership of them.
3. Turn any speaking setting into an effective practice opportunity
One unexpectedly difficult presenting-related skill is the ability to monitor how you’re speaking right while you’re doing it—much less adjust on the fly without getting distracted from your content. This means we pass through most speaking instances with only a hazy impression of how we did. However, once you have a good sense of what to watch for and have plenty of experience with your Practice Tools, you should be able to use normal speaking situations as opportunities for self-analysis & improvement—especially if you can record & review them later.
“Finally, I can fish in peace without Steve looking over my shoulder & frightening all the trout.”
So there you have it! This is uncomplicated “teach a man to fish” territory: If you can learn it, you can do it, & you no longer need someone to supervise you doing it. So substantial & lasting are the benefits of self-coaching, that my primary goal with every student is to render myself obsolete in whatever timeframe makes sense.
Curious about what that timeframe might look like, & how I/we decide when you’re ready to take the wheel? You can read all about that here.
