Quelques conseils pour le conférencier

TRANSLATING AND PUBLISHING WHERE THE LANGUAGES ARE SPOKEN
Advice to speakers
How not to bore the audience during a lecture
Franco Troiano, CEO
1. First be brief and scrupulously respect schedules. Modern man has become a channel hopper. His
concentration and attention span is always rather limited: not to exceed 15 minutes of speaking must
be a lecturer's absolute first prerequisite. This exposé may be (very briefly) extended, if need be,
with a questions and answers session.
2. The lecturer must also be concise, especially with key phrases and words. The audience will only
remember those concepts that are clearly and succinctly argued. It will even be in the speaker's best
interest to repeat or explain these key words and these concepts at the basis of his speech.
Argumentation of his theses should also be quick and friendly.
3. The speaker’s voice should be strong and clear. Variations in delivery tone and speed must always
take place while maintaining perfect intelligibility: a mike should be used even in small rooms. The
rather “confidential” atmosphere of a salon or of TV should not be duplicated.
4. Whom to turn to during the exposé? Alternatively, the speaker must look at all the sections of the
audience in order to “plug in” everyone. Here too, variations are possible, a section or sex to whom
more particularly speak, but very quickly and dexterously.
5. Should the speech be read? It is not recommended to read it in its entirety. The speaker must
absolutely keep their ease and a “spontaneous” tone in order to “relax” the audience. Style will of
course be the speaker’s own: there are those who read the speech for the most part and then pretend
to improvise the rest; or else, there are (appreciated) speakers who for fear of straying from the
argument or to exceed their time limit, diligently read their text.
6. It is preferable for the lecturer to remain standing before a seated audience: he must be clearly
visible. He must appear calm with “something to say”: that is why the audience listens to him! He
should not drag out the speech (see item 1), and he may therefore be interesting to listen to for a
short period.
7. If he manages to be slightly humorous, so much the better. If not, too bad. What is to be avoided is
involuntary, improvised humor or bad jokes. It is mainly up to the session’s chair to control humor
in the audience. Even after an obviously successful speech the speaker must refuse to prolong his
speech. At the end of his lecture, all he has to say is “Thank you” and leave the dais in order to
return to his seat—in silence (applause will naturally follow).
8. How to prepare the expose of one’s own speech? Aside from the fact that one must be perfectly
familiar with the subject, it could help to record and listen (several times) to the lecture’s text.
9. Graphic supports ((black)board, overhead projector, laptop, slides, etc.) are always welcome as they
help the audience to follow the exposé: the visualization of the exposé may even turn out to be
necessary and not only useful. But above all, as soon as all these points have been followed, “good
luck”: the speech will be excellent in any case!
EUROLOGOS Group. When localization becomes « glocalization »
Ostend Eurologos Conference
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