Do you think you speak too fast, too slow, or just right? When it comes to public speaking, you'll want to talk at an appropriate pace. What is the appropriate pace for a speech? If you speak much slower than one hundred forty words per minute, you're probably not speaking fast enough for your audience. However, if you speak much faster than one hundred seventy words per minute, you could be talking too fast. An audience could have a hard time understanding you. The average rate of speech typically ranges from around 140 to 170 words per minute.
You also need to vary your pace. Sometimes, you'll want to speak more quickly to demonstrate excitement or urgency. Other times, you'll want to slow down or pause for dramatic effect that will keep your audience on the edge of their seats. A reliable tip on how to check your pace is by recording yourself and listening to the playback. A recording not only lets you time your speech, but it also lets you evaluate how well you vary your pace within the conversational range. Below are some of the reasons why keeping your pace in check is so important in public speaking.
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1. Varying your pace helps keep your audience interested.
One of the reasons why lectures are so boring is because the professors talk in a pace that is always consistent. It doesn't matter if it's too fast or too slow because keeping your pace consistent is sure way to lull your audience to sleep. In order to keep them engaged for a longer time, sometimes you need to fasten your pace, sometimes you need to play it slow. Great public speakers understand that their pace can be used as an instrument to pull people in.
2. Your pace affects your audience's ability to follow what you are saying.
If you speak too quickly for too long, your audience is going to have a problem following what you are saying. This is why you should always be mindful of your audience when adjusting your pace of talking. Basically, your ability to speak quickly exhausts them and they go wandering off looking for some stimulus that's a little easier to follow. If you speak too slowly, your audience is going to get bored and go wandering off looking for a better thing to pay attention to.
3. Your pace shows your passion for your subject.
When we are experiencing strong emotion we naturally begin to speak faster. When we get thoughtful, our speech slows down. You can use your pace to show your emotions to your audience, making sure to connect with them as you go about your speech. Your emotions make you more human and relatable, which in return make your subject more obviously important. If you release your emotions mindfully, your audience will accept you better and your pace will naturally vary according to the emotions that you feel when talking about certain topics.
After going through the reasons provided in the earlier paragraphs, it is without a doubt true that pace in public speaking is really important. Adjusting your pace impacts your speech and delivery greatly and it is now time for you to adapt it in order to be worthy of your audience’s time.
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