Last month, I was invited to attend a half day conference on a significant, somewhat controversial public health issue affecting our community.

The event featured a series of presentations by a group of experts from a local agency, highlighted by the executive director. Anxious to hear his perspective, I leaned forward in my chair, anticipating an informative and compelling talk.

Nearly an hour later when it was finally over, slumped in my chair, I made a beeline for the restroom. I was frustrated and nearly bored to tears as this man stumbled through a sloppy, incoherent monologue that obscured the important information he wanted to share.

That experience told me this: If you’re a leader in virtually any capacity, chances are you will be called upon to present in public. This means you must be armed with a few basic but important skills if you want people to listen and respond to your message. Ignore these skills, and you will face an uphill battle to achieve the influence and credibility you need to succeed.

The following are six habits practiced by the most effective speakers in any field:

1) Focus on a singular theme. While most presentations try to cram too much information and highlight too many “big ideas,” most of which their audience forgets as soon as they leave the auditorium, the best presenters ask themselves an important question when preparing their talk: “What’s the one thing I want my audience to remember?” Then they build their remarks around this single, central theme. This habit alone will transform the substance and impact of your presentations.

2) Tell stories. Nothing creates a more memorable presentation than a good story. Stories engage the brain and facilitate an emotional connection with your audience, making your content much more interesting and memorable. Decades of research backs this up. Throughout history, the best politicians, CEO’s, pastors–leaders who rely on communication–are all accomplished story tellers.

3) Practice, practice, practice. It amazes me how little some speakers prepare. For every minute of my public presentations, I spend hours rehearsing. First, I print the entire speech on a clipboard and practice in my car while driving to and from work. Then, I rehearse my speech in as close to the actual conditions as possible, timing it and paying close attention to my body language, facial expressions, and voice tonality. (Sometimes I even record myself on my iPhone). I repeat this many times before I feel like I’m fully prepared. When you’re in front of a live audience and the inevitable nervousness sets in, you will automatically revert to your lowest level of preparation. Don’t assume you know your stuff well enough to cut corners. Put in the time up front, and you’ll never regret it.

3) Avoid “death by PowerPoint.” How many presentations have you attended where the presenter basically replicated his entire speech on PowerPoint slides? If you want to put your audience to sleep as fast as possible, there’s no better strategy. Here are some simple tips to use slides to enhance, rather than weaken your message:
– Use as few words as possible. Marketing guru Seth Godin advises no more than six words per slide. Though that may be difficult, the fewer words, the better. Brevity and simplicity enhance recall.
– Use visual images instead of words. Graphics, rich photographs, compelling diagrams, and colorful charts are far more impactful than bullet points and copy.
– Avoid cheesy transition effects like dissolves, spins, etc. All they do is distract your audience. Keep your transitions sharp and focused.

4) Keep cutting until you think you’ve cut too much. Call it the pride of authorship; the fact is, even the best presentations are often too long. Our digitized and distracted culture rewards brevity and punishes the long-winded. The more word economy you can build into your presentation, the more effective it will be. The genius behind the massive global success of TED Talks is the 18 minute limit (which is based on research of the human attention span). Same with Twitter. When it comes to really effective communication, less really is more.

5) Pay attention to your body language. Good posture, “quiet” arms, and maintaining eye contact with the audience are a few of the body language skills of good presenters. For a great explanation on the role of body language in communicating, check out this hugely popular TED Talk by behavioral researcher Amy Cuddy.

6) Work hard on reducing filler words like “‘Uh’, ‘Ah,’ ‘Um’ and ‘you know.'” One of the most frustrating things about the local agency director’s presentation in the experience I shared at the beginning of this post is that he used so much filler language, he came across as tentative, unprepared and scattered. This is why rehearsing your talk many times before the live presentation is so important. If you’re unsure how much filler talk you use, have a friend sit in on your practice talk and tally every time you say “Uh, Ah,” etc. Chances are, you’ll be surprised, and be able to correct the issue appropriately before your presentation.

Your reputation as a leader has a lot to do with your ability to communicate in public. Work hard at developing and perfecting these six presentation habits and you will never regret the time and energy you invest.

Which of these six habits resonate the most with you? Which ones are the most challenging to you? Which are the easiest?