1. Getting to know the expectations of the training participants
The training opens by clarifying participant expectations and establishing a shared understanding of public speaking. It also identifies key preparation challenges and the emotions commonly connected with presentations, creating a practical reference point for the later sections.
- what are public speeches?
- how to prepare for them?
- emotions related to them.
2. Introduction
At the start, attention is given to the source of stage emotions and the mechanisms that intensify them. The discussion helps participants identify what drives their reactions during public speaking and how those reactions can be understood, managed and used constructively.
- where do emotions on stage come from?
- what drives us?
- how to tame it and use it?
3. Introduction to the topic – a bit of theory
The theoretical framework organizes the main components of an effective speech into one coherent model. It connects verbal and non-verbal layers, emotional aura, storytelling, rhetoric, stage boundaries, pauses, key words and the role of props in making a presentation engaging.
- the verbal and non-verbal layer of a speech, including emotional aura, gesticulation, details in appearance, diction, language, Polish language, structure of the speech, story telling,
- to speak interestingly – that is the challenge!
- stage/backstage – how to set boundaries,
- the art of rhetoric: building tension, anecdote, metaphor, antithesis, questions and rhetorical questions – building dialogue, pause, key words,
- the role of a prop.
4. Non-verbal communication of a professional presenter
Non-verbal communication determines how a presenter is perceived long before arguments are evaluated. Work in this area includes eye contact, facial expression, posture, gestures, diction, intonation, movement, proxemics and the use of acting technique to add clarity and dynamic presence.
- sight and eye contact,
- facial expressions, posture, gestures, gesticulation (body language – body language),
- diction, intonation, modulation – use of sound,
- dynamics,
- movement, proxemics,
- adding dynamism through acting technique.
5. Verbal speech – the power of words and their configuration
Words matter not only because of what they mean, but also because of how they are arranged. This section develops control over language errors and mannerisms, adaptation of message to the audience, the use of benefit language and the 3P principle for structuring spoken content.
- mannerisms and language errors,
- adapting the language and form of communication to the audience,
- using the language of benefits,
- the order and structure of speech elements – the 3P principle.
6. What cannot be seen and cannot be heard, yet affects the listener – the language of persuasion
Persuasion often works through elements that are not explicitly noticed by the audience. Participants analyze hidden levels of communication, selected neurolinguistic mechanisms, sentence syntax and presuppositions to understand how wording influences interpretation and supports the intended reception.
- using hidden levels of communication – what cannot be seen and cannot be heard,
yet affects the listener,
- neurolinguistics of communication – that is, how to foster the desired reception by listeners?
- influencing people with appropriate sentence syntax,
- influencing people with presuppositions – hidden meanings of words.
7. The art of creating a first impression
First impressions shape how credibility, confidence and intent are interpreted from the very beginning of a presentation. This topic examines which signals influence the initial reception of a speaker and how to consciously manage them before the substantive part of the talk even starts.
8. Managing the audience's attention and building relationships with recipients
Audience management depends on reading reactions and choosing the right intervention. The section covers how to re-engage bored listeners, encourage reserved participants to speak, and discipline or win over people who are overly talkative, inattentive, hostile or deliberately difficult.
- techniques for stimulating (an uninterested / bored recipient),
- techniques for opening up (a shy / taciturn recipient),
- techniques for disciplining and gaining favor (a talkative / inattentive / attacking / malicious recipient).
9. Techniques for reducing stress before a presentation and controlling emotions during the speech
Stress regulation before and during a speech is addressed through concrete methods rather than general advice. Participants practice autogenic training, classical conditioning, anchor setting and selected acting techniques that help lower tension and activate a more confident performance state.
- autogenic training,
- classical conditioning and anchor dropping,
- acting techniques for reducing stress and triggering a sense of self-confidence.
10. Difficult situations during the meeting
When a meeting becomes demanding, the speaker needs more than content knowledge. This part focuses on handling informational and critical questions, recognizing disruptive audience behaviors, avoiding argumentation traps and adjusting reactions to the specific participants present in the room.
- basic techniques for answering informational and critical questions,
- people hindering the course of the presentation and reaction to their behavior,
- traps in argumentation and "tricks for the audience",
- what needs to be known about the presentation participants?
11. How to answer difficult questions well?
Answering difficult questions requires both composure and conversational discipline. Participants work on etiquette, stress control and ways of responding when someone interrupts, pressures or provokes, so that the exchange stays professional and the speaker keeps authority without escalating tension.
- culture and etiquette of conversation,
- how to control stress?
- how to respond to interruption and provocation?
12. Obtaining good quality feedback
Feedback is treated here as a tool for improving future presentations, not just as a closing ritual. The section shows how to ask questions that produce specific, useful responses after a speech and how to interpret comments in a way that supports development instead of reinforcing random impressions.
- how to obtain feedback after the presentation?
- how to properly use feedback?