Practice Makes Per...

by John Penaflor

“Practice Makes Perfect”, says who? Our parents, our teachers, and those who believe that a perfected craft is a mere result of “practice”. Hence, we were raised to believe that the ultimate standard of anything we do is “perfection”. For a long time now, this age-old saying pressures us to perform flawlessly and bring in results with no slip-ups. True? For many us, this may be really an issue.

This article sums up my personal belief that great speakers are not born but are made. They are products of determination and passion. They are the ones who believe that public speaking is not deceptively hard to do. Thus, practice is one key to unlock the the door of great potentialities and opportunities.

PRACTICE

“Without action, you aren’t going anywhere” — Mahatma Gandhi

This certainly reminds us that if your direction is to be a good and an effective public speaker, acting towards such goal is precisely a process you must take. Blatant truth is, you really have no choice but to get on the action!

ACTION MEANS MOVEMENT.

Now that you’re all set, your actions will slowly gather momentum as you focus on your objective. That is – becoming a good and an effective presenter. You take action, you realize that the first step is the most important. Newton’s first law of Motion - “A body in motion remains in motion unless it is acted on by an external force. If the body is at rest it remains at rest”. You go move!

MOVEMENT MEANS PREPARATION.

During the final question and answer round of Ms. Universe pageant 2012, Olivia Culpo said that “If you fail to prepare then you prepare to fail”, emphasizing that preparation may be a great strategy for the candidates to be able to deliver their answers well, as they all vie for the crown. Likewise, you need to prepare how you will own your presentation.

PREPARATION MEANS COMMITMENT.

I am always amazed by the late Steve Jobs, owner of Apple Inc., every time he sets his feet on stage to launch a new product of his company. Aside from his very organized keynote is his assiduity and his dedication to assure he delivers a perspicuous and impactful presentation stint.

In the book, Becoming Steve Jobs, authors Brent Schlender and Rick Tetzeli reveal some new insights into the intense preparation that made Steve Jobs a master presenter. Here are some of the statements from the authors:

“Steve would rehearse endlessly and fastidiously.”

“Steve Jobs wasn’t a natural speaker. He worked at it really, really hard.”

To add, Carmine Gallo of Inc.com said “When Steve Jobs built product keynote presentations, he was involved in every step from creating the messages to designing the slides. But the final step was critical. Jobs practiced on stage over and over and over again.”

Does practice make your presentation perfect? Maybe yes, maybe no. But what I am certain about is that practice drives you to permanence. Taking it from Malcolm Gladwell, a Canadian journalist, author, and a public speaker, “Practice isn’t the thing you do once you’re good. It’s the thing you do that makes you good.”