Have you sat through a speech or presentation and thought, “What did I just listen to?” Your head may have been nodding up and down, not because you agree, but because you were falling asleep. The speaker sounded like a robot, the message went nowhere, and somehow that 10-minute presentation felt like an infinity.

Good speaking isn’t just about talking. It’s so much more than that. It’s about being clear, engaging, and actually worth listening to. If you want people to understand you, remember you, and act on what you say, then you need to focus on three key areas: fluency, clarity, and value.

Fluency is about smooth, natural delivery. It’s not robotic, it’s not painfully slow, and it certainly isn’t filled with awkward pauses or what’s that called… oh yes, word hunting.

This is important because it’s easy for listener’s minds to wander, you may convey the wrong ideas, what you said may lack persuasiveness, and even worse, you may lose credibility.

Record yourself speaking and track your filler words (those pesky ‘and-um,’ ‘you know,’ and ‘you see’) and make a conscious effort to eliminate or cut them down.

In daily conversations, think first about what you want to say. Then in a complete sentence, without stopping, express your thoughts.

Have you tried reading aloud? This trains your eye to take in words in groups expressing a complete thought vs. seeing one word at a time.

When preparing a speech, keep your thoughts on the ideas rather than the specific words. The words will come automatically. As soon as you begin to think of words rather than an idea, that’s when you start to lose fluency because you’re trying to remember the next word, not the next idea.

By expressing yourself in a way that your audience can understand, you connect and bring value.

One of the biggest barriers here is ego. It’s tempting to sound impressive with big words or industry jargon, but clarity beats complexity every time.

A great speaker doesn’t just talk– they teach. The goal should be to leave your audience feeling a little bit smarter.

If you are telling the audience something they already know, they most likely will lose interest and stop giving you their attention quickly. To be informative, remember to consider what your audience already knows so you can go faster on points that are already known and slower on newer points.

By not just stating the facts, but showing their meaning and value through the use of comparisons, examples, and simple illustrations, you’ll bring your ideas to life and make them memorable.

💫 Pro Tip: If you want to go deeper on presence and nerves, check out the ‘Public Speaking — How to Nail It’ in the Attention Seeker archive.

At the end of the day, your audience won’t remember every word you said. What they will remember is how easy you were to follow, how you made them feel, and whether what you said mattered to them. In public relations, that’s the real win: fluent, clear, and informative speaking that deepens the relationship with your audience and strengthens your credibility.

Do this now: Do you have a speech? Is it in outline form or manuscript, where every word you want to say is typed out?

Prepare an outline of your speech. An outline is a document that helps you recall your ideas. Write out the introduction and conclusion and then everything else are main points, that is the list of ideas you want to use.

Get PR techniques from recent news.

Starbucks uses AI to recommend drinks based on your mood.

This is another example of how AI is weaving its way into everyday business and customer experiences. At the same time, a lot of humans are still pretty skeptical about AI and what it means for their jobs and privacy.

So if you want to bring AI into a more forward‑facing position in your company, what can you do?

Essential strategy:

✍️ Key PR Takeaway: Remember, it’s public relations, not robot relations. The real win is listening to humans, taking their feelings seriously, and making adjustments as you learn.

Useful PR Resources.

Use a voice recording and transcription tool to capture you while practicing a speech, then upload the transcript to AI to spot patterns you might miss. Ask it to look for filler words, overly long sentences, or confusing phrases. Then, listen back to your recording yourself and note where you lose your own attention, stumble, or feel unclear—that’s usually where your audience will struggle too. Here’s how simple it is:

What’s your favorite voice recording tool? I use the free Voice Memos app on my iPhone since it automatically generates a transcript, but you can also use dedicated tools like the online Rev Voice Recorder.

1. Filler word cleanup

2. Sentence length and clarity

3. Audience understanding

Ginger, the 10-year-old red-nosed pit bull can be quite energetic, despite the picture saying otherwise. Every morning, 7:30 on the dot, she’s got her zoomies ready to release. Rolling in the dirt, running the yard, and darting from her owners, multiple times a day are a few of the ways this crazy girl loves to get attention.

If you’re ever in Central Florida, you can get a glorious hair wash by her owner and hear all about her antics at RC Salon Collective.

May your words flow, your audiences stay awake, and your coffee order always be on point.

Until next week, keep your shades on and stay cool.

Your fellow Seeker,
Keren

🕶️

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