Effective Public Speaking for Officers

by Jean Reynolds, Ph.D.

Why should officers develop public speaking skills?

Public speaking is an important leadership skill.

Police administrators are often called on to speak at government and community meetings.

They’re frequently interviewed by TV and radio reporters.

Schools, colleges, and service clubs sometimes invite police officers to talk about crime prevention and careers in criminal justice.

There’s another good reason for working on your speaking skills.

You’ll build confidence and poise – valuable traits in law enforcement.

You can improve your speaking skills in a number of ways.

Seek opportunities for practice.

If you’re a member of a club or a church, volunteer for speaking roles when they come along.

Take an active role at meetings and classes.

Consider joining Toastmasters, an international organization that has helped countless people develop their speaking skills.

Here are some tips for effective public speaking.

Stand still. Shifting from foot to foot is distracting.

Don’t fidget or jingle keys or change in your pocket.

Use your smartphone or tablet to make videos of yourself talking.

Study the videos and look for ways to improve.

Speak slowly, clearly, and loudly enough to be heard.

Sharpen your skills.

Most people have a few speaking

habits that need

improvement.

Are there any words you mispronounce?

Do you make usage mistakes?

Ask your friends and family members for feedback so that you’ll be error-free the next time you speak before a group.

Carefully plan your talk ahead of time so that you can present a crisp, well-organized speech.

Tell stories. They increase your audience appeal and have lasting impact.

Never say “finally” or “last but not least.”

When you say “Finally…,” your audience will decide you’re almost done and stop listening.

Say “most important” or

most seriously” when you get to your final point.

Learn how to handle questions from the audience. Here are some tips:

When you ask for questions, don’t assume that a quiet room means nobody has questions.

Always pause for five seconds. (It’s longer than you think!)

Shy people in the audience need that time to get ready to speak.

Always repeat the question before you answer it.

- Your questioners will feel you’re taking them seriously.

- The rest of the audience will know what’s going on.

If you’re using technology, check the equipment ahead of time.

And make sure a tech-savvy person is available in case help is needed.

Public speaking skills make you more valuable to your agency and your community, and they’re important for career growth.

Seize every opportunity to sharpen those skills.

The time and energy you invest now will pay off again and again.

Be sure to visit www.YourPoliceWrite.com for

professional writing tips.

All the resources there are FREE: www.YourPoliceWrite.com.

And if you’re looking for a low-cost, practical book…

Criminal Justice Report Writing is available from www.Amazon.com.

View a free sample online.

A discount price is available for class sets (minimum five books).

Send your request to jreynoldswrite @ aol.com.

An e-book edition is available from www.Smashwords.com.

A free Instructor’s Manual is available on request: Send an e-mail to jreynoldswrite at aol.com.