You might think that fiddling with your jacket as you speak, because you’re a little nervous, isn’t really noticeable, but unfortunately, it jumps out at an audience like a lighthouse in the night. Remember those TV ads promoting skin-cream for teenagers? They depicted a young man, feeling self-conscious in front of a beautiful girl because of the police-style spinning light on his forehead? That’s what physical tics are like for your audience. They are beacons, and they draw the eye. You can overcome them, but first, you have to become aware of them.
Here are a few of the popular ones:
- The ticking clock – The speaker sways pendulously from left to right. A few minutes of this can actually hypnotise your audience.
- The hillbilly two-step – Instead of merely swaying from one side to the other, the speaker actually steps to the left, then steps to the right.
- Restless hands – This is a dead giveawayof nervousness. It’s also a predominantly male trait. Men tend to massage the flesh on the inside of their palms, while women fiddle with their hands at their sides, either crumpling up the bottom corners of their jackets or ‘ironing’ the slacks they are wearing.
- The forehead swoop – characteristic of (but not limited to) women, this is a constant, repetitive brushing aside of the fringe.
- The gyrating school girl – Imagine a little girl of six. She’s shy, but her mother compels her to greet a friend. The little girl keeps her feet firmly on the ground, but gyrates at the hips, as she turns her face from left to right. This is a move often seen in presentations in the corporate world.
- The nervous cough – when the speaker constantly clears his or her throat or coughs dryly at the end of every second sentence.
- Check the chin – Occasionally you may see speakers checking, with a quick rub of the hands, to see if their chin is still there. The nose is a popular alternative. Rubbing your nose every few seconds makes you look untrustworthy, perhaps even an outright liar.
You can overcome these crutches by speakingin front of a mirror in private. Keep going for a few minutes and see if youcan identify your nervous habits. An alternative is to watch yourself on video.You should recognise your bad habits right away, which will make it much easierto take steps to correct them.
Habits, tics and twitches are completelybreakable. I know, because I had a few quirks when I began speaking, and as aresult of conscious effort, I’ve overcome them. It wasn’t particularly hard todo. Your first step is to become aware of what you do.