Page 185 - The New Articulate Executive_ Look, Act and Sound Like a Leader

176 DELIVERY

Prepared Text Basics
◆ Use large laser print easy to read from at least three to four feet
away.
◆ Use uppercase and lowercase.
◆ Separate each line with a double space and each paragraph with
a triple space.
◆ Make every sentence a separate paragraph.
◆ Put page numbers in all four comers.

POSITION

Position yourself slightly away from the lectern. You don’t have to go
to MIT to figure out that the angle of attack for your eyes is less steep

the farther back you go. This lets you keep your chin and face up
while your eyes go down to the page and do all the work. Your eyes,
remember, track down to the page only in the middle of sentences.
Short sentences are simple: you just take them in their entirety.
Just by standing back a few inches you automatically increase
your eye contact. You should be twelve to eighteen inches away from
the lectern, far enough to let you express yourself with your hands
if you wish to, yet close enough to still touch the lectern (many people
like the comfort of feeling “grounded” to something solid).
Some lecterns are adjustable. If you know in advance you are
going to use a prepared text, you should make it a point to request
an adjustable lectern. This is particularly important for tall people.
Adjust the lectern so that the top of the front is just below your ster-
num (and just below where your heart is).

HANDS

Short of creating a distraction, try to let your hands help you express
yourself, for two reasons: