First Impressions

First Impressions Can Make Or Break A Speech

Do you know how many seconds you have to make a good first impression?

7 Seconds

Wow that isn't long is it?

So what do you need to think about to make a great first impression?

Here's a list of different things to consider:

• Appearance
• Posture
• Voice
• Accent
• Non Verbal Communication

So let us briefly look at each one.

Appearance can include:

Clothes
Shoes
Hat

How you wear you clothes, for example is your shirt hanging out?
Is your skirt the correct length?
Jewelry- too much, too big, too noisy against the microphone

Posture

Do you slouch?
Stand tall?
Stand to one side?

Voice

High pitch
Speech impediment
Loud
Quiet

Accent

Sexy
Difficult to understand
Distracting

Non Verbal Communication

Hair twiddling
Lip biting
Clicking joints
Tapping fingers
Arms crossed
Hands on hips
Finger pointing

How do you know if any of these apply to you? One of the easiest ways to find out  is to video yourself..

It will be even more advantageous if you record yourself practicing your speech.

Remember you've only got 7 seconds to make a good impression so look through this list again and make sure you've covered everything.