In the hit cartoon movie Madagascar, there is a group of talking penguins led by “the Skipper.” One of the penguins asks, “Skipper, don’t you think we should tell them the boat’s out of gas?” The Skipper simply says, “Nah! Smile and wave, boys. Smile and wave.”

As a speaker, how can you greatly benefit from smiling and waving to your audience?

Smiling and waving before speaking can offer several advantages that enhance your delivery and audience engagement.

Below are three benefits of smiling and waving at your audience:

Establishes Immediate Rapport with the Audience

A warm smile and friendly wave signal to your audience you are approachable and open, fostering a sense of connection.

Are you more likely to speak to someone smiling or not smiling? The answer, of course, is you are more likely to talk to someone smiling. Why is this true?

What does a smile from one person say to the other person at whom they are smiling? It says, “Welcome. I am interested in you. “If people know you are interested in them, they will be interested in you. It’s human nature.

Now, let’s consider your audience. You want them to be interested in you and your message. Audiences interested in you and your message are audiences engaged. One of the fundamental tasks you must accomplish as a speaker is to engage with the audience.

Smiling can activate mirror neurons in the audience, prompting them to smile back, creating a positive feedback loop, and enhancing rapport.

Try not to smile when someone smiles at you. It’s next to impossible.

When someone smiles at you, your brain releases several “feel-good” hormones, contributing to positive emotions and well-being. These include:

• Dopamine – the reward and motivation hormone. Dopamine is associated with pleasure and motivation. A smile from another person can trigger its release, making you feel rewarded and reinforcing social connection.

• Serotonin – the mood stabilizer. Serotonin is crucial in regulating mood, happiness, and overall well-being. When someone smiles at you, serotonin levels increase, reducing stress and promoting a sense of calm.

• Oxytocin – the bonding and trust hormone. Oxytocin is often called the “love hormone” because it strengthens social bonds and trust. A warm smile can stimulate oxytocin production, enhancing feelings of connection and belonging.

I bet you never thought you, as a speaker, could change the mood of your audience. Science says you can with a smile and a wave.

So, a smile and wave from you has the benefit of establishing immediate rapport with your audience.

Another benefit of smiling and waving at your audience is it enhances your confidence and reduces anxiety.

Enhances the Speaker’s Confidence and Reduces Anxiety

As mentioned above, smiling and waving affect your audience’s mood by releasing in them dopamine, serotonin, and oxytocin – the “feel good” hormones.

Smiling and waving also release these neurotransmitters, boosting your mood and reducing stress, helping you feel more relaxed.

Wow! This happens all from smiling and waving to your audience. This is an excellent return on investment for something simple for you to do.

An added benefit of smiling and waving at your audience is you will have a great time doing it. Anything that puts you in a good mood will always contribute positively to your presentation delivery.

Smiling can lower your heart rate and reduce anxiety, contributing to a calmer demeanor before you speak.

We can all agree you deliver a more effective presentation when calm. What happens when you are relaxed when you deliver your presentations?

When you are calm delivering your presentations, you powerfully deliver your opening attention step, you remember when to pause for maximum effect, and your “get off the stage” step mesmerizes your audience, just to name a few. This happens all because you stay calm. Quite a return on investment.

So, a smile and wave establishes immediate rapport with your audience, enhances your confidence, and reduces anxiety.

Another benefit of smiling and waving at your audience is it captures their attention and sets a positive tone.

Captures Attention and Sets a Positive Tone

A visible greeting like waving captures the audience’s attention, signaling the presentation is beginning and encouraging them to focus.

As a speaker, you are the maestro of your presentation. An orchestra never starts playing until the conductor signals it is time to play. It is the same with your presentation.

Your smile and wave to your audience indicate you will start the presentation shortly. It also sets a positive tone that you want them to get something useful from your presentation. As mentioned before, these simple gestures invite your audience into your presentation.

Your smile and wave puts your audience in the mood to receive, understand, and implement your message.

Smiling and waving convey enthusiasm and energy, setting a positive tone for your presentation and making the audience more receptive to your message.

There are no guarantees your audience will be enthusiastic about your message, even if you are. But there is a guarantee your audience will not be enthusiastic about your message if you aren’t.

Your outward enthusiasm says many things to your audience. It says you are an expert on the topic, seek to answer their questions about your message, and seek their views that contradict yours. In other words, you want to engage with them fully.

Enthusiasm is contagious. You want your audience to catch your enthusiasm.

So, a smile and wave establishes immediate rapport with your audience, enhances your confidence, reduces anxiety, captures their attention, and sets a positive tone.

These simple gestures can create a more engaging and effective communication experience for your audience.

What does it cost you – a smile and a wave?

Call to Action

Smile and wave to your audience to:

• Establish immediate rapport

• Enhance your confidence and reduce your anxiety

• Capture their attention and set a positive tone

References

• “5 Reasons Why Smiling Will Improve Our Public Speaking,” eFactor Consulting, efactorconsulting.com

• “Does Smiling Help or Hurt Presenters?” Guila Muir & Associates, guilamuir.com

• “5 Reasons to Smile While Speaking,” Ethos 3, ethos3.com

Being a confident, engaging, and effective technical speaker is a vital personal and professional asset. With more than 40 years of engineering experience and more than 30 years of award-winning public speaking experience, Frank DiBartolomeo can help you reduce your presentation preparatory time by 50%, overcome your fear of public speaking and be completely at ease, deliver your presentations effectively, develop your personal presence with your audience; and apply an innovative way to handle audience questions deftly.

Working closely with you, Frank provides a customized protocol employing the critical skills and tools you need to create, practice, and deliver excellent technical speeches and presentations. Connect with Frank and explore how he can help you become the exceptional speaker you were meant to be. Please reach out to him at frank@speakleadandsucceed.com or 703-509-4424 for a complimentary consultation. Schedule a meeting with him at calendly.com/frankdibartolomeospeaks. Listen to his Successful Speaking for Technical Professionals podcast