Pacing in your presentations can significantly enhance how your audience receives them.

What is pacing? Pacing in speaking is the rate or speed at which you deliver your message.

Pacing is not something many people mention when they talk about presentations. However, pacing can invoke extraordinary reactions from your audience.

Below are three attributes of pacing you can use in your presentations:

Variation in Speed

One attribute of pacing you can use in your presentations is variation in speed.

You can emphasize various parts by varying your speaking speed throughout your presentation. Delivering your presentations at the same speaking speed can make the audience lose interest, while a dynamic pace keeps them engaged.

Slowing down during critical points or introducing new concepts will ensure the audience has time to absorb the information in your presentation.

Slowing down is also a clue to your audience that what you are saying is something they should pay particular attention to. An example is when you talk about the last minutes of a person’s life, a child’s first words, or the first time someone tells you they love you.

Increasing your speaking speed connotes excitement to your audience. This is appropriate for any physical activity you describe, like mountain climbing, hang gliding, and riding a roller coaster.

Use faster pacing during your presentation’s more exciting or energetic parts to convey enthusiasm and maintain attention.

There will be times in your presentation when you speak at your average rate. The audience needs a little rest between your slow and fast speaking.

So, varying your speaking speed is one way to use pacing in your presentations.

Another is the strategic use of pauses.

Pauses for Emphasis

Pausing during your presentation at strategic places can enormously affect your audience.

The late radio personality Paul Harvey was a master of the strategic pause. Mr. Harvey would tell a story about a famous person without telling you who the person is until the end of his broadcast. He kept you guessing, a great way to keep your audiences engaged. At the end of the broadcast, Mr. Harvey would pause and then tell you the famous person. He would then say, “And that’s the rest of the story.”

Incorporate strategic pauses for emphasis. Pauses can create a moment of reflection, allowing the audience to process the information you are conveying.

Use pauses before making key points or asking a rhetorical question to build anticipation and engage your audience. Your audience knows your key points because you told them in your introduction. However, they don’t know how you are going to present them. Building in a bit of anticipation as to what you are going to say next draws attention to what you are saying.

A well-timed pause can also help you collect your thoughts, enhancing your overall clarity and composure.

So, varying your speaking speed and inserting strategic pauses are two ways to use pacing in your presentations.

Inserting pauses in your presentation allows you time to adapt to your audience’s reactions.

Adapt to Audience Reactions

Don’t fall into the trap of ignoring your audience’s reactions, and deliver your presentation exactly how you practiced it. Excellent speakers know their audience’s reactions, which determines the pace of their delivery.

As a speaker, you must be attuned to your audience’s reactions and adjust your delivery pace accordingly. If your audience seems engaged and eager for more details, you can keep speaking at your present rate.

Conversely, speeding up can help maintain interest if signs of restlessness are apparent.

You should also be flexible in your pacing based on the complexity of your content. More complex information may require a slower pace for better comprehension. You can increase your pace with content that is more familiar to your audience.

You should continuously be mindful of non-verbal cues, such as body language and facial expressions, to gauge audience interest and make real-time adjustments to your pacing.

By focusing on these three ways to use pacing (variation in speed, strategic pauses, and adapting to audience reactions), you can enhance the overall impact of your presentation and effectively convey your message.

Pace yourself!

Call to Action

• Use variation in the speed that you talk; slower for complex information and faster for information familiar to your audience

• Use pauses strategically to bring emphasis to particular parts of your presentation

• Pay attention to non-verbal cues from your audience, such as body language and facial expressions, to gauge their interest and make real-time adjustments to your pacing.

Frank DiBartolomeo is a retired U.S. Air Force Lieutenant Colonel and award-winning speaker, presentation and interview skills coach, and Professional Member of the National Speakers Association. He was awarded Toastmasters International’s highest individual award, Distinguished Toastmaster because of his outstanding work in public speaking and leadership.

Frank formed DiBartolomeo Consulting International (DCI), LLC (www.speakleadandsucceed.com) in 2007. The mission of DCI is to help technical professionals to inspire, motivate, and influence their colleagues and other technical professionals by improving their presentation skills, communication, and personal presence. Reach Frank at frank@speakleadandsucceed.com and (703) 509-4424.

Don’t miss Frank DiBartolomeo’s latest book!

“Speak Well and Prosper: Tips, Tools, and Techniques for Better Presentations”

Available now at Amazon.com and BarnesandNoble.com