How to Prepare for a Multilingual Presentation
November 3, 2022
If you have been tasked with preparing for a multilingual presentation, you have some important choices to make to ensure that no one in your audience feels left out. After all, a good presentation should contain valid information for everyone in attendance as well as be memorable because you were able to engage, share, and persuade those with differing backgrounds to yours.
You cannot expect to deliver a mesmerizing presentation without taking the time to properly conceptualize and frame what it is that you want to say. A good place to start is by thinking about why you are being asked to speak and what your audience may or may not know about the topic you will be addressing.
Remember it is difficult for someone who speaks your native language to concentrate on the new concepts you are attempting to deliver if your presentation is boring. So, take full responsibility for ensuring your multilingual presentation sparks curiosity in your audience to ensure both you and your listeners get the most from your narrative.
Focus on Why Your Audience Is There
Even though your multilingual presentation is being interpreted into the native language of your listeners, your audience will most likely remain focused on you throughout your delivery. To keep everyone's attention, it is crucial that you create a presentation around a single topic that introduces why the audience is attending in the first place. Regardless of the language differences, the most effective and efficient communication will come from your connecting with all members of your target group. So make impromptu eye contact with people in different parts of the audience to own the stage.
Since your audience is attending for a reason, it is important that they feel enlightened by your presence and inspired by your presentation. To ensure each attendee understands your message, intentionally speak at a slightly slower pace and never rush when delivering new ideas or important concepts. Based on the cultural diversity of the group, you should creatively include pauses to allow interpreters to convey the little nuances in the meaning of the message being delivered. When listeners fail to understand the words coming out of your mouth, they are apt to become disinterested in what you have to say.
Delivering Your Message to a Multilingual Audience
If you were thinking that you could deliver a presentation to a multilingual audience with little to no preparation by just winging it; think again. Even experienced speakers who feel energized by thrill of taking the stage know that preparation and practice allows for the best results under pressure. Listed below are techniques for mastering your presentation:
Diverse Content Research – Remember that you are not just talking to yourself. The focus of your content research should reflect the range of cultural diversity and interests of your entire multilingual audience. Creating a manuscript that includes language nuances written out word for word can be useful for word precision but allow adequate time to commit your speech to memory. Your audience cannot appreciate your intelligence if they cannot relate to what you are saying.
Create a Narrative – Instead of trying to squeeze all of your knowledge about the topic into your presentation, allocate time to deliver a core idea that will impact your audience. Accept the fact that creating a narrative will take time and may require several drafts to sculpt your message into a powerful experience. This is where a creative approach is needed to build silence into your delivery so it can serve as an impromptu pause for booth interpretation. Then, practice your speech over and over while including each deliberate pause.
Add Pitch to Build Interest – All too often, speakers today rely too heavily on technology due to a mistaken belief that a PowerPoint presentation will provide that visual punch the audience is expecting. A creative use of visuals at well-planned intervals can help anchor critical parts of your message. Just make sure the visuals add to your presentation without distracting attention from your pitch. Nothing can cause an audience to mentally opt out quicker than boring slides.
Extemporaneous Delivery – Selecting an extemporaneous style of communication allows you to deliver your presentation without anyone knowing that you practiced for hours on end to memorize the narrative. Simply put, it combines preparation with spontaneity so you deliver your message in a more meaningful way. It is your job as the speaker to spark the audience’s curiosity through your storytelling and by the use of effective visuals that drive your point home.
Now that you have a road map to serve as your guide, remember there is no best way to deliver a presentation in any language. So never try to emulate someone else that you heard deliver a memorable or entertaining message. Instead, offer your audience something fresh that plays to your personal strengths and is truly authentic to you. Keep it simple but prepare, practice, and deliver.
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