While we wait for everyone to arrive, if you like:

Write in the Zoom chat where you're from and what language you contribute in. Feel free to add a few words about the topic you'll be speaking about at Wikimania.

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Welcome to the Wikimania 2023 �Speaker Onboarding

Who This is For

• For beginners to learn fundamentals and practice public speaking in a safe, supportive space
• For experienced speakers to get a refresher, connect with other Wikimania speakers, and practice (practice never ends!)

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The Goal

• To help you prepare interesting, relevant talks for your fellow Wikimedians
• To provide an opportunity to practice public speaking

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About this session

What this is not

• It is not the best place to ask technical questions about the venue. That would be here: https://wikimania.wikimedia.org/wiki/2023:Venue

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• The Speaker Guidebook
• A self-paced WikiLearn course based on the guidebook
• Speaker Telegram group

More speaker onboarding resources

1. Introduction
2. Lecture: Ingredients of Great Public Speaking
3. Activities: Preparing and Practicing Your Talk
4. Final Reflection

Agenda

5 min.

20 min.

60 min.

5 min.

Expectations

• Participate!
• Having camera on is encouraged.
• Be in a quiet space if possible. Mute yourself if you are in a noisy place but if not, unmute yourself so we can hear each other’s laughs, “mhmms,” “uhuhs,” “huhs”.
• Bring an open, non-judgmental, respectful mindset. We are a diverse group with different backgrounds and views.
• When speaking, be clear and to-the-point. Try not to ramble. We don't have much time.
• If you have questions: speak up (most recommended), ask in the group chat, or send a private message to either Simona or Asaf (in the chat box, you can select to send to “Everyone” or a specific person).
• Recording: we are going to begin recording and share on Commons. We will be editing out participant interactions to preserve your privacy.

Ingredients of

Great Public Speaking

Think back to the last time you heard a great talk. Why was it so great?

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Some answers...

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The speaker told a relatable story.

The talk was funny and enjoyable to listen to.

The talk answered questions I had about the topic.

I felt like the speaker was speaking directly to me.

The topic was really interesting.

It was easy to follow what they were saying.

Ingredients of Great Public Speaking

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Audience

Relevance and connection to your audience

Purpose

A clear reason you are bringing people together and giving your talk

Core Message

A simple, clear message that you want your audience to takeaway

Structure

Easy to follow, with a logical progression and a beginning, middle and end

Delivery

Delivered with a conversational tone and an authentic manner

Practice

Practiced enough so that the talk is refined, within the time limit and delivered naturally and confidently

Stories (content)

Vivid stories that help your audience visualize and feel what you are saying

Outline

Structure + stories = outline

The purpose is your why, the reason you are giving your talk.

Purpose

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Why is purpose important?

If you don’t know what your goal is, how do you know when you have succeeded?

Delivering a great talk requires intention. If you know why you are talking, your audience can too.

What can your purpose be?

• To share something new
• To change someone’s mind
• To encourage people to act
• To demonstrate something
• To make connections

Icon: geotahtah

Core Message

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The core message is the one thing you want your audience to take away from your talk.

Why is the core message important?

With a core message, you are keeping your talk simple and clear. It helps you deliver a focused talk that is memorable for your audience and aligned with your purpose.

Examples

• If your purpose is … “to open people’s minds to the possibilities of wikidata” then one possible core message could be: “Wikidata opens up the possibility of asking questions previously thought not possible”
• Your core message also depends on your audience. If you're introducing Wikidata to professional librarians, your core message might be: "Wikidata is a sophisticated way of curating and federating meta-data that major world libraries are already engaging with!"

Icon: freepik

• Use examples that they can relate to
• Provide context that they may need
• Ask relevant questions
• Use stories that are vivid and that the audience can relate to

Audience

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Understanding who your audience is helps you prepare a talk they want to listen to.

You may not know exactly who is coming to your talk, but you prepare by asking yourself:

• What do they know about your topic?
• What backgrounds (educational, cultural, geographical, etc.) might they have?
• How might your audience react to what you are saying?
• What might they want to hear from you?
• How might they differ from the group(s) you are (more) used to communicate with?

Connecting with your audience

Icon: freepik

Structure

Structure is the framework of your talk. It is the order of your points and the way you put your content together.

Why is structure important?

Structure helps you prepare a talk that your audience can understand. It helps to take them on a journey.

A common structure

Beginning

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Middle

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End

Icon: becris

• Hook: get your audience’s attention
• Core message: help them understand why you are speaking and what you are going to talk about

• Story #1 + your point
• Story #2 + your point
• Story #3 + your point

• Summary or call to action: leave them with a takeaway

Stories (Content)

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Icon: freepik

Stories, or more generally content, is the substance of your talk. It is what you are going to say.

What to keep in mind

• Stay close to your core message. Ask yourself, is each statement necessary?
• Tell stories that help people visualize your points
• Help people follow along by providing context and signposts (“Next I will tell two stories”)
• Start your talk by captivating your audience
• End your talk by leaving them with something memorable

Outline

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Icon: iconixar

An outline is a written plan, a textual arrangement of what you want to say.

Beginning

• Hook: “Here is a video of two impressive Feminist thinkers”
• Core Message: “The ideas of these two Feminist thinkers can teach Wikimedians important lessons”

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Middle

• Point 1 (Past): The struggles the feminist movement has faced
• Point 2 (Present): How the problem is still real
• Supporting point 1: denying
• Support point 2: minimizing
• Support point 3: avoiding
• Point 3 (Future): What we can do to reach a feminist future?

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End

• Call to Action: “Use your privilege!”

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Structure + Content = Outline

An example

Delivery

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Icon: freepik

Delivery is the how, the way you give your talk.

Why is delivery important?

How we speak has a great impact on the message that is received. Think of the last time you heard someone speak monotonously, or too quickly, or with too many “ums.”

What is a well-delivered talk?

One that is conversational, authentic, and fitting in style to your topic.

Verbal

• Speed: varied, not too fast or slow
• Pause: with pause, no filler words like “um”
• Emotion: warm, non-monotonous tone
• Volume: not whispering, not yelling

• Gesture: use appropriate gestures to animate talk
• Eye Contact: gentle gaze, directly on screen or camera
• Expression: relaxed, cheerful, attentive
• Posture: open body, not looking down on camera

Nonverbal delivery

• Background: enough lighting, not too distracting, quiet
• Visual support: easy to understand and synchronized with your talk

Virtual delivery

Practice

Icon: freepik

Practice is the key to feeling prepared.

More benefits of practice

• Feeling less nervous
• Speaking within the time

How to practice

• Early and often
• Use your outline as your guide and then expand on it
• Memorize or not? Whichever lets you sound conversational
• Record yourself and rewatch to improve

• Give yourself feedback and make changes to your talk
• Practice in the same setting and with the same material as the real talk
• Practice with a test audience and ask for their feedback

• Appearing natural and conversational
• Delivering a meaningful message

Activity

Preparing and Practicing Public Speaking

Activity: Preparing Your Talk

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Prepare a 5-minute talk about a topic you are passionate about. You will be delivering this 5-minute talk right away in the next activity.

More details

• Prepare the talk by creating an outline (= content headlines arranged in a structure)
• Pretend your purpose is to get your audience interested in your topic. After your talk, you want them to say, “Huh, that was interesting!”
• Pretend your audience is the people in this session (fellow Wikimedians, diverse backgrounds, different understandings of your topic)

10 minutes

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Beginning

Example Outline

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Good Outline

Bad Outline

Title: What can we learn from the Feminist movement?

• The lack of feminism in the Wikimedia movement
• Why feminism is important
• Possible actions to take
• Examples of key feminists
• My journey into feminism
• The benefits of feminism

Title: What can we learn from the Feminist movement?

• Hook: “Here is a video of two impressive Feminist thinkers”
• Core Message: “The ideas of these two Feminist thinkers can teach Wikimedians important lessons”

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Middle

• Point 1 (Past): The struggles the feminist movement has faced
• Point 2 (Present): How the problem is still real
• Supporting point 1: denying
• Support point 2: minimizing
• Support point 3: avoiding
• Point 3 (Future): What we can do to reach a feminist future?

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End

• Call to Action: “Use your privilege!”

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Activity: Practicing Your Talk

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40 minutes

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More details:

• Give a 5-minute talk using your outline to guide you
• Remember: this is a chance to try new things and make mistakes

Practice delivering your 5-minute talk in small groups.

Each person will have 5 minutes to talk + 5 minutes of feedback.

Giving Feedback

• Actionable: feedback can be used to improve
• Specific: it is targeted and clear, not vague and general
• Honest (but respectful): it is genuine and honest instead of trying to be nice
• Include the “why”: explain not only what but why it’s important

Receiving Feedback

• Be open-minded in accepting feedback
• Accept feedback by saying “thank you” instead of defending yourself
• Try to not interpret the feedback as judgement of who you are as a person but as an opportunity to improve your abilities

Giving And Receiving Feedback

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Examples of Feedback

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Bad Feedback

Good Feedback

• “I liked it. Great job!”

• “I really liked the way you introduced your talk by asking a question to the audience. It helped orient me to your topic”

• “You could have slowed down”

• “I didn’t understand what you were talking about. You should make it clearer”

• “You were talking too fast which made your ideas hard to follow. I would suggest slowing down, especially in the beginning”

• “To make your message clearer, I think you could have provided less detail in the first story you told. The second part of the story did not add to your point”

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Feedback Prompts

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General Questions

• How can the speaker improve?
• What stands out to you?
• Would this bore the audience?
• What questions might people have?

Content and Structure

• What was the best element? Why?
• What moments felt disconnected or confusing?
• Is the core message clear?
• Was it easy to follow their points?
• Were the points or stories relevant and interesting?
• Were there any moments of rambling?
• Are the transitions from point to point smooth?

Delivery

• Does the speaker finish on time?
• Were they talking too fast or slow?
• Were they using filler words like “um” or “like”?
• Did their talk sound conversational?
• Did their talk sound genuine?
• Do they talk too loud? Too soft?
• If using hand gestures or facial expressions, are they synchronized with their words?
• Where are their eyes looking?
• Are they positioned well in front of the screen?
• Is there enough lighting in the room?
• Is their background distracting?

In your small groups, take turns practicing your talks. 5 minutes talk + 5 minutes feedback per person.

The instructions one more time...

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Remember:

• Nominate one person to keep the time for everyone’s turn
• When giving feedback, use the “Feedback Prompts” slide for guidance
• You will see reminders from your facilitators on the top of your screen
• If you have questions or need help while in the small group session, click the “Ask for Help” icon and one of your facilitators will come

Spend 7 minutes individually writing an outline and preparing a 5-minute talk.

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The instructions one more time...

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Final Reflection And Next Steps

What stands out for you?

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• You can contact us at comdevteam@wikimedia.org

The slides will be emailed to you!