PRACTICE USING YOUR HANDS

What a difference this makes. The use of hand gestures during a speech can improve your impact at least another 20 percent.

When you use your hands well, it makes your speech more lively and dynamic. It makes you look as if you’re much more enthusiastic, too. When I see people speaking with their whole body, particularly their arms and hands, I find myself drawn into what they are talking about. It gives me the impression that they really care about and believe in what they are saying.

A speaker who uses his or her hands emphatically can really lift the energy of the whole room. Look at old film footage of Adolf Hitler during World War II. Even when you can’t understand a word he’s saying he rivets you with the power of his delivery, largely because of his dramatic hand movements as he speaks.