Like so many others, I was awed and inspired by the talented Amanda Gorman. Taken aback by her words, so beautiful and powerful, I also couldn't help but admire her delivery. So what can we learn from Amanda Gorman's recitation at the Presidential Inauguration?
To be fair, there's a whole lot we can learn from her words alone. Even strictly from a 'presentation skills' lens, I'd need at least a few posts to cover it all. Today, I want to talk about her hand gestures.
You may not even have noticed her hands - this may seem insignificant to you. But I guarantee that you would have noticed if they were flapping about all over the place, fiddling with her hair or tapping nervously on the lectern.
Instead, Amanda's gestures were controlled, deliberate and well paced. They added to her delivery rather than take away from it.
I encourage you to be more conscious of what you do with your hands - where you place them, how you use them and how often. Record yourself using your webcam so you can see what your audience sees.
If your hands move a lot then tone it down or move closer to the camera so they're out of view. If you don't use them much, loosen up a bit to be more expressive. It will make you more interesting to watch - and listen to.
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