The more hand gestures you make, the more successful your talk will be. That’s the finding of an analysis which showed a direct correlation between the number of views on a TED talk and the number of hand gestures.
The top TED talks, which averaged 7.36 million views, used an average of 465 hand gestures per 18-minute presentation.
In comparison, the bottom TED talks had an average of 124,000 views, and used an average of 272 hand gestures during the speech.
So on average, doubling the hand gestures multiplies views 59-fold. Conclusion: Being animated as a speaker gains viewer attention.
Source: Brian Clark, 2/16/24.
Mohammed Qahtani, a Saudi Arabian engineer, won the Toastmasters World Championship of Public Speaking. Qahtani, won after several eliminating rounds that took six months with 30,000 participants from more than 100 countries. In this Speech, he quotes: “Words are power, words could be your power.”
Speaking Coach, Speechwriter, and University Instructor
I recently used this video in a Public Speaking class I teach at Florida Atlantic University. Notice how Mr. Qahtani called the audience in with the cigarette, body language, facial expressions, vivid language, humor, and seriousness – all in one speech. He used personal stories that are memorable and painted word pictures in your head as you watched. Mr. Qahtani didn’t just give a speech, he did performance art. That takes creativity, planning, and excellent writing.
I’ve been a speaking coach, written speeches and offered media training to government officials and executives, and given speeches at both small and large venues in Las Vegas, The Breakers resort in Palm Beach, and for groups in South Florida. If you need help creating speeches, PowerPoint content, or coaching to make a memorable public speech, contact me, R. Michael Brown, today!
