Make Eye Contact and Nod

Make eye contact with your audience whenever you can. In most speaking situations, you’ll be able to see your audience members. So, take advantage of the opportunity to make them feel like you’re speaking directly to them by making eye contact with them individually, just for a few seconds. As you make eye contact with someone, nod your head slightly if your message warrants it, and you’ll notice their head begin to nod back. I’ve seen this a thousand times while speaking to smaller groups.

Of course, you want to avoid the over-exaggerated, manipulative bobbing of the head to enforce agreement. I’m suggesting a very slight nod to garner a mirrored response. This helps bring your audience into a state of agreement with you. It’s subtle, but it works.

By making direct eye contact, you’re not only engaging that audience member into your presentation, but you’re also winning some trust. People tend to trust you more if you’re willing to look them in the eye.

At the same time, you’ll be able to spot those faces that offer you a welcoming or agreeable expression. Those faces can help you calm your nerves if you feel a little nervous all of a sudden.

Be sure to distribute your eye contact randomly throughout the audience. Oftentimes, I’ll see a speaker at my events who’ll focus in on me, and avoid the audience altogether. Sometimes, a speaker will have a favorite side of the room, and concentrate their connection with the audience in that one area.

Remember, your entire audience wants to connect with you on an individual basis, so make every attempt to offer that opportunity to as many audience members as you can. Scout the room and make eye contact for about five seconds with different individuals, in a random pattern of distribution. Do this while nodding your head a little to gain their agreement, and you can win an audience over, one member at a time.

So, what’s the lesson? Making eye contact while slightly nodding your head can help you win over an entire audience.

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