By Tricia Richards-Service
When I was an undergrad at Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania, I was involved in every club and organization related to communications and journalism. I was president of Sigma Delta Chi, our student chapter of the Society for Professional Journalists. I was an editor on yearbook. I was an editor for the school newspaper. Perhaps the most fun role I held was DJ for the college radio station.
I delivered the news a few days of the week, and I hosted a weekly lunch program called the Hot Lunch Jam. I loved every second of it. Today, I’m so grateful that I ventured into radio, because it taught me to use more of a theatrical voice when speaking on a broadcast medium. Serving as a radio DJ doesn’t allow you to see your listeners, so you’re forced to keep up higher-than-normal energy levels, engaging people while they are driving, preparing dinner, exercising, or otherwise casually listening.
No one emulated this better than the late, great Robin Williams in the movie Good Morning, Vietnam. Watch the trailer here. The movie tells the story of an unorthodox and irreverent DJ named Adrian Cronauer begins to shake up things when he is assigned to the U.S. Armed Services radio station in Vietnam in 1965. His goal was singular: raise the morale of the troops serving there.
While most opportunities lack that drama, pressure, and grief, they are useful in developing the skill set needed to be an effective presenter. Public speakers often benefit greatly from experiences like appearing on radio shows or podcasts. Those guest appearances encourage speakers to enunciate more clearly, infuse their remarks with energy, and entice audiences to actively listen.
Speakers, if you are offered an opportunity like this … take it!
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