10 amazing lessons to course before the one to one assessments. After watching this pills, be sure to book an appointment and practice with the advisor what you just learned.
Long time no see Ninjakat! Hope you were busy materializing your dreams. All the construction begins with the script you just made. Actually, we’re about halfway done thanks to the script you created! Imagine it like it’s something that came straight out of your imaginarium and now you can feel it coming to life. If you haven`t finished it yet or corrected the structure, please do so, and come back!
So let`s begin by saying that this is a never-ending journey. There’s always room for improvement. The word “improve” is extremely important, we have a synonym for it which is a lot better: “Edit”. It’s fundamental to keep editing your work until it flawless. It will take time, but the more you edit the better will be the outcome.
A great level of English oratory does not require a huge amount of vocabulary or a long text. Actually, is quite the opposite, they prefer to have a concise and to the point text that explains the most crucial ideas in a short and elaborated sentence. To reach this perfect text, editing is the most important tool at your disposal. So, go ahead and pause this video and re-edit your script. Take out long and unnecessary words, focus on transmitting the best part of the idea, and look for synonyms that can replace two or even three words at a time. After you re-edit your script, you guessed it! Re-edit it again and again, until every single word inside of the text is vital.
We´ll look more into word choice and tools to for better word replacement in the future lessons. For now, we’ll focus on two precise points: firstly, a new structure that will allow you to transmit precise and concise ideas through oral speech and written text.
You might remember this from earlier years in school, if not, its cool, you’ll learn it very quickly. You might find different examples online or you’ll feel comfortable using another structure. All of this choices are ok, but if possible try to use this appropriate sentence order to speak and to write from now on.
Pronoun+ verb + adjective/adverb+ vocabulary.
We know there might be discrepancies when elaborating a sentence, but if you follow the simplicity of this sentence structure, you`ll manage to organize every sentence in your mind before speaking. The key to orally expressing comfortably is to automatically form a sentence in your mind before saying it out loud. You see, some people don`t use a special filter that we have equipped on our minds. We humans… and ninjakats, don`t usually use a black board that our brains project before talking. This is a super powerful tool to speak freely and for following a set of words to avoid making mistakes while speaking. Let`s use this blackboard to project the structure and replace it with valuable words.
Choose a pronoun: I, You, He, She, They, We. And that will kick start the sentence.
Then, add a verb which is tricky sometimes depending on its tense. Eat, Drink, Sleep, Jump, run, etc. As you may remember there are two special categories of verbs: regular and irregular. This means that you have to pay close attention to the time you are applying to the sentence, whether is past, present, or future, you need to change the verb to the appropriate tense always.
The adjective is often referred to as the substance of the sentence. Is the special secret sauce that you add to make the sentence taste amazing. By the way, always try to use verbs that are powerful, like delightful or dazzling. So from now on, we’ll create two sorting piles: the forbidden words and the powerful words. On the forbidden pile, words like good, ok, because, normal, bad, and fine should go deep inside. On the other pile, almost any other word that might make someone`s day better like for example fantastic, bashful, and dynamic.
The adverb is next to a slash because it can complement or replace the adjective. It’s meant to create a deeper sense of the sentence or create suspense. Adjectives are great, but adverbs are tremendous! They`re so elegant that we can use them at the beginning, at the middle, or at the end and it will still sound awesome! In our not so humble opinion, adverbs are the difference between a regular speaker and an amazing one, therefore we encourage you to use them often. Examples that we can offer right now are the time adverbs that help the audience locate themselves within our speech: Generally, Frequently, Initially, Firstly, Lastly, and Currently, are some of the best available to use. Don’t be afraid to use them!
At the end you can go ahead and put anything else that you want to communicate. But careful! If you put words that might condition the rest of the sentence, you will have to change all the sentence before speaking. For example, yesterday or tomorrow, necessarily changes the tense of the sentence because it presumes something that will happen or already happened.
One last tip regarding the structure: Keep it simple!
All your sentences should look like concise and to the point, for example: I like to eat pizza. I desperately want to change the world. People speak faster in Spain, generally.
Now, pause this video and go re-edit your script to make all your sentences look like an appropriate sentence structure. The text should look like there`s nothing else you can delete, like all the information, is extremely important.
Now, if you take a closer look, a paragraph is composed of several small sentences. To join or oppose ideas, be risky, introduce adverbs to make it sound with pace and rhythm. Also you can Google: “Linker words” such as: However, Therefore, Actually, etc. This will allow you more fluidity when its time to speak out loud.
Phew! We know it’s a lot to absorb right now! But it’s extremely useful once you master it!
The second point is more important than the structure, and is to relax. So how do you relax when you have to build a structure on your mind before speaking? Easy! Pause before speaking, take a minute, a long breath and begin again. This is why adverbs are the best, they always are followed by a comma which allows you to have a breather and build the next words. For example: Commonly, Ninjakats, create unique projects!
Then, try to use the space. If you have a big stage available to you, go ahead and move around, this will loosen up your muscles, help you create a pace alongside your steps, and off course, people will pay closer attention to you and your movements. If it’s an anecdote or a joke you’re telling, why not move accordingly, use gestures, exaggerate the situations and create a whole play. Create a relaxed and confident personality, the speech will play itself one you feel comfortable.
And lastly, the same as in sports, remember to always warm-up! Before completing your speech or exposing a text you have to exercise your facial muscles. The best way to do this is to smile! Incredibly, we use 43 muscles to smile at someone. The second best way is to use a “mantra”. No, it’s not a strange creature, it’s an exercise you can do to jumpstart your tongue, your brain, and your facial muscles. A mantra is a repetition of sounds that ultimately have a purpose, mainly for motivation or relaxation. Either of them is great for you. Here are some examples: Try saying these phrases really fast until it seems easy to pronounce them.
Unique/ New York, Red leather/ Yellow, Leather, a proper pot of coffee, and anything you can think of really. The purpose of this mantra is to loosen your mind and dominating complex words. At the beginning you may seem silly, but when you finish your speech no one will be thinking that. Repeat them until it sounds natural and your face hurts!
That`s it for today, please comment in The Dojo your favorite mantra and what helps you relax before a presentation. Also remember to re-edit your script, this will be your final copy and there will be no more modifications. The next steps depend on the script to be the best possible.
As always, book a meeting, and see you soon Ninjakat!
