Do You Have to be an Extrovert to be a Good Speaker?

The short answer to that is a resounding ‘no’, in fact some claim that those deemed introverts are more likely to excel at public speaking. 

Let’s take a look at the labels of introvert and extrovert.  Over time, these descriptors have become somewhat diluted and we often use the terms loosely; an extrovert is someone who is loud and confident, whilst an introvert is shy and retiring.   

In fact, the original meaning of these terms, coined by Carl Jung, is a way of describing how a person is energised.  So an extrovert is someone who is energised by social activity and an introvert tends to gain energy from spending time alone.  Often an introvert will lose energy when in large groups of people.  

Whilst we all know people who might be deemed to fully display the characteristics of either term, many people are somewhere in the middle, enjoying large group socialising as well as needing time alone to recharge.   

Its performance nature may be the reason we often think of public speaking as being an extrovert activity and indeed, those who are more extrovert in their make-up, may well take to putting themselves out in front of an audience relatively easily, perhaps thriving on the opportunity to command the attention of a group of people.  They may easily interact with their audience and easily use some of the tools of speaking such as injecting humour and stories.   

Someone who is more introvert and finds comfort in socialising in small groups, might feel intimidated at the thought of speaking in front of a larger group than feels comfortable, even when called upon to introduce themselves at a training session, for example.  They may worry about how they are perceived by their audience.   

These people have a lot to offer however in the public speaking arena.  These are the people who thrive on deep conversation rather than chit chat and so they very likely to research their topic in depth, thus potentially delivering talks of great value to their audience.  They are also attuned to other people’s feelings very much and so will pick up on the mood of the room and if they are comfortable, adjust their talk accordingly. 

The thing is, whether you are naturally more attuned to public self-expression or not, you can be a great public speaker, drawing on your particular qualities to deliver a talk or presentation in your own unique style.   

Fear of public speaking can however affect anyone, whether naturally more extrovert or introvert.  In either case, getting fear out of the way can make a very great difference in how you present in front of an audience because with fear out of the way, you have more access to your resources.  Fear shuts clear thinking down because it tends to send the body into a physiological state of fight or flight. 

I have helped people who, even without any particular public speaking training, have gone on to speak comfortably when giving talks or attending interviews or university degree vivas simply because they were no longer hampered by the old fear.   

When you come to see me, I am looking at all aspects of how the inhibition and discomfort you feel around public speaking is made up.  This could include difficult memories of public speaking (more common than you might think and often occurring in school) that need neutralising, beliefs you have about yourself as a speaker, ideas you have taken on from others about your capabilities and how other people such as authority figures affect you (again, very common).  Sometimes, a person is fine speaking in front of 30 people but is fearful when called upon to speak in front of 100 people for example, something that we can also address.   

So the approach I use with you is very specific to you.  And once you are free of the fear, you will be able to work on being the kind of speaker you want to be.