Communication Techniques That Actually Work | Mini Episode

**SPEAKER_1** (0:00)
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**Dr Faye Bate** (0:30)
We've got a section on this podcast called Buy or Bye Bye. I will show you something, and I would like to know your opinions on this thing.

**Caroline Goyder** (0:37)
Love it.

**Dr Faye Bate** (0:38)
So whether you would buy it metaphorically or say bye-bye, you don't really like it.

**Caroline Goyder** (0:43)
So, excellent.

**Dr Faye Bate** (0:45)
It's a lot of fun. First up, Powerposes.

**Caroline Goyder** (0:49)
Yeah, I'm a buy. I think I love Amy Cuddy's work. She's a fabulous speaker, and I think Powerposes, they've had a lot of flack from the Academy, but they bloomin well work. So yes, it's a buy.

**Dr Faye Bate** (1:01)
For those who have never heard of Powerposes, what are they and why is it a buy for you?

**Caroline Goyder** (1:07)
Amy Cuddy looks at the body as the key to confidence, and she talks about how when we open up our physicality, I'm not going to do it now because it won't help your Joseph who's doing our sound for us. But if you really open up your body, then she says that gives you confidence because it says to your nervous system, you're in charge. I mean, Apex Predator is the wrong expression, but it says you're on the savanna and you're not threatened, right? Whereas a small closed off body says, you know, I am prey.

**Dr Faye Bate** (1:41)
Those who are watching our video now, the way that I am sat is very, I am prey right now, but.

**Caroline Goyder** (1:46)
Well, no, because you see your shoulders, your collarbones, your breath is open. So I would dispute that. I think if your shoulders were hunched and you were leaning forward.

**Dr Faye Bate** (1:56)
Yeah.

**Caroline Goyder** (1:57)
But I think you're beautifully aligned in a relaxed way and breathing diaphragmatically. So you're power posing in your own way.

**Dr Faye Bate** (2:04)
I used to do this before a lot of my exams. And then I saw some, yeah, some slack about it. So I stopped doing it. I used to do the Superman pose in the toilets for two minutes before I'd sit an exam. And, you know, regardless of whether it was a placebo or not, I walked out and I did feel like I could conquer it. And I think it's what works for you, isn't it? If you're someone who gets anxious in a situation and that gives you that sense of power and control.

**Caroline Goyder** (2:31)
Do it.

**Dr Faye Bate** (2:31)
Yeah, exactly, exactly. I had an exam the other day and I didn't do it. So I'm gonna do it again. Thank you very much.

**Caroline Goyder** (2:37)
Pleasure.

**Dr Faye Bate** (2:38)
Public speaking clubs.

**Caroline Goyder** (2:40)
Yeah, that's a buy.

**Dr Faye Bate** (2:41)
Okay.

**Caroline Goyder** (2:41)
Now, okay, fair disclosure, I joined a Toastmasters.

**Dr Faye Bate** (2:45)
What is a Toastmasters? Because I have no idea and it was in the podcast notes and I was thinking, what is this?

**Caroline Goyder** (2:51)
It's a club that you go to once a week and they help you practice your speaking. For me, it didn't work because I'm not great at rules.

**Dr Faye Bate** (2:59)
Same.

**Caroline Goyder** (2:59)
But I think anywhere that you get to practice public speaking is a good things. I mean, it's not also an introvert's dream. If you're an introvert and the thought of the public speaking club is a nightmare, then I would say just practice at home, put your voice on voice memos, run the presentation through, but you do have to practice speaking.
You can't just write a speech and hope it'll be okay. Public speaking clubs are really good for that. So it's a buy.

**Dr Faye Bate** (3:23)
Nice. So we're going to come on to my experience doing my TED talk a little bit later on as well. But just on the Toastmasters, what is the setup? Do you rock up and they ask you to prepare something to speak about or how does that work normally?

**Caroline Goyder** (3:39)
There's a real formula and there's an MC and there are different speaking exercises and different people will do things different weeks. And as you get to know the group better, you'll be asked to do more. So it's a really clever framework for upping your public speaking, but only if you like rules, only if you like a very defined framework. But for the people it works for, it's absolutely brilliant. And there are other public speaking clubs out there that are less formal as well.