When it comes to performing, some people make the astoundingly difficult look easy. Olympic skaters seemingly float through a triple lutz. Roger Federer barely breaks a sweat defending his number one world ranking. Helen Mirren seems to actually become her characters. And so it is with any great public speaker. While most of us freeze at the sight of an audience looking back at us, great speakers seem to have no notion of the miracle that is their self-assured wit. Their calm bearing, though, is more often the product of careful preparation and an understanding of certain tricks of the speaking trade.

Dan Fogelberg, a popular balladeer of the 1980s, liked to introduce the performance of one of his hits by saying, This is the only song youll ever hear with the word exhumed in the lyrics. The crowd laughed, then moments later they were swooning to a romantic love song. Fogelbergs little comment strategically accomplished several things: he reminded the audience he didnt take himself too seriously; he combined lightness with meaning; and even more cleverly, he delivered a subtle instruction to listen closely. Great speakers do this all the time, from the way they set up their presentation to how they manage audience emotions and perceptions.