Analysis of Mark Watson; The Art of Being Conversational In Public Speaking

Mark Watson is one of my favourite comedians. His style, his commentary on the everyday and his ability to do so in a very relatable, conversational tone, just has me in hysterics. 

So I'm enjoying my blog session this morning, considering what we as communicators can learn from the brilliant Mark Watson. 

Enjoy the clip and then I've got some thoughts to share on it;

 

 

The Art of Being Natural 

One of the incredible traits about Marks stand up is that it very much feels like a conversation. You could quite easily convince yourself that he's sat opposite you in a coffee shop, telling you about a story from the last few days. There's no hint of it sounding scripted (though it likely is, to some extent), in many ways, he's not the most slick of speakers yet that brings a sense of charm and intrigue to his stage presence. 

Now hear me correctly - this is a refined skill that Mark has mastered. Not many people could pull of the same scatti presentation and get away with it. 

Planted in one spot

Comedians have a habit of pacing the stage. Sometimes its engaging, other times it's distracting - It largely depends on the comedian and their style. Marks ability to plant himself in a spot and communicate from one space, works for him. I'd suggest that all communicators should at least begin to develop this discipline. Planting your feet in one spot and developing the skill to communicate and engage without the movement, will help you become a much stronger communicator in the long term. You might find, like Mark, that standing in one spot works for you. It certainly adds to Mark's conversational approach. 

Punchlines throughout

Many of us, if writing this routine, would likely jump straight to the punchline at the end. The skill of all storytelling comics, is to write jokes that aid the build up to the final punchline. The laughter should grow as the story evolves. Mark demonstrates this wonderfully.  If we apply the same principle to our presentations, even if we aren't using humour, it's a good principle to work by. How can you plot points of engagement, response, reaction and moments of thinking in your storytelling, to aid the build up to your final comment. 

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Mark is a brilliant communicator and comedian. I can almost imagine him finishing one of his hilarious commentaries with a powerful, thought provoking question or one line statement. He's be just as good a motivational speaker, as he is a comic.