Public Speaking

Maximize Your Personal Appearance (^187)
A combination of clothing,
accessories, facial
expressions, and posture
make this speaker appear
confident and natural.
can make you look prepared and competent. Avoid accessories that distract or draw
attention to themselves. Simple is generally best.
In summary, don’t worry about aspects of your appearance that you can’t fix. Instead,
be well groomed and choose clothing and accessories that make you look your best.
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ethiCs in
praCtiCe Managing impressions
T
here are ethical implications in trying to create an impression of yourself. When you try
to be authentic or when you try to deceive your audience to one degree or another, you
are making ethical choices. Presenting verbal and nonverbal messages that you actually
believe is sincere. In contrast, intentionally choosing to create false or misleading impres-
sions is cynical, because you don’t believe your own messages.^21
You can probably think of public personalities who try to appear genuinely inter-
ested in people because they want their money, time, or votes. Lawyers hire consul-
tants to advise and coach their clients in selecting clothing, mannerisms, and nonverbal
techniques to create an impression of innocence in jury members’ minds. Ivy League–
educated politicians wear flannel shirts or hard hats to “connect” with the working class.
The list goes on.
Using the following questions, discuss with a small group of your classmates the
ethical appropriateness of these and similar actions.
Questions

1. Is it wrong to imply that a politician, an Ivy League graduate from a wealthy family, is
   similar to blue-collar listeners? Why or why not?


2. Are lawyers and consultants acting ethically if they try to create an image of innocence
   for clients they believe are guilty?


3. What if they believe in their clients’ innocence?


4. How do sincere lawyers and politicians contribute to the judicial or political process?


5. How do cynical lawyers and politicians contribute to the judicial or political process?

sincere speakers present-

ing verbal and nonverbal

messages they themselves

believe

cynical speakers presenting

verbal or nonverbal mes-

sages they don’t believe in

an attempt to create a false

image

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