How to Be a More Engaging Speaker (Without Becoming Someone You’re Not)

Mandy Geyer
Feb 11
3 min read

Whether you’re presenting to senior leadership, a large audience, or a small internal team, the challenge is the same: how do you keep people engaged—especially when the topic is complex or data-heavy?

Many professionals assume engaging speakers are simply born that way. In reality, the most engaging speakers are intentional. They think carefully about their audience, their message, and the energy they bring into the room.

Below are practical, experience-based tips to help you become a more engaging speaker—without turning yourself into someone you’re not.

Start With Energy: Your Audience Takes Cues From You

Early in my career, I never expected to enjoy pricing meetings with clients.

On paper, these meetings weren’t exactly thrilling—claims experience, methodology, rate increases, budgets. They were highly technical and very easy to repeat year after year using the same slides and talking points.

But at some point, I decided I wanted those meetings to be good—not just technically accurate.

I made it my goal to stop recycling the same approach and instead find new ways to communicate the story behind the numbers. I wanted stakeholders to understand not only the results, but the assumptions behind them and the options they had on the table—especially as they prepared for difficult budget conversations with leadership.

A significant amount of work went into the analysis behind the scenes, and I wanted that effort to translate into clarity and confidence for my audience.

When I genuinely cared about making the content engaging, my energy changed. And when my energy changed, the room changed with me.

If you’re disengaged from your content, your audience will be too. You don’t have to love every topic, but you do need to care about helping your audience understand it.

Put Yourself in Your Audience’s Shoes

One of the most effective ways to become a more engaging speaker is to design your message from your audience’s perspective—not your own.

After building your slides or outlining your talking points, step back and ask:

What does my audience want from this presentation?
What do they need to do their jobs better?
What context, pressure, or constraints are they bringing into the room?

An executive audience may care most about implications, risks, and tradeoffs.

A project team may care more about clarity, alignment, and next steps.

The content may be similar, but the framing should be different.

When your audience feels seen and understood, engagement follows naturally.

Add a Little Fun (Even in Serious Meetings)

Engaging presentations don’t need to be flashy—but they do need to feel human.

Adding a short video clip, image, meme, or unexpected visual can quickly reset attention and make your message more memorable. Even senior leaders appreciate moments of levity when they’re relevant and well-timed.

Think of this as a palate cleanser, not a distraction. Used intentionally, small moments of fun can significantly improve engagement.

Use Humor Where It Makes Sense

You don’t need to be a stand-up comedian to be an engaging speaker.

Light, situational humor—especially industry or data humor—can help complex topics feel more accessible. A shared “we’ve all been here before” moment builds connection and trust.

When in doubt, aim for warm and self-aware, not clever or edgy.

SAVE Your Slides: Sparse and Visually Engaging

Your slides should support your message, not compete with it.

A simple rule of thumb is the SAVE approach:

Sparse
And
Visually
Engaging

If someone can read your slides without listening to you, the slides are doing too much.

Strong visual slides reinforce your message while keeping the focus on you as the speaker.

Don’t Over-Rehearse Your Presentation

Preparation matters—but over-rehearsing can drain energy and authenticity.

Instead of memorizing a script, focus on:

What you want to say
Why it matters
What you want your audience to do or think differently afterward

Then speak conversationally.

Audiences connect more with speakers who sound natural—even if they pause, adjust, or slightly rephrase—than with speakers who read slides or scripts verbatim.

Prepared does not mean robotic.

Final Thoughts: Engagement Is About Connection

Engaging speakers aren’t performers. They’re connectors.

When you bring energy to your content, design your message around your audience, and tell a clear story, even the driest topics can become meaningful—and sometimes even enjoyable.

Want Help Becoming a More Engaging Speaker?

If you’re looking to improve your presentation skills, storytelling, and communication—whether as an individual professional or across an entire team—I offer practical resources designed specifically for technical and data-driven audiences.