Kendall Zoller: Master of Communication Choreography

*Disclaimer – Due to technical errors, the personal interview with  Mr. Zoller was lost, and the conversations are paraphrased.

Regardless of whether you like it or not, you have probably given a speech before in front of an audience and will probably give many more in the future. When your turn comes to give a presentation in class or give a speech in front of the school, your priority is probably to remember everything that you want to say. However, one thing that you may overlook is the importance of how you present. Of course, many experienced speakers understand that the art of public speaking is not only about the verbal aspect, but also the nonverbal aspect, ranging from simple facial expressions to posture. Kendall Zoller, an author and communications consultant, knows just how important the ‘choreography of communication’ really is.

Mr. Zoller visited AISG as a part of the new PTA-sponsored Speaker Series. He spoke with a few classes to teach them how to become better public speakers, as well as presenting to the faculty on the same topic. To give some background on Mr. Zoller, he used to be a biology teacher before attending a seminar on improving how to communicate (which he insisted that he “didn’t want to go to”), but that incident opened his eyes to the world of communication choreography. He currently travels around the world and gives presentations on the art of choreography and communication.

So what exactly is this ‘choreography of communication’? Choreography refers to a sequence of steps or movements, which Mr. Zoller demonstrated in his presentation. Mr. Zoller says that one trick people can use to help remember what they need to say is through memorizing a pattern. The human brain is much better at memorizing things through patterns such as songs or mnemonic devices. One way to connect this to the choreography is to have a specific pattern of gestures or movements associated with a certain point or argument.

Mr. Zoller also explained how one can utilize gestures to convey a certain point and capture the audience’s attention. One example he gave was nodding his head at the end of an important argument to emphasize that point. Another thing he suggested was to use hand gestures to intrigue the audience and even hold their attention if you forget what you need to say. Overall, using different movements and gestures to your advantage not only makes a speech more entertaining but can also benefit the speaker by helping them remember their speech.

The art of communication is one that is crucial to learn since, in life, you will always need to be able to communicate with others, whether it is for an English presentation, a business proposal, or a simple conversation with a friend. It can be greatly beneficial to learn from someone who is not a teacher, but rather an expert on the topic. Learning some tricks to help you communicate better can definitely help you later on in life.