Public speaking is one of the most powerful tools of leadership. It’s where preparation meets presence, where a message becomes movement.
Throughout my career, I’ve stood behind microphones in boardrooms, mosques, schools, and city halls. I’ve spoken in moments of celebration and in moments of crisis. Each time, I’m reminded that speaking to an audience isn’t just about delivering words, it’s about creating connection, clarity, and trust.
Speaking With Purpose
Before I prepare a single line, I always ask myself: why am I here, and what do I want this audience to walk away with?
Purpose anchors a message. It gives words their weight and tone their direction. When you understand your purpose, you begin to see that a speech isn’t about information, it’s about intention.
Purpose-driven speaking transforms delivery into dialogue. It invites people in instead of talking past them. Whether I’m representing a community organization or addressing a city-wide initiative, that focus on purpose is what keeps the message centered and sincere.
Crafting the Message
Every great talk has rhythm, a natural rise, a pause, a release. It’s not about perfection; it’s about presence.
I often start with a story, something real, rooted, and relatable. Storytelling grounds big ideas in human experience. It helps people see themselves inside the message. Then comes structure: clear points, clean transitions, and deliberate pacing.
Great communication is an act of empathy. You shape your message for how it will be received, not just how you want to say it. In that way, writing a speech is not performance, it’s design.
Owning the Space
Presence is what turns good communication into leadership.
Before I speak, I take a moment to feel the space, to breathe, observe, and connect with the energy in the room. Eye contact, posture, tone, they all communicate before you even begin to speak.
The most powerful speakers don’t dominate a room; they steady it. They carry calm in their voice even when their message is urgent. They speak to people, not at them.
Owning a room has nothing to do with volume; it has everything to do with conviction.
Speaking Across Difference
Public speaking is also an act of bridge-building.
I’ve stood before audiences that were diverse in every sense, faith, background, language, and worldview. Connecting across differences requires respect, adaptability, and curiosity.
I choose language that resonates beyond the familiar, principles like compassion, equity, and service that speak to shared humanity. When your message is rooted in universal values, it travels further.
The goal is not agreement, but understanding. When people feel understood, they open their minds before they open their notebooks.
Moments That Shape You
Some of my most defining moments came when the stakes were high, addressing Islamophobia after public attacks, guiding a community through uncertainty, or representing the voice of Edmonton’s Muslim community on national platforms.
In those moments, the role of a speaker is not to impress; it’s to steady hearts. Words can restore dignity when they’re chosen with care. They can turn pain into collective strength.
Those experiences taught me that public speaking, at its best, is a form of leadership through service.
Continuous Practice
The art of speaking well is the art of thinking clearly.
Every engagement, whether a major keynote or a small internal meeting, is an opportunity to refine. Watch recordings, ask for feedback, listen to yourself. Notice not just what you said, but how people felt when you said it.
Like strategy, communication is a living practice. It evolves as you do.
Leadership Through Voice
The microphone doesn’t create leaders, it reveals them.
Public speaking is where vision meets vulnerability. It’s where leaders stand accountable to their message and to the people they serve.
When done with sincerity, speaking becomes more than presentation, it becomes presence. It reminds people that leadership isn’t just about guiding decisions; it’s about moving hearts.
At ELMA Consulting, we help leaders and organizations build powerful communication cultures, where words inspire confidence, purpose, and lasting connection.
