Communication Strategies

The talk show icon, Oprah Winfrey is not only a highly regarded professional speaker, but also the reigning queen of communication.  As a good communicator, Oprah possesses three specific characteristics crucial for any public speaker who is eager to reach a wide and diverse audience. Sincerity Oprah   speaks only about things she truly believes in and feels passionate about. She shares her ideas naturally and without pretense. She is so passionate about her message and this makes her audience eager to hear more of the message. Knowledgeable She delivers a solid content message that people find valuable for their lives, her message is practical and easily applied enabling her audience understand it quickly.  Humorous she is self-deprecating she laughs at herself, tells funny stories relevant to her message, hence her audience perceives her as mature and emotional, this makes them happy and receptive. (httpwww.findingdwenea.comfeatures profileswoprah-winfrey.html)

Oprah is an excellent communicator, with a very clear and unique approach to her guest speakers and her audience. She possesses high quality listening skills she pays attention to the speaker in her talk shows, this clearly demonstrates that she is involved in the conversation, she asks her hosts questions to make the message clear to her and also to the audience. She does not interrupt the speaker in the middle of the speech, she waits until the idea is explained completely. She responds both verbally and non-verbally, by eye contacts, nodding occasionally, short responses to help the speaker understand she is following the conversation. (Barthel, Joan, 1986.)

Verbal communication is oral or written communication. Oprahs verbal forms of communication are as follows The famous Oprahs Winfrey show, she eloquently speaks and shares her ideas with the guests in her show, she has created a website, www.oprah.com,which provides resources and interactive content relating to her show reaching many people in the globe, Oprahs other channels of verbal (written) communication are a book club, Oprah magazine and a public charity. She has also written Time magazine, creating a new forum of media communication known as rapport talk. Non- verbal communication is the use of unspoken signals like the use of overall body movements. Oprahs non-verbal communication is one reason behind her success, in her cheerful talk show she gets her audience involved in the message been conveyed, by smiling where necessary, hand gesture and facial expressions like crying alongside her guests.

Oprah is a skilled and gifted communicator her communicable exchanges are candid and intimate. Her transparent rapport equips her with the ability to influence and empower her audience in fields like business literature and philanthropy. She possesses a hallmark of communication skills. In non-verbal communication, she is an expert in air signs, an indication of a professional communicator who is rational, objective and can plan and analyze a problem from a totally detached perspective. Her verbal eloquence and acting ability, makes her an intellectual dictator, someone who can manipulate people and put them in the right slot, this is a good position for a person like her who has a passion in the media industry where you need to manipulate the guest and get the right answers, she speaks in a conversational tone, a tone of voice that make people feel that is her normal way of talking. She never changes her style of delivery from one situation to another, she is the same whether, she is delivering a speech, having an intimate conversation, or been interviewed on a TV talk show, this is one of the characteristics of the best communicators, she is consistency in her communication skills and gives her audience what they see hence capturing her viewers feelings and make them believe she is really the person they want to hear and see on TV. (Ryan, Maureen, 2009).

Today Oprah Winfrey is one of the top eminent persons who have succeeded in life, a famous public speaker and one of the richest and most powerful female figure in America, this is one reason why I choose to write about her. In addition she has been an inspiration to many people facing various life challenging issues like poverty, aids epidemic among others. She is always herself and expresses her own opinion and shares her true feelings about the topics that moved her. She is an expert in communication and known public speaker in America who speaks to the crowd at various occasions about the importance of communication and having a strategic plan.