There are four major components to a good introduction:

1. Greet your audience
2. Capture attention
3. Establish your credibility
4. Preview your talk

1. Greet Your Audience

As with any conversation or interaction, a greeting is expected. This breaks the ice and establishes rapport with the audience.

Make sure that your greeting is not overly casual. Do not begin with, "Hi, I'm going to talk to you about..." Better yet, choose conventional greetings such as

"Good afternoon. As you know, my name is Nan Peck, and I'm pleased to talk with you about a topic that is near and dear to my head and my heart: listening skills. Your president tells me that this is important to you as well."

2. Capture Your Audience's Attention

Suggest an intriguing opening. You might use a pithy narrative, a compelling statistic, or a relevant quotation.

"Let me ask you this: On a scale of 1 to 10, how would you rate yourself as a listener? [pause] .Most U.S. adults would rate themselves a 7.5. ..Unfortunately, according to the National Communication Association, if you're like most adults, you listen with just 25% efficiency!"

"If you're like me, you realize that there is more to listening than meets the ear. .If you're like me, you know that it's in your best interests to improve your listening skills."

3. Establish Your Credibility

You want to ensure that your audience understands your expertise and experience in your topic. Otherwise, they are not likely to be very receptive to your sage words.

"I've been studying listening and training people to improve their listening skills for more than 20 years. .I spent 14 years training listeners for a suicide hotline and other professionals who recognize the importance of good listening."

4. Preview Your Talk

Orient your audience to the format and central idea for your talk.

"For the next thirty minutes, I'd like to share with you the five important listening considerations that I believe will help you get along better with your family and friends, and your colleagues."

"I'd like to talk with you some research and practical tips for enhancing your listening skills."

"With the hope that you'll be actively listening to me, I invite you to stop me at any time and to ask me for clarification. I promise to listen to you too."