One common mistake speakers make is to speak to—or even at—the audience, rather than to speak with the audience. As discussed earlier, in Western cultures, this generally means making and maintaining eye contact. But it also means listening to audience reactions, paying attention to listeners’ body movements, and continually gauging their responses to what you say and do so that you can make adjustments to your speech as you go along. For example, if you observe audience members frowning or squinting, it may be a sign of misunderstanding. You can take this as a cue to slow down or emphasize key points more explicitly. Alternatively, if you notice your audience members responding with smiles, focused eye contact, or even laughter, you probably want to maintain the style of speaking that produced such a positive reaction.