Public speaking is a common fear of many. Many people rank it ahead of death on their fear list. Therefore, it is important to practice in advance in order to boost your confidence. The tips that follow are a good starting point.
Do not speak publicly and expect people to follow your thoughts. You need to make an effort to get and keep their attention. This will help you to engage your audience at all costs.
Memorize your speech beforehand to reduce your anxiety. This will help you with the overall delivery. Memorizing your speech also makes ad libbing on stage more comfortable.
You cannot give a speech and automatically assume that everyone will follow what you say. You must work hard to get their attention and even harder to keep it. You are performing for them, and speaking confidently to win them over is key to achieving the desired results.
Always face your audience. Never allow yourself to be distracted by anything else that is going on in the room. Since you want the audience to engage in what you are saying, you need to get their attention.
Practice your speech frequently once you have it memorized. This will help you to become more comfortable with what you are saying. Work on your pace and your breathing. Be sure to allow time in your speaking for pauses or interruptions, which you hope to be audience applause. If you can, go over your speech where you will be delivering it.
Get to know your surroundings before your speech. Test your voice in it to see how far it projects if you aren’t using a microphone. Use whatever equipment is available and get familiar with it. Use visual aids effectively. Get an idea of how much range of eye contact you need to make.
If you are preparing for a public speaking engagement in advance, memorize your speech first, before anything else. After you’re able to recite completely from memory, then it’s time to polish up on your delivery. You will be more comfortable on stage when you have memorized your speech.
Breathe calmly if you are afraid of public speaking. Breathing deliberately and deeply, followed by a complete exhale, can work to bring nervousness down. Breathe in with your nose and count to five. Release through your mouth while counting to five again. Do this several times to ease your nerves.
Practice all that you can prior to your speech. You can practice in front of a mirror or record your speech so that you can critique it to see areas that you can improve. However, doing a practice run for family or friends is ideal, as they will be able to critique you well.
Make sure you look good, even if the talk is an informal one. It will help to reflect a professional attitude. You don’t have to wear a suit, but wear something nice that will impress the audience.
Face you audience at all times when you are giving a speech. Keep your focus on what you are doing and not allow yourself to get distracted. You are trying to convince your audience of something, which means that it is very important for them to have your full attention.
Know the ins and outs of what your speech will be about. Pick a topic that really interests you and that you have a personal connection with. Use a conversational tone to impress the audience with knowledge instead of upscale jargon.
Prior to launching into your material, try to win over the crowd. As they come into the room, flash them a smile. If possible, try to shake the hand of some of the attendees. When you show this positive attitude, the audience will show more interest in what you will be talking about.
Note Cards
Once your speech is memorized, practice it over and over again. Work on issues where you lose your flow. Also, practice your breathing and pace. Give yourself some pause time after making key points. Practice the speech with any equipment you plan to use.
Use notes if you must. While you should have your speech memorized, you should carry a set of note cards with you to the podium. While you don’t necessarily need the entire speech, having key points of it that you want to emphasize should at least be written down on note cards to ensure that you don’t forget to cover the important stuff.
Be certain you have visual aids that are not the main attraction. They should simply add to the presentation, not take over it. Avoid letting them overshadow your words. For your most important points, make sure your visuals are of a high quality. This will help to keep your speech fun and enticing.
Don’t go into a speech thinking you are just going to wing it. It is not a good idea ever, no matter how well you know the subject. You might be able to manage to get through the speech. After the speech, you are likely to feel bad about it knowing that you left important pieces of information out.
Know what you are talking about, inside and out. Research it from various angles so you have a good understanding of the topic. Then you can hone in and discover your personal point of view in order to prepare an effective speech. You will be better prepared when you have questions to answer.
Who is your audience? Each audience is bound to have different expectations with regards to your speech. For instance, colleagues will expect to gain knowledge from what you have to say. Family members might look for a little entertainment from your speech. Make sure that you appeal to the audience at all times.
To help still your nerves, imagine you are an audience member. If the person making the speech made an error, would you laugh at them? Would you think negatively of the speaker? Remember that mistakes are okay. In most cases, everyone will understand.
Avoid letting the audience know how nervous you are about speaking. That way, you will come across as an authority, not someone who is overly nervous. It is often the case that a speaker believes their fear is showing through, but it usually is not. It is best to allow the audience to believe that you are fully in command and confident, even if you feel like butterflies are battling it out in your stomach.
If you have skipped some of the information in your speech, continue talking rather than getting yourself and the audience confused by an awkward flow of words. Stopping during the speech to return to the point may cause you to go off the rails. In general, the audience is not going to know that you missed a small portion of your prepared speech.
Many people quake with fear at the thought of giving a speech in public. However, you need not let your own fear of speaking in public grip you. Think about the advice that has been presented here so you can get better at public speaking.