To be able to speak with authority and confidence in public makes a person much more appealing to others. Use these techniques to restore confidence in your speaking. Read on to learn how to become a better public speaker.
Do not speak publicly and expect people to follow your thoughts. You have to get their attention and hold on to it. You are performing for them, and speaking confidently to win them over is key to achieving the desired results.
Make sure you look at your audience when giving a speech. Don’t allow anything to distract you, no matter what may be going on around the room or auditorium. If you want to engage your audience, you need to give them all of your attention.
Know as much as you can about your material. Even when you commit your speech to memory, knowing jokes, facts and figures with regard to the topic is always helpful. Use them judiciously when you feel your audience is receptive. It will also make you better prepared for any questions.
Once you memorize your speech, then practice it over and over. Practice it frequently, and make adjustments as you see fit. Be sure to master your pace and breathing. Make sure to allow a little extra time for applause during your speech. Try to practice using the equipment at the location where you will be delivering your speech.
Any time that you need to make a public speech, you must make sure that you thoroughly understand what you will be talking about before giving the speech. Do broad research and view the topic from different perspectives. Identify the points you want to make and draw up careful notes that you can follow. Your thorough preparation will pay off when your audience asks you questions.
If public speaking makes you nervous, use deep breathing techniques. Taking some deep breaths and then exhaling all the way before giving a speech can reduce nerves. Breath using four-count nasal inhales and five-count mouth exhales. Do this approximately five times to feel a difference in how calm you feel.
When making a speech, always face the audience. Do not become distracted by other things that may be happening nearby. You want your audience to pay attention to you, so you need to pay attention to them as well.
Do not drink alcohol before you give a speech. While you may think it will help loosen you up, you are asking for trouble. You’ll regret it when you’re standing there and forget your speech because your brain is too fuzzy.
Know your material to boost your public speaking confidence. Choose a topic that genuinely interests you and one that you have personal experience with. Remain conversational the entire time, and you will dazzle with knowledge, not flash.
Make sure to make your audience your ally. Smile as they enter, and if it’s possible, shake some hands as you welcome them. When you show this positive attitude, the audience will show more interest in what you will be talking about.
Tell the story true to be a better speaker. Make an outline of the story before the date of the speech. There should be a beginning, middle and an end to communicate your ideas. If your story is one that is modeled after a true story, you will be both natural and believable.
Practice your speech until you have the most important details memorized. Use a mirror, so you can practices your expressions and gestures, as well. Try getting feedback from family when doing dry runs of speeches for them. This will assist you as you make important improvements and get ready to deliver your speech.
A great way to close your speech and have people remember it, is to have a good ending. Although the whole speech is important, what people remember the most is the ending. A boring ending will make them forget your speech quickly.
Your voice must be strong and clear when you speak. Keep water near you when you are speaking. Avoid drinking sodas or dairy beverages the day of your speech. These fluids are saliva-thickening and can even encourage mucous production. Try drinking hot tea before you speak to get your vocal cords to relax.
Become familiar with the environment before giving a public speech. How far will your voice carry or is there a microphone? Use the equipment to see how it works. Try learning to use visual aids, if they’re available. Consider the amount of eye contact that you must make with the crowd.
Visual Aids
You want your visual aids to be attractive, but not distracting. Visual aids should enhance the information you are giving. Do not let it be overwhelming. Use high quality visual aids to make key points. They can be both attractive and colorful without detracting from your presentation.
Picture your upcoming speech in your head. Visualization will help you to keep a positive mindset. Picturing a clapping and interested audience can boost your confidence before your actual speech.
Learning how to breathe properly can help you relax before speaking in public. Taking deep breaths will allow you to relax yourself before speaking. Inhale through your nose for a four-count, and exhale through your mouth for a five-count. Do this several times to ease your nerves.
Never attempt to “wing it.” That is not a good idea, even if you’re passionate about the subject. You might have to provide a passing speech. On the other hand, at the end of the speech, you will immediately regret all the critical points you didn’t make.
Keep the right mindset. It is common to find yourself feeling anxious. Everyone feels nervous before a speech. But, keep yourself from going negative in your thoughts. If you start thinking about failing, chances are you will fail. Thinking the speech will go well means it probably will.
Don’t let the audience know that you are nervous. They will regard your speech more highly if you simply deliver it to them without any personal confessions. Although you may think your nerves are obvious to everyone, they probably are not. Always make the choice to not let them know you’re anxious, which gives them the opportunity to automatically assume you are confident.
Practice is the single best way to make sure you know exactly what to say. Do this near a mirror so you can see yourself. However, also make sure you practice in front of a live audience to get constructive feedback.
By now, you probably have some great new ideas to help you out. These can be applied in both your personal and professional life. Even if you aren’t speaking to a large crowd, you can still use what you learned.