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When was the last time that you were terrified of something this badly? Public speaking or the art of addressing a group of audience on a particular topic is still a nightmare even for the extroverts. Many things cross your mind when you are on stage, are they judging you? Are they laughing at you? Did you stammer? Are you sounding all right? And the list gets longer. If you are among a person who still is afraid of public speaking, don’t worry as we are providing you with some 7 easy tips to master this not-so-easy job and tame your nervousness.
Over the years, public speaking in communication has played a major role in education, government, and business. Words have the power to inform, persuade, educate, and even entertain. And the spoken word can be even more powerful than the written word in the hands of the right speaker. Whether you're a small business owner or a student, you'll benefit from improving your public speaking skills. Some benefits to speaking in public include: - Improves confidence - Better research skills - Stronger deductive skills - Ability to advocate for causes 1. Proper Planning
Proper execution needs proper planning. It all begins with a proper plan. Always keep the introductions of the topic intriguing, such that the audience gets so hooked on it. Plan your content by dividing it into a small introduction and sliding into the topic slowly with relevant points. You can also add a story to engage the audience and make the topic more interesting. Then conclude it with something strong that people will remember for a long time. You can also use statistics, tangy proverbs or real-life instances to which your audience can relate. The first thing you'll want to do is work on writing a well-organized, engaging speech. Because even a great speaking voice or a great deal of charisma isn't enough if your material isn't any good.
2. Proper Practice
'Practice before you preach'. As it is said, you won’t be able to rock the stage if you just stand on it. Always write your speech 1-2 weeks before your event. Not only you will have ample time to practice but also there would be enough room for correction or improvement. Practice your speech as much as possible beforehand, as this will deal away with stammering or pronunciation problems. Even if you're not afraid of speaking in public, practice helps you give a more effective speech. If you're in a rush, you may be tempted to skip practising your speech to save time. While skipping practice may seem like a good idea, it's really not. Practising your speech improves your public presentation skills. It also increases your familiarity with the presentation. As a result, your speech will go smoothly.
3. Record Your Speeches
This is also an essential part of your practice. Whenever you practice your speech, record it. And by recording, we mean video recording, as not only your speech but also you can see your body language in the video. You can easily identify the parts, where you went wrong. Did you speak the way you want? Did it sound the way you want? How natural are your gestures? Are you standing straight or leaning? Are you looking confident? All these self-evaluations will bring the admiration and claps of thousands on the stage. The best way to overcome anxiety is to prepare, prepare, and prepare some more. Take the time to go over your notes several times. Once you have become comfortable with the material, practice a lot. You can also ask your friends or family to review it.
4. Engage Your Audience
An effective way of giving a speech is by interacting with your audience or engaging them with your speech. For example, don’t use too many of these phrases like ‘I think this is possible’, or ‘I just wanted to say'. The more you use the ‘I’ word; the more you will drift from the audience. In change, you can throw in some questions to the audience to interact, share funny incidents and laugh with them, or any other interactive way you can think of. Just try to engage your audience a bit, so that your speech doesn’t turn into a boring one. Learn as much about your listeners as you can. This will help you determine your choice of words, level of information, organization pattern, and motivational statement.
5. Confident Body Language
Body language is the key. Speaking while looking at the audience, is a confident sign of body language. This not only rectifies your way of speaking but also when we speak looking at somebody, he/she feels addressed. If you remain unaware of your body language, you soon enough will feel the pressure of all the eyes around you, on you. You can move around the stage, use gestures, or look into the eyes of the audience. All of these are signs of confident body language, which will enhance your speaking style as well. Nonverbal communication carries most of the message. Good delivery does not call attention to it but instead conveys the speaker’s ideas clearly and without distraction.
6. Do Not Peak At A Chit
Your ultimate weapon while speaking in public is your mind. Keep it positive and positivity will be reflected in your speech throughout. Keep your mind out of the fact, how many eyes are watching you. Just remember, these are the eyes that are admiring you for your brilliant speech. Don’t let nervousness or fear get the better of you or you will fall flat on the face of your audience. Make small points in your mind before you hit the stage. Try to avoid taking a chit or a paper with points as it will tempt you to have a look at it and the interaction with the audience takes a hit. Take deep breaths and seize the moment that awaits you.
7. Slide Presentation
Always ask if you can present slides while giving your speech. If you can’t then there is no problem, but in places where you can, always present a slide. Prepare your slide based on what you are going to address and when. Just a basic one, like maybe note down your important points on the slide instead of the cue paper, or some pictures relevant to the topic, or some documents, or anything relevant. Always remember, an audio-visual presentation is much stronger than just an audio presentation. It also helps your audience to engage and interact more with the topic. This is the best chance to remember your speech and it will help you grab the attention of the audience better.
Thus, these are the easy ways to ace your public speaking. Enough of these running from school functions to college programs, to corporate presentations. It is time; you brace yourself up and seize the moment making it all yours.
“All Great Speakers were bad speakers at first”~ Ralph Waldo Emerson
You can now turn into a confident public speaker, with these points. If you still want a detailed guide and professional help to get better at it, connect with us. Register now, for personality development coaching with us. So, now it’s time to be brave and get in front of the world.
