- Keep it short and simple.
Always remember that not too many people love to hear or watch long speeches and presentations. Thus, you should keep it short and simple, as much as you can. However, make sure that you are able to cover all the important topics, so that your audience are able to gather important information from your speech.
- View yourself as the messenger.
It is highly unlikely that you would be asked to give a presentation about yourself or your life story. Thus, always keep in mind that your presentation is not about you. It is actually about the topic that you are going to talk about. With that, view yourself as the messenger that would convey the information to the audience, so that you can focus more on that, instead of focusing on yourself.
- Try to fake it.
If you don’t have confidence on yourself when it comes to public speaking, then you should fake it. Faking it means that you should try to act that you are confident, when you are in front and talking to your audience. By doing that, they would listen to you more attentively, and eventually, you would even gain the confidence you didn’t have.
- Just be yourself.
Watching experts in the field of public speaking can help you in a lot of ways, but it is best not to mimic them. This is because, some people in the audience may be familiar of the techniques and styles that you are copying. Just pick some good points from the experts, and be yourself, so that you would be able to come up with your own style that people would love.
- Practice yoga.
Yoga does not only provide you relief from stress, but it can also maintain the health of your voice and your throat. Thus, you should practice yoga more often. By performing certain yoga techniques, you would be able to clear your throat, and prevent all sorts of problems that are related to your voice.
- Always remember that your audience is the most important part of your presentation.
Don’t forget that every time you have a presentation, it is not for yourself, but for your audience. Thus, you should keep in mind that they are the most important part of your presentation. With that, make sure that you are able to deliver a speech that can catch their attention, so that they would be able to benefit from it.
- Say what the audience want to hear.
Saying what you want can help you become more comfortable in speaking in front. However, if you want your presentation to become more effective, then say things that your audience need to hear. Always remember that people are listening to you, because they are hoping to learn from your presentation. Thus, you should focus more on what they need, so that you can come up with an effective speech.
- What to do, when you are called for an impromptu speech.
If your employers have called you for an impromptu speech, there are certain things to do, to make it your best. One of which is to immediately stand, and avoid showing any kind of hesitation, so that you will gain a more commanding presence. Aside from that, keep in mind that your bosses would not have requested you for the presentation, if they believe that you are not ready for it.
- What to do when some people are not listening.
When someone is not listening to you, one of the things that you can do is to increase the volume of your voice a bit. Aside from that, you should also try to make eye contact with them, in order to grab their attention. By doing that, you are actually giving them signals that you noticed that they are not listening.
- Arrive at the venue early.
When you arrive late at the venue where you are going to do your presentation, you may not be able to prepare yourself properly for it. Thus, it is best if you can be at the place at least 30 minutes either before your speech, or even before the program starts. By doing that, you can do all the necessary preparations you need, in order to feel more comfortable and be at ease at the place.
- Being nervous is normal.
Don’t be too worried about being nervous, since it is perfectly normal. In fact, even some of the most experienced public speakers still feel their legs trembling, prior to giving their speeches. What makes them look like they do not fear being in front of people is their confidence. When you are confident, you will be able to overcome your nervousness, and become more comfortable in the latter part of your speech.
- Don’t let certain things distract you.
When you are speaking in front of a large crowd, there is always a possibility for certain things to distract you. Some of which would include certain individuals standing up while you are talking, or late comers opening the doors. Keep in mind that these things will only become your distractions if you let them.
- Preventing people from looking outside the windows.
If your presentation is going to be at a small room, where a certain number of participants are seated in front of you, you don’t want them to constantly look outside the windows and miss out important points from your speech. To prevent this, you can make sure to close the blinds just before starting your piece. Aside from preventing people looking outside, you can also minimize distractions by not having to see other individuals looking from outside.
- Sort out any problems beforehand.
Whenever there are problems in the venue, it is best if you sort them days before the event. Thus, it is best if you can visit the venue to thoroughly check it days before your speech. If that is not possible, then be there an hour prior to the start of the program, so that you can fix any issues immediately.
- Don’t forget to check the sound system.
Speaking in front of a large crowd can be frustrating, if you know that some people seated at the back are not able to hear you well. Thus, make sure that the venue can offer a good sound system. Aside from having adequate volume, the sound should also be in good quality, so that people would be able to understand you perfectly.
- Words you should always remember.
Some of the words you should always remember and tell yourself would include prepared, poised, powerful, persuasive, commanding, composed, and confident. When you do this, you would eventually feel that you can deliver a great speech. Aside from that, it can also make your audience see that you are a person that can be described by the words mentioned on top.
- What not to do when unprepared.
If you have not been able to prepare yourself for the presentation, one of the things that you should not do is to apologize. This should not be done, since it will make you feel less confident. Aside from that, people may not want to listen to you, since they won’t be expecting much from your presentation.
- Take full advantage of your notepads or index cards.
There may be times when you get stuck on what sub topic you want to explain next. To prevent this from happening, you should take advantage of your index cards, and write down your opening phrases in bold letters on top of them. By doing that, you won’t have to deal with a long pause, since you can simply read them out and continue from there.
- Become more familiar of the visual equipment you would be using.
If you are simply going to borrow a projector or any kind of visual equipment at the venue, then you should familiarize yourself in operating it. You don’t want to get your presentation delayed, just because you don’t know how to turn to the next page, or to return back to a previous one. Therefore, spend some time with it prior to your presentation, so that you would know how to operate it perfectly.
- Avoid technical jargons.
When your presentation is technical in nature, you may get tempted in using technical terms for it. However, you should consider the possibility that some of the people in your audience may not understand them. Thus, it is best to make use of simple terms, so that you can ensure that all of them would know what you are talking about.