Some people are able to stand up and give a speech without a second thought. Others are petrified at the thought of public speaking. You may be a capable public speaker, or it may be one of your biggest fears. In either case, the following advice may be of use to you.
It is very important that you display enthusiasm when you are speaking publicly. There is no way that you will get others excited about a topic if it seems like you are bored with it. If the topic is one that is a bit more emotionally driven, you have to show them that you care.
When you arrive at the podium take a deep breath and engage the audience with your eyes and smile. Take a moment to calm your nerves and use your nervous energy as a way to energize your speech. Allow your audience to feel your excitement for what you are talking about.
Practice makes perfect. This will give you the chance to adjust your speech as necessary. Practice your pace and master breathing. You should pause every now and again to allow the audience to indicate their approval with applause. If you can, do a trial run of the speech in the same room that you will be delivering it to an audience.
Practicing is the most important part of speech preparation. Try giving your speech while looking in a mirror, or record it and play it back to find out how to make it better. A practice run in front of objective friends or loved ones lets them have a chance to offer constructive criticism.
You will win your audience over if you add a little humor to your speech. There is nothing wrong with trowing in a joke or two and putting a smile on your audience‘s faces. However, do not go overboard on the jokes, as your audience will not take you serious.
If you are nervous when you first stand up to speak, there are a couple of things you can do. Either choose a person toward the center of the audience to focus on or focus on a point at the back of the room. An EXIT sign is a good choice. This will help calm your nerves.
Take the time to research other important speeches. The internet has a wealth of recorded speeches so that you can observe how they do it. Focus on the qualities that you liked in their speech and emulate them. Look for qualities such as their ease in speaking, their humor and how they capture the attention of the audience.
Prior to giving your actual speech, practice it in front of a loved one. When you are done, ask them which parts of the speech are fine and which parts need some improvement. You may even want to read it to a few people. This feedback can help improve your speech.
Whether you enjoy public speaking or are afraid of giving speeches, you should have found some useful advice in this article. Being able to speak in public is a very useful skill, so be sure to reflect upon these tips frequently. Doing so can really pay off in many different situations.
