Many people know that sinking feeling in the pit of their stomach that creeps up when called to present. Public speaking can be a nerve-wracking experience for the unprepared, and some may even get anxious during the preparation process. Here are some top tips to help you look like you know what you're doing in front of an audience.
1. Plan out your presentation.
This one's pretty obvious, but it's the most important step in boosting your confidence when presenting. Make sure your speech doesn't flow awkwardly and stay on topic. More often than not, an unprepared speaker can go off on unnecessary tangents, which leads to confusion or boredom from the audience.
2. Break your speech apart into segments.
A lot of people tend to treat a speech as this massive single entity that needs to be memorized word for word. This is a major reason as to why we get flustered mid-speech; we sometimes get overwhelmed trying to contain all of the speech's information. To prevent this, it is crucial to break your presentation down into easily digestible portions. Focus on developing a strong understanding of one topic before moving on to the next.
3. Practice.
No, I'm not talking about reading your lines ten minutes before your presentation. Unless you're introducing another speaker or closing an event, you're most likely going to have to rehearse at least a couple times. Fortunately, you don't have to go out of your way to do so. Once you have a solid grasp on the basic parts of your speech, start reciting it while going through your daily routine to further familiarize yourself. Soon enough, you'll know your speech like the back of your hand.
4. Pace yourself.
Knowing your speech is all good and well, but presenting it is another matter. If we're nervous we generally want to get our presentation over with as fast as possible. However, that makes us talk way too fast for the audience to follow as we try to speed through the speech or cram in extra info. Make sure you flow in a way that comes off as natural; don't be afraid to pause for a while to recollect your thoughts.
5. Understand the crowd is not against you.
You step up to the podium and immediately the pressure is on. The entirety of the audience is glaring at you, ready to pounce at the slightest mistake. One slip of the tongue and you're done for! At least, that's how it seems in your head. In reality, chances are that a majority of your spectators have felt that same lingering anxiety and are internally rooting for you.
Either that or they're too busy worrying about their own presentation to scrutinize you. Even if you don't deliver an amazing speech with all these tips (hint: you will), this information can act as a safety net for your nerves.
Public speaking doesn't have to be a stressful affair, and these steps will ensure that you're met with applause instead of hushed whispers.
