Tips On Public Speaking
When you have a business or are working in a company, you will have to talk to a lot of people and even present at some point of time in your career. This is where your public speaking skills are put to test.
Even if you have a good command over your language and are not worried about talking to people, when it comes to public speaking, a little more is required. One needs to know how to speak and what to speak when they are up on stage presenting to a group of people. You should also be able to hold the attention of all the people, else there is no point in your public speaking.
Tips And Pointers
Are you preparing to present something to a group of people? Are you nervous about public speaking? If you really need professional help, you can check out in our other posts. In the meanwhile, here are a few tips to remember when you are going to speak in public:
Intent
When you present some content or speak about something to your audience, they should act on after hearing you speak. When you know what you want them to do after hearing you, your intention is clear. You can frame your speech and content accordingly. Using a lot of action words can influence them to act on it immediately.
Grab Attention
When you start your speech, you need to grab the attention of your audience within the first few minutes, else they will zone out and all your efforts will go waste. You can start with one of the latest trending stories or your own personal story and get the attention. if you launch into the topic directly, only a few may appreciate it, others will lost interest.
Structure
When preparing for public speaking, know what you want to say and structure it properly. Have an introduction that will grab the attention, move to the main part of the content and then have a strong closing that will encourage them to act on it immediately. Having this structure will not only streamline your speech but will also ensure you don’t stray away too much if interrupted in between.
Practice
Good public speaking should look spontaneous and casual but this does not come easily. You cannot just go on stage and start off about a particular topic unless you are a frequent public speaker and the topic is something close to your heart and you have been talking about it to different sets of people. What one needs is practice. Practice your speech; ensure you remember the key points. Time yourself to ensure you can cover everything within the given time.
Know Your Audience
Different types of people need to be approached differently. Ensure you know what type of people you are addressing before you go on stage and start speaking. One may assume the people who are sitting there are potential customers or people who are interested in your topic and that information about them is sufficient. However, you need to know more – the age group, the affluence, the target group (sometimes companies split their target audience and address them separately, in such cases you need to alter your approach accordingly).
The Ambience
Even if you are not the first speaker and have people speaking before you, ensure you arrive early. This will give you a chance to check out the surrounding and know the size of the hall, the acoustics, the blind spots, etc. you can keep this in mind and ensure you cover the audience accordingly. This will make your presentation more effective.
Relax
It can be unnerving to address a group of strangers. However, one must remember to relax and be calm before going on stage. This will help you collect your thoughts and you will seem more professional and effective when you go on stage. If you are going to rush in late and are tensed, the audience will pick up on your emotions.
Visualize
Before you go on stage, visualize your speech is a success and people hear you out. Going up nervous and worried if people will listen to you, will only become worse when you see a bunch of people with a blank expression or busy with their phones or other things.
Connect
Ensure you smile and nod and connect with the audience. This will encourage them to listen to you better and reciprocate positively.
We are well aware of the difficulties one may face during public speaking
Speaking to a group of friends or colleagues is completely different from talking to a whole group of people. This group can be a familiar one or a completely strange group.When it is a big group and you are in the spotlight, you tend to stutter, stammer and even forget what you were going to say. This is very common and a classic reaction of those who are nervous to address a big group.
You should put the attention to the following:
Language improvement – One should have a good command over their language when they are speaking in public. This will not only give them the much-needed confidence but will also help them in getting their point to the audience clearly and more effectively.
Body Language – when you are up on stage, all are looking at nothing but you., everything you do will be noticed and this is why a good body language is crucial for a good presentation. We teach you how to behave and carry yourself on stage so that you come across as a confident professional.
Presentation Skills – Public speaking does not involve just speaking. You will need slides and presentation materials too. This is why we also train in and teach various presentations related software. This will help you create your own presentations, rather than depend on someone else.