Next, have a “hook” at the very beginning of your presentation - a joke, a one-liner, a poignant story - something that instantly draws your audience into your presentation. Make it funny, make it serious - it doesn’t matter as long as it compliments your presentation - but make it interesting enough to make your audience listen to you.
The single best way to avoid all that public speaking terror is to know your material. Be familiar with your subject, and you’ll relax. If you know your subject, if you’re the expert in the room - why on earth would your audience scare you? What is there to be frightened of if you know your topic more thoroughly than they do? You’re there to teach them what you know about a particular subject or topic.
Not at all. But consider this - if your audience isn’t listening – if you’re boring them, you’re not delivering your message in an effective manner. And if you’re not getting through to them – you’re wasting your time and your message is being lost. You don’t have to become a comedian to be a good, but you do have to know when to use humor to get your message across.
Don’t feel that you have to cover your entire subject in excruciating detail in order to deliver a good speech – hit three or four high points (depending on the length of your speech) and end it on a conclusive note. There is no need to bore your audience with hours of minutiae – hit the main points and stop.
Good public speakers follow many of the same procedures and protocols when giving a speech; the basics are the same, just the delivery and style change with the individual speaker. Here are a few common tips that will help you succeed as a public speaker.
Public speaking ranks right up there with public torture for most people - they’d rather die than get up in front of a room full of strangers and give a speech of some sort. That’s a pretty silly reaction, considering public speaking really isn’t all that difficult - but there you have it.
The word “props” actually derives from an old theatrical term – “property.” In public speaking terms it means any object or item that the speaker uses to help get their message across to the audience. That could mean anything from a podium to a laser pointer, a flipchart to a PowerPoint projector, handouts to a DVD player. Virtually anything can be used as a prop.
Have you ever had the feeling when you get up in front of an audience to give a speech that you’re utterly and completely naked? Not in the real sense, of course, but in the sense that it’s just you, the microphone and the audience. You have no podium to hide behind – no slide projector or pointer – in other words, you have no props.
One sure-fire way of keeping your audience attentive and interested is by using humor throughout your speech. Your ultimate goal as a speaker is to get your message across in an effective manner – but does that mean you need to turn into a comedian just so the audience hears you?
Your personal style and the subject matter of your speech should dictate the types of props you can use. For example, don’t use a humorous prop with a serious subject. Props can be simple or complex – they don’t have to be elaborate – the key to using an effective prop is that it should help convey your message – no more, no less.
But props can also be a big disadvantage if you use them incorrectly. For example, if you use a pointer in your presentation, don’t stand up there and wave it around in mid-air aimlessly, because your audience may feel that they’re watching a swordfight with only one participant, and become so engrossed in that display that they stop listening to your words. Or if you plan a slide show or a PowerPoint presentation, don’t mix very bright slides with very dark ones, or else you may leave your audience unable to see either one.
How well do you know your message? You need to be able to answer any question your audience asks. If you can’t do that, you haven’t prepared enough. Read about your subject, study it from every angle – you need to feel, look and sound like an expert.
Hone your speaking skills – someone needs to critique your presentation – a friend, colleague or spouse. Have you tried having someone coach you or received instruction on how to be a better speaker?