Public Speaking is a tough to implement but an important one to pursue. It is a quality that is highly strived for and highly appreciated from a very long time. Good public speakers and orators are highly recognized, appreciated, valued everywhere today. With each passing decade, the need to possess this skill is increasing everyday. It has started to become a vital part of everyone’s day to day life. Good communication and presentation skill add value and is seen as an asset in an individual.
Public Speaking is required in all the spheres of one’s life. It helps in the advancement and growth of one’s career and personality. However, it is not everyone’s cup of tea because of the underlying fears and insecurities that hold one back from. Some people have a lot to say and want to be heard yet are afraid to speak out loud because of this persisting fear.
Internet is flooded with tips and tricks that can help an individual in public speaking. There are articles, blogs, guides, books, videos and whatnot that can help you to come out of the cocoon of fear that you're entrapped in. Watching a video is the most effective way to groom this skill for eloquent speakers are more likely to grab attention and retention than reading from a blog or an article.
YouTube has millions of videos on millions of topics, so yes, there are videos on public speaking as well. These videos mostly talk about the different aspects and approaches to public speaking in a unique way. There is a huge pool of videos out there but it is physically and mentally strenuous to go through each of them. Hence, here are some videos that are found to be useful and, have some important and significant tips for public speaking.
1. 5 Basic Public Speaking Tips (Toastmasters)
Toastmaster has been helping people since 1924 for public speaking. Every year they have a world champion contest for public speaking. In this video, they tell the 5 basic public speaking tips that are tried and tested and the beginners can remember to start with.
· Know what you’re talking about: It is very important to know and understand about the topic or subject you’re talking about. If you know the topic or the subject well then the speech that you would present will come from your heart. If you really care and know about the topic you’re speaking on then your audience will too.
· Know your audience: Knowing what kind of audience you will be presenting in front of is more important than it sounds to be. You cannot talk about something very technical in hard and heavy terminologies in front of an audience who don’t have a thorough knowledge of that subject or that topic. Do your homework about the age group and the background of which your audience.
· Never apologize: You may think that the audience listens and judges too closely, but that is not the case always. So, do not apologize for small and minute mistakes that you might make. The probabilities are high that your audience doesn’t notice it. Apologizing about it only grabs more attention to the mistake more and less on the importance of the topic.
· Imagine yourself giving the speech: Imagine yourself at the moment, and prepare. Think positively and imagine yourself delivering a very good speech. This helps in boosting your confidence as positivity always helps in rendering well thoughts that contribute to healthy results.
· Focus on the message, not yourself: Many novice speakers make the mistake to give more of their focus on themselves rather than the message of the speech or presentation they are giving. They are way too cautious of not making a mistake and that distracts the audience and as well as theirs. Their main focus should be on the message that they’re trying to convey and not on themselves.
2. TED’s Secret to public Speaking - Chris Anderson (TED)
Chris Anderson is a public speaker and the curator of TEDx Talks. In this video, he tells the secrets to the successful talks that happen on TEDx. He tells the secret of a good public speaking based on his experience of 12 years where he has listened to hundreds of speakers on TEDx Talks and learned from them.
He insists that an idea is an important thing for a speaker. If you have an idea, you can build and plant that idea into your viewers and audience. That’s what a good speaker or an orator has the ability to do so. But everyone in this world has dynamically different beliefs and thoughts on the same idea. He shares 4 tips about how a speaker can do that.
· Focus on one major idea: Don’t go around the topic or try talking about too many things at once that can make it confusing for the audience to grasp the idea or the message that you want to convey. Focus on one idea or message that you truly want to put out there for the people.
· Give people a reason to care: Before you can plant an idea in the brains of your viewers and audience, you need to make them care for it. You can do that by generating curiosity by asking provocative questions about why something doesn’t make much sense. You can then build that gap then fill it with a bridge made by your idea, making them care for it and making it an important idea for them as well.
· Build your idea with familiar concepts: Build your idea with the power of language, not of yours but theirs. Your audience should understand your idea if they want to know it genuinely. Piece by piece make an image for your audience and use simple language that they can understand. Use metaphors and take help from friends to learn where you are being tough and they cannot understand you
· Make your idea worth sharing: If the idea you got only benefits you or only your organization, then the audience will definitely see through you. You should be honest whether your idea affects someone else’s life or inspires them or not. Your idea should have the potential to change or affect others life more than just yours.
3. Be a more confident public speaker (watchwellcast)
This video is an animated tutorial on how to handle those nerves when you go on to that stage to speak. Public Speaking is a fear of seventy percent of the population of America, so it isn’t so uncommon fear to have in the world. The narrator tells about the triple-P method that can help you in that public speaking and make you feel more confident.
Confidence is an integral part of presenting or of speaking up. It is the fuel required by someone so that they can go ahead and face the challenge in front of them without passing out.
Here, is the 3 P method:
· Prepare, prepare, Prepare: Know what you’re speaking and how you’re going to present it. If you practice then you’ll be able to present well enough and to be confident. Preparation beforehand always is a helping tool that can create and make your presentation better. You will know the difficult part or the parts you’re making mistakes at likewise you can improvise and make it better.
· Posture and physicality: Body Language is a crucial part of public speaking. The way you stand and appear in front of your audience will let them know whether you’re calm and controlled or anxious and nervous.
· Pander to your audience: Try to connect with your audience through anecdotes and humour. Humour almost always helps to break the ice. Try to calm down and settle into the moment and make yourself feel comfortable with the audience through jokes or including them into your speech.
4. 7 Ways to make a conversation with anyone – Malavika Varadan (TEDx Talks)
Public speaking needs well-polished communication skills that can be developed by having multiple conversations. The more you will speak with people and strangers, the more you will polish and sharpen your communication skills. You will be able to face the fear of speaking with and in front of strangers.
This can also help you in making connections and relations with people after your presentation. These conversations with the people you meet can help open many opportunities.
In this video, she starts her presentation saying that conversations are like tiny metal links. With every conversation, you have with stranger forms a metal link and that link forms into a bigger one. A conversation helps us to get more of a bigger picture and helps us view different perspectives. She insists that conversations should be and must be made. She tells about 7 ways that you can make a conversation with.
After that speech or presentation go ahead and make that conversation. The connections and conversations you make with people can help you later in life with personal and career growth.
· Say Hello: Once you initiate the first hello, everything else goes with the flow. So go ahead and just say it. Don’t hesitate much as you never know what is the potential waiting for in that conversation.
· Ask Personal questions: Skip the small talk and ask personal questions. Don’t get too personal, but you can always ask an interesting personal question. She says that it’s surprising how people are willing to answer, you just have to ask.
· Find common interest: A conversation won’t go on for that long mile if you cannot find similar interests or similar views on a topic to talk about. This stretches and makes the conversation more interesting.
· Give unique compliments: People will always remember how you made them feel so be generous and give a genuine and unique compliment. This can make them remember you in their life.
· Ask For opinions: A conversation can really start to become smooth as you ask a person about their opinion about something common and easy. You will also come to learn about the person through the opinions they have.
· Be in the moment: Don’t fidget and be in the conversation. Don’t multitask and give them your full attention and don’t forget eye contact. Be present in that moment mentally.
· Remember Names: Try to remember their name or their interests or other details for any future meetings. This makes them feel special and makes the conversation easier and not awkward.
5. 4 essential body language tips from a world champion public speaker - Dananjaya Hettiarachchi (Business Insider)
Dananjaya is the winner of the Toastmasters 2014. In this video, he gives 4 important and useful tips of body language usage that he follows while giving a speech.
Body language is vital, be it public speaking or during a conversation. While we communicate, our body language speaks louder than the words that we speak. Body language gives the message before you do. When we speak only seven percent is verbal and the rest ninety-three percent is non-verbal. So, it is very important to maintain a positive body language during public speaking.
· Keep your body open: He says that when someone is nervous, they tend to fold their arms and hide their vital organs which show clear signs of nervousness. Keep your body open, it is more welcoming and positive and this generates more connection to the audience.
· Open your palms: He says that when we look at the inside of our palms we tend to get more relaxed than when we look at the top of our hands. If you open your palms to the audience, it shows openness and inclusiveness that will help you in making your presence in the public speaking.
· Know your stage: If you know the area and the stage where you’ll be presenting then you will be able to move more freely and use your body language in a more constructive manner. The more you move around, use hand gestures and interact with the audience, the more successful your public speaking would be.
· Don’t touch that podium: He insists not to touch the podium if it is provided. You will start leaning on it and move it. This all can be distracting. There should always be a bare minimum distance between you and the podium where you can use your hand gestures and body language properly to engage your speech with the audience.
6. Richard Branson’s tips on Public Speaking (Freedom of Speech Ltd)
Richard Branson is a business magnate, investor, author, and philanthropist. He founded the Virgin Group, which controls more than 400 companies. He hates public speeches but is one of the best speakers known for his engaging and interesting speeches.
In the video, he shares his few but to the point and useful tips he follows when he is giving a speech or presenting.
· Treat it like a chat: He says that you should think of public speaking like you’re having a chat with someone. This helps in removing the fear of speaking without mistakes and to follow decorum.
· Ignore the number: Don’t think of the hundreds of thousands of people who are listening to you. Try not to engage your mind over to the audience and their mass and just try to think it of like an informal conversation you’re making to a group of people.
· Keep it informal: He doesn’t make his speeches too formal most of the times. He says that just lets it all go like having a conversation. He doesn’t have a format or decorum that he keeps to follow. He doesn’t use notes so he can put all his attention to what he is saying.
· Know your subject: He insists and advice on knowing your topic thoroughly. He says that while speaking about a topic, you should speak from your heart. You should know what you’re speaking about and what it is about. You should know and understand it well that it comes straight from your heart.
· Keep it short: The worst speeches are long speeches, he says. If it is a formal speech keep it short. Long speeches tend to get awry and tiring. The audience loses their interest too and gets distracted.
- Nivedita Kundu
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