There is no doubt that being great at
public speaking can help you on many occasions. It might get you hired. You
might need it to give a speech after receiving an award: good public speaking
skills may mean more inspiration. You might even need them for class
presentations to receive full credit.
However, while good public speaking skills open up opportunities, bad ones could suppress them. For example, you would lose a big contract because you struggled in your pitch.
You may be withdrawn for a great promotion because you missed up in a presentation for your boss. Or you could leave a bad impression on your team after poorly pitching your idea.
So, I believe it is conclusive that you will never get hurt if you tried improving your public speaking skills, right? As a result, here are some strategies that will boost your public speaking skills and make them more efficient.
Well, public speaking is a skill,
which means you can get better at it! These are some strategies that will help
you in doing so.
1. Plan it Right
First, you have to plan the structure. There are various tools that can assist in that matter: Rhetorical Triangle, Monroe's Motivated Sequence, and the 7C's of Communication.
After doing so, you need to figure
out how to make your presentation intriguing: right from the beginning till the
end. Just like a book, if people aren't intrigued and excited by the beginning,
they will not care for the rest. You can use various techniques to achieve
that: storytelling is one of them.
2. Practice Is Key
“Practice Makes Perfect.” I assume that it is the first thing that came to your mind the moment you read the second strategy. Well, it is quite right actually. If you want to be a better speaker, you will have to practice a lot.
Practice by yourself as many times as possible and then you could start practicing in front of your friends and take their feedback to improve your weaknesses.
You could voluntarily join clubs that
want speakers and always try to put yourself in situations where public
speaking is demanded.
3. Try to Engage with the Audience
Try to engage with your audience. This will make you less isolated and strengthen the message you are trying to convey. If applicable, ask engaging or leading questions to your audience and let them be part of your presentation.
Word choice is extremely important. Wrong word choice may display you as an insecure, nervous person with a lack of confidence: words and phrases like “I think” or “just” are the kind that causes that.
Instead, try using some bold, confident words and phrases that convey the opposite: “actually” is an example.
Also, pay attention to how fast you
are talking because you would trip over some words or say something you don’t
mean, which will reflect negatively on you.
4. Body Language
Come on. Like 99% of the time this is
what makes people get thrilled by the presentation. Body language engages the
audience and depicts what you are feeling during the presentation. You need to
make your body language align with your feelings, which enforces your message
even more.
5. Positive Thinking
Anything that will boost your confidence is crucial, and frankly, thinking positively is one thing you can do.
Fear increases the chance of chaos, especially before you speak. Negative thoughts such as “I’ll never be good” or “They will not pay attention because I am a terrible presenter” lessen your confidence and result in a huge dilemma.
Instead, try to think of affirmations
and that you will nail it! Try to think of how these people would benefit from
your message or talk. Think positively.
6. Get Acquainted with the Nerves
Yes, public speaking can be frightening. In fact, for some people, it is their worst fear. The moment you are about to begin your presentation, you start thinking about unlikely scenarios that are going to happen while you are presenting: passing out due to nervousness is one of them.
Well, you need to cope with the nerve, buddy. You need to try a different approach. Let that adrenaline get pumped through your body as long as it wants. Instead, try to think of the real reason behind your talk or presentation. Focus on your audience.
Focus on your message more than your fear. Don’t you think that your message is more important than your fear?
In addition, crowds are more
intimidating than individuals. Try to talk to them as if they are one. Focus on
one friendly face at a time.
7. Watch Your Recordings
If you get any chance of recording any of your speeches, do it. This will immensely help you in defining your weaknesses to start working on them.
Watch the recordings and focus on things like your reaction to an unpredictable question: Did you freeze? Did your face show a sign of hesitation?
Pay attention to your gestures and your words: Did you say “um” a lot? Did your gestures convey a sign of a lack of confidence?
Just observe your weaknesses and
simply work on improving them.
Written by - Eyad Aoun
Edited by – Adrija Saha
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