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Your Guide to Public Speaking
Public speaking can be a frightening experience. Feeling a little nervous speaking in front of a group is normal. If you are feeling totally overwhelmed and rigid with fear, there are a number of things you can do. The following public speaking suggestions will help you ditch the doom as you entertain, inform, and motivate your audience.
Be Prepared - Memorize your speech. If you must have notes with you when public speaking to appear confident, just have small note cards. Arrange the cards in the order of your speech and only include bullet points, not paragraphs of text. The cards will keep your speech "on track". Do not read straight from your note cards, just glance at them briefly.
Picture Giving a Great Speech - Practice visualizing your speech going well. Picture delivering your speech without fault to a group hanging on for every word you say.
Get Familiar With the Stage - Visit the place you will be giving a speech beforehand or arrive early the day of your speech. Make the effort to get familiarize yourself with the stage, sound equipment, backstage areas, and any stairs leading to the stage. Pay particular attention to the amount of public speaking space on the stage so you are aware of how much space you have.
Do an Equipment Check - Make the effort to check your audio-visual equipment. This includes doing a sound check, learning to use the microphones, music, projectors, and other public speaking equipment. Also, make sure spare parts are available, such as replacements for burnt out projector bulbs and extra cables. Do not allow faulty or broken equipment to ruin your speech. Make sure your audio-visual crew is competent with what they are doing.
Greet Your Audience - When possible, take the time to speak with your audience as they arrive. Understanding the nature of your audience will help you feel more comfortable when speaking to them. You may even spark some ideas, stories, or jokes to include in your public speaking speech.
Take a Few Minutes to Relax - Make some time before your speech to get yourself ready. Take some deep breaths and focus yourself. Do not consume alcohol to relax before speaking. Allow your nervous energy to become positive public speaking enthusiasm for your audience and your message.
If Things Go Wrong, Do Not Apologize - Nine times out of ten your audience will have no idea something in your speech did not go as you wished. That is, they will not know unless you apologize.
Remember That Your Audience Wants You To Do Well - Your audience is looking forward to listening to you speak and they want you to be successful. They want to learn from you and anticipate an entertaining and informative speech.
