Public Speaking Tips and Tricks

It was a big day for him. He had to present the annual presentation for which he had worked really hard. But when it was his turn to speak in front of his office boss as well as the representatives from all over the world, he felt numb. He was absolutely tongue tied and he was sweating profusely. As he walked towards the front of the table, he felt as if his legs were made out of jelly and that they would give him away any moment. He looked at all the important clients but all he could see was absolute darkness. He could hear someone giving a tiny laugh and that scared him further. "People are laughing at me because I look stupid" he thought. He opened his mouth to speak, but no words came out. He was scared of opening his mouth in public.

If I am not wrong, this is the case with many people, specially school going kids or young adults. Some people would rather be locked in a box with hundred live snakes rather than speak in public. They are afraid of being ridiculed in front of everyone. I myself have faced several situations like this and guess what, I still do. This fear of speaking in public is called Glossophobia which has been derived from the Greek word Glosso which means 'tongue' and Phobos, which means 'fear'. But one needs to learn the ways of overcoming fears of public speaking, as someday or the other, we need to speak in public. Are you ready to learn how to get rid of this fear? Then here are some public speaking tips and tricks which are sure to help you in future.


Public Speaking Tips and Techniques

Have you ever seen a political leader giving a speech during their election campaigns? Have you seen the energy that they give out while speaking and people being bowled over by what they say? Do you think that these politicians do not face any public speaking anxiety? Of course they do. Their speech is going to decide their as well as the country's future, hence they have a tough role to play. But have you ever seen them being all jittery while talking, or fumbling even for once? No! That's because they know the various public speaking tips and tricks. Given below are some useful tips, which will be useful to all.

Be Ready
Whatever you have to present, be prepared with that. If you are prepared with your stuff, that increases your level of confidence. Make sure that all your facts are correct. Do not give others the opportunity to point out mistakes in your presentation. That usually is sometimes responsible for lack of confidence in the speaker.

Practice
Practice! Practice! Practice! You have to practice speaking again and again till you are absolutely confident. Practice speaking in front of the mirror, and also get your family and friends one day and speak in front of them just like the way you would do it in front of others. This is a very important public speaking tip for students as well as for office goers.

Confidence
What do the political leaders have that people who are afraid of speaking in public do not have? Confidence. Yes, confidence comes with experience, but no one expects you to speak like Obama or Sarah Palin when you are up there on stage. Being nervous while speaking in front of so many people, is expected. But you have to be confident that what you are going to do well and that what you are saying is the right thing. Even if you know that you are wrong, be wrong confidently. This is one of the many important public speaking tips and tricks. And remember, practice and proper preparation gives you confidence.

No Written Speech Please
Some people have the habit of reading out the entire speech from a piece of paper. Do not do that. That would only make your audience go off to sleep. Make small notes and keep it with you and refer to it from time to time, but most of the time look at the audience while speaking.

Admit About Your Nervousness
There are some more public speaking tips for kids as well as for adults. Almost everyone suffers from anxiety of public speaking, hence there is no harm in admitting to the audience that you are a bit nervous. I am sure they will try and cooperate with you and that is sure to help you.

D-Day
Some other important public speaking tips and tricks are that you reach the place where you have to give your speech at least half an hour before. When it's time for you to give the speech, take in deep breaths and just try and remember whatever you had prepared. Look at the audience and smile. That will surely do wonders for you. While speaking, don't look at anyone's face, instead focus on a pillar or maybe something that is expression less, slowly count till 10 and then start off with full confidence. If you skip a point, instead of worrying about that just continue and try and sound convincing.

These public speaking tips and tricks are sure to help you boost your confidence the next time you have to speak in public. Just follow these public speaking techniques and be sure of yourself. But remember that you are not over confident. Just relax and be yourself and I am sure that you will do great.

Source : buzzle.com
By Ratnashri Dutta
Published: 10/21/2010