How can i improve my public speaking?

Community
1

Here is a 30 second clip
http://jboy.s3.amazonaws.com/jesse-meeting.mp3

Any suggestions?

2

Just concentrate on your subject this is the only tip.

3

try not to say “Aaaaah” and “Yeah” so much

:slight_smile:

4

Remove fear from your mind and start doing it little by little every day. Start with relatives, friends, small groups and then it is done.

5

Start talking freely with your friends and relatives. You can talk to yourself by using mirror.

6

Haha thanks guys… I decided I don’t want to public speak It is too scary

7

It is just a matter of organization. If you prepared your speach well, you’ll feel confident and you will have no problem at all. Confidence means a lot :slight_smile:

8

No, no…you can further your career by being more of a public guy so don’t make a rash decision because your first time wasn’t as good as you had hoped.

While speaking…just imagine all of the audience being in their underwear (which is demonstrating mentally that they are now better than you and who cares what people think that are goofy enough to come to a meeting in their freakin underwear of all things! :smiley: I bet some of the guys even have skid marks on the back)

9

See if you can find a Toastmasters group in your area. They help people learn to speak in public.

10

Wouldn’t making all those “toasts” leave one kinda drUnK?

Do that have a non-Alcoholic version of this group?

11

why yes, they do, it’s called “AA”

you get to stand up in front of eveybody else and share your story about your struggles with the demon rum

:smiley:

12

Scares the heck outta me too, but I think it’s one skill that can have a huge impact on your life and your business if you learn to get comfortable with it.

Practice in front of a mirror or video taping your practice sessions can help, but I’d seriously consider joining a group like the “Toastmasters” and that’s something I need to push myself to do here.

Cheers,

Steve

13

We are all to blame for using words in our speech such as “totally”, “like”, “as if” etc. TXTing is also the cause of our increasing use of Acronyms, we have to try to find words to substitute those words. Another thing when speaking is to be passionate about what you’re speaking about and know what you’re talking about not sound as if you’re grabbing knowledge about the subject out of the air, it should just flow out.

14

I think thats true Siberian (the last part you say). I think some people are just better cut out for public speaking though, can’t fit every suite.

15

First is be confident and practice your speech. :slight_smile:

16

Practice your speech and forget how your voice is. Try to speak in every matter with confidence. And for you only practice your speech in front of mirror.

17

talk himself in front of mirror this will give you confidence to speak publicly

18

Public speaking…

I hated it also, had a fear of screwing up in front of all those people and forgetting my material. I can now speak with reasonable confidence in front of a group of 300 people, on stage (provided it is a subject of my choosing).

Here are my tips:

  1. Your audience wants you to succeed, remember that. They are much more forgiving if you make an earnest attempt to engage them. They are much less forgiving of a delivery that shows disrespect or a failure to engage them entirely.

Regarding this point, it is better to evaluate the whole presentation than just audio. have somebody film you and have a look at the video aftwerwards. Engagement is a visual thing also, your posture and your delivery can best be appreciated on video.

  1. There is a big difference between public speaking with presentation materials such as Powerpoint, and public speaking such as debating or stand-up or on-the-fly live broadcasts such as news reports. I recommend starting off with a scripted presentation with visual aids such as Powerpoint or flip charts first. It has two benefits: firstly you have the option for appealing materials that may offset a bland speaking performance, and secondly you have your own crib notes right there so it is less likley you will lose track.

  2. When you practise the talk and deliver it, pretend that this is for your best friend. You want to deliver it so it is understood but you don’t want to try to dress this up like a very formal speech in the early stages. The further your delivery is from your normal way of speaking, the more likely it is you will screw it up.

  3. On the other hand you don’t want it too informal. “yeah” and “uhh” are difficult to weed out, and it takes practice. Try and minimise it but you have to accept that in the beginning these will creep in because you are naturally nervous.

  4. Stick to subjects you know. If you can;t because you’ve been called to a general company meeting, such as a board meeting, make sure you get a full agenda beforehand so you can at least have papers or documents at hand should a difficult question come up. Don’t be afraid to say you don’t know an answer.

  5. It gets better, the more talks you do! You’re going to have some bad ones initially, you just have to accept that. Move on from that and work to improve it. get feedback from the audience and use that to improve.

As others have said, the ability to address a group in person and put your point across is a valuable tool for any career. It can separate a true leader form someone who is just average. You don’t have to be an expert speaker, you just have to be honest, respect your audience, keep to time and make little improvements as you go.

19

I am a newbie here and just wanna say Hi to everyone. I am Crystal from Louisiana, US.

<snip>Link deleted</snip>

20

Just keep speaking in public until you get comfortable with it. Nothing is easy, gotta go through the rough seas to get to the calm water, but you’ll eventually get there. Lots of practice by yourself will help.