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Tips
on public speaking
By
Doug Kelley, CH, CSL • February 2006
I
remember the first time I ever gave a public presentation. I was seven years
old, and my knees were literally knocking together as I gave my six-minute
speech. That was 40 years ago. In my twenties, I began to speak more often,
but I still remember the nerves giving me trouble. Of course, the more I spoke
publicly, the easier it became. As I got into my thirties, I was speaking even
more, and on three occasions, the audiences numbered more than 3,000 people,
with one audience around 5,000. I wasn’t accustomed to such large groups, so
I had yet more opportunities for getting weak in the knees.
Just
about every leader has to get up in front of a group at one time or another,
not to mention regular team meetings. If you are like most people, you would
rather be taken out and flogged rather than stand up in front of a group and
speak. It can even be worse if you are speaking before high-profile
organizational officers or “big-wigs.”
So,
what can you do if you have to give a presentation and are dreading it? Let me
share some techniques from my experience that I have found beneficial. The
following is not meant to be an exhaustive discussion of public speaking
techniques, for you can get a good book for that. These are just a few things
I do to make my presentations run smoother.
To
begin, it is obviously very important to prepare and practice your
presentation thoroughly. It has been said that a good presentation is one that
is practiced over and over. While I agree with this in principle, I also think
you can practice a presentation so much that it becomes canned. Canned is not
good.
After
you have prepared and practiced, remember the following points to help with
the nerves and to make your presentation memorable:
1.
Be YOU. Whether speaking to one person
or 100 people, be who you are. Do not substantially change your manner of
speaking when in front of a group. Speak conversationally just as if you were
speaking to one individual, which of course you are, just multiplied several
times over. Some speakers feel that they must change their manner of speech
when they get in front of a group. I don’t. Be the same person you are
regardless of how many people are in your audience. Doing so will allow you to
avoid sounding canned and help you to come off as personable. People will
relate much better to you as a result.
2.
SPEAK FROM YOUR OWN EXPERIENCE AND KNOWLEDGE. If
were to ask you to talk to me for a few minutes about your area of expertise,
could you do it? Undoubtedly. Would you have to prepare? Probably not. Oh, you
might make a brief outline so you could talk to me in an organized fashion,
but I’m willing to bet that you are familiar enough with what you do that
you could speak like an expert with little preparation. Furthermore, I’ll
bet you wouldn’t feel the least bit nervous, would you? So what is the
difference between talking to one person or 100? You are simply speaking to
one individual times 100. The only real difference is in your mind.
3.
Focus
on your audience, not on yourself.
Remember,
it’s
not about you; it’s about benefiting your audience. Whenever you focus on
yourself, you will become nervous. When you focus on how you are benefiting
your audience, the nerves are not so bad. As you begin your presentation, keep
telling yourself, “It’s about them, not me.” You may feel some
nervousness, but it will quickly fade after a moment or two.
4.
don’t
take yourself too seriously. The
best thing you can ever do in front of a group is to screw up! If you’ve
ever experienced screwing up in front of a group, then you know why I say
this. When you make a mistake on stage—be it a lost note or saying something
intended to be funny that falls flat—you simply recover the best you can.
Admit what you need to admit, and then press onward! Once you do, you will
find that a huge burden lifts off your shoulders. It’s almost as if you are
saying, “Okay, you all know I screwed up! You all know I’m human! Now
let’s get on with it!” You can then move forward much more relaxed because
you are no longer taking yourself too seriously. It also helps to have some
funny comeback lines for those awkward moments.
Speaking
in front of groups can be a rewarding experience, especially if you do it
enough to get past the nerves. It is not nearly as bad as most people believe.
Of course, it takes courage to get up in front of people, and your audience
knows this. Audiences are generally very forgiving, and they will
automatically credit you with a higher level of authority, knowledge, and
intelligence simply because you are up there speaking.
The
next time you have to give a speech or talk, remember these techniques. They
have helped me and I know they will help you!
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