Art Of Great Speaking

It is True… for some, it is spiders; for many, ghosts; and others would say heights, but there are those who actually admit that public speaking is their greatest fear.

It is actually commonplace. Come to think of it, there can sometimes be nothing more frightening than having to stand up and speak in front of a group of people who could very likely shout at you, laugh at you, or leave while you are in the middle of talking. Even actress Debra Messing of the hit show Will and Grace surprisingly had this fear all her life. And she is a professional actress! Imagine how much worse this could be for those who have not even had the chance to go up on a stage at all in their lives.

Thankfully, public speaking is a fear that can easily be overcome. If you are not exactly paralyzed by fear, but you think you still have room for improvement on it, then you are realizing the fundamental truth that is facing us all. You can improve your public speaking skills quite easily by following the beginning tips mentioned below.

Remember to be prepared and get your practice. The value of preparation can never be overemphasized. It adds confidence and substance to your speeches and presentations. Research the topic you will talk about and try to find the best way to present it (angle-wise). Outline your major points and use cue cards if necessary/available. Practice your speech-delivery to make sure that your talk will not exceed the time allotted for you, and so that you could also asses your delivery from your own perspective. If you are to be the lead-speaker in a very important engagement, try to practice your speech in front of someone who could properly assess how you have done… and is able to provide honest feedback to you.

Also, Know your audience… technically, this is still part of being prepared. However, it is just so important that it calls for a separate mention. Knowing your audience provides you with valuable insight on the angle and perspective of presentation that would appeal best to them. It guides whether you can be casual and funny or whether you would be better served to be serious and analytical. It also gives you great input in streamlining your speech by suggesting what you need to include and what you can do without.

Also critical is to dress the part. As much as we refuse to admit it, image can sometimes be everything. How the audience responds to you can highly depend upon how they perceptually perceive you. Generally, you would appear as a more convincing speaker if you are dressed as business casual or business formal. Also, since the audience will have to look at you anyway, you might as well make your appearance a pleasant one for them.

Keeping the KISS in mind. Keep It Short and Simple. Even geniuses have limited attention spans… no special talent for the A.D.D. afflicted needed at all. Do not bore your audience to death with a speech that is too long. The faster you can get your message across, the better. A short and simple message also appears smarter while preventing you from being perceived as someone who came unprepared and is fumbling through their presentation. It also allows your listeners to retain what you have said easily. Including the opportunity for you to perform valauble rephrasing of your concepts – for added comprehension by your audience.

In addition to these quick tips, your public speaking skills will also be improved if you practice establishing periodic or constant eye contact with your audience. Also, if the occasion and your resources will permit, you can use visual aids such as slide presentations, handouts, product samples, etc to stimulate your audiences attention. To finish off your presentation, you should plan to answer the audiences question confidently and with a caring and informative attitude.

Remember that there will really come a time when you will have no other meaningful choice but to speak in public. So you might as well be ready for when that time comes. It could be either a disastrous or a pleasant experience for you; and you have all the power and abilities to make the most out of it. Follow the tips above and you will surely be on your way to becoming a natural at public speaking.

Dedicated to Your Public Speaking Success – http://www.EZPublicSpeaking.com

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STEP ONE Prepare well. Naturally enough, the more prepared you are the more likely you are to feel in control, which will NATURALLY help your nervousness reduce.

STEP TWO Practice, practice, practice. You can’t do too much practice. Don’t listen to those people who say you can over-practice. Tell that to circus artists who practice day in day out for decades, just to get their act right. You don’t hear actors and musicians complaining they had ‘too much’ rehearsal time. The more your rehearse, the better.

STEP THREE Say your speech OUT LOUD. Whether you are in the car, the bath, or going for a walk with the dog, say it out loud. Going through your talk ‘in your head’ means you don’t benefit from something called ‘psychomotor memory’ – whereby the memory for what you need to say is partly embedded in the muscles of your mouth.

STEP FOUR Get to the venue early. Get a feel for the room. Sit where the audience will sit so you can see it from their perspective. Walk around the auditorium. Practice your speech on the stage itself. The more comfortable you are with the room, the less your nerves will be.

STEP FIVE Get some exercise. A walk, a swim, a session in the gym, it doesn’t matter what you do, as long as you get some exercise in the couple of hours before your talk. That way you’ll change the chemistry of your blood supply in your own favour. Exercise is essential in reducing nerves. Do not skimp on this.

STEP SIX Chew some mints or sweets. While waiting to go on stage, chew something. This will produce saliva which also helps reduce nerves. If you drink water your saliva production will go down and your nervousness will rise. Avoid water when presenting.

STEP SEVEN When you go up on stage, smile. No matter how false it feels to you, the audience won’t notice. Just smile. It helps produce hormones that lead to a more relaxed feeling.

STEP EIGHT Be active on the stage. Move around, use big gestures and get as much body movement as you can. The more you move the more relaxed you will feel.

STEP NINE Look people in the eye. Make as much eye contact as you can. The more the better. Eye contact is essential in helping you feel good and reducing your nerves.

STEP TEN Use feedback. Always gain feedback on your speeches. You’ll soon discover you are a lot better than you think you are, which is bound to help boost your confidence.

Graham Jones is a psychologist and public speaker. He has helped over 17,000 people overcome their fear of public speaking. He runs The Presentation Business to help you speak in public. See: www.presentationbiz.com

Or sign up for a series of tips via email: tips@presentationbiz.com

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Can you stand in front of huge audience and express your self? Most of us have butterflies in our stomach with the very thought of doing this. Apart from few that have natural talent for connecting with other people or had some one who could actually teach them to communicate, few of us get the best results that could from the wonderful communication tools that we are given with most of us are in a dire need to improve public speaking skills.

We all have people with whom we have to work to get things done. Our ability to communicate with clients, customers, subordinates, peers, and superiors can enhance our effectiveness or sabotage us. Many times, our public speaking skills make the difference. Here are 10 ways to improve public speaking:

1. The first way to improve your public speaking is by developing your voice. A high whiney voice is not perceived to be one of authority. In fact, a high soft voice can make you sound like prey to an aggressive co-worker who is out to make his/her career at the expense of anyone else. Begin doing exercises to lower the pitch of your voice.

2. The second way to better public speaking is to talk slowly. People will perceive you as nervous and unsure of yourself if you talk fast. However, be careful not to slow down to the point where people begin to finish your sentences just to help you finish.

3. The third way better public speaking is to animate your voice. Avoid a monotone. Use dynamics. Your pitch should raise and lower. Your volume should be soft and loud. Listen to your local TV news anchor; take note.

4. Fourth way better public speaking is enunciating your words. Speak clearly. Do not mumble. If people are always saying,”huh?” to you, you are mumbling.

5. Fifth way better public speaking is by using appropriate volume. Use a volume that is appropriate for the setting. Speak more softly when you are alone and close. Speak louder when you are speaking to larger groups or across larger spaces.

6. Sixth way to better public speaking is by pronouncing every word correctly. People will judge your competency through your vocabulary. If you aren’t sure how to say a word, do not use it.

7. Seventh way to better public speaking is by using the right word. If you are not sure of the meaning of a word, do not use it. Start a program of learning a new word a day. Use it sometime in your conversations during the day

8. Eighth way better public speaking is by making eye contact with the person you are talking to.

9. Ninth way to better public speaking is by using gestures while you speak Make your whole body talk. Use smaller gestures for individuals and small groups. The gestures should get larger as the group that one is addressing increase in size.

10. Last but not the least, tenth way to better public speaking is by not sending mixed messages. Make your words, gestures, facial expressions, tone, and message match. Disciplining an employee while smiling sends a mixed message and, therefore, is ineffective. If you have to deliver a negative message, make your words, facial expressions and tone match the message.

Public speaking is an art, which can be developed by practice. You can draw attention of thousands of audience if have good public speaking skills. Not only while addressing large audience, you can make your talks a pleasure for everyone by improving your public speaking skills.

John Khu is an experience entrepreneur and internet marketer. He specializes in communication development and personal happiness.

http://www.communicationessence.com

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Whether you’re speaking to a large group in an auditorium, or a small group in a conference room, your voice is your most important tool as a speaker. To use your voice for maximum impact and make yourself heard, follow these simple public speaking tips.

Pointer 1: Vary your pitch, tone, volume and pace

The pitch of your voice is its “highness” or “lowness.” Varying your pitch is a way to add color, excitement, and emphasis to your speech. Nervous speakers sometimes have tension in their vocal chords, resulting in an unintentionally higher pitch. Relaxation and breathing exercises can help with this (see below).

The tone or quality of your voice says a lot to your audience that words can never convey. Does your voice sound warm or cold? Does it sound conversational or formal? Do you sound friendly, happy, angry, or nervous?

You’ve heard the word “monotone,” right? That’s what you sound like when you don’t vary the tone of your voice. When you adjust your tone to match the ideas and emotions in your presentation, your audience receives a deeper level of understanding as well as a deeper connection with you.

Volume is the loudness of your voice. Use varying volume for emphasis, and remember to adjust your volume to the size of the venue you’re speaking in.

One way to really grab your audience’s attention is to drop the volume when you want to make an important point. Lowering your volume forces the audience to give extra concentration to what you’re saying.

Use silence and pauses to maximize your message and to create drama. Silence gives you and your audience a nice break – it allows them to process what you’ve been saying, because it’s hard for our brains to hold too much information at one time. It also gives them a break from your voice. A pause can be used to emphasize a point, to really let something sink in.

One more thing to mention about volume: keep your sentences strong from start to finish. Some people’s voices fade out at the end of a sentence or idea, leaving the audience grasping to hear the final few words. Make sure to punch the beginnings and endings of sentences so they don’t disappear and leave your audience in confusion. Pace is the speed at which you speak. You can speed up or slow down for emphasis. Sometimes nervous speakers will race through their talk, finishing too early, and leaving the audience out of breath and lost, because they missed half of what was said. Breathing and relaxation can help you control and moderate your pace. Slow down your pace when you have something particularly important to say – you don’t want to race through your critical points.

Pointer 2: Practice relaxation and breathing

Have I mentioned relaxation and breathing enough times? Relaxation and proper breathing allow oxygen to circulate and your muscles to relax, rather than building tension around the shoulders and chest, which can compress your lungs and make your voice sound weak from lack of breath support. Take some deep breaths before your presentation. Practice breathing deeply using your diaphragm; you know you’re doing it right when your stomach puffs out but your shoulders do not rise. Search the Web for articles and books about “diaphragmatic breathing” or “belly breathing.”

Do some warm-ups and stretches beforehand, especially stretches that involve your face, jaw, neck, chest, and upper body. And don’t forget to breathe during the presentation. Pausing to breathe while you’re speaking keeps you from speeding through the presentation – and the audience doesn’t even notice.

Pointer 3: Repeat back questions so your audience can also be heard

In a large room, repeat back your audience’s questions. Unless there is someone in the auditorium delivering a microphone to audience members, it’s likely that some people in the audience won’t hear the questions posed to you. Repeating back the questions keeps everyone on the same page and keeps the audience from feeling left out.

One way to practice the tips in this article is to read aloud from a book or newspaper. Even better: read aloud from a children’s book! Children’s books are meant to be read with a variety of vocal inflections, and this will allow you to try out all of the tips mentioned above.

Your voice is your most powerful public speaking tool. When your voice matches the emotion and concepts in your presentation, you deliver to your audience deeper understanding of and connection with your message.

Lisa Braithwaite works with individuals to uncover their challenges and build their strengths in presenting themselves confidently as speakers. Find your voice with public speaking coaching! Sign up for my newsletter and find out about my free consultation by visiting www.coachlisab.com.

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I’m a professional psychologist, a member of Rotary, a book author (on achievement motivation), a resume writer and career coach, and someone who has heard an endless number of professional and non-professional speakers for over 30 years. I’ve seen how it’s the little things that make a big difference. Here are 7 “little things” you can do that will instantly improve your public speaking dramatically.

1. TALK TWICE AS SLOW. Most speakers (even professional ones) talk too fast. Have you ever listened carefully to professional speakers on TV? They talk slower than in normal conversational speech. Slow down. Take your time. Don’t rush through individual words. Linger on them. It may feel unnatural, but just listen to a tape recording of yourself. It will undoubtedly sound a lot better.

2. TALK TWICE AS LOUD. Most speakers talk too softly. Speak up. It may seem to you that you are screaming, but (again) a tape recording will prove that it sounds fine.

3. ENUNCIATE THE CONSONANT SOUNDS CLEARLY. When we listen, we hear clearly because of the consonant sounds (the “hard” sounds – sss, t, d, p, m, and so forth), not the vowels (a, e, i, o, and u). Pay attention to those hard sounds. Make sure they are clear and distinct. Exaggerate them.

4. USE SHORT SENTENCES. You may like speaking in long, long sentences, but your audience doesn’t. Break up your ideas into short sentences. “Once idea per sentence” is as good a rule for speaking as it is for writing.

5. PAUSE OFTEN. Forget the ummmms and the aaahhhhs. Dead silence for a few seconds may seem like an eternity to you, but an audience doesn’t mind it at all. Take your time. Pausing creates interest and anticipation.

6. ORGANIZE YOUR TALK AROUND 3 TO 5 BULLET POINTS. No matter what you may think of off-the-cuff speeches and how entertaining they may be, nobody likes rambling on and on. Whatever you have to say, put it in the form of 3 to 5 bullet points. You’ll make listeners out of your audience.

7. SAVE THE BEST FOR LAST. What is the most important, the most dramatic, the most impactful thing you have to say in your talk? Figure out what it is, and PUT IT LAST. That’s the most effective way to end a talk.

Dr. Sander Marcus is a clinical psychologist at the Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT) in Chicago. Specializing in motivational, career, and business areas, he has co-authored two books on underachievement and a nationally used sales test for hiring and training (the SalesAP, Sales Achievement Predictor). He can be contacted at marcus@iit.edu, 312-567-3358. www.center.iit.edu

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Presentation, presentation, presentation is the name of the Public Speaking game!

You may be the most knowledgeable person in the world on a given subject, you may be a PHD with clusters, but if your presentation of the presentation does not have presentation skills your presentation will fail! “Now that was fun!”

Have you gone to a seminar you were really excited about and if you made it to the end, got nothing out of it? Let’s take a look. When the presentation started this is what your heard; Welcooome toooday. . . . . . we will talk abouuut . . . . . .blah de blah, blah blah, blahblahblah. “Monotone, I hate monotone!”, “Drives me absolutely crazy!” Standing in one spot, like a mannequin and has the excitement of watching ice melt. Got the picture?

Continuing the series of “So You Want To Become A Public Speaker?” we are going to dive into Presentation. Not to be confused with the presentation itself, but how it’s presented.

Remember, a presentation is a performance, like an actor. Always bring your “A” game. No “B” movie acting here! How you are being perceived is critical to your longevity in this business.

Dress properly for the occasion. As stated in a previously published article in this series; you can always dress down, but not up.

If your topic is serious, be serious, but not stiff. Present the desired image to your audience. Be enthusiastic, confident, carry yourself with pride, but not cocky. Remain calm. Appear relaxed, even if you feel nervous. Remember the duck story; calm and collected on top of the water, even though your feet are going like heck below the surface.

Speak slowly, articulate clearly, and show appropriate emotion and feeling relating to your topic. But don’t be phony your audience will pick up on that immediately. Take the time to connect with your audience. (Refer back to “Public Speaking Pre Preparation” in the area of “know your audience”.) Speak to the person furthest away from you to make sure your voice is heard from back of the room. It’s okay and encouraged to ask that furthest person in the back if you can be heard. Fluctuate the tone of your voice and dramatize if necessary. If sound equipment is required, as was determined during your pre preparation, adjust accordingly. DO NOT TALK MONOTONE!

I was taught to speak with conviction as if I really believed in what I was saying. Throughout my public speaking career I have changed that teaching to, “Speak with conviction as I truly believe in what I’m saying!”

The material you present verbally should have the same structure as a written research paper, i.e. INTRODUCTION to BODY (strong supporting arguments, accurate and up-to-date information) to CONCLUSION (re-state intro, summarize, and a logical conclusion) with a verbal presentation, add a questions and answer period.

Body language is critical. Standing, walking and moving around using appropriate hand gestures is a MUST. Never present a presentation sitting down or standing still, reading from a prepared presentation. I encourage you not to use a lectern. “Here, check this out” American Heritage Dictionary – lec·tern (lěk’tərn) A stand that serves as a support for the notes or books of a speaker. Now here’s my definition – “A lectern is a crutch for the unprepared speaker.”

Audio-visual aids are okay; don’t torment your audience by creating a lengthy overhead presentation and reading it out to them. You will loose your audience for sure and most importantly your credibility.

Do not read from notes. It’s okay to glance at your notes, but personally I don’t use them. However, I do use overhead presentations so if I loose my place I can glance up, adjust and continue on. Know your subject! If you make an error, correct it, inject some humor and continue.

Add humor when appropriate. Keep your audience interested and relaxed throughout the entire presentation. Caution; don’t be a clown! Humor is great to get your audience relaxed and at the same time relax you the presenter. Don’t open with a joke. This is a bad practice. Trust me there will be plenty of time and opportunities for humor during your presentation. Remember that an interesting presentation makes time go by fast, but a boring presentation is always too long to bear even if the presentation length is the same.

Maintain good eye contact with your audience. Have direct eye contact with a number of people in the audience, and once in a while glance at the whole audience while speaking.

Maintain a constant visual on your audience. Their body language will tell you if you need to adjust your presentation. Speak to your audience, listen to their questions, respond to their reactions, adjust and adapt on the fly.

Your presentation of the presentation (gotta love it) is critical to your public speaking career. Voice tone, eye contact, humor, body language, subject matter knowledge, visual-aids and structure are items you must understand and implement. As stated in previous sessions, “You’re a walking billboard for your Public Speaking career and these are some of the tools in your toolbox of success. Good luck and see you at the next session.

Visit Us at our Public Speaking site.

Mr. Simmons has been public speaking since 1973. Mr. Simmons has presented hundreds of public speaking presentations from business concepts to motivational. Mr. Dale Simmons, known as the “WHY” man, is a interactive motivational and “self-help” public speaker.

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I’m convinced that it’s nearly impossible to get through life without speaking in public. Perhaps you are asked to give a toast at a wedding. Maybe you want to give a eulogy at a dear friend’s funeral. Maybe you’re invited to speak to a group of potential contributors for the charitable organization you’re a part of. Maybe you are called upon to speak to your peers at work to give an update on your department’s progress.

Whatever the case may be, there are so many situations in life where we could find ourselves standing in front of a group of people and trying to inform or persuade them. How would you do in that situation?

For some, the fear of public speaking is debilitating enough for them to do whatever is necessary to get out of the situation. For many, that fear causes extreme anxiety but they push through and speak anyway. Being able to speak effectively means potentially advancing in your work or social life or bringing honor to the deserving person you’re speaking about. It’s important, then, to be able to speak effectively and to overcome your fear.

One way to help you is with a visualization technique. I advise people who are planning on presenting to visualize themselves taking the stage and giving an incredible presentation. The result? They feel the scenario long before they deal with it and they enjoy the visualized success. This builds confidence and having confidence helps to create actual success. Here’s how you an visualize your way to a successful presentation:

First, imagine that you’re sitting there in the room. Imagine the room and its surroundings in detail, including the sights, sounds, smells, tastes, and temperature. Are there others nearby? Is someone wearing perfume? Did you just drink the too-strong coffee? Picture the scenario exactly as you expect it to be.

Next, imagine yourself being called to the stage in the manner that will likely happen. Sometimes it’s an introduction by the Master of Ceremonies, or maybe it’s a glowing report by your manager. Imagine yourself standing and walking to the stage. In your imagination, think about every step you’ll take and each breath you inhale and exhale as you go.

Now, imagine taking the stage and beginning your speech. Imagine the speech in detail: visualize yourself speaking, thinking on the spot, interacting with the audience. Don’t gloss over your speech, but actually deliver it while doing this visualization exercise. Imagine yourself hearing your voice booming over the audio system. Imagine yourself referencing some of the visuals that you might have with you. Imagine the sights and sounds that you’ll experience as you present.

Lastly, imagine the audience. As you present, visualize them enthusiastically responding to you. Imagine them nodding in agreement or writing copious notes because of what you have to say. And finally, imagine them applauding enthusiastically as you finish and then rushing out to perform the ultimate action you want them to take (for example, to donate money to your cause or to buy the product you’re selling). Visualization: it’s an effective way to practice your presentation.

Deborah Torres Patel is an internationally acclaimed Voice & Presentation Coach. Sign up for a complimentary 35 lesson voice & presentation skills online training course at http://www.expressingyou.com . To dramatically reduce fear of public speaking, register for 20 free lessons at http://www.fearlessinfive.com .

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Choosing good public speaking topics is not as difficult as you might imagine, although it will always depend on the occasion and the people you are going to be addressing. In addition it will depend on who you are and what you know about.

Anyone with any experience in public speaking knows that it is much easier to talk about something you believe in and know about than something that doesn’t interest you, or that you have only a cursory knowledge of. If you are very familiar with a topic, not only will the words come more easily, but you will also be more confident.

So if you have to come up with a speech topic, first find out about your audience and the event you will be speaking at. Find out if there is a theme and what other speakers, if any, are going to be discussing. Then see how you can relate the theme to yourself, your interests and to your business or personal activities. Also consider how you can make the speech topical and relevant.

Here are a few examples:

    * A university professor who normally teaches information technology is asked to give a speech at a conference that is going to be attended by travel agents. The theme of the conference is Changing Trends in the Travel Industry. So he decides to talk about The Impact of the Internet on the Travel Trade and to focus on how travel agents can improve their business and change their accounting systems by setting up secure web servers for online payments.
    * A popular television presenter is asked to be MC at the same conference. She has been told to give a short speech at the beginning, to open the conference, so decides to discuss her personal experiences travelling. She calls her opening speech A Sign of the Times, and tells three humorous stories about travelling on cheap airlines versus travelling in business class on a popular but expensive national airliner. She keeps her speech short and sweet, makes delegates laugh and thus breaks the ice for the rest of the speakers.
    * A high-powered company director is another speaker at the conference. His business involves finance and the stock market. He is a renowned speaker who is well travelled, but decides that he will not talk about his travels. Instead he gives a speech that is more closely related to his business: The Stocks and Shares of Travel, and analyses the impact of inflation on the travel trade.

Each of these speakers has stuck to the theme of the conference, and has chosen a topic they feel comfortable with.

Of course, having decided on a particular topic, you will need to define exactly what you are going to discuss. Be careful not to go into too much detail or to allow your topic to become too broad. Work out a logical outline with an interesting introduction and a convincing conclusion, and make sure you know exactly what point or points you intend to make.

Tim Ackerman is a public speaking enthusiast, author, and owner of PublicSpeakingInsider.com. Be sure to visit his visit his site for other great insights on choosing public speaking topics, along with many other useful tips to help you become a more powerful and effective communicator.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Tim_Ackerman

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Like most pubic speaking consultants, I usually hammer all the reasons a person should not be afraid of presenting. However, the more coaching I do, the more I realize the fear is legit. People should be afraid of getting in front of a group.

While there is a lot to gain from speaking publicly, there is also a lot to lose. Here are seven reasons to be scared…

Number One: No skill.

Would you want someone repairing your car that knows nothing about mechanics? The average speaker receives no training, takes no classes, and doesn’t read one book on presenting. He or she expects to do an adequate job with no experience.

Number Two: Not Fearing Death

The OLD adage is that public speaking is the #1 fear. If you would RATHER die than speak, then you don’t need to be speaking. Period.

If you spillover Niagara Falls walking a tightrope, you’re going to die and it will all be over. When speaking you won’t die. You’ll live to face the embarrassment, the whispers, and the snickers. But you’ll still be alive. If you look forward to a Niagara, yet look away from speaking then put on your swim trunks and stay away from the podium.

Number Three: Failing to Organize.

One of my services is critiquing the outlines of speakers. On average the format and structure is elementary at best and confusing at worse. It’s as if the speaker’s brain spewed out on a sheet of paper and left it at that. Organizing does not take long, nor is it difficult, but only a handful do it successfully. Without a proper outline the fear is understandable.

Number Four: Confusing Writing and Speaking.

Writing is formal. People rarely forgive errors in spelling and grammar. From this article I’ll get several people attempting to correct me. However, there is room for error when speaking. The ears are very forgiving and the brain is sharp enough to fill in the blanks.

Speakers get tripped up when they try to talk like they write. They become more academic and antiseptic and who wants to listen to someone like that. How many college professors did you find hypnotizing? Do you remind yourself of a monotone bore? Frightening, yes?

Number Five: Trying to Survive.

“I just want to get through the speech and get it over with.” If that is your attitude then be afraid. Chances are extremely high that you will not do well. “Survival” causes you to do and say things you wouldn’t without the duress.

Number Six: Lack of Commitment.

This ties into the first point. The majority of speakers do a single presentation and that’s it. No problem. A book can help them. On the other hand, there are thousands of monthly, or even daily presenters who fail to make marked improvement. Why? No commitment.

You can’t take one class and do brain surgery. You can’t attend one seminar and suddenly become a tax expert. The same with speaking. One book, class, or course will not create excellence. To become the best you have to commit yourself to long term achievement.

Number Seven: The Freeze Factor.

Chances are high that you will forget something and freeze during your speech. Unless you know how to play it off, or use the moment, you will look uncomfortable, or even stupid. People will talk about it afterwards. They will mention how they felt sorry for you.

It seems that folks are always looking for ways to be afraid. Well, you just got seven reasons. The question is: What are you going to do about it?

Paul Evans is the executive creator of Instant Speaking Success. His company has helped over 35,000 speakers avoid the fear and strengthen their skills. If you just want to survive one speech go to http://www.instantspeakingsuccesspro.com If you’re committed to becoming a speaker audiences want to hear time and time again then claim your public speaking training

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Our continuing series of “So You Want To Become a Public Speaker”; we will look at Public Speaking Pre-Preparation.

How many seminars have you gone to and paid good money to participate to find the speaker reading from cards, or reading from an overhead presentation? And let us not forget the “and, ums, ah’s”.

I went to a seminar once and it was so bad that I found myself counting how many “and’s and um’s” were being stated. I really cannot remember what the subject was. I found myself viewing the seminar participants sleeping, writing, day dreaming and so on. Have you ever been to one of those? There are really only two major causes for this type of poor performance.

1. Just there to get paid

That is to me the most disgusting reason of all. If you’re just there to get paid and not passionate about your speaking career GET OUT! People pay good money for seminars and expect to hear a good presenter with good information. Nuf said!

2. Bad preparation

Pre-Preparation is critical to your delivering a good presentation. In Public Speaking the pre-preparation, or lack of, will be noticed by your audience.

So, we are going to address pre seminar preparation.

So now you have the subject matter for your next seminar. You know the venue and the time allotted for your presentation. What else do you need to know?

Elements of Pre Prep

Know your audience; – their age group, gender, ethnicity, education, income level. You may ask yourself, “Why do I need to know all that information?”

The more your presentation is geared towards your audience the more impact and success you will have in its delivery and the less chance of a blunder. Example; There was a speech given by a government official where a question was raised on how the presenter thought about a specific person. Me personally, I felt the response was well stated, but was offensive to some with regard to “he is articulate” and was taken as a racial thing. There was rhubarb about that whole thing.

In this new politically correct (PC) world one must be careful of the words used. Unless you are a well known controversial speaker, one must address this issue in your pre-prep.

Can see the value of knowing your audience before presenting?

To find out audience information, contact the seminar planner, they would have a good idea of your audience.

Speech Preparation – Okay you have your subject, now what? Organizing your speech is one of the most important skills to learn. Good organization is often the key to understanding. The audience is more likely to understand your message if it is well organized.

Write out your speech. Writing for public speaking isn’t so different from other types of writing. You want to hold your audience’s attention, communicate your ideas in a logical manner and use reliable evidence to support your point.

When you write a speech understand your audience is made up of listeners. They have only one chance to comprehend what you’re presenting. Your speech must be well-organized and easily understood, and your delivery must fit the audience. Again with the audience!

Practice, Practice, Practice! – In my eyes this is the most important part of public speaking! To put this in straight talk, “you need to nail this!” ”You only have one shot. You blow it here and you’re all done.” I’m not joking!

If this is a new subject for you need to start practicing this presentation 1 week before show time! Your reputation is riding on every presentation you present regardless of the public speaking venue. Ask a friend over to help, it may cost you’re a dinner or beer, present it and ask for honest feedback.

You really don’t want to read off cue cards or read off you Power Point presentation. Your audience can read the onscreen presentation. It does not hurt to glance up if you loose your place. But again if you practiced this presentation enough you shouldn’t have to.

Equipment Requirements – Understand your venue. Seating capacity, number of expected participants, size of room and acoustics play a huge roll on your planned delivery. Also find out about existing sound equipment, projectors, screens and lighting.

Once you have gathered all this information you can start your pre-prep for equipment needed like wireless microphone systems and adaptability to existing sound equipment, USB presentation projector, laptop, extra batteries, extra bulb, USB flash drive (backup for your presentation), and screen.

There is nothing worst than getting to your public speaking venue and you don’t have the correct equipment for your presentation. Backup, back-up backup! Basically be prepared for the worst!

Pre-preparation is critical to your public speaking career. Know your audience, write out your speech in a logical manner, practice, practice, practice and then practice some more. Understand your venue and have the required equipment there to present your best presentation ever!

For more information on public speaking contact us 1-888-696-6424, email or visit our web site.

Mr. Dale Simmons, known as the “WHY” man, is a interactive motivational and “self-help” public speaker who introduced the Pebble in the Pool © theory. With more than 28 years in the corporate market and conducting hundreds of training and career motivational public speaking presentations, Dale has developed the Pebble in the Pool © theory.

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