Public Speaking Tips?

Handsome Bob

Couldn't find a forum where this thread would ideally fit, so I said I'll chance my arm and ask my fellow men for advice (advice from the ladies is welcome too).

Long story short I have a presentation to give in Uni in a few weeks. It has to last 30 minutes and the longest one I ever did was 15 minutes (did well, but it nearly killed me, not to mention the horrific build up to it).

I really hate presentations because I haven't really got a commanding voice and I tend to get easily flustered. So I beg you my gentlemen, do you have any pointers or advice for this poor soul? :pac:

DazMarz

Public speaking can be a bloody nightmare. But never fear...

-Get a good night's sleep the night before you have to give the speech. You will feel much better

-Dont be hungry going in to give the speech. But dont be so full you feel bloated.

-Have a bottle/glass of water to hand during the speech so you can take a pause if need be.

-If nervous before hand, take several long, deep breaths. This has a great calming effect.

-Stand straight and scan your audience. Do not make eye contact with anyone, but appear to do so. Dont spend the whole speech staring down at your notes. (Making direct eye contact can be off-putting, so avoid it; but do not avoid looking at your audience however)

-Speak loudly, but do not shout.

Hope this helps!

And good luck!

metrovelvet

Just remember your only responsibility is to deliver the information. Thats it. Dont worry about anything else.

Sauve

Make sure you've got it very well prepared, almost to the point where you know all the points off by heart.
Make this the presentation that changes the fact that you think youre no good at them. Take your time, speak clearly, and as soon as that flustery feeling comes over you, just supress it until youre finished. Keep telling yourself youre doing a good job and BELIEVE it.
Also, Id recommend looking your best on the day. Get a haircut, wear something really smart and be well rested. Doing that will stop any thoughts of 'I look like a berk standing up here'.
Good luck!

OldGoat

Lots of great tips in the above posts but for me it's the "Take your time" one that is most important. When we get nervous we tend to speak a little faster and end up gushing all the facts of the speech in a matter of moments rather then minutes.
So, slow everything down as you deliver your speech.

Know your speech. Know each paragraph of it. Keep just the paragraph synopsis on your cue cards as a reminder. If you keep your whole speech on your cards you'll end up reading it from your cards rather then speaking to the audience.

Edit: Oooooh, use cue cards! Nearly forgot that one. :-)

Giselle

I'd like to add to the excellent advice already given, that an empty bladder is an excellent idea.

Nothing is worse than needing a pee when you're trying to impress/concentrate. I know this from bitter, bitter experience.:)

metrovelvet

Also keep hydrated.

You could try some voice excersizes to keep your voice supple. Here's one.

1. Stand facing about 6 inches from the wall and let out one pitch, sustaining it until you run out if air and the sound stops.
2. Take a step backwards and do the same, but with more breath power behind you and a little louder. You want the wall to hear you. Keep doing that, increasing duration and volume until you reach the other side of the room.

Its important to reach for your breath from deep into your diaphragm. Imagine the air coming all the way up from your pelvis.

Also keep your mouth supple. Toungue twisters are a good start but make the words with exaggerated mouth movements.

Body language. Stand up straight and tall. There are excersizes for gettingused to being looked at, but impossible to instruct here.

L31mr0d

Used to have give demonstrations all the time in college.

The old adage "picture them naked" works (although not literally, more the sentiment). Basically the action requires lowering the importance of the audience to a level where you are comfortable to speak to them easily. You can also try to imagine speaking to a group of children.

What worked for me was to imagine I was speaking to an audience of people who didn't understand English.

Snowie

Know what your talking about, the more you know the less tiem your struggeling... prepair for some bone headed questions... you might not get them some times you do.
never hold one person gazr itle knowck you off course bounce your eyes around the room to different people dagaion not holding gaze but the most important thing is no what your talking about,

Ps i know this is kinda strange

But enjoy the nervousness and aprihention its kinda fun and when you get it and bring a small cup of water out with you in case you get dry mouth

CDfm

I have done a few.

I prepare and often if I know some in the audience have asked them to sit in the middle of the room so I deliver to 1 person rather than a bunch.

It works for me.

Dave!

L31mr0d wrote: »

Used to have give demonstrations all the time in college.

The old adage "picture them naked" works (although not literally, more the sentiment). Basically the action requires lowering the importance of the audience to a level where you are comfortable to speak to them easily. You can also try to imagine speaking to a group of children.

Don't combine those two or you could get in trouble !

Fajitas!

If you're using visuals, and can get your hands on software like Keynote, it'll be invaluable for presentations, giving you room for your presentation itself, and all your cue notes.

After that, it's practice practice practice. Just remember to pace yourself.

If you are going to have a laptop/cue sheets there, remember, they're only to start off your presentation and give cues from there, don't stare at it for the whole performance, you're presenting to the audience, not the laptop

Otis Driftwood

If you are nervous about making eye contact with people then a good tip is to look straight at the back of the room,scanning from side to side.It gives the illusion of constant eye contact while avoiding been made laugh by some git.

Best of luck with it anyway and embrace the pressure of the situation.

OldGoat

Check your fly BEFORE and not during. In other words if you are nervous or a fidgit then give your hands somethnig to fidgit with or they'll develop a mind of their own and inevitably head for your crotch. Hold something in your hands, a pen, a pointer, cuecards, anything that will keep your fidgitting hands busy.

Another use for having a pen in your hand is that when dropped it gives you a nice breathing pause to gather yourself together and re-focus whenever you need it.

If you gesticulate lots normally then continue to do so rather then fight it as that will just make you stiff & arkward rather then relaxed and comfortable.

Have we scared you enough yet?

g'em

LZ5by5 I give presentations on how to give presentations for work, and the one thing holds holds true about every lecture, seminar, workshop or any kind of presentation is quite simply: practice, breathe and smile

You don't need to have a commanding voice or intellectual prowess, you just need to know what your presentation is about. Think of the best speakers you know of, be they public or in college. What do they all have in common?

Chances are they're interesting, amenable and enthusiastic about their work.

Smile, breathe and look people in the eye. You'll get their attention and put them (and yourself) at ease.

What are you using to do the presentation - powerpoint? overhead slides? a blackboard?

Have you got a pet? It might sound a little ridculous but practicing out loud in front of another living breathing thing really helps you get comfortable with your presentation. Keep saying it loud as often as you need to until the words and ideas are flowing naturally.

If you find yourself getting flustered just stop and breathe and let your mind calm down and catch up. Good presenting skills are something most people need to learn and they come with time and practice so don't worry if you don't get it perfect right off the bat.

Drop me a PM with your email address and I can forward on some notes that I have to you.

CDfm

Great reply from g'em but its incomplete. Check your zip before your presentation :pac:

Herbal Deity

I joined my college debating society for a year in first year.

Although I got invaluable practice from making speeches at debates, one of the most important things I learned there was that being good at giving speeches/presentations has absolutely nothing to do with intelligence.

By that I mean, I heard some of the most idiotic points being made in the most eloquent manner at many debates I attended.

Realising this kinda took a huge amount of pressure off me when it comes to public speaking. I think a lot of the anxiety surrounding it has to do with feeling inferior to or intimidated by better speakers. Once you can be confident in your own intelligence, confident that you know what you're talking about, and you actually believe in your ability to speak about your subject matter, then everything else comes a lot more naturally (not that some practice isn't necessary).

Handsome Bob

OldGoat wrote: »

Have we scared you enough yet?

Ha, not at all, I'm liking what I've heard! I do think what Herbal Deity and a few others outlined, i.e. confidence in ones own words, is the key. Taking my time is another good pointer that I'll take on board, previously when giving presentations I would get flustered if I stopped talking for a moment. It's nice to know that taking little moments to gather your senses is actually a good thing! Oh and treating the audience as if they know nothing, I like that one too.

g'em wrote: »

You don't need to have a commanding voice or intellectual prowess, you just need to know what your presentation is about. Think of the best speakers you know of, be they public or in college. What do they all have in common?

Chances are they're interesting, amenable and enthusiastic about their work.

That is true, the best speakers seem to be so sure of themselves, and it's a good thing!

Smile, breathe and look people in the eye. You'll get their attention and put them (and yourself) at ease.

Hmmmm I'll try, I'm not one for making eye contact. Then again it's just a class of 8 plus the lecturer so it might be easier for me to do that.

What are you using to do the presentation - powerpoint? overhead slides? a blackboard?

I believe we're not using any of those apps, it's just going to be me and a speech.

If you find yourself getting flustered just stop and breathe and let your mind calm down and catch up. Good presenting skills are something most people need to learn and they come with time and practice so don't worry if you don't get it perfect right off the bat.

That's good to know, I always thought stopping was a bad thing and if I stopped I would get even more freaked out.

Drop me a PM with your email address and I can forward on some notes that I have to you.

Will do, thanks for the help. That goes for all of you too, I've been feeling slightly calmer about the whole thing since I opened this thread.

g'em

LZ5by5 wrote: »

Hmmmm I'll try, I'm not one for making eye contact. Then again it's just a class of 8 plus the lecturer so it might be easier for me to do that.

Think about social situations - when someone looks you in the eye when they speak to you it creates a connection, it tells you they're interested in you and what you have to say. The same is true for public speaking. Being able to look at your audience and engage them makes the whole experience more personal for people.

Plus it's also been found that it's it's easier to be harsher on people who don't make eye contact! Look them straight on and you'll guilt them out of feeling bad things towards you

LZ5by5 wrote:

I believe we're not using any of those apps, it's just going to be me and a speech.

If that's the case you'll have fewer visual clues so practice, practice, practice

email is on the way to you too

The Corinthian

Don't jump into your speech. Stand there and allow your audience to quiet down. However, after this don't stop - pregnant pauses that last forever kill a speakers credibility. Keep the momentum going, but try to be relaxed as you do so.

Ignore them if it's your first time. Focusing on an audience or parts thereof is incredibly difficult and takes time to learn. As you're not doing a stand up or debating (much the same thing in university) you don't really need to pay them all that much attention. Ignoring them, almost pretending you are alone, will also allow you to relax. So keep the Q&A till the end.

Punctuate the sections of your speech with snappy sentences or phrases than encapsulate what you've just discussed.

Don't worry if you make a grammatical mistake, or repeat a word, or any of those things that people do all the time when speaking. You're only noticing because you're nervous - they won't because they'll filter it out the same way we all filter out these things in natural conversation.

Run through your speech beforehand once or twice. Annotate and add to it up to the end.

Take your watch off and put it on the podium in front of you so you can keep an eye on the time without being obvious about it.

Powerpoint animations, short videos, etc are great for giving you a few seconds break in the middle of a speech.

Be careful about trying to use humour. You have to have a very good understanding of your audience's mood to pull that off. However a soft joke (something harmless, not really all that funny, but slightly disarming) at the start of the speech can work well.

BumbleB

Mental rehearsal ,I'm a musician and I sometimes I get stage fright so what I do to combat it , is to visualise the room ,going up on stage ,tuning up playing and having no problems and having fun , works very well .

OldGoat

(Jumping up and down like an over excited puppy) Oh I just thought of another one.
If you have any choice in the scheduling then go as early in the day as you can. Everyone else will be so anxious about their own turn that they will overlook any minor mistakes you make.
If you leave yourself till the end you’ll just pile on the anxiousness.

Handsome Bob

Well there's four weeks of presentations, I decided to go first in the second week. I just want to get a feel of a 30 minute presentation in the first week lol.

metrovelvet

Believe in what you are saying. If you believe, they'll believe it.

Aidric

The two most important facets of public speaking are preperation and timing imo. Rehearse the speech on friends or your partner until such time as you feel completely comfortable with it. Secondly don't rush it because that's the temptation when you feel nervous. Deep breaths and purposeful delivery. Don't feel that you're alone in feeling nervous because rest assured every other classmate is feeling the same.
I've always found that once you get the first two minutes out of the way that you relax in to it from there on in and may even end up enjoying by the time it finishes. Good luck.

CDfm

Is it a technical presentation or academic etc.

a technical presentation is done based on facts

if you have been to one you like dig out your notes

cocoa

I don't have that much experience in this but I can tell you the mistakes I've made or seen made (mostly the former =P)

Definitely slow down like everyone else said. You have (hopefully) been over this many times and know it so well you could do it in a quarter of the time, but your audience is hearing it for the first time (I assume). Let it sink in, and take your time (easier said than done).

Another mistake which I don't think was mentioned is learning off your speech by heart and relying on that. By all means, learn your speech and have it well rehearsed but don't get trapped in rote learning and repetition. In particular, don't insist on saying something the same way over and over. If you forget a particular word or sentence on the day (most people do), you should be able to say it another way (because you know the ideas), not pause for a long time trying to remember (or reading) a particularly eloquent (or so you thought) turn of phrase.

Good Luck, I hope you enjoy the challenge

Khannie

OldGoat wrote: »

Know your speech. Know each paragraph of it. Keep just the paragraph synopsis on your cue cards as a reminder. If you keep your whole speech on your cards you'll end up reading it from your cards rather then speaking to the audience.

Edit: Oooooh, use cue cards! Nearly forgot that one. :-)

+1 on this. I did the dreaded best man speech there a while ago. When I had the speech finished on paper, I read it out and recorded it then burned it on a CD. I listened to that CD on the way to and from work for a few days. Meant it was absolutely *beaten* into my head. I found that very helpful, especially with timing / not rushing.

For a longer one like yours, sipping on water is important.

If you've allotted time for questions / feedback assume there wont be any (questions or feedback). Groups of people tend to be shy. I had to give a training course for our company before and the thing was over about 2 hours early because I got 2 questions during the whole day!!

Herbal Deity

I'm going to agree with this:

cocoa wrote: »

Another mistake which I don't think was mentioned is learning off your speech by heart and relying on that. By all means, learn your speech and have it well rehearsed but don't get trapped in rote learning and repetition.

And advise against this:

Khannie wrote: »

+1 on this. I did the dreaded best man speech there a while ago. When I had the speech finished on paper, I read it out and recorded it then burned it on a CD. I listened to that CD on the way to and from work for a few days. Meant it was absolutely *beaten* into my head. I found that very helpful, especially with timing / not rushing.

Rote learning is never a good strategy. Not only does it take much much longer to "beat" it into yourself, even if you know it 100% off by heart, it's easy to tell when a speech has been learned off in such a fashion, tends not to flow naturally.

In fact, I would advise against ever writing out the speech in full altogether. IMO, you want to write down points you're going to make, short notes about those points and nice phrases/jokes you'd like to throw in if possible.

That said, in fairness to Khannie, a best man speech is a completely different thing to an academic presentation. I can imagine it'd be hard to apply my method to what is essentially a braindump of cheese, anecdotes and flattery, with no strictly logical flow to it

Khannie

Yeah, the best man speech is a different thing altogether I suppose. I didn't repeat it word for word either (there's a funny story there for another day), it just helped with knowing the flow, timing / knowing I wasnt' rushing through it / etc.

OldGoat

Khannie wrote: »

Yeah, the best man speech is a different thing altogether I suppose.

Plus you get to drink alcohol before, during and after it.

BumbleB

OP Like a lot of posters say actually speak slower than you intend to speak .

This is because when you go to do something which is a a little bit nervy the body will respond by secreting adrenaline which will make you speak very fast ,this is very evident at wedding masses when people who are not experienced in reading will tend to fly through their lines and also at concerts where the music is always played at a faster BPM .

RunHomerRun

OP - lots and lots of sensible advice.

Some basic tips, facts I found to be invaluable

1) if Powerpoint - do NOT have lots of text / words on the screen - have main points, and you talk about the main points.
To the audience - if you see lots of words on screen, you automatically think - aaahh f*ck lots to get through here

2) Very simply, have a start, middle and end.
Sounds obvious, but lots of presentations miss that point.
You obviously call them different things
Introduction
Objectives / Aims
Actual Content
Conclusion.
Best put,
a. Tell them (audience) what you're going to tell them (intro)
b. Tell them (content of presentation)
c. Tell them what you've just told them (conclusion / summary)
If you feel in preparation for the presentation that you're getting overwhelmed with the content - step back, take a breath and remember the above a, b, c.

3) Rehearse
Again if using Powerpoint, use the rehearse timer function, close the door to your room - and actually speak aloud the whole presentation - SLOWLY - and time to approx 30 mins or as is required

4) You do NOT appear nervous.
I know the feeling, the knot in your stomach, the dry mouth - you're just about to begin the presentation and your heart is racing, and you feel very nervous.
These are ALL internal things to you - only you can feel them - I promise you the audience cannot see them at all, as they are internal to you.
So - its v normal - but rest assured the audience do NOT pick up on them at all, all they see is a calm and confident presenter

5) Speak Slowly
Because you are nervous - you will auto speak faster than normal, so consciously ensure you speak slower than your normal speaking rate.

Sheep Shagger

Does anyone know of a good Toastmasters club in the city centre?

Handsome Bob

It's on the 22nd, I'll let ye know how it goes.

Cicero

OP.....I work in the learning industry so know a little about presentations and such....if you wish to run anything by me, just give me a shout....there's only 3 rules- Objectives, Objectives, Objectives....everything flows from these and it's what distinguishes the good from the bad.....getting your presentation clear on objectives brings a partiicular over-night confidence that you just won't get from anything else... defining your objectives leads to clear information and lines of thought which in itself brings confidence levels up...best of luck

nkay1985

OP,

Any chance of a bit more information about the presentation? You say it's for university so is it a technical presentation or what?

My main reason for wondering is that I find it almost impossible to believe that you'll be expected to give a 30-minutes presentation without Powerpoint etc.

How are you as a person? In your normal day-to-day activities, would you be laid back or more hyped up? Do you gesticulate much or not?

And is it your class you're presenting to? Do you know these people quite well? Are they friends?

Handsome Bob

Did it today and it was fine, won't pretend it was perfect or anything but I did well, particularly the Q&A went really well. Thanks for the tips y'all!

Cicero

LZ5by5 wrote: »

Did it today and it was fine, won't pretend it was perfect or anything but I did well, particularly the Q&A went really well. Thanks for the tips y'all!

Congratulations- well done...:)