3. Be Prepared. Practice,
practice, practice!
Rehearse out loud with all
equipment you plan on
using. Revise as necessary.
Work to control filler
words; Practice, pause and
breathe.
4. Know your material.
Pick a topic you are
interested in. Know more
about it than you include
in your speech. Use
humor, personal stories
and conversational
language – that way you
won’t easily forget what
to say.
5. Know the room
Arrive early, walk
around the speaking
area and practice using
the microphone and any
visual aids.
6. Relax
Begin by addressing the
audience. It buys you
time and calms your
nervousness. Pause,
smile and count to three
before saying anything.
("One one-thousand, two
one-thousand, three
one-thousand. Pause.
Begin.) Transform
nervous energy into
enthusiasm.
7. Don’t apologize
Don’t apologize for any
nervousness or problem
– the audience probably
never noticed it.
8. Concentrate on the
message – not the medium
Focus your attention
away from your own
anxieties and
concentrate on your
message and your
audience.
9. Use body language
A speech may have great
content, but if a
speaker’s body language
does not show
confidence then the
message cannot be
delivered effectively. A
speaker must exude
confidence in their
message.
10. Be confident
A nervous person can also
be confident. The energy
and adrenaline that
causes nervousness can
also help a person seem
excited about a topic. It
may even get them
excited. Taking time to
relax is also a good way
for speakers to create
confidence within
themselves.
11. Connect with the
audience
Look at the audience
directly when
addressing them. Speak
loudly and persuasively.
Do not get bogged down
in a prepared speech.
If it is not working the
way it was intended, be
flexible and make
changes where
necessary.
12. Be Aware of Time
Constraints
When practicing at
home use a stopwatch.
Cut the speech down
to fit those time
constraints and allow a
little extra time at the
end. Do not use an
extraneous words or
repetitive sentences.