Nearly everyone will be called upon to make a speech in public at some point in their lives whether it is at a wedding, a birthday party, a graduation ceremony, a dinner or luncheon etc. So you have been given the task of making a speech and as it is your first time you are nervous as hell and do not know what to say or how to go about it. If this describes you be sure you are not the first person to experience this.
So the D-day has come and you are all set and rearing to go but you still get the usual cold shivers down your spine and the butterflies in your stomach seem to be on the rampage. What do you now do? By following these tips you stand a chance of pulling off a brilliant display after all other first timers have been able to receive standing ovations after their presentations so why not you.
Smile - Everyone loves a friendly face, trust me, people really have lots of things to worry about and your unfriendly face is certainly not one they want to have to contend with so learn to smile. Do not get carried away by the seriousness or otherwise of your presentation. The essence of smiling is to help your audience feel at ease listening to you. This can be done at the beginning of your presentation and at intervals if it will help drive home your point. No fake smiles please!!!
Eye Contact - A lot of people tell you to look straight ahead and over the heads of your audience when speaking but in truth a much better approach is to identify friendly faces and address them directly if you cannot look all of them in the face being a newbie and all. Single out the friendly faces in the audience and maintain adequate eye contact for not too long and not too short a time. The bottom line is that overdoing it can be counterproductive and you do not want that.
Breathing Exercises - You may want to take a few deep breaths to calm your nerves. When you feel your heart pounding with great intensity and your throat go dry just before you start your speech take your time. There is no rule that says you have to start your presentation immediately so why not take some seconds off to breathe in and breathe out till you feel at ease.
Maintain a good posture - When called it is advisable for you to walk to the podium with your head high as people will start to evaluate you right from the minute you are called upon to give your speech. Walking gracefully with your head high, face forward and with confident strides speaks well of you before your audience. When making your speech try as possible not to shift your weight from foot to foot as this might be a distraction to the audience who will be carried away by your unnecessary movements.
Use of humour - This can help to disarm your audience if used properly but this requires a lot of practice as you need to identify your own style of humour. If your audience does not laugh move on and do not let it deter you from giving a great speech.
Manage your time well - Whether or not you are the only speaker, managing your time effectively is one strong point of great speakers. Using a fraction of the time allotted suggests you do not have anything to say and going well above time suggests you have too much to say without thinking to give time its due regard. Remember, more does not always mean better.
Finally, I have this great quote from Dorothy Sarnoff, "Make sure you have finished speaking before your audience has finished listening."
To the success of your first speech!
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