How To Improve Your Public Speaking Skills: 38 [Practical] Ways
Want to understand how to improve your public speaking skills? Then you are in the right place.
We all have problems when we need to talk. There may be some hesitation in doing so, sometimes we just do not want to hear a response or see the reaction after our words. Words mean a lot, but they should not come too late.
Remember when you looked at that person and thought they were cute, otherwise you had a highschool crush you never had the courage to speak up, that could be the love of your life but you never said anything because you were scared. One day your best friend is getting married and you must give a speech, and you have absolutely no idea how to do it.
If you are one of those people who goes to parties and ends up listening to everybody, I mean EVERYONE. You just awkwardly stand there, nodding and perhaps saying a few yes or nos, all the while learning the life stories of the people next to you. Or maybe you need help with a speech you need to give in front of individuals, lots of individuals I would say. If you feel you deserve more, maybe a bigger salary, but you cannot tell your boss that.
How to Improve Public Speaking Skills:
1. Prepare
If you do not know how to say something, be prepared. Really consider what you want to say, and how you want to say it. You also need to consider how other people/people will react and what your response to them will be like. Great speakers often say they only need 10 minutes to prepare a two-hour speech, but 2 hours to prepare a 10-minute speech.
2. Practice
Practice in front of a mirror, or someone near you. Always try to imagine the person / people you are talking to. It’s better if you ask someone to listen to you and tell you their opinion.
3. Think of best and worst case scenarios
Try to imagine the best and worst scenarios of what could occur. They say we are our worst critics, so it will most likely be better than where your imagination takes you there.
4. Think about what you are aiming for
Think about what you want to say and what sort of audience you have. Think about your goal, and what reaction you want. Try to imagine yourself as a listener and see if you’re going in a good direction with what you must say.
5. Opening words and shutting words
The opening and final words of your speech are the most vital. Commit to them a little bit more. Try to create a humorous introduction that grabs the audience’s attention right away. Remember that a good speech should be like a miniskirt. Short enough to be interesting, but long enough to cover the important parts.
6. Body language
Body language is what people use to capture and keep listeners’ attention. The teacher is told to use body language to keep students’ attention longer. But that doesn’t suggest you must marc and run around the room, like a headless fly. The point is all you must do is follow the dynamics of the speech.
7. Notes
You can at all times take some kind of note. It’s best if you speak and do not read the whole speech off the cards, but if you are nervous and cannot remember it, that’s okay. You can make a little reminder with a dash or something if you forget something and it will also make you feel a little better if you are nervous, because you will not forget anything.
8. Quotes
Use quotation marks. They’ll give your speech a little more power, and they can even let you get creative while writing or planning a speech. Quotes cannot be bad, or ruin a speech and even if someone does not like them, you can at all times say you did not write them.
9. Humor
Funny stories and jokes are the perfect way to hold your audience’s attention. If it is a private event you are talking to, you can use an old embarrassing story. Just be sure that jokes and stories are at all times appropriate for the occasion.
10. Eye contact
During your speech, let your eyes sweep across your audience’s faces from left to right, so that the audience has the impression that you’re talking to all of them. It is at all times better if you look the person in the eye when they otherwise you are talking. First of all they will listen more carefully if you look at them, and we all like it when the person we are talking to looks us in the eye, because it makes us feel special and offers the impression that you have an interest in what is being said. about, even if you do not.
11. Smile
Smiling is important, it gives the impression that you’re not nervous and cozy. We all like people who smile more, and laughter is contagious, so if you smile, and laugh, your audience most likely will too. Also to smile you need less muscles than when you frown so if you frown you work hard, and it gives you a frown, so if you do not feel like smiling remember it makes you and makes you lovely if nothing else.
12. Don’t be late
Be sure to arrive on time; don’t be late, because it’s an insult. By showing up on time, you show respect to your listeners, or anyone really. It’s good if you arrive a little earlier, you can be prepared and calm down if necessary.
13. Breathe
A really useful exercise for overcoming the fear of public speaking is an exercise called abdominal breathing. You must take slow and deep breaths which helps you relax and it affects your body and your mind is less tense and more willing to work without over-straining and it is easier for your brain to focus on the task.
14. The power of sound
Use the power of your voice. Not screaming and shouting, obviously. However, modulation must be present, raise your voice barely to sound confident, emphasize what you think is important. You need to maintain some kind of rhythm throughout the speech.
15. Flow
Don’t frown when you speak. It will make you look nervous and uncertain. The audience will notice and assume you are bored and not interested in talking to them, and they’ll stop listening.
16. Find your “stuff.”
Find things that make you feel better. One has a song, or a good book, a place; someone has an activity that relaxes them or even someone that makes you feel better. You at all times need something to cheer you up, and make the nerves go away.
17. Watch the signal
You need to ensure your audience is snug and interested in what you are talking about. If they are not interested, your two minutes of talking will be too much. If you see that they’re bored, you need to do something to liven things up. You can engage them in conversation, ask them questions or keep them other than it.
18. Prepare questions
You need to consider questions people might ask. Have some answers ready but even be prepared for unforeseen questions. If there are questions you were not prepared for, take a moment to think. Don’t rush you might say something wrong. To buy time, have the person repeat the question, but ensure it does not appear to be you were not paying attention. Make sure your pause is not too long.
19. Break the illusion
Break the illusion that everyone seems to be watching and judging you. Often, when we find ourselves in the presence of a group of individuals, we think that everyone seems to be interested in what we say, think, wear, or do. In contrast, people primarily focus on themselves and worry about what others think of them, so they’ve little time to analyze and criticize others. How did you react when you were in the audience; You listen to every word and analyze every movement of the speaker?
Remember that professional speakers use a number of techniques to hold listeners’ attention because most people are busy with other things, not the speaker.
20. Monologue
Exposure to the audience shouldn’t be a monologue. Simply talk to the person in front of you using the skills you use in your daily interactions with those around you. This technique is usually used by professional speakers. Try to keep it natural, do not make it look fake or made up.
21. Time
It’s good if you pay attention to the time when talking. You can wear a watch, which is better than looking at your phone. Make sure you do not seem to be late for something or bored and just want to get away. Check your watch several times. This way you can control the duration of every part of your speech, and you know whether to slow down or speed up. .
22. Get to know the space
It is important to know the space in which you are speaking. That way you can feel snug with him and it is easier to talk to him later. This is another way to overcome stage fright or at least you’ll feel a little better and more snug.
23. Know the audience
Knowing the audience means knowing the number of individuals present, the composition/profile of the audience, the average level of their knowledge of the presentation material. Presentations should be tailor-made to the traits of the audience – their knowledge, experience, interests. Make sure everybody can understand and follow you.
24. Stand up
You cannot sit and talk. By standing you show respect and you appear more confident. This gives you “power” so it is going to be easier for you to speak if you’re nervous.
25. Type of audience
Pay attention to the audience. It is important for you to decide whose attention you want to win. First, consider this and adapt the vocabulary you use. If you have a younger audience, try using more modern examples, while in the older case, turn to the nice old classics.
26. Introduce yourself
Before you start anything, you need to introduce yourself. If it is a professional speech or some kind of presentation, you need to say more about yourself than if it is personal. Personally the only thing you need to say is your name and if you talk to someone about who you are to them, because maybe not everybody knows who you are.
But if it is some kind of presentation, you need to say more about yourself. What do you do, who are you, what authorized you to hold it, and what are you trying to do with this kind of presentation.
27. Appearance
Appearance is certainly very important. People get your first image and impression within the first 7 seconds. It’s best if your attire is someplace between casual and experienced.
28. Presentation
Draft it so the message is loaded and clear and straightforward to remember. You must answer in easy sentences to all questions asked. You should also avoid answers like “yes” and “no.” You should at all times explain your answer. You must show that you’re informed. You should even have “good” questions ready for your audience, so you can include them.
29. Improvisation
Improvisation is essential. If you are nervous you cannot stand there like a tree and wait for somebody to save you, unfortunately Superman is not real. Your brain needs to work fast, so if you get confused you need to have a backup plan. You need to understand how to improvise, and make it look natural. If you do not know how to improvise, practice. Have someone help you, you can discuss anything and your brain will adjust and if you end up in such a situation it will know what to do.
30. What does your body language mean
- If you tilt your head to one side, you are showing interest, and by showing your neck, you are showing trust.
- If you smile through pursed lips you appear mysterious and contrived, a fake ‘glued on’ smile shows that you’re not genuinely happy or being honest.
- Fist shows resistance, determination and aggressiveness.
- If you cross your arms, you act as if you’re closed off, as if you want to defend yourself from something otherwise you are showing indecision.
- Double crossed legs mean stubborn and independent. If you cross your ankles, you are showing a defensive attitude. If you turn towards someone while you cross your legs, you are showing interest
31. Visual aids
Visual aids are an amazing way to explain things. It has to match the speech, whether it is funny, serious or technical. The main purpose of visual aids is to help the audience understand what is being said, and reinforce speech points in a special and interesting way.
32. Correct rhythm
Find the right rhythm. Some people make long pauses between sentences; some continue to speak and don’t wait for the interviewee to express their thoughts. It’s up to you to find what works for you.
33. Get attention
Before you start speaking, you need to grab your audience’s attention. Wait until everybody has calmed down, and sit down. You can at all times say “Attention please” before starting, so everybody will listen to you.
34. Slipped tongue
What do you do if you make a mistake? You can cough and hide it, otherwise you can smile and pretend nothing happened. The other option is to apologize and move on. It does not matter what you do, nobody is going to go against you, we all make mistakes.
35. Jokes
When you crack a joke, you need to be sure you do not offend anyone. Don’t make racist jokes, or stereotyped jokes. You do not want to make people feel uncomfortable or offended do you?
36. Culture
You need to ensure your audience is not offended by anything. People take various things in other ways. If someone finds something funny, someone else might not. It’s all because of culture. Humor in America or England is different for example, what Americans find funny may not be found funny by British people and vice versa. So be sure you adapt it for your audience.
37. End
Speeches should at all times end with: “Thank you very much for your time”. The conclusion is important. Try to keep your sentences as easy as possible, taking pronunciation and diction into account.
38. Happy closing
People remember the start and end of speeches; they seldom remember the middle. Because of this, you want to be sure you have an ending that they will remember. Make sure your audience knows why this subject is important and why they should have this information.
Thank you for reading this article on how to improve your public speaking skills and I actually hope you take my advice to heart. I wish you good luck and that I hope that its content has been a good help to you.
