Your first tentative steps in to the art of public speaking are often taken from school age as a youngster.  You may be required to fine hone these initial skills throughout the rest of your educational and professional life.  Like with the evolution of most skills, practice makes perfect, as you go through many stages of the learning curve, from novice to expert.

Classroom presentations about books on the curriculum are very different to presentations you might be required to give when pitching yourself at a job interview to a panel of employees.  Likewise, interview presentations differ substantially from public speaking as an authority on your subject matter to audiences.  Yet your lifetime’s worth of presentations, as a student, an executive or an academic, is given the edge by the application of a few basic principles. 

Regardless of your age, your level of public speaking experience and your audiences, these tips form bases from which you can continuously improve from good to better to best:-

1)    Prepare To Succeed
Knowledge always equates to power, yet words are often hollow.  Audience members do not want to be bored by presenters reading out what can already be scanned on an overstuffed screen.  Minimising your materials, and maximising your knowledge of the subject at hand, are imperative to the proficient preparation quality presentations, thus enabling you to deliver them with authority and aplomb.

2)    Critique Practice Run Throughs
Video yourself doing dry run presentations, and critique yourself firmly but fairly.  Ask a trusted confidante to sit in on your rehearsals and be prepared to take their feedback on the chin.

3)    Look Them In The Eyes
Aim to gain rapport with your audience by looking directly at them - not at your laptop, your notes, or your feet.  However, avoid the unintentional temptation to make a particular audience member your focal point when public speaking.  It makes an innocent participant feel self conscious and uncomfortable.

4)    Speak With Then, Not Just At Them
Encourage audiences to interact with you during your presentations.  Allowing them to interject with doubts, questions and relevant comments is testament to the fact that they are engaged with you.  Your competent feedback further enhances their confidence in you and what you have to say.

5)    Clock The Atmosphere
Let your emotional intelligence guide you.  At certain points during your presentations, the mood of your audiences might get confrontational and heated, or down tempo and low on energy.  Drop in anecdotes or jokes at such junctures, to lighten any tension or regain waning engagement.

6)    Avoid Useless Fillers
Whether you have a tendency to “um” and “ah”, or use particular turns of phrase over frequently when you speak, weaning yourself off them will improve your public speaking.  They are often more irritating to audiences than you realise.

7)    Answer Questions Accurately
When preparing your presentations, put yourself in your audience’s shoes and anticipate the questions they might fire at you.  This is a great way of forearming and forewarning yourself.  Besides taking audience questions throughout the duration of your presentations, make sure you leave plenty of time at the end for closing questions.  The answers you provide should confirm and amplify the messages you deliver throughout the session.    

Public speaking invariably comes at or near the top of the list whenever people are asked about their greatest fears. Given that so many people are unable or unwilling to speak in public; does it really make a difference if you too are not confident about giving presentations? After all, surely if public speaking training or presentation training and coaching were so beneficial, everyone would be doing it; wouldn’t they? Sadly, this is not the case – for many people, their worries and fears outweigh the benefits that an ability to speak in public can bring.

So, what are these benefits?
When you are nervous about speaking in public or unsure of your presentation skills, you will be in a constant state of anxiety in any situation where you may be called upon to speak. Toasts at weddings, an invitation to present at a conference, a meeting with a valued client or supplier – the prospect of these scenarios will make you shudder. If you can rely on your presentation training and coaching and know that you will make an effective speech, you can embrace these opportunities.
It’s the very fact that the majority of people are not accomplished public speakers that makes you stand out if you are able to do so. By volunteering to take on the dreaded and challenging job of speaking to a crowd, your superiors will be impressed and your co-workers will be beyond grateful that they will not have to do so. You immediately stand out from the crowd as a confident, assertive and team-oriented individual.

Even those who hate giving presentations and speaking in public will probably have to do so at some point. If you have prepared for this possibility by undergoing presentation training and coaching you will be able to do more than simply stammer through your notes. You will be able to concentrate on the meaning of what you are saying, focus on your audience and respond to their body language and questions. By being confident in your verbal communication you are free to concentrate on the non-verbal communication that is key to making a good impression.

The ability to make presentations and speak in public opens up a wealth of different career paths. Sales, marketing, management and more are all career directions which are much more easily accessed when you have confidence in your public speaking skills and are able to give clear, effective presentations. Your co-workers and subordinates are better able to understand and follow your plans and visions, while your clients and suppliers can follow your line of reasoning and know exactly what you are trying to communicate to them.
Public speaking skills, enhanced by presentation training and coaching, bring so many benefits that you will find it hard to understand why it took you so long to take the steps you need to stand out from the crowd.
Editor notes

Presentation Guru is a specialist presentation training and coaching company aimed at senior managers. Further information can be found at www.presentationguru.co.uk or email john@presentationguru.co.uk, telephone 0845 899 1248.