The first rule of effective public speaking is to know your audience and know what they want to hear. Then, decide whether to keep it casual, use slang or statistics, etc.
A good speaker prepares a visual aid for the audience to keep them engaged. Videos, charts, graphs and photos are a great way to make your speech more effective.
Write down only the bullet points of your speech, and avoid a full-length script to read. Memorise your whole speech, and use bullets only to remember the points.
Sharing personal experiences during a speech is a great way to keep the audience engaged and curious about what’s next.
The best way is to look at the eye line of the audience. It appears as if you are looking into their eyes. You won’t be afraid of the crowd size and feel confident during the whole time.
Make sure to maintain a good posture and a smile on your face while engaging with your audience. Move your body and hands freely not only to appear confident but to feel passionate about the topic.
Practice alone in the room or in front of a mirror. Anything can be mastered with lots of practice. You can also practice in front of your family members or friends and receive feedback from them.
It’s important to know the moments of pause in between the speech. You skip the unnecessary fillers such as ‘umm’, ‘you know’, ‘like’ and get the breathing breaks to calm the mind.
Speak from your heart rather than reading a script in your head. Feel passionate about whatever topic you are speaking on and get completely indulged with the audience.
Why focus on failure when it hasn’t even happened? Instead, focus on the moment of success when the audience applauds you after your speech.