PUBLIC SPEAKING: WHAT IS IT THAT YOU ARE LACKING.

There are a lot of people around us. Only some of them speak while others listen, not many people can stand in front of tens and hundreds of people and speak to them.

There can be two reasons for this:

1) They have chosen not to (“this is not for me”!!).  or

2) They have got a completely wrong idea of what public speaking is and hence have never mastered the skill. (reading this article will reprimand this).

Yes, public speaking is a skill and like any other skill, public speaking has to be worked upon. You don’t have to be a naturally charismatic speaker or an extrovert to be a good public speaker.

Public speaking is an art that is molded within you when you want to speak on something you are passionate about or when you have something important to say. 

WHAT GOES INTO LEARNING THIS ART

• Practice, preparation, strategy and some simple rules.

We are first exposed to public speaking in our schools. Public speaking at this stage was probably a fun activity to you or contrary to this a dreadful one. You participated because your friends did or maybe your teacher forced you into it because you were the good kid

Thanks to those days no matter whatever the case was. Be thankful to yourself if you sustained that skill to this day.

And if in case you never participated in public speaking in your school or have lost your touch upon it because you did not get the opportunity to refine them or you simply never learnt it.  It’s quite alright.

A will to learn is all you need to get started along with (of course) this piece of informative article.

FUNDAMENTAL POINTS

1. While practicing, treating your speech as a performance can help clear the clutter and recenter your focus on the content of your speech.

2. Public speaking does not only require the preparation of the content of your speech but also of your vocal cord, your body, and your mindset.

SMALL THINGS THAT MAKE BIG DIFFERENCES

There is a list of things that a public speaking enthusiast must keep in mind at all times. These are some simple rules of conduct- let’s start with the things not to do:

1. Don’t stand arms folded or crossed in the back.

2. Don’t lean on the table.

3. Don’t fiddle or play with objects (like pen).

4. Don’t fix your gaze at one person while delivering your speech.

These points are straightforward and quite obvious and thus do not need any explanation. Doing these would make you seem either under-confident or (worst) disinterested in what you are there to say.

RELEVANT SPEECH

While preparing a speech, always consider the size of your audience and ask to yourself, “how familiar are they with the subject of my speech”.

This perspective would help you decide what you must say and what you can cut out from the speech. It helps make your speech relevant and to the point, thus making your speech a delight to listen to.

BODY LANGUAGE

Apart from the content of the speech, body language also grabs the attention of the audience.

• Remember to smile - with your mouth and your eyes.

• Your hands should be facing upwards while speaking and your palm must be used to address the audience.

Maintaining body language is a bit tricky. It gets better with practice.

VERBAL TICS 

Eliminate them.

Linguistic tics or verbal tics refer to words or sounds one repeats endlessly while speaking.

E.g.- err…., actually, like, and then, etc.

Verbal tics can be irritating to your audience and may garner their constant attention involuntarily, diverting them to some extent from your actual speech.

THE FINAL STAGE BACKROOM PREPARATION

Now, you are standing in the backstage, all prepared, awaiting ‘your big moment’. 

And in this moment, it's quite normal that you will be all stressed up. Well, don’t try to eliminate your stress! It's impossible!

Tell yourself that it’s part of the “game” and your heart is racing because you have something important to say,

Before the presentation,

• Try to be with yourself and warm up your vocal cords and your body.

• Also make sure that you keep hydrated (drink water).

Before entering the room/ getting on stage, mentally repeat your first sentence, so that you will be confident that you haven’t forgotten anything.

BOOSTER POINTS

THINGS THAT ENHANCE YOUR SPEECH

THE TONGUE HACK

Although being stressed is normal for the task at hand, it can alter our ability to articulate well. 

To remedy this, place your tongue between your upper and lower teeth without hurting yourself and then release. 

This sounds weird but it is practical and effective - TRY IT!

THE MANNER OF SPEAKING

The loudness of your voice depends on how large the audience is. Analyse the size of your audience and adjust accordingly.

Speak clearly and articulately, the rhythm of your speech should be sustained and not too fast.

MANAGING MEMORY LAPSE

Memory lapse is a common occurrence during speech, it need not be a serious issue, as it is often unnoticeable (that being if you manage it to be).

If you go blank, take a breath and a few seconds of pause until it takes you to get back on track.

If in case, the memory lapse lasts longer, maybe you should laugh it out!

Your audience won’t turn against you, they understand the complexities involved in giving a speech in front of a lot of people.

Remember that nobody is expecting or hoping for you to fail. So, speak confidently, articulately, and respect the time limit.

So, this is it.

This is everything that goes into public speaking and everything you need to know to have a big success in your speech and garner a big round of applause from your audience.

All the best for your endeavor.