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How to Become a Public Speaker

During the course of your career, there is a high probability that you will face the challenge of public speaking. Whether during project defence in college, team meeting at work, we would speak in public. As technology advances, providing new ways to publish content, speaking skills become increasingly important. Today, we will be looking at ways to become an efficient public speaker.

With that in mind, we have listed ten public speaking tips to help you speak in public. Check them out below:

1. Keep your goal in mind

One of the main factors in becoming a successful speaker is the ability to keep in mind the benefits that this skill can bring to your life. Take into account the professional, social meaning and how it will affect your ability to be a positive influence in the lives of others.

Think of the satisfaction you will experience when sharing relevant information with others. By creating a clear vision of you as a speaker and the resulting effects, you will have taken the first step towards success.

2. Practice at every opportunity

The voice of common sense tells us that no one can learn to speak in public without speaking in public. Just limiting yourself to reading a book on the subject of this article will not help you speak in public. So don’t miss any opportunity to get in on the action, even in front of a group of friends.

When you go to practice, you can apply for some volunteer work, teaching something in which you are competent. For example, if you understand computers, you can offer to teach in poor communities.

3. Avoid memorizing a speech

Although it is extremely important to prepare properly for a presentation, try not to memorize a speech. Nothing worse to destroy the naturalness of a lecture than a speaker with a decorated speech.

It is permissible for you to have some supporting notes during the presentation, but avoid saying words mechanically. If you have prepared yourself properly, trust that you have mastered the subject and allow your presentation to flow, like a conversation with an old friend.

4. Build your self-confidence

After proper preparation for the presentation, try to act confidently. Tell yourself out loud that the topic is appropriate, the result of detailed observations on the topic over some time.

Make it a habit of performing breathing exercises. They can be very useful even on the day of the presentation. For a while, remain calm, paying attention only to your breathing. In addition to reducing tension, you will feel lighter and renewed.

5. Talk about a subject within your competence

Talking about a topic of your knowledge and interest makes the presentation more lively and dynamic. Whenever we talk about a subject that we do not know, we end up exaggerating in the quotes of other authors, making the presentation very theoretical and conceptual.

One of the main ways to arouse the interest of listeners is to speak through the heart. However, note that they are subjects that you take seriously. For the audience to have confidence in your message, you must have an emotional involvement with the topic.

6. Encourage audience participation

Try to create a direct relationship with the audience from the beginning of the presentation. Give thanks for the opportunity and show how honoured you are to be there. Another way to bond with the public is through the use of the first person plural in the speech.

You can also encourage audience participation through questions. Don’t be afraid to include audience participation in the presentation. Most speakers say that public participation helps to break down the initial barrier that exists between the audience and the speaker.

7. Try to personalise the words

Whenever possible, try to put feeling in your words. When detailing an experience that happened to you, focus on how you felt. Express your emotions during the event.

Try not to block your enthusiasm about the topic. The determining factor for arousing public interest is the emotions you place in the words themselves.

8. Use role-play in speech

Another way to establish a bond with the public is through dramatizing dialogues. You can tell a story that serves to illustrate some topic of the presentation, detailing a dialogue between two or more people.

In this case, try to indicate names for each of the dialogue’s voices. If you have imitation qualities, you can interpret each of the voices. This makes a stronger impression on the audience.

9. Stay focused on listeners’ interest

Famous speakers, who have already repeated the same lecture several times, know that they must adapt the speech according to the audience. Always prepare your words with different groups in mind.

Get to know in advance the audience to which you will make the presentation. If it is impossible to know in advance who the audience is, try to include questions at the beginning of the presentation to help with this mapping.

10. Use examples based on personal experiences

Whenever possible, include an experience in your speech that you have had and learned something new from. When assessing your life story, it should not be difficult to find an event that is of great importance.

Give preference to events that have affected your conduct in life. They can be simple events, of short duration, but with great significance. Make sure that the example chosen is aligned with the theme of the presentation.

How to overcome the fear of public speaking in 6 steps

When you say you are afraid to speak in public, what are you really afraid of? Have you ever thought about it?! Is it the fear of not being approved, of judging people, that their image will be depreciated by their listeners? What, after all?

What was the situation that generated this block? Was it during childhood, adolescence, or was it more recent? What situation happened in the past that made you block and whose reaction do you repeat in the present?

First of all, in order to seek control of emotions and overcome the fear of public speaking, it is necessary to understand how our brain works.

Let’s say very simply that our brain has three layers. The first is the so-called reptilian brain, which works our instincts; the second contains the limbic system, which manages our emotions; and the third concerns our rational part.

What happens is that everything we register in our mind is always connected to some emotion. The information, before reaching the rational layer, reaches the emotional part. That is why our emotions rule our lives. Everything we do and decide is governed by our emotions.

Hence our fear of speaking in public is certainly due to the (not always clear) memory of a situation in which we were not successful. And this is registered in our subconscious as a negative emotion.

That is, any situation similar to that which is kept in the subconscious will generate the same type of emotional reaction. When we express fear at the possibility of speaking to many people, it is our emotional system that is running everything and telling us: “Don’t do this, it is dangerous. You will be as bad as before.”

To protect us, the brain releases adrenaline, generating the physiology of resistance or escape. The legs are shaking; the hands are sweaty, the vocal cords are inhibited.

We mentally create the image that public speaking is always a situation of tension because the subconscious interprets that you are in danger. But the great thing about this is that the mind is flexible, it can be changed. The anxiety of public speaking can be controlled. How, then, to overcome fear or at least manage it? Acting and giving new content to your mind.

To generate new commands for your mind, follow the tips below and be a new person. Go on, stop whining and start taking action:

• Develop an overwhelming desire to overcome fear: Without this, no change will be promoted. Arouse enthusiasm to engage in public speaking. Focus on the benefits it will bring you. Think: “What does the ability to speak with more conviction mean to me?” “What motivates me to promote change?” “Why is this important to me?”
• Promote self-awareness: Much of the insecurity you have is due to not knowing yourself as a speaker. First, identify what image you have of yourself as a speaker. Then, provide a presentation and make a video. Get to know your voice, your body and facial expression, how you move, etc. Evaluate yourself and define what you want to change.
• Change the ‘focus/physiology/language’ triad: The focus is on your self-image. If it is negative, you need to view yourself positively as a speaker. The focus should be on what you want to be and not on what you no longer want to be. Feel like the real messenger of something. Feel as if only you can get the message out to the public, no one else. Develop the courage to face the audience and act as if you already have the attributes of a great speaker. It is important that you FEEL and not just think that. Physiology is how the body reacts. If the feeling changes, the body’s reaction also changes. The body must be erect, shoulders raised, head up, determined look. The body must demonstrate self-confidence. Language is what you think and say about yourself. Remember that the subconscious obeys exactly the command that is given. If you think you are a failure in terms of public speaking, your mind will follow that order. You have to tell your mind that you are a success that you know how to communicate safely, etc.
• Master the content: Knowing perfectly what you are going to say and which sequence makes all the difference. Believe in your knowledge and speak as if you are determined to speak. In this case, studying a lot helps to be safe. If you are going to speak for 20 minutes, have content for 1 hour; if you are going to speak for 1h, have content for 3h.
• Practice incessantly: Talking is the only way to not fail. Therefore, it is necessary to practice, practice, practice. Whenever you have the opportunity, speak in public, whether in a business meeting, in a group of friends, in the family. Oratory is a skill that must be developed constantly.
• Control your internal critic: Motivate yourself when talking. Become willing to enjoy the presentation you are about to give. Be your main supporter, no criticism. Self-judgment during the presentation is destructive. When speaking, don’t try to correct flaws with techniques, if you are going to train, train first. Always validate what you say.