I Speak…

Are you new to public speaking? For those of you who haven’t done it before, it can be absolutely terrifying. How do you start a career in public speaking? It’s a common question. The answer is that you have to be ready to actually get up on the stage and speak publicly. If you haven’t done that previously, you should start preparing. I have put together some tips below that will help you become a solid public speaker… the time to start your new career is now!

Just Do It!

What’s the number one most important tip for becoming an amazing public speaker? You simply need to act against feeling nervous, afraid or as though you have no confidence. Just get out there and do it. The quicker you learn to control your emotions, you can get into a state of flow and connection with your audience. You may make mistakes at first, but those are incredibly valuable learning experiences that are only going to make you stronger and more confident.

Sell Your Strengths

Audiences give more attention to a speaker who’s genuinely engaged and personally invested in their dialog and their personal presentation; it’s incredibly energizing and inspiring!

By playing to your strengths, you need to have a heart-to-heart with yourself about your speaking and your presenting styles. In other words, if you’re definitely not the standup comedian type, you might want to find other ways to add humor than reeling off bad one liners.

It’s also important to share what you’re genuinely passionate about because passion is contagious. Always sell your passion.

Practice Makes Perfect

Can you imagine being invited to give a major talk, pitch or business presentation at a major tradeshow or conference? As an absolute beginner, stepping out in front of a huge audience of people you don’t know can be overwhelming. Why don’t you start by giving short practice presentations in front of coworkers, friends, and even family members? It’s important you start with people you feel comfortable with.

If you have someone in your network who’s a great public speaker, invite them to your practice presentations and ask for tips, suggestions and corrective feedback. Another great tip is to practice in front of a mirror.

You will be very surprised at how quickly your public speaking skills and emotional comfort levels grow within just a few hours of dedicated practice.

Record Your Speech

Take the time to record your voice and your body language using whatever tools you have. Audio and video quality doesn’t matter as much at this point. Using your smart phone with a simple tripod can really do the trick. From there, you can take notes on how you look and sound and make needed changes and improvements. You can also gauge your own reaction to your speech. How does it sound? Could it be improved?

Knowledge & Body Language

When it comes to becoming a truly amazing public speaker, knowledge really is power. Put time aside each day to read, watch, listen to and learn from the world’s leading public speaking and body language experts. Learn from the best to become the best. You may want to read my previous blog post about public speakers for more inspiration.

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