Public speaking advice.

[Shadowstorm]

Gentlemen.

I am giving a speech in a few days and I'd appreciate some tips, tricks, and advice on what to do and what not to do.

Thanks.

[squirrelTactics]

Just remember to imagine yourself naked on stage, and look everyone directly in the eye. Also, winks do wonders to spice up your speeches, and there's no such thing as too many. So if you're worried about your content not being up to par, make eye contact with an audience member after each sentence, pause, and wink at them.

Works like a charm.

[squirrelTactics]

Also, try to grow a mustache.

[Superman's Dead]

Don't play with your clothes, especially the cuffs of your shirt/coat or the tails of your coat. Practice your speech over and over at a nice normal speed, maybe even a little slow. Cause you can speed up reeeeeeeeal quick if you're nervous. Remember to keep your weight balanced over both feet so you don't get that slight rocking effect that some people have when they shift back and forth.

Relax, because tension shows. I don't know if it has to be memorized, but if not work on it a little so you can get your face up off of the lectern (or whatever) as much as possible.

Uhm...have fun? =) What kind of speech is it and where?

[Shrinn]

Just act like you're discussing a serious matter one on one with your friend as opposed to speaking to 8 billion judging eyes.

Pretend the situation is nothing special.

[squirrelTactics]

Try to avoid wetting yourself on stage, that just spells disaster for any speech (except speeches regarding how to wet oneself).

[wyeast]

Don't stare at any one spot. You don't necessarily have to look at any one person (unless you're in a small room) - glancing around towards the back of the room will look like you're looking at people - you look more confident if you appear to be making eye contact with "someone".

By not staring, not only do you prevent yourself from appearing a psycho :p but if you were to stare, you start to focus on details of what you're looking at. "Gee, that's a funny wallpaper" or "Hey, she's got nice glasses". That stuff draws your attention and you lose focus on the speech delivery. Just don't bounce around so fast that you appear to be shifty. ;)

Good luck!

[carnage11]

Don't play with your hands at all, it's all about body language. People pay more attention to your body language then they do what you're saying. Stay relaxed. Like someone else already said, don't pick anyone out and stare at them, because then you'll start thinking about what they're thinking instead of your speech. Try to look up more often then down, keep your chin up. You appear to have more confidence when you are not staring at the floor or podium. Scan the back row, that's the best thing. Most of all though, don't pay too much attention to what you're doing. Just be natural.

Things not to do? Well, watch a few Sarah Palin speeches and that should about cover it. G.W. Bush speeches are also good for the 'what not to dos'. For example, don't make jokes if you don't understand them. Don't say "ya'll". Don't wink when you don't know what to say. Don't point your fingers at anyone.

[squirrelTactics]

At random points throughout your speech, flail your arms wildly.

[QueQueg]

Put your mouth directly on the microphone, and breath heavily between every word.

[Rock Bandit]

Skip to 1:23

3dwHL6XB7qs

[Bingley Joe]

Speak slowly and to the back of the room (ie: project your voice). And speak slowly :)

[Squidbot]

Check your fly before you go on.

[squirrelTactics]

kind of annoying effect, but the only video that was up on youtube

QXbbGycK_L4

[Soldat]

What's the venue and occasion/situation like? Is this something where you can have some sort of notes or guide to help you?

Personally, I need a bottle of water whenever I'm doing any type of speaking. It's considered a big "No-no" from a presentation standpoint, but it keeps my mouth from drying out and forces me to relax a little.

[rvieira]

A few tips that help me a lot:

- Self hypnoses works wonders in these cases, convince yourself that you are the best speaker in world.
- Learn to read your audience, look people in the eyes, on large audiences a few sleepers are common, if you see to many yawns things are getting boring, if people looks unease on their seats you may be talking for too long
- Watch you body language, movie your hands but not too much, mark 3 points in the audience (right, left and middle) and keep switching your body direction among these points
- If you will speak after the lunch, or too early ( < 9AM) or too late ( >10PM), or after a very long and/or boring presentation yawns will be common, most of the time is not your fault, someone give you the worst schedule to speech
- If your audience knows what you talking about be specific and use details, if they don’t know be basic and wait for more specific questions.
- If you can, use examples with people from the audience, it helps break the ice.
- Don’t imagine that people are naked, if there is someone hot in the audience you may get too excited.
- If you have a question and answer session usually is a good thing to have some one ready to make the first question if no one on the audience makes, I know it sounds cheap but usually no one wants to be the first to ask, and you get those unpleasant silence moments facing the audience.

[hideouslywrinkled]

I am giving a speech in a few days and I'd appreciate some tips, tricks, and advice on what to do and what not to do.

Can you give us any more details on the context? Is it a straight-up speech, or will you have a PowerPoint? How large is the crowd? What's the venue? Will you have to use a lav mic or talk into a standing mike? Is your speech written?

[QueQueg]

Just remember that you are superior to your audience in every way, and that they should consider themselves lucky to be graced by your presence.

You are the greatest man that ever lived, and they are sniveling toads. If one of the has the insolence to ask a question, respond by having him removed from the hall and flogged!

[Shadowstorm]

Can you give us any more details on the context? Is it a straight-up speech, or will you have a PowerPoint? How large is the crowd? What's the venue? Will you have to use a lav mic or talk into a standing mike? Is your speech written?

Straight up speech. Visual aid being the standard large three-piece cardboard set. Audience is about 30 people. Not big at all. No mic.

[hideouslywrinkled]

Cool. That simplifies things. As everyone has already mentioned, speaking loudly and slightly more slowly is a must for a small crowd.

My biggest suggestion is to try to never read off a piece of paper. Use an outline. It makes it easier to use rvieira's suggestion about finding three areas in the room that you can look at randomly (which is a great suggestion). Outline's also make it more likely that the speech will be in your words, rather than the slightly more formal or stilted language most of us (myself included) typically write in.

If you can, try to organize your speech into chunks that you can call to mind by looking at one word or phrase. (Some schools even recommend "tying" those words to specific places in the audience, so that you can bring them to mind by looking at a person or object in the room that you're actually speaking in. That's something that I haven't been able to master, but I know it could work wonders.)

What are you most worried about.

[sparkfizt]

2 main things will lead to success.

1. RELAX.

2. Practice.

One of the biggest factors is to remember that being practiced will lead to being relaxed. The biggest issue people have with public speaking is that they're afraid of being unprepared and looking like a fool in front of people. I end up having to give technical briefs in front of 50+ strangers a couple times a year and have never had real issues.

The last time I briefed it was on a topic that I was not an expert on and as such I was pretty worked up about it. But I had a plan. The plan is to start early on your preparation, have your brief done in advance. Then start briefing it to the wall with noone around, dont scrimp on this. Brief it just like there was an audience there, this will show you right off the bat where you've got problems. You'll end up with lots of "uuuhs" and stumbling to find the right words. My first dry runs are always rough, if I were to do this in front of an audience I'd get pretty ugly because the anxiety would only make it worse. Try briefing it a couple times then take a break, later in the day go a couple more times. Basically keep doing this until you can do the whole brief confident and not stumbling. Once you can do that you're ready to give it to people because you're already confident with presenting the material. Don't focus on rote memorization, there's nothing wrong with the wording being different every time. It's also a good idea to brief it to atleast one person as they can help let you know areas to improve.

As far as delivering a good brief, well that hinges on being prepared. If you're unprepared you may resort to staring at notecards/slides/your prop. Look at the crowd, and talk to all of em, not just the people in the front or to the right.

The biggest thing to giving a brief though:
never ever ever ever read people the slides. The slides are to give them high points and something to focus on. The verbage you use needs to be sufficiently different from the slides so that you don't end up just reading them to the audience. Reading someone the slides ends up being the most boring thing ever because your audience can read faster than you can talk.

I'll always say though, being relaxed is one of the biggest factors of success. And of course the way to be relaxed is to be prepared! Talking in front of others is really not hard, people are just afraid of looking like a fool :)

[Shadowstorm]

What am I most worried about?

- forgetting what I am going to say in the middle of saying it
- not being able to transition from one aspect of the topic to another in such a way where I would immediately know what to say.
- potentially stuttering, but I've never really been a stutterer. First time for everything, though.

[Khrymsyn]

My advice?

1) Know what you want to say forwards and backwards. Do not concentrate on every single word, but DO concentrate on an "outline" of the speech. Practice. Nothing helps confidence more than knowing your topic inside and out.
2) If you can have notes with you, take notes with you, but do NOT write the speech down as your notes. Write "highlights" such as facts, in an outline fashion in the general flow of the speech. If you're only reading highlights off your notes, you're more likely to look up at the audience, as well as not worrying about every little word you say, as you have to make up all of it but the "highlights" anyway.

3) and maybe the most important of all 3.... just remember, only 1 person in that room knows what you are supposed to say next. YOU. If you make a mistake, no one will know it unless you point it out in your reaction.

[Philonious]

Seriously check your fly, I had mine down for a television appearance once... Embarassing.

The tips about knowing the outline is good, but being overly practiced makes you seem robotic, so just practice getting through it as opposed to nailing down every single word.

[boratika]

This one gets tossed out a lot, because it is really useful, but so rarely actually done:

Practise in front of a mirror.

Like seriously, do it. It's the best feedback you will get on your body language and, let's face it, you are going to be you're biggest critic. If you do your whole speech in front of a mirror and not get booed off, you'll be fine on the day.

Also no caffiene on the day. Just no. I think that rule is pretty self explanatory, but worth keeping in mind and making sure you don't accidentally break it.

[Shrinn]

My advice?

3) and maybe the most important of all 3.... just remember, only 1 person in that room knows what you are supposed to say next. YOU. If you make a mistake, no one will know it unless you point it out in your reaction.

I'm gonna stress this as well.

[Ox]

What am I most worried about?

- forgetting what I am going to say in the middle of saying it
- not being able to transition from one aspect of the topic to another in such a way where I would immediately know what to say.
- potentially stuttering, but I've never really been a stutterer. First time for everything, though.
Look, I do public speaking a lot, and even my detractors say I'm very, very good at it. And sometimes I lose the thread if I get distracted or nervous (you'd be surprised how much stage fright even seasoned professionals feel).

Almost all of the advice here is good, especially the stuff about being relaxed and doing a little (but not too much) practice. Here are some tips I've developed (I used to train people to give public speeches and debates):

1. When you walk up to the lectern, take 5 seconds to look at the audience. Divide the audience into three or four segments from left to right, then pick one person in each segment (ideally people you either find attractive or interesting, and who are looking directly at you). You aren't giving a speech, you are talking to those three or four people. Don't look around the room as you talk, but make eye contact with each one every few seconds and pay attention to their reactions. Most people, when attending a speech, will sit up and pay attention if the speaker makes eye contact a couple of times. This increase in interest will be visible to you, and it will serve as positive reinforcement to you while you speak. You'll be more relaxed and conversational.

2. After you look at the audience, look down and pretend to organize your notes. They should already be stapled together and ready, so you're just shuffling the pages while you take a couple of calm breaths and rehearse your opening two sentences. They should be something like, "Good morning, I'm Joe Smith and I'll be talking about sandwiches. As we all know, sandwiches are mankind's greatest achievement and highest art form." This should take another five seconds. Then look up, smile, and start your speech to the five people you picked out earlier.

3. Don't adopt the "I'm giving a speech" voice. You know what I'm talking about: some people, if standing behind a lectern, immediately start speaking louder, slower, more nasally, and enunciating very clearly. Loud and slow and enunciating are all good things to do, but don't sound like a pompous ass. Think about ordering dinner in a restaurant: you try to be loud and slow and enunciate so the waiter can get your order, but you don't sound like a pompous ass (well I do, but we all have our flaws). Use that voice.

4. Don't start with a joke. This isn't Showtime at the Apollo.

5. Your outline should contain all the points you want to make. It should be no longer than two or three pages tops, and you should take it with you to the lectern. DON'T LOOK AT IT. As you speak, move your fingers on the page and turn the pages without looking down as you progress through the outline. If for some reason you lose the thread of what you're talking about, simply glance down to where your forefinger is and you'll see the next thing you want to say.

6. I stumble and stutter sometimes: it happens. Don't say, "BLAH," don't stick out your tongue and make a funny face, don't apologize. If the meaning was clear, just move on. Say the word again, properly, and continue with the sentence. If you're too tongue-tied, simply say, "excuse me," and say the word properly. If you're completely rattled: stop. Smile. Say "Excuse me." Start the sentence over from the beginning. Don't get hung up on it. Remember: almost every famous speech in history, including King's "I Have a Dream" speech and Kennedy's

7. Remember: most people are AWFUL at public speaking. Even professionals suck hard at it. I remember attending an argument before the state supreme court, where 20-year veterans of law were engaged in some of the most highly-paid and respected public speaking in America. At least 70% of them sounded like third-graders reading a book report. You probably won't be great, but you'll be perfectly acceptable.

8. Try not to say "um." If you're trying to remember where you were, just be silent for a second.

One more thing:

Yes, rocking back and forth is very annoying. It's one of my worst habits (just after killing hookers). Excessive hand gestures are also a problem for some people. There's a simple solution to both: grab the lectern with both hands, lean forward slightly so your weight is on the balls of your feet, and stay there. It gives you a slightly... intense air that might not be in keeping with the tone of your speech, but it's better then rocking and it's easier than trying to train yourself in a couple of days.

[Scaryfaced]

It sounds to me like the majority of you take public speaking entirely too seriously. Alot of the prep work that people spend so much time on, timing themselves, practicing in a mirror, controling your glances, all of this comes naturally once you get used to the idea of speaking to many people at once. If I can give you one piece of advice, it's that confidence matters. Know your material and be confident in your knowledge. If you really know something in and out, you no longer have to concentrate on content.

I personally speak to an audience the same way i'd speak to a friend. I don't concentrate on what the audience thinks of my presensation. At the time, thats the worst thing to focus on. Instead, concentrate on the material and your delivery. Take a deep breath, don't be in a hurry to finish. Cover each of your talking points slowly and in plenty of detail. A list of simple talking points will force you to use your own words and not focus on the pages infront of you. Make eye contact, but don't focus on certain people. I tend to glance around the room, making eye contact with as many people as possible. If you feel comfortable infront of the audience and comfortable with your material, you'll do just fine.
________
Wholesale vaporizer (http://vaporizerwholesaler.com)

[Kelegacy]

Put your mouth directly on the microphone, and breath heavily between every word.

Haha!, hilarious. :)

My advicd: Take a Zanax. You'll thank me later.

I'm a nervous man by nature, I suppose. I've had to give many presentations over the years and it never gets better for me. I had to deliver a speech a cople years ago at a retirement dinner and I had 3 pints of beer before getting up there. Didn't help.

At work I can speak and everything in meetings without a problem. But classes, with peers, I get nervous. I can still do it, but I'm always to baby steps away from losing it and freaking out, pulling my hair and spitting while shrieking incoherently.

My face tends to get warm, then red, then my eyes water up from forgetting to blink. Then I become aware of my teary eyes and red face and I get MORE self conscious and nervous. But these aren't panic attacks. Those I've had before, and they aren't good.

Basically I hate being the center of attention...most times. Makes me uncomfortable.

[Lint of Death]

4. Don't start with a joke. This isn't Showtime at the Apollo.

6. I stumble and stutter sometimes: it happens. Don't say, "BLAH," don't stick out your tongue and make a funny face, don't apologize. If the meaning was clear, just move on. Say the word again, properly, and continue with the sentence. If you're too tongue-tied, simply say, "excuse me," and say the word properly. If you're completely rattled: stop. Smile. Say "Excuse me." Start the sentence over from the beginning. Don't get hung up on it. Remember: almost every famous speech in history, including King's "I Have a Dream" speech and Kennedy's

8. Try not to say "um." If you're trying to remember where you were, just be silent for a second.
These are especially good tips in my mind. If you're going to try to be funny, keep it relevant and it should be some ways into the speech because it'll help regain lost attentions. If you don't want to tell a joke, if it doesn't feel like something you would do, then don't worry about it.

As for 6 and 8, just think about John McCain and Barack Obama. They both stumbled over words quite a bit, but they would just keep on going once they got the word right. Obama may not be the best example because he said "um" a lot.

[Inspector Fowler]

I don't get to do it often but I love public speaking. The trick for me is that I always just remind myself that these people will love me when they get a chance to hear me talk. I'm naturally pretty funny but I also have a gift for communicating clearly, which helps me become very confident when I have to speak in front of people.

In other words, play to your strengths and remind yourself that they're looking for a chance to enjoy your speech, not to hate you.

[DoctorFinger]

THis is going to sound stupid, but it's a biggie for me: wear comfortable shoes. Standing stock still for an extended period of time is something most people aren't used to (even if they think they are). Being able to stand there comfortably is one of the keys to a good presentation.

[squirrelTactics]

Try to wear an offensive T-Shirt.

[QueQueg]

Try to wear an offensive T-Shirt.

Squirrel, you are an endless font of bad advice, and I commend you for it.

[sparkfizt]

Yes, rocking back and forth is very annoying. It's one of my worst habits (just after killing hookers). Excessive hand gestures are also a problem for some people. There's a simple solution to both: grab the lectern with both hands, lean forward slightly so your weight is on the balls of your feet, and stay there. It gives you a slightly... intense air that might not be in keeping with the tone of your speech, but it's better then rocking and it's easier than trying to train yourself in a couple of days.

This is my biggest habit, almost every time after giving a dry run of my brief to my co-workers they'll always say stop rocking! I'm also a gesticulating fool, It's almost impossible to stop using my hands to describe a problem. It helps if I have a laser pointer, but that also may end up becoming a prop as I try to describe something :P

A lot of the environments I brief in don't have lecterns so I cant always use one to force myself still. I just have to try and remember it as I'm briefing.

[carnage11]

My advicd: Take a Zanax. You'll thank me later.



Might be good advice, or not. At the very least, when you're all done, whether it went good or bad, you won't remember. Oh...and it's Xanax. Ahh...Xanax, the best way to forget.

Anyways, from my own experience, the best public speakers are the ones that don't make speeches. They talk to the audience. It's like having a one sided conversation with someone, except there's a lot of people listening. Try to think of it like you're talking to one person, but at the same time, acknowledge most of the audience. No one wants to hear a speech. It's boring. I think this is why Obama is a good speaker, he seems relaxed, yet firm. Also, remember to pause a lot. Give people time to consume what you're saying. If you just drone on and on, then people get bored. The casual pause also gives you time to look at your notes, or think about what you're going to say next. This pause should be no more than 3 seconds though. 3 seconds at the most, any more and it's weird. Like someone said already, don't start with a joke, but making people laugh is a good thing and keeps people interested so don't be scared to throw a subtle one liner here and there.

[squirrelTactics]

Always finish off your speech with the classic presidential double-peace gesture, and hold it as you exit until the audience can no longer see you.

[Lint of Death]

A good way to capture the audience's attention is to shave your head on stage. It works even better if you have an audience of janitors.

[squirrelTactics]

A good way to capture the audience's attention is to shave your head on stage. It works even better if you have an audience of janitors.

This also works with hair located in less public areas.

[OrangePulp]

Shadow, you hang out in IRC; just ask Lekon. The guy teaches public speaking at a college. No one better to get advice from than him.

[Lekon]

I do indeed teach public speaking! And my main advice at the moment: Read Ox's stuff. He's got some good ideas in there. Only things to add:

Practice a full run through at least twice. The more the better. After the first full run through, hire a partner, a friend, room mate, anything, and have them stand *behind* you. Give them a rolled up newspaper, or a nerf bat. Instruct them that everytime you say "Um, Uh, Like, or yaknow" to hit you upside the head. I've tried many, many methods to beat verbal pauses, this is the only one that works with a good percentage of success. Don't go overboard with it of course. Make sure the nerf bat still has the padding on!

Other things that help: Write your notes in legible fonts. Have them big so its easy to read, Maybe have your transitions written out completely so you know exactly what to say to help move you to main point 2 or 3. Go over your introduction a few more times so you can really nail it. That first impression is key.
Someone said don't start with a joke, that's often a good idea. Depends if the speech is serious or not in subject. Starting with a story that illustrates your point often works. One note though: Do. Not. Ever. Start with. "Hi, my name is X and I'll be doing my speech/talking about..." For the love of all that's holy, do something with some creativity at the start. Introduce yourself later in the intro, just not as the first sentence.

[Thanasimos]

snip

I'd like to take this moment to say, "Holy shit guys it's Ox!"

I hadn't made the connection between the few Ox posts and Oxonian until I read the post I quoted.

Ox, I'm glad to know you're around. I look forward to reading more of your hilarious posts.And, hell, the same bad side of me that respects your habit of killing hookers is looking forward to your stories of all the terrible illnesses and injuries that have expected you and then harried you since the night your father first went down on your mother.

[Purple Santa]

Just don't vomit before the speech. That ALWAYS affects your grade. I had a presentation last night and my professor took off half a grade for vomiting. I mean granted, it was projectile vomit onto her...so remember...vomit AFTER the presentation and not on the teacher.

[Purple Santa]

Have this in your thoughts before you do your speech...to help relax you :)

AYJuKX2j-Cw

[Radioguy9698]

there is a group here in town called toastmasters, it's club for public speaking..i joined a few years back, great bunch of people

[Ox]

I do indeed teach public speaking! And my main advice at the moment: Read Ox's stuff. He's got some good ideas in there.
Honestly, I'm glad to see a pro agree with me. I was half-afraid you would tell me I had been giving terrible advice for years. :D

Practice a full run through at least twice. The more the better. After the first full run through, hire a partner, a friend, room mate, anything, and have them stand *behind* you. Give them a rolled up newspaper, or a nerf bat. Instruct them that everytime you say "Um, Uh, Like, or yaknow" to hit you upside the head. I've tried many, many methods to beat verbal pauses, this is the only one that works with a good percentage of success. Don't go overboard with it of course. Make sure the nerf bat still has the padding on!

This is a good technique, and I used something similar (although it takes longer). When I was a teenager I usually ate dinner at a neighbor's house. Every time I used the word "uh" at the dinner table, she would shout, "UH UH UH UH UH UH UH! SPIT IT OUT!" The psychological trauma haunts me to this day, but at least I speak better.

One note though: Do. Not. Ever. Start with. "Hi, my name is X and I'll be doing my speech/talking about..." For the love of all that's holy, do something with some creativity at the start. Introduce yourself later in the intro, just not as the first sentence.
Okay, I offered that advice, and you're right: it's a bad way to start. I was thinking of oral argument at a court, where you are required to start that way. But yes, everywhere else it's bad. Another thing that's bad: do not use the phrase "Webster's defines..."

And, hell, the same bad side of me that respects your habit of killing hookers is looking forward to your stories of all the terrible illnesses and injuries that have expected you and then harried you since the night your father first went down on your mother.
I have one on topic, actually. Back in school, I had serious lung problems and needed to go for a bronchoscopy (i.e., they shove a camera down your throat and into your lungs. Yes, it's exactly as unpleasant as it sounds). My doctor was very concerned and wanted to schedule it for that Friday. I asked if we could do it a different day, since I had to give an oral presentation Friday afternoon that would serve as my final exam in a class. I figured I wouldn't be able to speak well with my throat all screwed up. He assured me there would be no problem and I would be able to give my oral presentation.

Friday comes and I'm filling out the paperwork moments before beginning the bronchoscopy. The nurse asks who is taking me home. "I'm planning on taking the bus," I said.

"No, you need someone to pick you up."

"Why? What's wrong with the bus?"

"We're going to give you a sedative for the procedure, and the aftereffects will last most of the rest of the day. You'll suffer confusion, dizziness, and amnesia. You literally will not be able to recognize your bus stop. In fact, you need to write down who will pick you up and put down his phone number, because you won't remember it."

"... I'm supposed to give an oral presentation for class in three hours."

"Why would you schedule something like that the same day you're going to suffer amnesia and confusion?!"

[Urizen]

Have this in your thoughts before you do your speech...to help relax you :)

AYJuKX2j-Cw

This is never a bad post in any thread -- ever.

[pronounconnoun]

If you don't have a podium to stand behind, you should write your notes in a large font on note cards. If you carry large sheets of paper, it distracts the audience and they will concentrate on that instead of you.

[carnage11]

Have someone hold cue cards or rent a teleprompter. Then it'd be just like watching Leno, or SNL. :p

[squirrelTactics]

After a particularly strong section of your speech, point at a female member of the audience, and gratuitously thrust in her direction.

[TheEpicOfTyler]

I say, just practice. It doesn't sound like you have too much information to present, so you shouldn't have trouble remembering much once you've gone over it several times. If you have a podium or something, type a larger fonted outline or note cards that you can glance down quickly at, without it being to obvious. Don't fidget, be sure to look at you're audience and just be yourself.

I usually practice my speeches while driving in the car or taking a walk, and it works great.