"Are you afraid of public speaking?" 5 ways to be a better public speaker

A few days ago I received the following questions from a reader:

1. Were you afraid of public speaking ever?
2. Do you experience any feelings of performance anxiety?
3. What tips do you have for giving great presentations?

The short answer to the first two questions, is YES. 

I never thought that public speaking would be a part of my career. While I love being around people, I am more of an introvert. At a party, you can find me in deep conversation with one person, or the quiet one in a big group, laughing at everyone's jokes and stories. I love being the audience for outgoing people, and don't like to talk about myself. 

However, the best public speakers are experts at storytelling, humor, and, talking about themselves. 

Yikes! 

But when the president of my community college alma mater asked me to speak at a scholarship fundraiser, I couldn't say no.

It was the first time I shared my community college story in front of an audience. The reaction afterwards blew me away, and I realized my story impacted people. It seemed talking about myself could make a difference.

And that is when the anxiety began to fade. 

While you may not be looking to make public speaking a career, it is an important skill to have in your toolbox to help you advance in whatever your field. 

Below are the processes I use to help me overcome my fears. I hope they can help you relieve anxiety and speak with confidence:

1. Use your anxiety
I still feel the butterflies right before I speak. I once heard someone say that the feeling of nervousness means you're about to do something important. Run that saying in your head to remind yourself that it's okay to feel nervous, and instead of clamming up, let the adrenaline energize you to add value to your audience. 

2. Prepare against "bad" anxiety
Okay, so not all anxiety means you're about to do something important. Sometimes it means you're unprepared. So to ward off this brand of anxiousness, practice your speech days before, and know your audience. 

3. Know your audience
The best way to lessen your anxiety is to do everything you can to get to know the people you'll be speaking to. There is nothing more nerve-wracking then not knowing how your speech is going to be received. If you get to know your audience and keep their needs in mind as you prepare your speech, you will be able to craft it into something they'll love, appreciate, and gain value from. 

I recommend seeking out and writing down the answers to the following questions about your audience: Who are they? What do they want? How can you add value to them by what you say? How can you make them feel good? 

4. Write out your speech first
Once you know your audience, open a word document and free-write your speech. Don't judge yourself, just write. 

Then, go back and edit for clarity and flow. Also check it to make sure it's mostly anecdotes and stories (relevant, of course). People pay attention to stories, but drift off when you recite too much information. Think edutainment. 

Ensure your speech is personal and relevant to the lives of your audience. If you do this, no one will be checking their smart phones while you're speaking. 

The next day, read through your written ideas for the speech and transfer key words to notecards.

5. Be conversational
The best speeches are conversational. Have you ever had to listen to someone read a speech? Unless they are very talented, it is a guaranteed snoozer. 

So take your notecards, set the timer, and just talk out your speech as if you were talking to a friend. Use facial expressions and hand motions, and really try to re-live the stories you are telling. 

During this process, feel free to edit the notecards as you go, based on things you keep forgetting or transitions you need to add.

(Quick note about PowerPoint: use words sparingly, if at all. Use one or two relevant pictures per slide (personal pictures are great; they'll endear the audience to you and make you seem more relatable), and don't switch slides too often. Have no more than one slide for every 10 minutes. If you do PowerPoint right, it can be a great way to keep you on track and give your audience a visual element to enjoy. But when in doubt, leave it out). 

On the day of the speech, have your notecards in your pocket. Though if you do this right, you'll find you won't even need them. 

Anytime you're asked to speak publicly, go for it, and watch how others are touched by your honest talk. When you speak about what you know and are confident of the value you can share with others, the anxiety will melt away.

How to Ace Your Presentations Pt. 4 (the scary part)

Study Tipping Tuesday


How to Ace Your Presentations Pt.4 (the scary part)

So now you've outlined your presentation, made it entertaining, and created the right "background" music. It's time to actually give the presentation.

Why is public speaking so scary? I think it's because we are so vulnerable. We are putting ourselves out there and it feels awkward having everyone looking at you, judging you.

But the truth is? People really enjoy hearing other people speak when they do it genuinely. And even when they mess up, people don't really look down on them. Think about it...have you ever watched someone give a presentation and thought less of them afterwards? Probably not. And if you did, you probably forgot about it instantly and went back to thinking about yourself. It's what we do. 

So the good news is, there really isn't as much to be afraid of as you think. Although, I know that doesn't help much. Because those nerves will still come. 

How do I know? Because I still get slightly nervous every time I speak, and I'm one of the rare ones who actually enjoys public speaking and have had quite a bit of experience. The trick is to tell yourself that nerves are exciting - that before the biggest adrenaline rushes there are always a bit of nerves.

Remember your first roller coaster? 

So #1: Embrace your nerves and let them be a reminder that you are about to do something daring. You are about to accomplish something important. 

#2: Practice your speech using notecards with just a few words on them. Ever heard someone read a speech? It is so boring. It is much more interesting to hear someone speak using their natural cadence and a conversational style. I do not recommend trying to memorize or read speeches word for word. Instead, transfer your outline to a few notecards with just a few words each, and talk out your presentation to a wall while you time yourself. 

#3: Make eye contact with people as you speak. Do not just scan the room, but hold eye contact with an individual for a few seconds, and then move on to another person. I cannot remember who said this - but I read a long time ago that a speech should always feel like a private conversation that others are listening in on. 

#4: Don't be afraid to mess up and say so. It's way more awkward if you just stand their silently or tell people how nervous you are. That makes the audience nervous and uncomfortable. If you mess up, just say something like "oh I'm sorry I lost my place, just give me a second"). If you're good at it, feel free to make a joke about it. I've seen people make mistakes all the time. If you're genuine about it and move on, you and everyone else will forget about it instantly. 

#5: Use stories to illustrate your point. Why do we love movies and television so much? Stories. We remember stories so much more than facts and information. So whenever you can, share relevant stories to illustrate your presentation points. 

#6: Be yourself. If you are funny, be funny. If you're not, no need to try to be (e.g. you will never catch me trying to be funny...it would be a disaster). Are you shy? No need to try to be outgoing. Are you nerdy and proud of it? Don't be afraid to show it. People love speakers who show their true colors and reveal something about themselves that is humble and honest and shows a high level of self-awareness. Being your true self will endear people to you immediately. People are most judgmental of those who appear to be putting on a show. They tend to like those who are honest about who they are and are willing to be vulnerable. Don't be afraid to share a bit of who you are when it is relevant to your presentation. You'll be surprised at how much people will relate with and appreciate you. 

Good luck on your next presentation! I know you'll be amazing. 

How to Ace Your Presentations - Part 2 (make them entertaining)

Study Tipping Tuesday

How to Ace your Presentations – Pt. 2

If you missed part 1 in the How to AceYour Presentations series you can check it out here.

Once you’ve completed step 1 and have a clear outline of your presentation with a few key points you are ready to start making the presentation entertaining.

And I don’t mean embedding any old YouTube video or dressing up in some kind of weird costume (though these things could work as long as they were relevant).

That is the key word to making your presentation entertaining – relevance.

 

Look at your outline and think about how you can do at least one of the following (if you can hit all 3 you’ve got a home run):

1. How can you make your presentation content relevant to your audience’s lives?

2. How can you add in an entertaining element to your presentation that is relevant to current popular culture and the course/presentation content?

3. How can you do something creative that will  help your audience see your presentation content in a new/deeper way? 

Using these questions you will then want to think of ways to use media, stories, or any other means to take your presentation from boring to memorable. Which, when done right, will take your presentation from a B- to an A+.

As I'm sure you've experienced – boring is not a good teacher. We retain and learn the most when we are entertained and engaged (e.g. I bet you can remember the lyrics to your favorite song faster than you can remember the quadratic equation). 

Do your classmates a favor and don’t bore them to death on presentation day. Give them something to remember.

And always remember it isn’t about entertainment for entertainment’s sake – your professor will not be humored by that (and in the end your goal is of course not to entertain or teach your classmates but to get a good grade). 

But - your professor will be very impressed with your ability to be creative with the course content in a way that further engages the class in whatever it is you are presenting about (e.g. I once created an XtraNormal animation for a grad school presentation that was a huge hit with my professor).

For example, when I co-taught a Life and Career Planning class I was tasked with creating the lesson on social intelligence (the ability to understand and act upon unspoken social rules). I wanted to make this fun and wanted to start with an entertaining and relevant introduction to engage the class right away. So after reading more deeply on the subject (this is the key to adding entertaining elements to your presentations – you have to know your stuff!) I had an idea.

I realized that the best example I saw of social intelligence was in the comedy The Big Bang Theory. The heart of this show is the character Sheldon who possesses a very high IQ and almost no social intelligence (e.g. does not understand how to follow social conventions like how to act in a movie theater, how to choose a formal outfit, how to properly read the emotions of others, etc.) and his (and his other brainy friends’) interactions with Penny – their next-door-neighbor with not-the-highest-IQ but who possesses a high social IQ. Thus, I showed the following clips to the class and it turned it into one of the most engaging classes I taught that semester.

  

1- Sheldon trying to find the perfect spot in the movie theater

2- Penny trying to help Sheldon pick out an appropriate formal outfit

Simple integrations of popular culture or connecting a concept with something your audience can relate to immediately in their own lives will capture their attention, make your material more stimulating, and earn you a better grade.

Engage deeply with your content and think big about how you relate to it. Brainstorm relevant videos, popular culture, news stories, or stories in your own life that could illuminate your key points and create a memorable experience for both you and your audience.

Once you have your key points and the stories and/or media you are going to use to make them interesting, do you just slap a bunch of words and pictures on a PowerPoint? Are there other, more interesting ways than the same old PowerPoint? Oh yes! I’ll share them with you next Tuesday =)