How To Become A Better Public Speaker

As a partnership manager of a leading company in Kenya, one of the greatest challenges I faced when it came to public speaking was nervousness and lack of confidence. I was an exceedingly shy and introverted manager. When speaking, my messages were all jumbled up hence a lot of miscommunication.

In the course of time, I was not able to connect with my staff, particularly during meetings, conferences, and when making presentations.

The desire to become a better speaker; to speak with confidence in all sorts of situations be it in an office meeting, business presentation, or in any social setting got to the better part of me.

One evening as I was browsing on how to become a better public speaker, I came across this public speaking training and took a bold step to join the class. Not only did I learn how to come up with clear goals, structuring my messages accurately but also grew my confidence and made powerful delivery in my speeches.

Here are very insightful tips on how to become a better public speaker I learned.

1.  Study great public speakers

Great public speakers such as Barack Obama, Nelson Mandela, Steve Jobs, and Winston Churchill are the greatest orators in the world’s history. They are the people whose words changed the course of societies and defined eras.

From just studying their speeches, I observed how confident all were in their delivery, their passion for expressing their message to the audience, their ability of them to tell a story, and how they were aware of their audiences.

2. Relax your body language

I found out that good body language improves performance and helps the audience take in and remember what you say. I started to avoid putting my hands in my pockets or crossing my arms and instead put my arms at my sides and use purposeful hand gestures when making my points. I maintain proper posture, make eye contact with the audience, and move in ways that look natural when making speeches.

3. Practice voice and breath control

I remember when I was asked to make a presentation. My voice was shaky; my breathing was fast and this made me speak even faster. I became aware of this phenomenon and kept a steady pace when presenting.

Before speaking, I took ten slow deep breaths to calm my nerves and control my breath. Practice using my stomach to push air in and out of my lungs proved to be helpful.

4.  Prepare talking points

Before giving any speech, I prepare a series of talking points that contain key messages I want my audience to know, feel and understand by the time I have finished speaking. I start with 3 to 5 broad messages and then outline several underlying points that support each message.

Having an outline of your messages on hand helps prevent you from getting off track in your presentation and ensures you do not forget to cover any important points.

5. Rehearse

One of the best ways to improve your public speaking skills is simply to practice. Through repetition, you can iron out your messaging and find better ways to phrase certain parts of your presentation.

Once I rehearsed my speeches multiple times, I naturally felt more comfortable giving it in front of an audience.

So what next…

By taking the public speaking training I gained critical skills that have taken my career to the next level and improved my ability to speak and present to audiences with confidence.

Do you also want to become a better public speaker?

Yes! Join this public speaking training that will do the trick.