of
your next presentation. To progress towards
being a skilled public speaker, constant practice
and improvement are necessary. It helps to get
a partner to offer an honest appraisal
or play back a video of your presentation and do
a self-analysis.
Here
are some key presentation skills to enhance your
next presentation:
Introduction
Take
a moment to stand before the audience,
take a deep breath, and look around you. Don't start
speaking the second you arrive at the speaker's
stand. That initial pause can make you appear poised,
relaxed, confident and in control. It can also help
suppress
initial nervousness.
Deliver
the first couple of sentences with an increase in
power and volume. You want to grab the attention
of the audience right away. A commanding
voice
is needed to do that, not a soft, apologetic tone.
Avoid
an introduction that goes on and on. You
don't want to go on and on so the audience wonders
when you are going to really get to the meat of
the presentation. The introduction is the
funnel which directs attention
to the body of the talk.
Body
The
body of your presentation contains your main points,
why you are taking time to speak in the first place,
and why people have turned up to hear you. So be
sure what you say has weight and
is meaningful.
This
can only be done through thorough
research and good preparation. Even
when speaking on a subject familiar to your audience,
in the preparation stage always be on the lookout
for an unusual angle, extraordinary facts, or a
story or anecdote that gets the audience to view
a familiar subject in a different way.
Make
sure the main points of your presentation
stand out by discreet
repetition.
You don't want to sound like a creaking door, but
carefully planned reviews can really sink the main
thoughts into the mind of the audience.
A
progressive summary is an excellent
tool to that end:
a)
At the outset mention your main points, perhaps
1, 2 and 3
b)
After point 1 repeat it and then say, now for
point 2.
c)
After point 2 you recap points 1 and 2 and introduce
point 3.
d)
After point number 3 you can again review points
1, 2, and now 3.
This kind of progressive review makes sure your
audience leaves with the main points firmly etched
in their minds.
Conclusion
Don't
leave this part of your presentation as an afterthought.
Prepare the wording carefully, especially the last
sentence, as it will be the part the audience hear
last and are
likely to remember.
Also
think about what
you want to accomplish
in your conclusion.
Once
you have identified your goal, you can create
a motivating conclusion that will leave your audience
very responsive.
These
are just a handful of presentation skills that can
greatly enhance your presentations. Make sure you
clearly understand the three component parts
of any speech, and then work to accomplish a specific
goal with each one. Pay attention to good thought
content, and also your manner of presentation.
It
takes hard work to be an accomplished speaker,
but by constantly
searching
out presentation skills and suggestions, and taking
on board the ones that particularly apply to you,
you can have the great satisfaction
that comes from making a meaningful presentation
the audience will appreciate and remember.
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Ways To Control Public Speaking Anxiety
Tag:
presentation skills,public speaking,speaking
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