7
Presentation Skills To Enhance Your Image
The
following presentation skills cover a wide
range of subjects
and may even be contested
by some public speakers. However, if you want
to convey a professional image before an audience,
you will do better if you follow these important
guidelines:
Public
Speaking Tip #1: Pronunciation
Pay
attention to pronunciation.
If
you don't know how to pronounce a particular word
- check it in a dictionary. Few things
can destroy your credibility more than making
a major pronunciation error. After all, if you
don't even know how to pronounce the word, how
can your listeners have any confidence you know
what you're talking about.
Online
dictionaries
have the added benefit of attached
audio files
so you can just click on the word and actually
hear it being pronounced. Merriam Webster Online
is one of the best resources you can find for
checking words, meanings, and pronunciations with
sound: www.m-w.com
Public
Speaking Tip #2: Speak Extemporaneously
If
you are ever tempted to give a speech or presentation
from copious notes, almost reading them verbatim,
consider these 4 major benefits
of speaking extemporaneously:
Public
Speaking Tip #3: Visual Aids
If
you decide to use visual aids in your presentation
make sure their purpose is to instruct
rather than entertain so the audience will feel
they are really learning something.
Visual
aids can hold the attention of an audience and
make a deeper impression if they are used well.
Be sure everyone in the audience can see the visual
aid clearly.
Public
Speaking Tip #4: Keep To Time
Keep
to time! This is an important one.
If
the audience knows you have been scheduled 30
minutes for your presentation, a large section
will stop listening after 30 minutes. It doesn't
matter how great the material is you are presenting,
a proportion of your audience will have their
eye on the clock and mentally
switch off
once your time is up.
Public
Speaking Tip #5: No Obscenity
Using
any kind of obscenity, even for emphasis, is a
NO-NO.
Hollywood
movies may be filled with it, but it only serves
to cheapen a public speaker.
Yes
it may get a few laughs from a section of the
audience but the overall effect on you as a speaker
is negative. There are other ways of putting emphasis
on a subject without running the risk of being
offensive to at least a percentage of your audience.
Avoid
obscenities like the plague.
Public
Speaking Tip #6: Eat Moderately
Eat
moderately
before you speak.
Don't
do anything that might make an impact on your
energy level. When making your presentation you
want to be alive, full of energy. The audience
will respond to your energy and get involved in
your subject.
Public
Speaking Tip #7: Regroup
If your audience is scattered in the room or hall,
regroup
them
by inviting them to the front in a close knit
body.
It
is much easier to persuade, influence, and hold
the attention of a group.
An
individual who might otherwise be passive will
applaud and laugh when in the middle of a group
of people who are applauding and laughing.
An
audience is far more likely to accept and believe
what a speaker is saying when he presents himself
and his material professionally. Following the
7 presentation skills above can only enhance
your image!
Transform
Your Presentation Skills With The Online Workshop
Next:
Public
Speaking: 5 Key Image Factors
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presentation skills, public speaking tip,
