Public Speaking

• Keep the slide notes short
• Reduce slides to only short words, have images rather than words
• Put comics into the presentation
• Add humor
• Have cached versions of all internet pages you want
• Print your notes in a large font, double space notes
• Print the outline in large type
• Print the whole thing in large print and staple it together

• Practice ahead of time, get used to your voice
• Tape record yourself
• Practice the script repeatedly, color code the paragraphs, highlight key words, mark pauses
• Practice in front of a mirror OR
• Practice the whole thing in front of a mirror OR
• Don't practice in front of a mirror but be aware of hand gestures OR
• Practice in front of a video camera, in front of friends. Watch for scared postures - hunched shoulders, defensive postures. Make yourself look positive and the attitude will follow
• Be aware you'll speak faster, you'll be nervous
• Think of a specific moment when you were really confident. Visualize that and put your finger and thumb together. Practice until the motion brings that feeling with it.
• Toastmasters offers lessons
• Be well prepared
• Be ultra prepared - memorize the speech especially the first few minutes. The first minute or two is critical.

• Stand by a wall and talk to it softly - then keep backing up and getting louder to learn to project
• Practice calming down, practice some jokes
• Practice your intro over and over, say you're honored to be there
• Get a good night's sleep
• Don't wear a new outfit OR
• Try a new haircut or outfit for confidence
• Wear comfy clothes, very little jewelry, nothing dangly.
• Don't wear noisy jewelry.
• Wear something you feel confident in
• Go with something just a bit dressier than normal
• Dress a step above what the audience will wear.
• Be conservative, not sexy
• Keep backups of your presentation.
• Be prepared for technical issues. Have a plan in case the slides fail
• Take you own computer, take backup versions of the presentation, take old-software versions.
• Carry important things in your carry on luggage.

• Eat gentle foods - tea, water, crackers, toast, soup, jello
• Avoid caffeine / carbonated drinks. Eat lightly - fruit, protein.
• No coffee for 2 hrs beforehand
• Listen to calming music, take walks
• Warm your voice up gradually in the morning
• Put hand on head and go hummmmmm until head buzzes

• Go early and practice hearing your voice amplified
• Go to the room beforehand and get everything set up and working.
• You own the room, set the lights, set the volume, be comfortable with it.
• Take off watch and put it down or put a clock down. Looking at a watch is bad
• Visit the location beforehand, get used to the space, echo, etc.
• If you're really getting ill, there are drugs
• For more gentle help, herbal aromas - lavender, camomile
• Ask for a podium - this is good to hold onto
• Quiet positive thinking for 10 minutes beforehand
• Meditate before starting

• Do your calming 'hand motion' this during the 'getting started' phase
• Warm up your voice
• Deep breathing helps with shaking voice
• Take a few deep breaths before you start
• Have the introducer give a cool introduction
• Relax and be yourself. Being nervous is normal, accept it.
• Let them know you're nervous
• Start with a funny story; reconnect to it at the end
• Start with a joke
• Joke at the beginning
• Make a little joke to start
• Visualize how someone confident that you know would act
• Squeeze your toes against the inside of the bottom of your shoes
• Do an icebreaker exercise to involve people and get people relaxed
• Tell them up front that questions wait until the end
• Act confident

• Breathe. Take deep breaths. Take silences.
• Nerves tend to go away once you get involved
• After the first 15 minutes it gets easier
• Have a bottle of water and tissue handy.
• Drink water regularly / drink lots of water
• drink bottled water, no caffeine
• Ask questions at the beginning of the talk to get interests
• Don't apologize for being there, but gentle jokes are fine
• Smile a lot
• Take your time talking
• Slow things down, take pauses, take drinks. Don't rush the audience.
• Avoid monotone
• Use hand gestures
• Don't play with your necklace or twirl your hair.
• Pauses are long to you but really short to the audience
• Maximum of 15 minutes per section
• Use lots of examples and personal stories, people remember those
• Use real life funny stories
• When nerves hit, drink water and take a moment to regroup
• Avoid all uhs and ums. Just be quiet when you get stuck.
• Don't say um. Instead, take breaths.
• Move around a little while talking
• Don't hang onto the podium - walk around it will help remove jitters
• Smile, be human, move around so they don't fall asleep
• Leave time for questions or offer a way to answer them
• Be ready for tons of questions afterwards
• Take questions - it gives you a chance to relax and just answer
• Leave time for talks - people like being able to feel like their question is the spotlight
• Be careful about questioners who are looking to get their own forum
• If there's an emergency, direct the audience out calmly
• If you use handouts, give them out afterwards.
• Ask for an evaluation

• Hold eye contact for a few seconds OR
• Don't look anyone in the eye - look over their heads OR
• Focus on the smiling faces and glance at the rest occasionally. OR
• Talk to just one person in the middle of the audience. Then switch to another and talk directly to them.
• Look at the audience. Focus on the friendly faces and imagine you're just chatting with a friend.
• Find 2 or 3 people in the audience and focus on them. Talk to them.
• Look the people in the forehead, right above the eye
• Make eye contact, slowly, look them in the eye
• Look at the audience, not the screen.
• Talk directly to a few friendly faces
• Get a friendly person to sit in the first or second row, center. Talk to them.
• Think of them as one big person
• Look at a few friendly faces across the front row. People in the audience will just see you're "looking at the crowd". Glance in the back occasionally.

• Write down affirmations - "I will be a great speaker" and recite them to yourself beforehand
• Optimize your attitude. The listeneners want you to succeed, they want your advice
• They want you to do a good job; they're rooting for you
• They'll forget mistakes and remember the important parts
• I have important information - the audience is there because they want to hear it
• Speak from the heart
• You are the expert
• To them there is just one of you talking to one of them.
• Relax. You are an expert on the topic.
• If you know your stuff you will be confident
• They're looking for tidbits they can use, not to find flaws
• Be yourself, laugh at any mistakes

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