How to look confident while speaking on a public platform

Posted by jaques montegolifier on June 14th, 2019

The words public speaking can arouse a sense of fear in the hearts and minds of most people. It is one of the most common fears that everyone faces at one point or another. Speaking in public makes one sweat; anxiety sets in, and fears of humiliating oneself publicly begin to creep in. But there are times in your life, especially your professional life, when you simply cannot ignore the fact that you need to address a large gathering of people. So what can you do when you face this inevitable situation? Here are some tricks and tips used by all; male and female motivational speakers and other public speakers while speaking on a public platform.

Narrate stories to make the audience laugh: As a speaker, it is natural to seek validation from the audience. And you can get this validation from the moment you step foot on the stage if you use one simple trick – open your speech with a joke. A little laugh immediately lightens the audience’s mood while giving you to confidence boost you need. Try to maintain this mood throughout your speech – keep a smile on your face, throw in interesting anecdotes and narrate funny instances about yourself. When you laugh at yourself, you allow the audiences to join into it, thus creating a level of trust.

Make eye contact with audience members who are nodding: This is another interesting public speaking tip that can help project confidence. When you get the feeling that your audience is not connecting with you, you can feel lost and nervous. If your nerves take over, the whole speech can go downhill and you can forget what you intended to say despite having memorized and rehearsed your speech. The good news, however, is that you will always find at least two or three members in the audience who are nodding as you deliver your speech. Instead of worrying about those seeming uninterested, just focus on such people in the audience; the one’s acknowledging your words with their nods. Doing this can increase your confidence and make your nerves disappear in a jiffy.

Express your emotions openly: If you’ve ever watched female motivational speakers deliver a speech, you will have noticed that they are not afraid to express their emotions. They often narrate stories or anecdotes that strike a chord with the audience, making them relate to these stories. When you feel strongly about something, you should let your emotions control the dialogue, while addressing a public gathering. This can help ease tension while you can get the audience to empathise with you. Sharing your enthusiasm and your excitement and harvesting your emotions instead of supressing them can make you relatable and help deliver a great speech.  

Practice as much as you can: Like with any skill you need to learn, there is only one way to master it – practice. No one has mastered the art of public speaking without putting in the adequate hard work. Whether you are making a simple office presentation or appearing in front of a large audience in an auditorium, you need to practice your speech. Stand in front of a mirror, observe your body language, evaluate your rate of speech, your enunciation and make the right pauses. Practicing can help you gain the confidence you need and make you a truly effective speaker.