5 Tips for Effective Public Speaking Seminars

#1 Practice your speech many times

It has been said many times, but that doesn't make it any less valuable. Practicing your speaking does make it more effective and helps build your confidence.

When practicing your speech, do it standing up and make sure you time it as you go. If you are using powerpoints or handouts ensure that you include them in your practice too.

For a simple 30 minute seminar you will need to spend approximately 3-4 hours of practice and refinement to the material to get it right. More time if you are new to the topic material.

#2 Be ready with the answers

From what I have heard from students learning how to deliver training courses in the VET sector, is that a large part of their lack of confidence comes from worrying that the people listening to them know more about the topic than the speaker does.

When practicing your speaking look for questions that might be raised from your points and make a note of the answer needed. If you don't know the answer, now is the time to find out.

The key tip here is to remind yourself that you aren't required to know everything about the subject and someone in the audience will know something you don't. However this is not a problem because;

Most people feel your pain and wont attack you because they wouldn't like it done to them.
The type of person that knows what you don't, is also the type of person to act professionally and not point out your lack of knowledge in the area of your speech.
Even if they think they know the answer, drawing attention to themselves by pointing it out during the seminar creates a risk they could be wrong and seen as impolite or worse.
With this just remind yourself that you have been asked to the presentation of speaking engagement and they weren't. You had the courage to stand up in public and give it a go, they didn't.

#3 Use your nervous energy

Have a drink of water before you start to help with that dry mouth and get rid of all your noisy objects on your person. Anything that makes a sound will be heightened when you get nervous and start playing with them.

You will have butterflies as they say, but it is just your nervous energy flooding your body with adrenalin to run away or fight. Take this energy and use it to build attention and interest in the seminar right from the start. It will only take a minute for this nervous energy to fade away leaving you talking normally and not like a hypo rabbit.

#4 Slow your talking speed down

This energy will make everything you say come out a 100-words a minute in a confused jumble. Remind yourself to speak slower and avoid any large or any unfamiliar words at the beginning to avoid stumbling over them while you are nervous.

#5 Give yourself some breathing room

To help get over the initial stage fright from public speaking a good idea is to let the audience members speak while you are getting comfortable up there. Ask them a question of two to get them engaged and listening.

Does anyone have questions before we start?
I am going to speak about X, does anyone have any experience with this that we can use in the activities later?
Or the good fallback, poke fun at yourself and make a joke, and let the tension flow out of the seminar when the audience laughs. A laugh is a good way to reduce the nervous energy and tension felt when you first get on the public stage.

What You Will Learn From Public Speaking Training

Public speaking training are what we can call the best options for those who want to learn how to succeed in their careers but have to face and talk to people, but are afraid to. With the training, you will learn the abilities not only how to speak effectively in public, but also how to communicate well to different kinds of people regardless of the setting. Corporate leaders are good examples of public speakers. They do address large number of people that are usually their employees and business partners and yet they can also talk to people who are recognized to be the best in the industries they are working in.

Within the public speaking training are special classes. In these classes you are required to do your work and also your homework. So just to be able to become an expert in speaking in public, you should know your goals to help you decide which part of the training you want to focus on and specialize.

The following are the things public speaking training can empower you.

Overcoming your fear in speaking to the public. This is the number one factor why it is so hard to become an effective public speaker. With regular public speaking classes, you will be taught how to overcome this form of anxiety.

Learning the quickest and best methods in creating your effective presentation with different scenario. You will be equipped with knowledge on how to produce presentations for different audiences and for various scenarios.

Learning to be more concise and how to build your power of persuasion. Learning to be an effective public speaker is not only about earning the knowledge on how to deliver or convey your messages well but also how you can convince your audiences on the things that you want to express.

Enhancing your speech deliveries by doing hands-on practices during public speaking classes. In this manner, you will learn how to design your speech and delivering presentations along with your group. Your group may also serve as your audience to help you get through your anxieties and obtain constructive criticisms.

Teaching you how to use your voice effectively. Sometimes it is the tone of your voice and the way how you pronounce every word that can convey your messages effectively and this you will learn from public speaking training.

Learning how you can convince people with your eyes and convey your message with your body language during your speech delivery. Your eyes and body movements are powerful message conveyors that can generally influence audiences.

Gaining confidence on stage. Confidence is weapons that can make your audiences sense you have the authority to reach out to them. If you have the confidence, you have the power to be in control. If you don't have it, your audience will also feel that you are not ready to take the lead.

Learning how you can organize your thoughts instantly. You will learn the basic knowledge on how to enhance the flow of logic into your brain and delivering interesting messages instantaneously that the audience can be able to listen and build curiosity in whatever things you say.

Learning how to maintain your poise, coolness and judgment in times of stress are also some of the things you will learn from public speaking classes. You need to be good in these aspects because questions will usually be directed to you regarding your topics so you need to be armed, cool and have a clear mind all the time.
Learning all these from the training in public speaking can help you succeed not only in your career but also gaining your self-confidence which can result in enhancing your personality, relationship with other people and building you a clearer perspective in life. Unfortunately not all people do have the luxury of time in attending public speaking classes or training especially the working people. Therefore, the best way to gain the knowledge in the art of public speaking is hiring a coach or a speech coach for personal speech training purposes.

A speech coach can pinpoint to you what you need to enhance, develop, and eliminate in order for you to become better in speaking in public. He or she can be able to identify which aspect in the way you speak you must improve to make you an expert public speaker. Another advantage of having a speech coach is that he or she can always adapt to your preferred time.

There is now online public speaking training which your speech coach can be able put you in and do one-on-one coaching. And with the use of the technology, this now becomes easy. However, you pay by the hour or by the project if you hire a speech coach. On the other hand, there are more things that you can gain in attending public speaking classes that a speech coach can't be able to provide and this is practicing with live audience which your classmates or group can help you with.

How To use Props in Public Speaking

What is a PROP? A prop can be anything that can be handheld during a presentation or a speech. While giving a presentation, using props can be a great idea as you can grab audience's attention through them. Visual representations are surely a better way to prove your presentation skills as they can make a monotonous presentation/meeting more lively. Using props to improve visual attention to a speech isa common acceptable technique in various public speaking subjects.

Props are visual aids. They are significant as they add variety and help you to make your presentation memorable. Props help you in keeping your audience attentive throughout the speech and this is the main purpose of public speaking. Memory is another reason to use props while giving a presentation. People can keep in mind the images easier than words. Many a times we come across the situations where words are not sufficient to explain your public speaking subject and in such cases props are of great help. It is rightly said that 'A picture is worth a thousand words.'

Props must be used carefully and the speaker or the presenter must remember that they should not overshadow your speech but just play the role of engaging the audience and highlighting your points.

Below are some frequently used props. Let us see how to work with them in the most effective manner.

Overheads/Slide shows- Many public speakers use this prop in their speech however some of them also happen to misuse them unintentionally. The speaker should make sure not to be completely dependent on these props. If he reads word to word from the slides, they may become the focus for the audience due to which they may lose interest in the audience. The speaker should use these only as a supplement to make his points clearer to the audience.

White boards- Speaker/presenters giving speech or a presentation at smaller places may prefer using white boards. While using a white board remember that you write only a few words on each line using large font and no cursive writing.

Handouts- Handouts may or may not be considered as props by many people. Rather than being a helpful aid, handouts often turn out to be a source of distraction to audience if provided at the beginning of the speech. If you want to give handouts to the audience, then you must give it at the end of your speech. This would help in retaining the audience's attention and avoiding the shuffling of papers of having an audience busy in reading these handouts.

In case you have to give the handouts during your speech, then make sure that they are short and precised. Pause while the audience go through the handout and then tell them what you are going to discuss about it.

Small and Large Props- At times, it's vital or may be just fun to hold up pictures, magazines, or other small props to add interest of the audience to a topic. But small props can be used only in small rooms having an audience of 15-30 people.

However, if you're performing in a large venue, be wary of doing so, as the people in the back of the room will become frustrated because they cannot see your props.

In larger places having a huge audience these small props may not be visible to all and may become a cause of frustration. At such places you must use lager props such as model of a building or a car etc.

Whether using a large prop or a small prop make sure that it is placed in such a manner that everyone can see it and it does not upstage you.

A FEW TIPS TO BE SUCCESSFUL WITH PROPS

If used incorrectly, props can ruin your presentation rather than developing it. Here are some practices that may help you with using props:

Moving parts of the prop must be checked properly and it should be ensured that they are working in the manner we want them to.
Keeping your prop(s) out of sight until you're going to use it to intensify the element of surprise and ensures you to get the maximum impact.
Props should always be large enough to be visible to the audience.
Assess your level of ease with using a particular prop. If you are not comfortable with the prop, you may not be confident in public speaking.
Practice your speech/presentation beforehand to become smooth in using the prop.
Props, if used appropriately can add significantly to a presentation by making it more joyful, understandable, logical and memorable for the audience.

The author of this article, Mr. Anurag Aggarwal is a trainer at 'Anurag Aggarwal Institute of Public Speaking' and provides training in Public Speaking, Personality Development and Presentation Skills. In this course you will be trained in all those things which are stopping you from growing in your career. This Public Speaking Course is the best course for all those who have problems regarding their communication skills, interacting with people and in presenting themselves in front of public.

'Anurag Aggarwal Institute of Public Speaking' provides public speaking training on under which the following areas are covered--

1. Public Speaking

2. Personality Development

3. Presentation Skills

4. Communication Skills