Reader,
I recently came across a post on LinkedIn with tips in public speaking situations.
Though I didn't fully agree with all of those...
I got enough inspiration to build a list of my own 12 practical tips that you can start practicing today.
Even if you're a total beginner.
1 - Arrive early and walk the room
- Arrive early at speaking venue and walk the room
- Gain familiarity of the stage and people you'll speak to
- Introduce yourself to attendees and there'll be less strangers
Benefit: Makes the stage less hostile and more friendly for you.
2 - The 90-second rule
- Speaking anxiety spikes at the very start
- But your emotions only last for up to 90 seconds
- 90-seconds of belly breathing can give your system a reset
Benefit: Lowers down the initial spike of your speaking nerves.
3 - The rehearsal truth
- Remember the 90 second rule
- Practice your openings way more than anything else
- Because a strong opening gets you through that initial turbulence
Benefit: Ensures you start strong and get off to a great start.
4 - Don't immediately start talking
- Ground yourself to your neutral posture
- Gain awareness of your surroundings and pause
- I'd even take a look from left to right and just smile at them
Benefit: Helps you with gaining strong footing and feel confident.
5 - Start with any of these or mix-and-match
- Start with the promise - What's in it for them?
- Start with a YES/NO question - invites participation
- Start with a relevant personal story that they can relate to
Benefit: Helps you grab attention fast & gives them a reason to listen to you.
6 - Embrace the silence
- Pause to take a breather
- Pause to add curiosity and drama
- Pause to emphasize key points in your talk
- Pause to gives them time to absorb what you’ve said
Benefit: Makes you confident and powerful presenter/ storyteller.
7 - Rule of 5
- Make eye contact with audience for up to 3-5 seconds
- Don't just glance... make eye contact like it's a 1-1 if possible
- For large audience - do it like you're writing a big "W" with your head
Benefit: Builds connection and trust and makes you appear confident.
8 - Palm facing up
- Open palms signal openness
- It signals you're a friend, not a foe
- But, pointing signals aggressiveness and hostility
Benefit: Builds connection and trust with the audience.
9 - Don't memorize talk word-for-word
- It's a trap to mind going blank or freezing up
- Instead memorize the key pillars of your talk and expand
- Only memorize dialogues, quotes or beginning and ending parts
Benefit: Humanizes your talk and ensures you don't freeze up on stage.
10 - Tell stories to make a point
- Stories are powerful to drive home a point
- Tell a relevant personal story to keep them engaged
- Stay away from boring generalities and abstract statements
Benefit: Makes your talk engaging, memorable and "NOT boring"
11 - Call backs
- Refer back to something you said earlier
- It's like an insider joke between you and audience
- Requires less effort but creates a satisfying arc for the audience
Benefit: Requires least effort but works perfectly even if you think you aren't funny.
12 - Finish Strong
- Did a great job with talk, but you're not done yet
- Stay away from boring "thank you for having me" endings
- Instead, summarize key points and actionable insights to implement
Benefit: Gives them real value and makes you a problem solver.
Now Reader,
Which one of these tips can you start implementing in your next talk or presentation?
Reply to let me know... I read all emails.
-Waqas
P.S.-- Reply "Cheat sheet" in response to this email if you want to receive a compact PDF with these tips that you can keep handy for future use.
P.P.S-- Can you respond to the poll below to help me with future content creation strategy?
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