All of us in life face those occasions where we have to speak up. Some people take these occasions in their stride, without breaking a sweat. On the other hand, some other people, do not do great in public speaking. For such people, the simple act of making a speech in public is a big deal. Those who fear public speaking have a lot of adverse reactions to it. Starting with light sweating to going completely blank, the list of symptoms go on. Regardless of how you dislike speaking in public, you simply cannot avoid it altogether. Not in today’s world. Today, you sometimes do have to make presentations to make yourself understood better. You simply cannot stop at explaining things on paper or simply writing an email. Being a great presenter does not come to us naturally. Here are some tips to help you become a better presenter.
Watch and imitate
The first step in becoming a great presenter is to watch some people who are good at presenting. This maybe a TV personality, a press conference emcee, a radio personality of even your colleagues at work or school. What you need to watch out for is the way they speak, the punctuations, the pronunciation and how they modulate the tone of their voice to suit what they are currently saying.
Once you have watched a good presenter for some time, start imitating them. You may pretend to be a better press conference emcee, a TV personality or even the president of the country. Practice talking about a certain topic that you are easy and comfortable with. Once you know how to navigate the calm waters, you can move on to presenting complex issues, which require you to talk according to the situation.
Know what you are speaking
The next important thing when it comes to being a great presenter is to know what you are saying. Content is the most important part of your presentation. If you don’t know the content of your presentation, and some background information about the topic, you are not going to have meat in your presentation. So before you go out there to present something, make sure that you know the content of the presentation. It will not hurt to do some background research or a bit of extra reading on the topic too.
Relax
Last, but not the least, the most important thing of all, is to relax. The worst thing that could happen to you is that you forget your presentation. Even then, you have your slide show, flipcharts or the computer as your saving grace. So avoid presenting while you are tensed up. Instead try some breathing techniques to relax your mind and body.