Tips To Avoid Public Speaking Mistakes To Be More Confident

Two words can trigger terror even the most confident business owners: public speaking. For certain people, it’s a natural thing. For others, it’s a challenge they must overcome. The main point – public speaking is something to be improved with time.

To become more confident in public speaking, there are some common blunders to stay clear of. Then, it’s all about going outside your comfort zone and remembering the key points presented below.

1. Don’t be too scripted.

Every public presenter requires a fully-developed concept with a clear introduction, middle, and summing up parts. If the presentation is too scripted or rehearsed  – the speech will lose the passion necessary to keep the audience’s interest. It is best to develop an orderly flow of how you’ll give your presentation to establish the tone and pacing, avoid any tendency to improvise and make your presentation fall off track.

Start by laying out the key points, and then include statistics and facts when necessary. Don’t forget to leave the room so you can naturally add emotion throughout the presentation. The use of bullet points will allow you to stay in control of the story and make it more compelling at the same time.

2. Don’t use any words-fillers.

Every speech instructor or teacher will be able to fault when they use “filler” words. These include:  ”um,”” it’s like,” “so you’ve heard,” and other words that haphazardly link thoughts. Incorporating these words into public speaking can diminish the speaker’s meaning and expose inexperience or nerves. A moment to let one thought soak into your mind before moving on to the next one isn’t necessarily bad. You must establish an appropriate pace for your speech rather than speeding through to the finish.

An excellent tip to eliminate filler words in your presentation is to stop whenever one appears. Make a note of your practice and count the number of times you used filler words. When you are ready for the next session, make sure to replace the fillers with an interruption or look if changes are needed to be made to this portion of your speech. If some fillers occur from time to time, refrain from making excuses or reacting when speaking live. You need just follow the flow.

3. Don’t use question inflections.

Confidence can be demonstrated by telling arguments instead of asking. You control the story, and adding the phrase that asks questions to your statement can make the impression that you are not confident in your abilities. This can often happen during pitches when rates are discussed or when there are less-than-comfortable moments.

In an elevator pitch, a particular method to begin a discussion about rates is to directly state “The rate for my X services is X dollars.” Speak this phrase aloud in an assertion and watch what happens to the tone. If you’re unsure about the request or the information being given, it could make the person receiving it skeptically.

4. Mind your posture.

When you’re swaying nervously or doing it unconsciously, it is tough to concentrate on the idea of your presentation. Moving during a speech isn’t necessarily negative; however, ensure that it doesn’t detract from the speech itself. Hand gestures may be used to emphasize specific points; moving between one end of the stage or room to the other may make you look relaxed but still won’t lessen the audience’s attention.

However, constant pacing, doing hair-dos or clothes, and sitting still without moving are the kind of body speech that demonstrates a lack of confidence or sense of security – the exact two qualities you do not need when standing before others to talk.

5. Look directly in the eyes.

Eye contact, both in the video conferencing world and in face-to-face communication, is a vital point. It is quite a clear notion for live conferences; still, specific presentations can be conducted online, and you have to draw your audience’s attention while not being present in an identical room. How do you make eyes to eye contact on an LCD screen when several participants are connected simultaneously? Take a look at the camera. Do not stare directly at yourself. Remove any distractions in the room before starting. After you’ve lost eye contact with your virtual viewers, you’ll feel compelled to withdraw.

6. Use appropriate visual aids.

Aids to visuals can be a fantastic method to bring your speech and presentation to life. Yet, all too often, people rely on visual aids to guide them through their talks exactly. Don’t overload slides by adding text or design elements. Pick a template to create a uniform presentation and focus on the bullet points or other statistics to drive your message to the end. Your audience can lose their focus when there’s too much distraction with your presentation’s visual tools.

7. Remember the time frames.

Time your speech during preparation. If it’s a conference on stage or in virtual sessions, going over time is a huge mistake that must be avoided. Also, hurrying through the speech and finishing it well ahead of the time limit can make people believe they didn’t receive as much worth.

Still, if you’re running over time, what can be cut? You should consider whether you’re running through your speech or pacing it naturally. There may also be areas where you can add more details or anecdotes.

8. Don’t talk too fast.

As mentioned, many of us are scared of speaking in public. Therefore, we are pretty anxious whenever we need to present a speech in the presence of an audience. This is the reason for another frequent mistake in public speaking: speaking too quickly.

If you think of your keynote presentation as if you were a train that is running away, you’ll confuse your audience. So they will not pay attention completely, which is definitely not what you’re looking for.

A way to stop yourself from running through your material is to ensure you are practicing your presentation at the right speed. Next, take a few deep breaths throughout your speech to ease your anxiety.

Another trick is stopping after you’ve made a point or transitioning from one topic to another. This gives your audience the chance to digest the information you’ve shared.

9. Don’t talk too softly.

Fast-talking is an embarrassing public speaking error you must avoid. It’s the same with murmuring. In particular, if there isn’t a microphone accessible to you.

Your audience cannot absorb your message if they don’t understand the words you’re speaking. Make sure you talk appropriately, use a clear voice, and avoid stumbling. Doing so will guarantee your message is heard and will give you confidence on the stage.

If you’re speaking in a monotone manner, your presentation will be dissuaded. Because it’s boring, it’s likely to put away your audience. Do not hesitate to add some accents by your voice. You will make the audience more engaged.

The best method of avoiding monotony is to increase energy. We’ll go into more detail about this in the next section of this piece.

10. Avoid being energy-deficient.

We previously mentioned that having your energy pumped up could be helpful during your presentation. Being unmotivated is one of the most common mistakes made by public speakers that you need to avoid.

We’re not suggesting you drink a cup of coffee or anything else before speaking. It’s not a good idea to appear naturally hyper-aware – you simply must be activeto engage the audience. Take a look at it this way: why would anyone want to listen to the things you’ve got to say when you’re not excited about it?

Be enthused, live in the moment, grin, and make encouraging facial expressions to increase your vitality. Additionally, you may easily move throughout the stage.

11. Use an appropriate platform if you cannot do it alone.

Being aware is the first step in growing as a public speaker. Before you can strengthen your speaking, you need to understand your weaknesses.

Please read the entire article before giving your honest opinion. What areas of public speaking can you develop? Once you’ve found the problems, work on fixing your performance each time you make a presentation or speech.

When it comes to presentations, have you tried the StudyCrumb platform already? It was created to assist people with writing any type of content needed (speeches as well) and creating presentations for students. Try it and determine if it’s the best service for you and your performance.

by Valeriia Bondarenko 

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