Do’s and Dont’s of Public Speaking

Good Public speaking is an art which everyone doesn’t possess!!!

There are some people that are experts at it and are flawless without even trying, and there are others who have stage fear and can feel the anxiety kicking in, the moment they step up to speak.

While you may not be an expert, you can still learn essential skills to try to improve upon your skills. If you are a beginner and new to public speaking, here are some dos and don’ts you need to keep in mind.

Do’s Of Public Speaking

Maintain eye contact with the audience

While public speaking, it is important to gain the attention of the audience. For this fact, try to maintain eye contact with each and every member of the audience. Try not to look at the ceilings or wall but talk in such a way that the audience feels that you are really interested in the topic. It also portrays you as a confident person.

Engage the audience with humor and stories

Having bland content will only bore the audience. To engage them better, try to convey your ideas with the help of stories. The audience would always be fascinated by “What happened next”. You should also use humor to keep the environment light and have a good conversation with everyone.

Communicate your message

Try to communicate the message through words, tone of voice as well as body language. Try to ask questions to the audience and solve their questions as it will create more and more interest in your content.

Subside nervousness and keep a smile on your face

Whenever you are speaking to public, keep your head clear and have a smile on your face. It boosts your confidence and help set track for your public speaking session.

Rehearse your content well

Using fillers in between your speech will have a negative effect on your public speaking. so, read and rehearse your content so that you are assured what to speak next. Speaking without preparation will lower your confidence and will make you prone to mistakes.

Don’ts

Fidgeting and pacing

Try not to pace up and down because it only shows your nervousness and it is likely to divert the audience from the topic you actually wanted to convey. Try your best not to fidget with your hands as it again portrays your unpreparedness and interferes with your public speaking.

Overload with details-respect the time limit

When you are speaking try not to overload your content with unnecessary details and irrelevant information. Doing so will give you less time to talk about relevant issues and will waste your time. Also, keep track of the time you are speaking.

Speak too softly, loud or high pitched

It is good to be loud and clear in your speech such that whole audience till last row can hear and understand it, but do not speak in a high pitched voice. Learn the act of voice modulation and changing your tone and words according to the content part.

Dress unappropriately

Dress according to the situation as well as the audience you are going to address. Be it formal or casual speaking, dress appropriately to avoid awkward situations and stand in the correct posture.

Use awkward gestures while talking

Many people unknowingly tend to use hand or head gestures while talking which are absolutely unnecessary and divert the audience mind. Use hand gestures only where needed and use nodding only where you are trying to convince the audience to believe in something.

Keeping the given points in your mind will help you the next time you are going on the stage to speak. It will help you get a faint idea about how to address public in a manner that they are impressed by you and like to listen to you.