Got a big speech coming up. Guessing 500-1000 people. I'm not an expert on the subject. Usually I'm pretty confident because I know what I'm talking about when I give a speech. I'm trying to become more of an expert in the subject, but I've overcommitted myself on other projects. Any tips on reducing nervousness before hand? Picturing the crowd naked won't help.
My Aunt Edna has a sure fire cure for nervousness. 1 cup prune juice 1 cup Wild Turkey Microwave for 20 seconds and drink warm. Works for about an hour.
The greatest thing you can do is become a MOM. Master of the Material. This does more to quiet the shakes (most speakers are nervous their first minutes through, then you hit your groove and things loosen up) than anything. Have your first few sentences or even minutes memorized. When you start, speak slowly and calmly. Find a friendly face and focus on it. You'll feel your comfort grown in a couple of minutes and thats when the MOM thing kicks in. Let me know how things go.
1. Eat before hand..but not too much 2. Be the MOM but keep an easily accessible outline for quick reference...keeps you on track. 3. Be yourself. If you goof up..laugh, smile and shake it off. If you show confidence to the audience the audience will we reflect that confidence back to you. 4. Be confident that you will succeed..and you will. Break a leg.
Okay, how about in their underwear? Seriously, what I would do is to find a point in the audience, near the center and above people's heads. Look at that point. Occasionally, look to the left and to the right of it. That way, you are really not focusing on any one person's face, but instead in a general area. Just make sure that you don't look too far up or then it will be obvious what you are doing.
I'm working on the MOM part. I just always come in cold. I usually pass out notes and takehome materials at the begining of my speeches to work out the nervous juices, but this presentation the audience will already have my notes ahead of time.
Look OVER the audience. If you look directly at someone, you are likely to be distracted and lose your place. And just smile and keep the audience interested.
I've done tons of speeches, theater, etc., and the one thing I've found necessary is to be confident. It's the only thing you need. You don't even need to know what you're talking about (to an extent). As long as you are confident, and KNOW you are the greatest speaker in the history of the world, you'll do great . . . Pump yourself up beforehand. Not just like Tim Duncan-style "I'm confident" kind of thing, but like foaming at the mouth confidence -- like a boxer ready for the title bout. Serious, total, all-out confidence is all you need. Go out there and be like "I'm gonna go out there and kick this speech's ass!!" You've gotta just throw everything into your confidence. You'll do well!
consider yourself the ringmaster and your speech a circus...the audience is there for YOU...mak them eat out of your hand...
