Public speaking is hard for a lot of people. It has given university students and business people anxiety since its invention.
There is nothing wrong with people that do not like public speaking, it is an extremely common phobia. However, mastering public speaking is crucial to reaching your full potential, no matter what career path you’re on.
Chris de Diego is a public speaker and entrepreneur who has truly mastered public speaking. Before he was a professional public speaker, Chris de Diego was afflicted with the same anxiety and fear that grips a lot of us when it comes to speaking in front of an audience.
However, over his long career, he picked up plenty of tips and advice that made public speaking second nature to him, and we’re going to share some of those with you today.
Practice makes Perfect
Chris recommends always practicing your speech as much as you possibly can before the big day. This will give you confidence in your delivery and develop a sort of mind-muscle connection for actually delivering the speech.
If the first time you’re talking to your audience is the first time you’re reciting what you’ve written, then you are not going to be confident with your delivery. Practicing your speech will give you that confidence, and help you iron out any kinks and perfect the wording that you’d like to use.
Know your Audience
You won’t give the same speech to university students that you’d give to an audience of CEOs. Your tone and your wording will be completely different depending on your audience.
Make sure you understand who is going to be in the crowd of your speech, and target it towards that group. Understand if your speech should be formal or if you’ll be allowed to relax a little and have a more casual chat.
Bullet Points not Scripts
Chris was adamant that scripts are not the way you want to go. If you stick to a script, your speech will not sound natural.
No matter how good your memory is, if you’re always thinking about the next line, you’ll likely make a mistake. On top of this, your audience may catch onto the fact that you are only reading from a script, which will completely eliminate their interest in your words.
Make bullet points, and practice a general outline of what you’ll say, but do not create a full-fledged script.
Have Fun
Having fun is the most important aspect of public speaking, according to Chris de Diego. You have to get on stage and enjoy yourself.
If you can have fun, and radiate that energy to the audience, then you will have a lot more leeway with them. They’ll care more about your words, and they will get hung up on your mistakes far less if they’re having a good time with you.
Roll with the Punches
Everybody makes mistakes. You need to be able to take your mistakes and create an opportunity.
It’s okay to slip up, just don’t get caught up on it and let it derail the rest of your speech. Chris de Diego pointed out that some of his most engaging speeches were built off of making a mistake, and rolling with it through his improvisational skills and quick wit.
They show your audience that you are human, and if you recover well, they’ll be that much more engaged in what you’re saying.
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