There are some speeches, TED talks, or seminars where the presenter was so fine that the speed stayed with you. It was engaging and funny while ensuring it relied on important information, too. When you hear such talks, do you wonder how you can speak so well? Not everyone is blessed with such natural intelligence that you can engage people immediately and capture their attention. Public speaking is challenging, and presenting your thoughts, a slide, or even a plan in front of an audience is undoubtedly nerve-wracking. If you are among those few who feel their arms shaking, their palms getting sweaty, and their hearts palpitating, Then you are not alone! Many people find it challenging to be good at presentations. Fortunately, there are a few ways to improve your presentation so you do not have to worry about anyone judging you. Let’s get started!
Create a good first impression.
Making a good first impression is not only about what you wear. You should wear nice, clean, appealing clothes that make you look presentable and comfortable. A good first impression also focuses on how you walk onto the stage and take your position. Remember, the audience judges you when you start walking on the stage. So, you must use this and turn it into something positive for yourself. This means conveying positive energy and confidence through your posture. If you feel fidgety or nervous, that is something your audience will feel immediately.
Attend other presentations
If you are giving presentations in a seminar or conference where other people are speaking too, go and listen to other presenters. It benefits you in multiple ways:
- You show respect towards the other presenter in the same league as you.
- You get to gauge the audience, how they are, what their mood is, and how they are reacting to people. Also, you can use what the other person is saying in your presentation later if they are related.
- Between the breaks (between two presentations), take the time to meet the audience and other presenters and network.
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Don’t be in a rush.
How often have you come across a person who is giving a presentation but you cannot understand him or her? Many times! Right? If the person is speaking too quickly without taking a break or is speaking too quietly to understand, you will not engage with that person. Therefore, it is critical to focus on the intonation, melody, and sound of your voice. You want people to listen to you, so speak in a manner that they can hear you or understand what you are saying. Keep the voice clear so that even the person in the back of the auditorium can listen to you.
Take pause
It is so crucial to pause between your speed and presentation. It allows the audience to take in or leave what you are saying. Sometimes, you can pause to gather your thoughts or even when you want to dramatically affect the listeners about what you are saying.
Keep your body language friendly and open.
One of the best ways to improve presentation skills is to keep your body language friendly and open. Here are a few tips:
- Don’t stand in front of your audience with hands in your pockets or arms crossed. It shows that you do not want to be here, and no one wants the audience to think that way.
- If you want a quick way to improve your presentation skills, open and friendly body language is a great starting point.
- Use hand gestures to show people you are happy to be there. Also, it engaged people more. For instance, pointing to the slide with your hands is a great way to keep the audience engaged with your body language.
Be early
It is a great habit to arrive at the venue where you are presenting on time. Even if it is a virtual presentation, head early to check out your connection, camera, and headphone settings; similarly, when you arrive early to your physical venue, you can adapt to the space better. It allows you to learn the space, decide where you want to enter and stand, how to proceed, and more.
Organize your thoughts and know what to say.
It is so essential to prepare and practice what you will be saying at the presentation. Gather your thoughts and organize them well. Then, know how you want the audience to react to or feel about what you are saying. Do you want them to feel motivated, happy, or what? All this will help you give a better presentation. Having note cards is also a good idea. They can help you stay on track and not talk about something that is not necessary.
Visualization helps
It does not matter whether you believe in this or not. But when you are about to give a presentation, thinking positively helps. Say positive affirmations to yourself, visualize everything going great, and everything will go great. If you are nervous and think negatively, there is a high chance you will go and fumble on the stage, so positive visualization definitely can help.
Have eye contact.
Having eye contact while speaking to people is super important. If you are only looking down at your note cards and speaking and barely looking to see if the audience is still listening, it will not work. So, get a look at your note card once, and then maintain eye contact as you speak. Even when you are presenting online, look at the camera; it shows you are maintaining eye contact with each of your audience members.
Conclusion
So this is how to improve your presentation skills. You should be organized, practice what you want to say, not worry about the silence, listen to other presentations to see how everyone else is preparing, and more. If you do all this, you will quickly become a great presenter.
