Public Speaking

Assistance in overcoming Public Speaking fear is a regular request from our clients. Sleepless nights, nausea, sweaty palms, dry throat, and shaking legs are all common complaints. Each client is convinced that they are unusual in feeling so afraid.

We feel that it is partly due to unrealistic expectations. Clients believe that just because they know their subject and can speak, then they should be able to get up in front of an audience and perform flawlessly. This is simply not possible for the majority of people. To become an excellent public speaker simply requires dedication and practice, so there really is hope for everyone. Many of our clients have tried hypnotherapy, relaxation tapes and even drug therapies to diminish their fears.

We believe that Public Speaking is a form of acting. Just as you wouldn’t expect to get up on stage and perform Hamlet without years of training so you should not expect to be able to perform a speech without adequate coaching and preparation.

The most effective cure for the paralysing nerves is thorough preparation. If you know that what you are doing is professional and effective you will be able to perform with confidence. Over the decades we have seen countless quivering wrecks develop into confident and able speakers who can’t wait for their next presentation in order to show off their skills.

In our training we cover all aspects of Public Speaking, from the actual writing of the script through to the performance – body language, eye contact, use of notes, clarity, pitch, pause, tone, volume and expression. We also look at the use of visual aids (or rather, in most cases, the misuse and over use of PowerPoint). We also work on highly effective breathing exercises which can help to overcome the nerves.

In our sessions we use film to record and play back each performance so that clients can learn from their mistakes. It is a miserable experience at first but you soon see where you are going wrong and quickly start to improve.

We work on all types of speeches from Senior Executive to Best Man. Our clients range from the terrified novice just wanting to survive the ordeal, to the experienced and confident speaker who wishes to perfect their technique. Audiences have ranged from a panel of three in a job interview to an audience of 2,000 at a prestigious conference. Even a short 3 minute introduction deserves to be well prepared so, as they say, no job is too small.

Public Speaking Tips

In your sessions you will be assisted in producing a professional and polished performance. We will be preparing your speech by thinking through the following points:

The first questions that you must always ask yourself are about Audience, Purpose and Situation. In other words, to whom are you speaking, why are you doing it and where is it taking place? Make sure that the content is suitable, the vocabulary appropriate and the presentation applicable to the venue. The same information would be presented very differently to the Welsh Assembly and the school assembly.

You must understand the aim of the talk. Is it to inform, entertain, persuade, cajole or motivate? You can tell people the medical facts about the dangers of smoking, for example, or you can motivate them to give up by telling gruesome stories about the effects on patients who have died from smoking related diseases.

It is also important to know where the talk will be taking place. A large venue with amplification would require a very different approach to a small room in a community centre. A select group of 15 would not require the same style of presentation as an audience of 500.

When preparing you must decide on the structure of the talk. Give it a beginning, middle and an end. Keep the number of points you want to get across to a minimum to ensure maximum impact. Do remember that you are going to be speaking to your audience, not reading an essay out loud. Use spoken words not the written form of the language to make your talk seem natural and relaxed. And for goodness sake, leave the PowerPoint at home. The only reason to use visual aids is when you simply cannot get the information across any other way. Your audience have come to hear you speak not read your talk from a screen, so make sure that you are the centre of attention and not your visual aid. This excellent video will demonstrate exactly what NOT to do:

When practising your presentation you must make sure that it is slower, clearer and more exaggerated than if you were just talking in a normal situation. Make your talk interesting to listen to. You want to make sure that you vary the pace and the pitch, stress the important words and use pause to structure the talk and lead the audience through it. This excellent presentation shows how even Statistics can be exciting and is perfect example of how a speaker can use visual aids effectively:

It is also very important to look at your body language – are you standing tall and straight, looking out at the audience and using strong appropriate gestures? Or are you a nervous wreck, fiddling, dancing, fondling your notes and talking to your visual aid?

Finally, it is very important to remember in Public Speaking that it is up to you to do the work and not your audience. You must make sure that you work harder than they do in preparing for and delivering your talk, and in our sessions we ensure that you do just that. Read how real people learn to conquer real fears