Speaking Skills

You've got five seconds to get the audience to like you. Here is how.

Most public speakers don't keep enough eye contact with their audience.
And that is a big mistake, because eye contact is what connects most.

If you think public speaking is frightening, try public pausing! To stand silently before an audience requires more courage than to speak. This is why nervous speakers rush through their speeches without pausing. Great speakers pause, often.

Why You Should Pause Often

1. You look confident on stage.
2. Silence signals that you will say something important.
3. The audience gets time to think about what you said.
4. You get time to think about what follows.

Practice Pausing

• Pause before and after important words.
• Breathe in when you pause, to avoid Ahs and Uhms.
• Put big red dots in your script so you remember pausing.
• Pause longer - try pausing for three heartbeats.

If you don't look confident, why should the audience trust what you say?

To speak effectively, you must look confident.

The best way to look confident is to be confident. You will feel much more confident if you have a meaningful message that is well rehearsed.

However, you can look more confident when you speak, if you:

Unsure	Confident
Don't look at anyone, or jump quickly between eyes.	Hold eyes for several seconds.
Hug your notes. Speak while you read.	Use no notes. Or Read, Look, Speak.
Pace back and forth.	Stand firmly, and move on purpose.
Use filler words and Ahs&Uhms.	Pause.
Stick to the script whatever happens.	Acknowledge things that happens during the speech.