Preparation is the key to success in many aspects of life, and this is definitely true when it comes to speaking in public or to large numbers of people. The better prepared that you are, the more likely you are to be able to speak with confidence and clarity.
Here are some ways that you can prepare for speaking in public.
Planning – plan out what you want to talk about and write yourself some prompts that will help you if you forget what you had planned to say. It can be tempting to write your whole speech out and have that in front of you, but if you plan to do this, you need to be sure that you don’t just simply read straight from the paper.
Practice – practice your speech over and over again before the actual event. You can do this by talking to yourself in a mirror as well as speaking to friends and family. If you are struggling with the best ways to project your voice, you may want to attend Public speaking courses like the ones from the College of Public Speaking. These courses not only help with your confidence, but they will also give you tips and techniques that will help with your overall speaking confidence.
Have fun – the best way to calm your nerves is to have fun with your speech. Once you know your audience profile and you have memorised what you are going to say, you can relax and look at some of the more fun aspects of public speaking.