Most people, when asked how they most want to feel when giving a presentation, is that they want to feel more ‘confident’. So what is it about presenting confidently that makes it so difficult for people to achieve this when standing in front of their audience? Is it lack of practise? Lack of training?
If this is like you at all, how do you feel when you’re in front of an audience and getting ready to present? Very nervous? Palms sweating? Shallow breathing? Heart pounding? The list is probably endless but its actually quite normal. The strange thing is that many seemingly confident presenters also suffer from some of these symptoms!
OK then just how can you become more confident when presenting? presentation skills? What techniques do people use to get into a more confident state?
Lets be clear, there are many different strategies that people use to become more confident. Some will work for you better than others. Some of the more obvious ones are:
Prepare. Prepare. Prepare! This includes knowing your audience and what matters to them. So that you can select the most important material in your presentation that is relevant and will be of interest.
Create a succinct structure to the presentation. Keep it simple with a distinct beginning, middle and end. And limit your primary points to three in total. It will help you to remember what you have to say and as a result make it simpler for the audience to understand what you’ve got to say.
Slow down your delivery. Lots of people speed up when they present ? when the nerves kick in. So be conscious of this and make an effort to keep in control. The temptation is always to rush through things. But if you think ’slow motion’ when you first start you will star to be more in control of things and this will give you more confidence and self assurance.
Try to use these three tips the next time you present. And as a result you should be more confident and successful.
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