The Enemy to your Will to Speak in Public…

For a term that goes as back as the humankind itself, it is pitiful that almost half of the earth population is either unaware of public speaking as a skill or intimidated of the same. Over the years, public speaking has played a major role in education, government, and business. Words have the power to inform, persuade, educate, and even entertain. Along with this power, comes the power to persuade, sway crowds in your favor, to motivate employees and students alike. The art of public speaking has been given a greater place than writing, which is because, when you deliver something, face to face, you are often able to judge the crowd’s zest, the parts where they were more interested, the parts where it didn’t matter and adjust or tune your words accordingly. I’d say that if the written word is where you decide and conclude arguments, the speaking part is where you win those arguments!

Now you may think that however good all this may sound, public speaking is just not you cup of tea. This may be coming from an old experience or the fear of new territory, but the truth is that it is basically a skill, which, can be learnt and conquered by anyone. Yes, there’ll be some of us with a headstart, but can you name a field where this isn’t a case!

So, basically, public speaking constitutes of four parts listed below…

1. Researching the topic or the agenda well enough,
2. Writing down the final speech, not a draft, but a paper you may be able to present, if required,
3. Practicing the flow, pronunciation before the actual speech,
4. And giving the speech, of course!

Many of us have come across speaking aids in corporates or in our student lives, these generally include powerpoint presentations, distributed brochures/pamphlets. Now, it is very important for you to customize the speech according to these aids, to utilize them to the fullest and maintain audience interest. Platforms like Tedtalks and pechakucha are amazing examples and learning models on how to engage people through your speeches.

Following are some tips that may be really helpful to master the art of public speaking:-

• Know your audience: the occasion and the type of listeners will help you connect to the audience better.
• Find your own style: notes, pointers , entire speech, know how much you need to see the pages and what kinda event it is.
• Take every opportunity to speak: what better than to make it a habbit.
• Take your time: take your time to set the stage, to check the technicalities, to get to the main point.
• Use humor and emotion: try to really connect with the audience let them empathize with you presenting in front of a crowd.
• Look for feedback: try taking in feedback, i.e. during the speech, looking at your audience, or from people you are comfortable with.

The enemy to your will to speak in public, is purely, commitment-oriented.