OBM Public Speaking Workshop
On October 23 I ran one of three OBM workshops for 2018.The first one was on Public Speaking skills and I've decided to share some of the key points with you. Feel free to get in contact if you ever want help with public speaking coaching and support - I love seeing people gain confidence and reduce their anxiety for public speaking.
My Top 5 Take Home Messages on Public Speaking
You don't have to be perfect. If you're nervous reduce the stress and remember, no one expects you to be the greatest public speaker of all time, you just need to deliver the messages and look after yourself. Reduce the pressure you put on yourself.
Breath. It seems simple but there is so much power in controlled breathing. Make room for it before you present and focus on your breath as you talk. Breathing also increases the resonance in your voice and makes you sound more controlled and calm.
Visualise your perfect audience member. Talking to a group can be intimidating. I still get nervous before talking to new groups. So always take a moment to visualise your perfect audience member,. It can be a real person who you adore and trust or someone you've created. Imagine talking to them and how they respond and what they look like listening and I you get nervous keep talking to them.
Reframe your nerves. A lot of what we fear comes from what we create in our minds. It helps to identify your nerves and own them instead of letting them control you. Also thinking about being excited rather than nervous can help to associate your bodies reaction to fear as something more positive.
PRACTISE. My number one tip... take time to practise. It's like a muscle it'll only get stronger the more you work on it. Find places and people to practise with and reward yourself for making time to improve. Practise speaking but also practise reframing your nerves or visualising audience members and breathing. The more time you spend on these techniques the more control you have over them and quicker you can use them to handle your nerves.
I hope everyone is having an excellent OBM2018.Looking forward to the next few workshops and also working with Territorians to help with public speaking skills development.