America’s number one fear, above heights, snakes, and the dark is public speaking.  Compare that to Americas first and second dream jobs, movie star and pro athlete. Does something seem wrong here? So if you are like me and are strangely fearful and fascinated with public attention here are some of my tips I use for getting over it.  

Important note: The words you say are less than 20% of the message you will send during a presentation. 50% will be conveyed by your body language and 30% will be conveyed by your voice inflections. So spend your time getting ready with these percentages in mind.

Practice over and over: Studies show you have to give a speech about 25 times before an audience feels it’s natural.

Speak with rhythm: If you can get a pattern going, do it. People subconsciously lock on to patterns. Then use inflection to bring emphasis to the high and low points to keep interest peaked.

Give your message a story arch: Bring the audience up before you bring them down. Start your point away from home then bring them on a journey with you to your conclusion. Then make a clear transition to a new topic and do it again.

Quick Points:

• Always overdress
• Cram people into small rooms
• Use simple props, lists or slides for points
• Don’t apologize for minor mistakes
• Always apologize for large mistakes
• Show confidence in your point
• Bring a printed introduction of yourself
• Don’t look down
• Speak as if it was to one person
• Remember people are thinking about themselves not you
• In general people want you to do well andy they want to learn