By James Hunt, Presentation Coach at Boost Presents.
Chances are, if you’re reading this you will have had to make a presentation at some point in your life.
You may also be one of the 75% of people who would agree with this quote from Jerry Seinfeld.
“According to most studies, people’s number one fear is public speaking. Number two is death. Death is number two. Does that sound right? This means to the average person, if you go to a funeral, you’re better off in the casket than doing the eulogy.”
Now Jerry Seinfeld is a comedian, and he may be exaggerating for laughs. But for some people, public speaking is no laughing matter. There’s even a fancy name for it – Glossophobia – the FEAR of public speaking.
What is it we fear? We fear messing up, looking stupid in front of our colleagues or bosses. Or simply that we might disappoint our audiences. It’s the devil on the shoulder telling us we’ll fail.
Many of us think that Gen Z – those under 30 – would be confident and outgoing, used to being in front of a camera and posting videos of themselves online. Well 43% say they’d rather jump out of a plane than present. A third of 18-24 year olds say they’re too scared for public speaking or doing a presentation in front of fellow staff. That’s not great news for the future of our workforce.
I can reassure you in two ways. Firstly, you are not alone.
As Mark Twain said:
“There are two types of speakers: those that are nervous and those that are liars.”
And secondly, and more importantly, there are many things you can do to help reduce those nerves.
What Makes a Great Speaker?
A useful exercise is to think about the best speakers you’ve seen. What makes them compelling? What can you learn from them?
There are seven key elements—let’s call them the 7 P’s—that make a great speaker:
- Passion
- Preparation
- Positivity
- Presence
- Pictures
- Pace
- Pause
One of the most important things to remember is when you make a presentation, we want to see the real you. Don’t hide behind a PowerPoint presentation, engage with us and be AUTHENTIC. Too many people feel they have to be overly formal and as a result they lose their personality.
A good question to remember is “What can I bring to this that’s uniquely me?”
There’s a reason you’re there to speak. Don’t forget you are an expert in your subject. This is an opportunity for you to shine, to showcase yourself or your business, or to sell your product.
Speak with “Passion” and “Positivity” – remember, you’re there to engage your audience, to energise them – not to bore them into submission!
Always ask yourself, what do I want my audience to think, what do I want them to feel, and, most importantly, what do I want them to DO.
The Most Important “P”: Preparation
I could write for pages about the importance of this, but I’ll try to break it down into two key points. Prepare WHAT you’re going to say, and prepare HOW you’re going to say it.
I speak to some clients who say they’re quite happy to “just wing it” on stage when they make a speech or presentation. This sounds impressive, but is it realistic?
I would, of course, say no. Even the best speakers will spend hours honing their craft and honing their message. You need to embed it in you.
Every great talk has a clear structure:
- How are you going to start? – Find a strong opening hook that grabs attention
- What is the key objective?
- How are you going to wrap it up? – Craft a memorable closing statement that leaves a lasting impression
The only way you can guarantee making a strong impression is PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE.
When you stand on a stage, whether in front of colleagues in a boardroom, or hundreds in an audience, you need to “own” the room. When we speak of actors having a “presence” on stage or on screen, they are commanding the space. It means we listen to them and watch their every move. This doesn’t happen without rehearsal.
An actor on a stage will always have warmed up. They will know that their body and their voice is warm and ready for action. How many times have you stood up to make a speech and it’s the first time you’ve opened your mouth or said those words out loud?
Top tip – always try to find ten minutes before you present to look at the room, talk out loud, see what the challenges might be. And always, always, check the tech! See what could go wrong, because it often does…!
Storytelling: The Secret Weapon
The essence of what a good presentation is to ‘paint pictures’ with your words ie storytelling.
We are all storytellers. We all have something in our lives or careers that we can bring to the room. The best way to engage your audience, to bring your subject alive, is to tell them a story. Your presentation might be very dry, with a huge number of graphs and statistics. Well what can you do to bring those facts and figures alive? If you’re speaking about “risk”, for example, how can you make me visualise what that means. If we can make an emotional connection with the audience, we’ve got a much better chance of keeping them engaged.
Consider,
- Can I turn this data into a real-world example?
- Can I use a personal story to illustrate my point?
- Can I make this topic visual so my audience can picture it?
In the training I do with clients and companies, I ask them one key question – what’s your opening hook? How can you start your presentation in a striking or engaging way that will make me want to listen?
Less is More
One of the biggest presentation mistakes I see? Too much information. We often forget that less is more. So consider how you can strip away some of the technical detail without losing the key message? That goes for the slide deck too, strip away the overfilled slides, replace them with strong clear pictures. If you do have lots of detailed information to share, provide a handout.
And when I said earlier about bringing passion and personality to the room – if you tell me a story, with a beginning, middle and an end with both of those things, I can guarantee you that you’re on the path to success.
Now that’s the “WHAT” you’re saying. Just as important is the “HOW”.
Sometimes a presentation might say everything it needs, but if the person delivering it hasn’t got the skills to deliver it, it can still flop.
Even a perfectly crafted speech can fall flat if it’s delivered poorly.
Some common pitfalls:
- Speaking too fast (nerves make us rush!)
- Fidgeting or making distracting movements
- Not knowing what to do with your hands
This isn’t something that can be solved overnight. As I’ve already said, preparation and practice are key. At Boost we believe strongly that we learn by recording and watching ourselves back. Most people hate this, but it’s only when we become aware of our habits, our mannerisms, that we can improve.
- Our physical behaviours are very important. Try to ground your body. Feel comfortable in the way you hold yourself and stand. Stillness is powerful.
- Think about your breathing. It will help your nerves and it will also help to slow you down. Every actor will tell you the importance of good breath control, and the brilliant thing is, you can train yourself to breathe well.
There’s a great phrase that I love to use – “Be the Paramedic” – think how calm they are when dealing with emergencies. They always seem to remain calm under pressure, and their calmness makes us feel confident in them.
- The natural thing for any of us to do when we are nervous is SPEED UP. Take a moment to pause, use the silence to your advantage. When we pause we give our audience the chance to follow what we’ve just said, to take it in and to understand. If we’ve already moved on to the next point we will lose them.
Pace can also work the other way. If we’re too slow we might bore our audience into sleep. If we’re passionate about something we can show that with a change of pace, but use it wisely.
Pause. Breathe. And don’t forget to smile, if appropriate. We all respond well to a warm smile.
If you can master some of these things before your next presentation you will definitely be on the road to being a more confident, calm and successful speaker.
Download the presentation slides here to share with your team.
We are offering a half-day intensive session to help busy professionals master the art of speaking in public. Learn more here.
