The Power of Now and Public Speaking

Oprah said on her show last month that "The Power Of Now" by Eckart Tolle, is one of her favorite books. I read it and loved it. I realized that being in the present moment when you speak in public makes all the difference in the world. You can be in the moment when you are not trying to think of what you are going to say next. That’s why it’s so important to PREPARE every one of your presentations and to get PRACTICE speaking publicly. The more practice, the more comfortable you will be speaking in public whether you were prepared or not.

I was fortunate to see all of the following famous speakers present at the same conference: Les Brown, Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen, and John Gray. Some of them were very prepared, some of them were not. But, they were all in the moment and spoke to us from the heart rather than thinking about what words to use. Connect with your audience and your message will be well received.

More free tips on public speaking skills by public speaking coach, Jacki Rose.

You and Public Speaking

Someone recently said to me, “The Magic is Believing in Yourself.” I love this quote. It is so true, especially with public speaking.
Do you believe you can present with total confidence?
Do you believe you can engage your audience throughout your entire presentation?
Do you believe you are a great public speaker, or could be?
Try answering “yes” to all of these questions and watch what happens.

More free tips at http://www.publicspeakingcoach.org/

Intimidating Audiences Can Create Nervous Public Speaking

I hear over and over again from clients that they are comfortable speaking in front of their colleagues, clients, or staff, but when it comes to speaking to their supervisors, or people in positions higher than them, they get intimidated. They feel like they don’t have anything of value to offer them. They tend to put these superiors on high pedestals. But later realize, that is silly.

I know a teacher who was in this situation very recently. She was told at the last minute that her audience members were higher level positions, when she thought otherwise. At first she froze and got really scared. She thought to herself "what can I tell them that they don’t already know." But she went on and gave her presentation. The feedback she got was outstanding and she was amazed!

Don’t be afraid to speak to an audience with your superiors or higher level positions. They want to hear from you, they want to learn from you, and they will benefit from your presentation.

More free tips at http://www.publicspeakingcoach.org/

Toastmasters to Develop Public Speaking Skills

A great place to practice your public speaking and hone your skills is Toastmasters. You may or may not have heard of it. It's a place a send all of my clients to. It's world wide and you can find a club in or near your town. Go to http://www.toastmasters.org/ to find out more about Toastmasters. To find a club near you, go to: http://www.toastmasters.org/

If you live and/or work in Massachusetts, here are a few clubs to check out:
http://www.3talkers.com/
http://achievers.freetoasthost.org/
http://alcott.freetoasthost.com/
http://www.articulators.org/
http://backtalk.freetoasthost.us/
http://bostonspeechparty.org/
http://www.bostontoastmasters.org/
http://www.bwtoastmasters.com/
http://www.geocities.com/centerspeakers/
http://www.centraltoastmasters.org/
http://web.mit.edu/toastmasters/
http://www.chelmsfordtoastmasters.org/
http://clintontm.freetoasthost.org/
http://clippercity.freetoasthost.com/
http://cc5350.freetoasthost.com/
http://earlyrisers.freetoasthost.org/
http://easternmiddlesex.freetoasthost.net/
http://federal.freetoasthost.org/
http://foxvox.freetoasthost.com/

For more Toastmasters Clubs in Massachusetts go to: http://www.toastmasters.org/
or check out the complete list at: http://www.jackirose.com/page.asp?PageID=6715

Still Nervous after 2000 Speeches

James Malinchak has given over 2000 speeches and still gets nervous. But he loves it, he’s great at it, and he makes a lot of money doing it. You may be nervous speaking in public, but knowing that it is normal and even the best of the best still get nervous, should be comforting to you. Don’t let your nervousness keep you from building your public speaking skills.

More tips: http://www.publicspeakingcoach.org/

The Office and Steve Carell

Michael Scott (played by Steve Carell) in my favorite show The Office, said something very funny in last night's episode. He was in a deposition meeting and had prepared and rehearsed everything he was going to say. At the end, he said that he added some ahs and ers in there on purpose just so he wouldn't appear as if he was well rehearsed. In other words, by saying ahs, ers and ums usually indicates you are not prepared and you are trying to think of the answers.

When you eliminate those filler words, you appear much more prepared and knowledgeable about what you are talking about.

More free tips: http://www.publicspeakingcoach.org/

Distractions in Public Speaking

A cell phone went off during an intense part of his speech. I was sitting at the table of the person who’s phone went off. The speaker did something ingenious, and moved to the opposite side of the room, away from the cell phone, and kept going with his speech. You see, the audience was so enthralled with him at this point, couldn’t wait to hear what was coming next in his story, and if he had called attention to the cell phone distraction, he would have lost all of us, and would have broken the emotional state we were all in.

That’s not to say, that when a cell phone goes off during your presentation, you shouldn't stop and call attention to it. But if your audience is with you and is not distracted by it, keep going and everything will be just fine.

More free tips at http://www.publicspeakingcoach.org/

Casual Intro for Public Speaking

At an association meeting recently geared to human resource professionals, I was asked on the spot to introduce the speaker. I approached the speaker and asked her if she had an introduction. She did not, which is not uncommon. I then asked her what she would like me to say when I introduce her and she gave me some very good information and then said to me, “since you teach public speaking you must know that you are not supposed to read the introduction and it should just be casual.” I told her she was wrong about that and in fact one of the only times you should read, is when reading an introduction. However, she brings up a good point, which was to be casual. I see people read introductions all the time, and it is not casual. It is usually very stiff, dry, and boring. Not the content, but the introducer. Or rather the way the introducer is reading it. So I took her advice, and tried to be more casual, even though I may have been using my notes. Good advice.

More free tips at http://www.publicspeakingcoach.org/

Pace on Purpose when Public Speaking

Stop pacing back and forth. It’s driving your audience crazy and it’s taking away from your presentation. Pace on purpose. When you pace, or walk around, make it a part of your speech. You might walk towards an audience member, act out a character in your story, or pace on a transition phrase. Always say your points standing still and making eye contact with the audience. Public speaking coach Darren LaCroix emphasized this point when he spoke at NSA New England this month.

More free tips at www.publicspeakingcoach.org