Public Speaking: How to Relax Before You Present

The beginning of a presentation is often a difficult time to maintain your focus.  Try taking a slight pause at the beginning and thinking of a word to help you focus.  That word might be “focus” or for me it is “twinkle” to remind me to enjoy!

It is important to  prepare for your presentation by relaxing prior to it when possible.  If you are at the site of your presentation, and it is not coming up for a few minutes, you can do this: Create your own “mental green room.”  Find a place away from everyone and take a few deep abdominal-diaphragmatic breaths.  Think about your audience as being one person, a dear friend, and what this presentation will mean to him or her.  Let your mind catch up with your body.  Your mind may have been running all day.  Calm your mind. 

If you can’t remove yourself from the site, then make a dwelling within your mind and space.  Breathe and concentrate on your dear friend whom you will be talking to in a few minutes.

Next time are my favorite tips for coping with anxiety or stress.

 Be sure to watch our English Speech Tips videos and Accent Reduction Tip videos  for more English pronunciation and accent reduction exercise.

Easy Tips to a Better Voice During Presentations

Here are some easy to do tips to get you a better voice during presentations:

• Avoid the restriction of tight clothing that might keep the abdominal area from expanding.
• Tight clothing is especially restrictive if you have just eaten a heavy meal.
• Better yet, do not eat a heavy meal before doing a presentation!

Public Speaking: How to Do Practice for Being Direct and to the Point

Ahhh, to be direct and to the point in your communication.   I have heard that wish over and over.  What can you do to improve that skill?

You can learn to be direct and to the point by simplifying a story to two or three main points.  This is exactly what you do if asked a complex question by your boss, teacher or in a group or meeting or presentation.  You can do deliberate practice by taking a newspaper or magazine story you have read and first develop a summary sentence for it.  Next write the talking points, the two or three main points.  Then you could physically deliver and speak this short presentation.  Audio- or video-tape yourself if possible and analyze it as suggested in our blog on being your own voice and communication coach.

You can use the practice of coming up with a summary sentence and three main points in just about any situation.  Do it while you are driving when you see something interesting or when you are walking somewhere.  The practice possibilities are endless and each time you practice, you will improve your ability to focus and think in clear, economical ways in English.

Next time we’ll talk about how to relax before you present.

 Be sure to watch our English Speech Tips videos and Accent Reduction Tip videos  for more English pronunciation and accent reduction exercise.

How to Solve the Problem of a Very High-Pitched Voice from Anxiety

Here is another tip for a problem that is very common with improper breathing – a very high-pitched voice.

• When we get nervous or anxious, our pitch generally rises because of increased tension in the throat area.
• When you combine anxiety with having to increase the volume of your voice for a presentation to a large room, you may also get a very high-pitched voice.
• Do proper breathing so that you are increasing your volume without tensing the laryngeal area to solve this problem.  In other words, don’t use upper chest breathing.  Instead, use abdominal muscles and the diaphragm for inhaling and exhaling AND control the air as it is exhaled.