How to speak confidently on stage

How to speak confidently on stage  ?

The idea of speaking in public can be terrifying. Just imagine for a moment that you’re stepping on to a stage and look down at a sea of faces all waiting for you to start. What happens when you imagine that?

Speaking in public is a fear for a lot of people, whether it's giving a speech, a toast at your friend's wedding, or being called on in class. Fortunately, you can make speaking in public less anxiety inducing by following some of these types. It may never be your favorite thing, but you'll be far less likely to throw up in front of your audience.

Well Prepared

Part of making yourself a comfortable and dynamic public speaker is to make sure you know what you're talking about and you know it well. Know the needs of your audience and match your contents to their needs. Know your material thoroughly. Put what you have to say in a logical sequence. Ensure your speech will be captivating to your audience as well as worth their time and attention.

Practice and rehearse your speech at home or where you can be at ease and comfortable, in front of a mirror, your family, friends or colleagues. Use a tape-recorder and listen to yourself. Videotape your presentation and analyze it. Know what your strong and weak points are. Emphasize your strong points during your presentation.

Train your Body

Consider that the most important visual you can show an audience is yourself. Add the fact that your voice is produced physically. The result? The way you look and sound are hugely important concerning whether you're successful as a speaker. And that includes your audience's physical responses to you, which are largely subconscious.

Body language is important. Standing, walking or moving about with appropriate hand gesture or facial expression is preferred to sitting down or standing still with head down and reading from a prepared speech. Use audio-visual aids or props for enhancement if appropriate and necessary. Master the use of presentation software such as PowerPoint well before your presentation.

Do not torture your audience by putting a lengthy document in tiny print on an overhead and reading it out to them.

Do not Read from Notes

Do not read from notes for any extended length of time although it is quite acceptable to glance at your notes infrequently. Speak loudly and clearly. Sound confident. Do not mumble. If you made an error, correct it, and continue. No need to make excuses or apologize profusely.

Efficient Eye Contact

Maintain sincere eye contact with your audience. Use the 3-second method, e.g. look straight into the eyes of a person in the audience for 3 seconds at a time. Have direct eye contact with a number of people in the audience, and every now and then glance at the whole audience while speaking. Use your eye contact to make everyone in your audience feel involved.

Use the Right Language

Language is incredibly important in writing and in giving a speech. You'll want to stay away from lots of really big and unwieldy words, because no matter how smart your audience is, they're going to lose interest quickly if you're hitting them over the head with the dictionary.

Keep it simple

You want your audience to be able to easily follow your speech and to remember when you're finished. Not only does that mean having striking images and surprising facts, it means that it needs to be simple and to the point. If you meander into the quagmires of tangentially related subjects, you're going to lose your audience.