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The big day has arrived and you need some public speaking confidence. You have been introduced to the audience and the topic of your speech has been announced. From this point on, you are the main focus of attention. You are on your own and all eyes are on you!

This is where you start your performance. It’s not just a question of getting into your speech as quickly as possible, but mentally preparing both yourself, and the audience too, for what you are about to impart.

A sense of the dramatic is called for.

It is not just a collection of words that you will be using; like any performance it will involve the use of movement, passion, eye contact, dramatic pause, and many other techniques used by actors every day of their working lives.

And this is where the performer in you must rise to the fore.

For some people, this is the hardest part.

They are not ‘born actors’ and find that putting on a sense of the dramatic does not come naturally. The danger, too, is that by ‘trying too hard’ to be a performer they actually come across as ham actors – lacking sincerity and thereby losing credibility.

In this regard, everyone has to discover their own comfort zone and act in a style that is both comfortable and sounds natural. Getting a close friend or companion to listen through and advise on how you are doing can be invaluable in this regard.

When your name is called, you want to look calm and collected, yet eager and excited that you have been honoured simply by being asked to talk.

When your name is announced, you should walk purposely onto the stage with your head held high, your shoulders back, a smile on your face.

You look round the audience. You should wait for silence; absolute silence so that we can hear that proverbial pin dropping. Never be afraid of long silences. They add drama. They heighten tension. And at the very start they add to the overall expectation of a star performance.

Now you have engaged the audience…and you have public speaking confidence!

Post from: manager skills

What techniques should you use for engaging the audience when public speaking?