How to Write and Give a Speech: 10 Ways to Dazzle Your Audience
Are you ready to discover ten speech tips that will help you dazzle your audience? Here they are.
1. Confidence
You need to feel positive about your speech, so learn to be confident. Unfortunately, there are no secrets to this: you have to rehearse over and over again until you're confident that you can do it. Remember that most people can easily tell a sure speaker from an unsure one. This is why you should never read your speech directly from a piece of paper. It gives an extremely bad impression.
2. Add some spice
"Well-timed silence hath more eloquence than speech."
Spices make food tasty, and the same goes for speeches. Make your performance something worth remembering, make it engaging, and do your utmost not to put people off. We all dislike listening to a boring professor, so why make the same mistake yourself? A good way to spice up your speech is by adding quotes to it.
Also, many people tend to use certain filler words over and over again, which can make your whole presentation sound cluttered. Watch out for overusing words such as "like," "well" and "you know." One way to make your language more memorable is to use alliteration, a phrase in which the words start with the same letter or sound. For example: "Cool! Crusty's car crushed Carl." The important thing is to be creative when it comes to speeches. Develop your own style and people will love to hear you speak!
3. Your posture
Your body language may turn out to be more important than you think. Some people even claim that it matters more than the speech itself! Keep firm control over your body and do your utmost to cut down on unnecessary movements. They can distract the audience and undermine your whole performance.
4. Eye contact
Be careful about where you look. Avoid staring at anyone or anything that might distract or unsettle you while you're speaking.
5. Water
When you speak for a long time, you might get thirsty or even lose your voice in the middle of the presentation, which is a bad idea! If you have a bottle of water with you, the problem is solved. Plus, you get a few seconds to gather your thoughts while you drink.
6. Cards
Ever watched a TV talk show? If you paid attention, you've probably noticed that many talk show hosts use cards when speaking. This is an excellent move, and you should use it for several reasons:
- It looks professional.
- By writing down keywords and short sentences, you can summarize a long speech.
- You avoid holding full sheets of paper. If your hands shake when you speak in public, paper can make an embarrassing rustling sound.
7. Tools
Do you know how to make a slide presentation? If so, what is stopping you? If you do decide to use slides, avoid strange animations or music, as these can distract your audience. Keep it simple; that usually works best. Remember, sometimes less is more!
8. Your clothing
People don't usually think about this, but pay attention to what you wear that day. Avoid clothes that are too tight or revealing. The whole point of the speech is for people to listen to your words, not to be distracted by your appearance.
9. Speak well
This must be emphasized: speak in a polite and respectful manner. Avoid swear words and offensive phrases.
10. The ending
Make your ending summarize your whole speech. Be creative, and make sure you don't neglect this part. A good ending can make up for a weak introduction! Speeches are much like movies: most people remember the end.
For more advice, see our speech tips.