Even for professional businessmen and women, public speaking can be challenging, whether speaking in front of 10 people at a board meeting or 1,000 people at a seminar. Public speaking is one of the most common fears, and it comes in all shapes and sizes. However, there are ways to overcome this fear and master public speaking.
It is crucial for anyone who wants to advance their career to become comfortable speaking in public because it opens up doors that would otherwise remain shut. So how do you master public speaking? Especially if you have an anxiety of some kind or a deep-seated fear of speaking in public.
We asked Chris de Diego to explain how he overcame his obstacles and became a professional public speaker. Chris de Diego is an entrepreneur who has built his brand around public speaking, NFTs and investing. He has given countless speeches presentations and has spoken in front of some of the most prominent audiences in the world.
If someone has a speech or presentation to give, should they write it all down? Like a script?
Chris de Diego: No, not in my opinion, at least. I’ve learned through experience that when you do this, you tend to read it as a script.
Whether you’re reading it or not, your brain will simply read it from memory, which will be very obvious to the audience. It also locks you within the walls of the script you wrote.
So I much prefer the bullet point method, where you can play on the crowd’s energy.
So bullet points are better, got it. So how do you remember these bullet points? Notecards?
Chris de Diego: Yeah, notecards are fantastic, to be honest. Some people do not believe in taking the notecards with you, but honestly, I don’t think anyone in the audience will care.
Sometimes it even makes you seem more important or professional. They’re especially helpful for longer presentations or speeches. Even with notecards, though, you need to practice practice practice until you have your speech down and know what you’ll say for each point.
How many times should someone practice their speech? Should they go over it right before they actually deliver it?
Chris de Diego: Practice as many times as you can. I believe in a particular system. Practice the speech a few times in a row, then take a little break. Maybe an hour, perhaps a day, depending on how long you have.
Let the speech digest in your brain. Then repeat and practice again. I’d get your practicing in long before the actual speech but quickly run through it one last time beforehand.
What about during the speech? Any tips?
Chris de Diego: Yeah, be confident and persuasive. That’s what everyone will tell you, of course, but that’s all there is. Believe in what you’re saying. That’s why we practice beforehand so that we don’t second guess what we’re saying the whole time.
Practice until you’re a professional at that particular speech, and then delivering it will be second nature for at least a few weeks.
Are there any other emotions a presenter should have? Other than confidence, of course.
Chris de Diego: Fun is very important. How much fun entirely depends on your audience. But everyone loves fun, from CEOs to college kids.
So have fun during your speech, crack some jokes, tell some stories. It will make your speech more engaging, and you will feel more comfortable as well. I mean, who doesn’t love telling stories and making people laugh?
Follow Chris de Diego on Twitter @ChrisdeDiego for more tips on becoming a better public speaker.