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Overcoming Your Speaking Nerves

The document provides a comprehensive guide for overcoming speaking nerves and enhancing presentation skills, highlighting the psychological symptoms of nerves, the importance of confidence, and effective communication techniques. It includes strategies to engage the audience, manage anxiety, and make strong impressions, as well as insights from successful presenters. Various methods such as breathing exercises, understanding audience dynamics, and utilizing engaging props are emphasized as tools to improve presentation effectiveness.

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1 | Overcoming Your Speaking Nerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics PRESENTATION SKILLS Overcoming Your Speaking Nerves
2 | Overcoming Your Speaking Nerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics The Course Topics series from Manage Train Learn is a large collection of topics that will help you as a learner to quickly and easily master a range of skills in your everyday working life and life outside work. If you are a trainer, they are perfect for adding to your classroom courses and online learning plans. COURSE TOPICS FROM MTL The written content in this Slide Topic belongs exclusively to Manage Train Learn and may only be reprinted either by attribution to Manage Train Learn or with the express written permission of Manage Train Learn. They are designed as a series of numbered slides. As with all programmes on Slide Topics, these slides are fully editable and can be used in your own programmes, royalty-free. Your only limitation is that you may not re-publish or sell these slides as your own. Copyright Manage Train Learn 2020 onwards. Attribution: All images are from sources which do not require attribution and may be used for commercial uses. Sources include pixabay, unsplash, and freepik. These images may also be those which are in the public domain, out of copyright, for fair use, or allowed under a Creative Commons license.
3 | Overcoming Your Speaking Nerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics ARE YOU READY? OK, LET’S START!
4 | Overcoming Your Speaking Nerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics NERVES The symptoms of nerves before a presentation are the symptoms of stress. When the mind perceives a threat, as it does when it thinks about everything that could go wrong, it automatically switches on the fight-flight response. In gearing up for this reaction, the following symptoms of "nerves" will appear: 1. stage-fright 2. butterflies 3. sweaty palms 4. shallow breathing 5. thumping heart 6. weak knees 7. panic 8. loss of control If you feel nervous facing a large audience, imagine that you are just talking to one or two close friends instead.
5 | Overcoming Your Speaking Nerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics The 10 Worst Human Fears The ten worst human fears recorded by David Wallechinsky in "The Book of Lists" are: 1. Making a speech 2. Heights 4. Money problems 3. Bugs 5. Deep water 10. Dogs 9. Loneliness 8. Flying 7. Death 6. Sickness Flickr attributions: /maveric2003/487418200/; /78139009@N03/8687062948/; /lodefink/756608073/; /teegardin/6093699369/; /27565889@N00/2927080618/; /ayguey/10439951/; /wdm/9246235469/; /ask9/339802887/; /x1klima/9880255744/; /talibamba/3944338401/
6 | Overcoming Your Speaking Nerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics FACE DOWN YOUR FEARS When we calmly take a moment to analyse what causes our pre-presentation nerves, we have the chance to decide just how justified our fears are. Often our fears are groundless or exaggerated: it isn't a life-or-death situation after all. We can rationalise ourselves out of our fear. If we discover that we have good reason to be fearful - for example, we have forgotten an important prop - then we can immediately take steps to do something about it. Facing down our fears enables us to take action rather than sitting and worrying about things. It is the first step to replacing our negative thoughts with positive ones. "I can never remember being afraid of an audience. If the audience could do better, they'd be up here on stage and I'd be out there watching them." (Ethel Merman)
7 | Overcoming Your Speaking Nerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics Confidence Here are 6 definitions of what it means to be a confident presenter. 5.You can switch on confidence by practising poise, the ability to feel at home wherever you are. 6.You become confident when you relax and can access the rich store of knowledge that is unique to you. 4. Confident people avoid doubts, self- criticism, and worry about the impression they're making because they see themselves as loved. 2. Confident people are well prepared but not so much that they lose their spontaneity. 3.When you're confident, you speak 15% louder than normal. 1. Confidence means feeling at one with others, knowing that you're in this together and the only outcome is "I'm going to win and so are you.“ Flickr attribution: /rpavich/8453448247/
8 | Overcoming Your Speaking Nerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics “I”, “They”, “We” and “You” The words, "I", "They", "We" and "You" have various subtle effects on your audience and can move you closer to them or further away. “I”. The word, "I", to talk about yourself, should be used sparingly. Use it only to refer to your past experiences or mistakes, not to build up your own importance. It can also be used to identify with your audience as in letting them know you understand their situation. “They”. Reserve "They" for bad news, for example, when you are being critical, cynical, or in any way negative of others, as in, "Our competitors think we'll fail; but they're wrong". "We", "us", "you" and "your“. These are good news words. Use them to announce achievements and successes, as in "We'll beat the opposition". "You're onto a winner".
9 | Overcoming Your Speaking Nerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics AIDA: The Four Steps to Getting Buy-In AIDA is an acronym for the four steps in grabbing someone's interest and getting them to take the action you want. It is the key to selling any product or service. AIDA stands for: A - Attention of the customer I - Interest of the customer D - Desire for what you are offering A - Action in the direction you want The model is commonly attributed to American advertising pioneer, E St Elmo Lewis (1872 - 1948). However, it came to widespread prominence in an advertising contest run by the Bissell Carpet Sweeper Company in 1899. This contest was judged by Fred Macey who was considered one of the top advertising experts of the day. Flickr attribution: /brizzlebornandbred/8730956607/
10 | Overcoming Your Speaking Nerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics THE WALL PUSH The Wall Push is a technique recommended by writer Dorothy Sarnoff to control stage fright in actors. It was used successfully by Yul Brynner, star of the musical "The King and I". The technique is as follows: Stand about 18" away from a wall and place your palms flat on it. Push against the wall. As you push, the muscles of your "rectus abdominis" will contract. As you breath out, hiss and contract the muscles below the rib cage as if you were rowing a boat against the current. A similar effect can be produced by pressing the base of the hands against each other, elbows akimbo. These moves prevent the production of nerve-enhancing noradrenalin and epinephrine.
11 | Overcoming Your Speaking Nerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics Make Sure You Stand Out inYourAudience’s Memory With a business audience, a presentation is likely to be part of an ongoing attempt to build a relationship. The talk may be just one part of what you will do for each other. It is important therefore to make sure that your presentation stands out, catches their attention and stays in the memory. Here are 7 ways you can stand out: 1.You can be distinct by being different. 2.You can be distinct by being gimmicky. 3.You can be distinct by being simple. 4.You can be distinct by being risky. 5.You can be distinct by being funny. 6.You can be distinct by being entertaining. 7.You can be distinct by being good. "People who do not get noticed get overlooked and left behind." (John Holmes) Flickr attribution: /garryknight/2565937494/
12 | Overcoming Your Speaking Nerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics Attention Spans Research indicates that most people's attention spans start to decline after about 17 minutes of non-stop listening. Research also shows that attention is higher at the start and end of a talk than in the middle. This means that you should time a once-off presentation to last no more than about 20 minutes. If your subject requires you to speak longer, think of using suitable breaks, intervals or a change of pace and style. "No one can say just how long a message should be, but you rarely hear complaints about a speech being too short. The amateur worries about what he is going to put in his speech. The expert worries about what he should leave out. An artistic performance is concentrated, has a central focus." (Edgar Dale)
13 | Overcoming Your Speaking Nerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics A MANTRA MEDITATION Meditation is a form of relaxation which focuses all your thinking on one object, picture or sound. A mantra meditation directs your focused thinking onto a repeated phrase, a mantra being a mystical Hindu chant. The repeated words can take your mind off your presentation, relax you and put you into the positive frame of mind expressed in the words. This is a mantra to use before you speak and can be said to yourself for as long as you have to wait. "I'm pleased I'm here; I'm pleased you're here; I care about you; I know that I know."
14 | Overcoming Your Speaking Nerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics How to Recognise the Onset of Presentation Nerves The symptoms of nerves before a presentation are the symptoms of stress. When the mind perceives a threat, as it does when it thinks about everything that could go wrong, it automatically switches on the fight-flight response. In gearing up for this reaction, the following symptoms of "nerves" will appear: stage-fright butterflies sweaty palms shallow breathing thumping heart weak knees panic loss of control If you feel nervous facing a large audience, imagine that you are just talking to one or two close friends instead. Flickr attribution: /briannalehman/4339457187/
15 | Overcoming Your Speaking Nerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics First Impressions Last When you have been introduced or have completed your own formalities, the audience's eyes and minds turn expectantly to you. They want you to interest them. Your opening words and the way you express yourself must make an immediate impression. The audience needs to each say to themselves: "this looks worth staying for." You must look and sound in charge. One simple way to achieve this is to use an impact opening technique: one that intrigues, grabs the attention, and surprises without embarrassing or unnerving your audience. In fiction, one of the most attention-grabbing openers is the opening sentence of George Orwell's "1984": "It was a bright cold day in April and the clocks were striking thirteen."
16 | Overcoming Your Speaking Nerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics The Infectious Power of Enthusiasm "Enthusiasm is the greatest business asset in the world: it beats money and power and influence. Single-handedly the enthusiast convinces and dominates. Enthusiasm spurns inaction. Like an avalanche it overwhelms and engulfs all obstacles in its path, sweeps aside prejudice and opposition, storms the citadel of its objective. Set the germ of enthusiasm afloat in your business: carry it in your attitude and manner; it spreads like a contagion and influences every fibre of your industry; it means joy and pleasure and satisfaction to your workers; it means life and virility; it means spontaneous bedrock results - the vital things that pay dividends." (Quoted by Dorothy Sarnoff) Flickr attribution: /dmott9/9008676911/
17 | Overcoming Your Speaking Nerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics WILL IT TO HAPPEN A quick and easy technique to deal with any phobia like fear of public speaking is to will the phobia to happen. It’s known as “paradoxical intention”. What happens is that you decide not to resist what you fear, on the grounds that we get more of what we resist. Instead you invite the fear in, trivialize it (something inside you deep down knows it’s not really going to happen), and have a laugh about it. So, if you fear losing your place in your talk, tell yourself that you will, that everyone will find it hugely amusing, and so will you. Almost certainly your brain will stop this happening. Incidentally, it is the same idea as curing insomnia not by trying to sleep but by trying to stay awake.
18 | Overcoming Your Speaking Nerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics Criteria for Successful Presentations As actors and politicians know only too well, it is notoriously difficult to guarantee success when you speak. One day, a talk goes down well; the next it fails to raise any response. In the planning stage, it is helpful to think about how we might judge the success of our presentation, even if we have to acknowledge that hitting the target every time may not be possible. The success of a retirement speech depends on an appropriate level of humour, sincerity and tone. The success criteria of an informative talk depends on how much people remembered. The success criteria of a sales talk depends on the level of new orders. The success criteria of an after-dinner speech depends on how much people laughed. Flickr attribution: /putu_adi/2407850452/
19 | Overcoming Your Speaking Nerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics 7 Steps to Conquer Your Nerves BeforeYou Go On Sandra Zimmer of self-expression.com says that there are 7 things you can do to calm yourself before your presentation so that you can go on with total confidence. They are: 7ThingsTo Do BeforeYou Go On 1. Don't think of the presentation as a test. People haven't come to judge you but to find something to their advantage. 2. Detach from your expectations of how things should go. Put yourself into neutral energy where you are open to more possibilities. 3.Write down the likely questions you would ask of you if you were in the audience.Then prepare your answers thoroughly. 4. Imagine you are an athlete just before a sprint final.Warm up your body. Do some light stretches. Feel the blood pumping through you. 5. Ground yourself by imagine energy melting out of your head and flowing all the way down to your feet, filling you as it goes. 6. Breathe deeply. Breathing oxygenates your brain and stops you feeling the flight-fight response of fear. 7. Find some common areas of rapport with your audience and drop them in to your presentation.When you are like them, they will like you.
20 | Overcoming Your Speaking Nerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics How Bill Gates Galvanised anAudience with One Prop: Mosquitoes Despite being the richest businessman in the world, Bill Gates was never regarded as an outstanding presenter. Which is why it was all the more surprising when, in the middle of a TED talk, entitled, "Mosquitos, Malaria, and Education", Bill Gates did the unthinkable. He made his audience sit up and pay attention. And he did it by using a prop: mosquitoes. This is how Bill Gates introduced his unusual prop in his talk: "Now, malaria is of course transmitted by mosquitos. I brought some here, just so you could experience this. We’ll let these roam around the auditorium a little bit. (Laughter) There’s no reason only poor people should have the experience. (Laughter) (Applause) Those mosquitos are not infected." Andrew Duglan of sixminutes.com says that Bill Gates’ prop was perfect because it met the 6 requirements of a great prop: it was totally relevant to his subject, and it was concrete, unexpected, dramatic, humorous, and entirely memorable. InsiderMonkey attribution: /99132385@N06/9338079871/
21 | Overcoming Your Speaking Nerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics “Hara hachi bu” or “Eat Until You’re 80% Full” One of the problems which both presenters and audiences have with traditional presentations is that they are so open-ended that they can become aimless, over-long, and hence boring. To counter this, Brady Forrest of O'Reilly Media in Seattle, came up with the idea of a style that he called Ignite and defined as "enlightening, but quick". In an Ignite presentation, the presenter has 5 minutes to talk and uses 20 slides that move automatically forward every 15 seconds. Garr Reynolds says that this style pleases audiences because it gives them a taste of the information rather than stuffing them full. Ignite works because it requires the presenters to prepare. They have to re-shape their talk to the slide their on or else get lost. It also means that flim-flam and side-tracking are avoided so that the audience gets a more concise and focused talk. The idea of limiting your presentation is often called, "hara hachi bu", aJapanese concept, meaning "eat only 80% of what's possible". It is a practice of the people of Okinawa who are among the healthiest and longest-lived people on the planet. Flickr attribution: /cc_photoshare/10728238955/
22 | Overcoming Your Speaking Nerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics BREATHING Breathing exercises before a presentation ensure that you are calm and relaxed when you begin to speak. There are a number of good breathing exercises, ranging from simply becoming aware of your breathing to meditation. This simple exercise can be carried out anywhere: Find a quiet place where you can be undisturbed. Stand still and feel the ground beneath your feet. Imagine yourself suspended by a thread connected to the crown of your head. Let your neck and shoulders relax. Bend your knees a little. Bring the thumb and forefingers of both hands together and turn the palms upwards. Close your eyes. Now just listen to yourself breathing and allow any thoughts to wander in and out of your mind at will. Feel at ease and if you feel hurried, tell yourself there is no rush. Slow your breathing. In your own time, come back.
23 | Overcoming Your Speaking Nerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics What Your Speaking Speed SaysAbout You There are 3 factors that determine the pace you speak. First, there is your natural speed which depends on how easily you connect to your emotions. Secondly, you'll speak quicker if you feel nervous or stressed. And third, you'll speak quicker if you use complex or long words and sentences. Andrew Dlugan of sixminutes.com measured a range of TED speakers and found that the speech rates ranged from 133 words per minute (wpm) at the lower end, (eg ex Vice President Al Gore), to 188 wpm at the upper end, (eg entrepreneur Jacqueline Novogratz). The average was 163 wpm, used by speakers such as Steve Jobs and Hans Rosling. The rates at which we speak are also related to the impressions we want to create in others: if you want the audience to get a mental picture, talk quite quickly; if you want the audience to hear internally, speak slower and deeper; if you want the audience to get into the feelings, speak even slower still and deeper. Research suggests that fast speakers (at 195 wpm) are more persuasive than slow speakers. However, if the audience inherently agree with the message, slow speakers (at 105 wpm) are more persuasive.
24 | Overcoming Your Speaking Nerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics Andrew Dlugan of sixminutes.com says that there are 7 deadly sins of public speaking that far outweigh the occasional slip-up or "ah" and "um". These are: 7 Deadly Sins 1. Sloth, or failure to prepare You cannot wing a presentation. It is unfair on you and unfair on your audience. 3. Lust The idea that all you have to do to overcome your nerves is to imagine your audience naked won’t help you at all 2. Envy of “natural” speakers There’s no such thing as a “natural” speaker. A “natural” speaker is someone who has mastered the art. 4. Gluttony, or info overload There is a limit to what people can take in, so where presentations are concerned, less is always more. 5. Greed, or talking too long Instead, finish early but with everything fully covered. 6. Anger, when things go wrong Don’t do this or you’ll lose all credibility with your audience and make them feel uncomfortable. 7. Pride, or putting yourself first It's never about you. It's always about them.
25 | Overcoming Your Speaking Nerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics RELAX Relaxing is the art of "letting go". This means letting go of the nervous tension in your mind and body, in particular parts of the body that tense in response to stress, such as the neck, the shoulders and the facial muscles. You can use any relaxation technique that suits you. Here are some additional suggestions: 1. tense and release any tight part of the body from head to toe tensing and releasing in turn 2. collapse on the ground like a limp rag doll 3. lie on your back on the ground and let the floor support your body as if you were floating 4. imagine that you are made of rubber and go wibbly- wobbly 5. relax the mouth by sitting in front of a mirror and making a horse's laugh with your lips.
26 | Overcoming Your Speaking Nerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics Be in a Team One way to inject more variety and interest into a presentation is to use a team of presenters rather than presenting by yourself. This approach has advantages and disadvantages. Pros: a team presentation enables everyone to concentrate on what they each do well.Teams reduce the levels of presentation anxiety by sharing the stress. If well-rehearsed, the talk can look slick. Cons: A team presentation is likely to be longer than a solo presentation and risks being repetitive. Audiences will watch everyone including those not talking and form an impression from their demeanour. An audience is likely to compare the speakers with each other. Not everyone in a team will be a good speaker. More time will be needed to rehearse. Flickr attribution: /imaginecup/9246814469/; /imaginecup/9250610204/
27 | Overcoming Your Speaking Nerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics What Did Lee Iacocca Tell Bill ClintonAbout Presenting? In his years at Ford and Chrysler, Lee Iacocca was a strong advocate of training in presentation skills. It was his communicating ability rather than his engineering talent that persuaded Congress to make loan guarantees of $1.5 billion to bail our Chrysler in 1979. By 1983, Chrysler had paid off the loans and the US Treasury was $350 million richer. In his autobiography, Iacocca wrote, “I’ve known a lot of engineers with terrific ideas who had trouble explaining them to others. It’s always a shame when a guy with great talent can’t tell the board or committee what’s in his head.” Image attribution: Wikipedia
28 | Overcoming Your Speaking Nerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics THAT’S IT! WELL DONE!
29 | Overcoming Your Speaking Nerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics THANK YOU This has been a Slide Topic from Manage Train Learn

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Overcoming Your Speaking Nerves

  • 1.
    1 | Overcoming Your SpeakingNerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics PRESENTATION SKILLS Overcoming Your Speaking Nerves
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    2 | Overcoming Your SpeakingNerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics The Course Topics series from Manage Train Learn is a large collection of topics that will help you as a learner to quickly and easily master a range of skills in your everyday working life and life outside work. If you are a trainer, they are perfect for adding to your classroom courses and online learning plans. COURSE TOPICS FROM MTL The written content in this Slide Topic belongs exclusively to Manage Train Learn and may only be reprinted either by attribution to Manage Train Learn or with the express written permission of Manage Train Learn. They are designed as a series of numbered slides. As with all programmes on Slide Topics, these slides are fully editable and can be used in your own programmes, royalty-free. Your only limitation is that you may not re-publish or sell these slides as your own. Copyright Manage Train Learn 2020 onwards. Attribution: All images are from sources which do not require attribution and may be used for commercial uses. Sources include pixabay, unsplash, and freepik. These images may also be those which are in the public domain, out of copyright, for fair use, or allowed under a Creative Commons license.
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    3 | Overcoming Your SpeakingNerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics ARE YOU READY? OK, LET’S START!
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    4 | Overcoming Your SpeakingNerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics NERVES The symptoms of nerves before a presentation are the symptoms of stress. When the mind perceives a threat, as it does when it thinks about everything that could go wrong, it automatically switches on the fight-flight response. In gearing up for this reaction, the following symptoms of "nerves" will appear: 1. stage-fright 2. butterflies 3. sweaty palms 4. shallow breathing 5. thumping heart 6. weak knees 7. panic 8. loss of control If you feel nervous facing a large audience, imagine that you are just talking to one or two close friends instead.
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    5 | Overcoming Your SpeakingNerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics The 10 Worst Human Fears The ten worst human fears recorded by David Wallechinsky in "The Book of Lists" are: 1. Making a speech 2. Heights 4. Money problems 3. Bugs 5. Deep water 10. Dogs 9. Loneliness 8. Flying 7. Death 6. Sickness Flickr attributions: /maveric2003/487418200/; /78139009@N03/8687062948/; /lodefink/756608073/; /teegardin/6093699369/; /27565889@N00/2927080618/; /ayguey/10439951/; /wdm/9246235469/; /ask9/339802887/; /x1klima/9880255744/; /talibamba/3944338401/
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    6 | Overcoming Your SpeakingNerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics FACE DOWN YOUR FEARS When we calmly take a moment to analyse what causes our pre-presentation nerves, we have the chance to decide just how justified our fears are. Often our fears are groundless or exaggerated: it isn't a life-or-death situation after all. We can rationalise ourselves out of our fear. If we discover that we have good reason to be fearful - for example, we have forgotten an important prop - then we can immediately take steps to do something about it. Facing down our fears enables us to take action rather than sitting and worrying about things. It is the first step to replacing our negative thoughts with positive ones. "I can never remember being afraid of an audience. If the audience could do better, they'd be up here on stage and I'd be out there watching them." (Ethel Merman)
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    7 | Overcoming Your SpeakingNerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics Confidence Here are 6 definitions of what it means to be a confident presenter. 5.You can switch on confidence by practising poise, the ability to feel at home wherever you are. 6.You become confident when you relax and can access the rich store of knowledge that is unique to you. 4. Confident people avoid doubts, self- criticism, and worry about the impression they're making because they see themselves as loved. 2. Confident people are well prepared but not so much that they lose their spontaneity. 3.When you're confident, you speak 15% louder than normal. 1. Confidence means feeling at one with others, knowing that you're in this together and the only outcome is "I'm going to win and so are you.“ Flickr attribution: /rpavich/8453448247/
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    8 | Overcoming Your SpeakingNerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics “I”, “They”, “We” and “You” The words, "I", "They", "We" and "You" have various subtle effects on your audience and can move you closer to them or further away. “I”. The word, "I", to talk about yourself, should be used sparingly. Use it only to refer to your past experiences or mistakes, not to build up your own importance. It can also be used to identify with your audience as in letting them know you understand their situation. “They”. Reserve "They" for bad news, for example, when you are being critical, cynical, or in any way negative of others, as in, "Our competitors think we'll fail; but they're wrong". "We", "us", "you" and "your“. These are good news words. Use them to announce achievements and successes, as in "We'll beat the opposition". "You're onto a winner".
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    9 | Overcoming Your SpeakingNerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics AIDA: The Four Steps to Getting Buy-In AIDA is an acronym for the four steps in grabbing someone's interest and getting them to take the action you want. It is the key to selling any product or service. AIDA stands for: A - Attention of the customer I - Interest of the customer D - Desire for what you are offering A - Action in the direction you want The model is commonly attributed to American advertising pioneer, E St Elmo Lewis (1872 - 1948). However, it came to widespread prominence in an advertising contest run by the Bissell Carpet Sweeper Company in 1899. This contest was judged by Fred Macey who was considered one of the top advertising experts of the day. Flickr attribution: /brizzlebornandbred/8730956607/
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    10 | Overcoming Your SpeakingNerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics THE WALL PUSH The Wall Push is a technique recommended by writer Dorothy Sarnoff to control stage fright in actors. It was used successfully by Yul Brynner, star of the musical "The King and I". The technique is as follows: Stand about 18" away from a wall and place your palms flat on it. Push against the wall. As you push, the muscles of your "rectus abdominis" will contract. As you breath out, hiss and contract the muscles below the rib cage as if you were rowing a boat against the current. A similar effect can be produced by pressing the base of the hands against each other, elbows akimbo. These moves prevent the production of nerve-enhancing noradrenalin and epinephrine.
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    11 | Overcoming Your SpeakingNerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics Make Sure You Stand Out inYourAudience’s Memory With a business audience, a presentation is likely to be part of an ongoing attempt to build a relationship. The talk may be just one part of what you will do for each other. It is important therefore to make sure that your presentation stands out, catches their attention and stays in the memory. Here are 7 ways you can stand out: 1.You can be distinct by being different. 2.You can be distinct by being gimmicky. 3.You can be distinct by being simple. 4.You can be distinct by being risky. 5.You can be distinct by being funny. 6.You can be distinct by being entertaining. 7.You can be distinct by being good. "People who do not get noticed get overlooked and left behind." (John Holmes) Flickr attribution: /garryknight/2565937494/
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    12 | Overcoming Your SpeakingNerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics Attention Spans Research indicates that most people's attention spans start to decline after about 17 minutes of non-stop listening. Research also shows that attention is higher at the start and end of a talk than in the middle. This means that you should time a once-off presentation to last no more than about 20 minutes. If your subject requires you to speak longer, think of using suitable breaks, intervals or a change of pace and style. "No one can say just how long a message should be, but you rarely hear complaints about a speech being too short. The amateur worries about what he is going to put in his speech. The expert worries about what he should leave out. An artistic performance is concentrated, has a central focus." (Edgar Dale)
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    13 | Overcoming Your SpeakingNerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics A MANTRA MEDITATION Meditation is a form of relaxation which focuses all your thinking on one object, picture or sound. A mantra meditation directs your focused thinking onto a repeated phrase, a mantra being a mystical Hindu chant. The repeated words can take your mind off your presentation, relax you and put you into the positive frame of mind expressed in the words. This is a mantra to use before you speak and can be said to yourself for as long as you have to wait. "I'm pleased I'm here; I'm pleased you're here; I care about you; I know that I know."
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    14 | Overcoming Your SpeakingNerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics How to Recognise the Onset of Presentation Nerves The symptoms of nerves before a presentation are the symptoms of stress. When the mind perceives a threat, as it does when it thinks about everything that could go wrong, it automatically switches on the fight-flight response. In gearing up for this reaction, the following symptoms of "nerves" will appear: stage-fright butterflies sweaty palms shallow breathing thumping heart weak knees panic loss of control If you feel nervous facing a large audience, imagine that you are just talking to one or two close friends instead. Flickr attribution: /briannalehman/4339457187/
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    15 | Overcoming Your SpeakingNerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics First Impressions Last When you have been introduced or have completed your own formalities, the audience's eyes and minds turn expectantly to you. They want you to interest them. Your opening words and the way you express yourself must make an immediate impression. The audience needs to each say to themselves: "this looks worth staying for." You must look and sound in charge. One simple way to achieve this is to use an impact opening technique: one that intrigues, grabs the attention, and surprises without embarrassing or unnerving your audience. In fiction, one of the most attention-grabbing openers is the opening sentence of George Orwell's "1984": "It was a bright cold day in April and the clocks were striking thirteen."
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    16 | Overcoming Your SpeakingNerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics The Infectious Power of Enthusiasm "Enthusiasm is the greatest business asset in the world: it beats money and power and influence. Single-handedly the enthusiast convinces and dominates. Enthusiasm spurns inaction. Like an avalanche it overwhelms and engulfs all obstacles in its path, sweeps aside prejudice and opposition, storms the citadel of its objective. Set the germ of enthusiasm afloat in your business: carry it in your attitude and manner; it spreads like a contagion and influences every fibre of your industry; it means joy and pleasure and satisfaction to your workers; it means life and virility; it means spontaneous bedrock results - the vital things that pay dividends." (Quoted by Dorothy Sarnoff) Flickr attribution: /dmott9/9008676911/
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    17 | Overcoming Your SpeakingNerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics WILL IT TO HAPPEN A quick and easy technique to deal with any phobia like fear of public speaking is to will the phobia to happen. It’s known as “paradoxical intention”. What happens is that you decide not to resist what you fear, on the grounds that we get more of what we resist. Instead you invite the fear in, trivialize it (something inside you deep down knows it’s not really going to happen), and have a laugh about it. So, if you fear losing your place in your talk, tell yourself that you will, that everyone will find it hugely amusing, and so will you. Almost certainly your brain will stop this happening. Incidentally, it is the same idea as curing insomnia not by trying to sleep but by trying to stay awake.
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    18 | Overcoming Your SpeakingNerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics Criteria for Successful Presentations As actors and politicians know only too well, it is notoriously difficult to guarantee success when you speak. One day, a talk goes down well; the next it fails to raise any response. In the planning stage, it is helpful to think about how we might judge the success of our presentation, even if we have to acknowledge that hitting the target every time may not be possible. The success of a retirement speech depends on an appropriate level of humour, sincerity and tone. The success criteria of an informative talk depends on how much people remembered. The success criteria of a sales talk depends on the level of new orders. The success criteria of an after-dinner speech depends on how much people laughed. Flickr attribution: /putu_adi/2407850452/
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    19 | Overcoming Your SpeakingNerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics 7 Steps to Conquer Your Nerves BeforeYou Go On Sandra Zimmer of self-expression.com says that there are 7 things you can do to calm yourself before your presentation so that you can go on with total confidence. They are: 7ThingsTo Do BeforeYou Go On 1. Don't think of the presentation as a test. People haven't come to judge you but to find something to their advantage. 2. Detach from your expectations of how things should go. Put yourself into neutral energy where you are open to more possibilities. 3.Write down the likely questions you would ask of you if you were in the audience.Then prepare your answers thoroughly. 4. Imagine you are an athlete just before a sprint final.Warm up your body. Do some light stretches. Feel the blood pumping through you. 5. Ground yourself by imagine energy melting out of your head and flowing all the way down to your feet, filling you as it goes. 6. Breathe deeply. Breathing oxygenates your brain and stops you feeling the flight-fight response of fear. 7. Find some common areas of rapport with your audience and drop them in to your presentation.When you are like them, they will like you.
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    20 | Overcoming Your SpeakingNerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics How Bill Gates Galvanised anAudience with One Prop: Mosquitoes Despite being the richest businessman in the world, Bill Gates was never regarded as an outstanding presenter. Which is why it was all the more surprising when, in the middle of a TED talk, entitled, "Mosquitos, Malaria, and Education", Bill Gates did the unthinkable. He made his audience sit up and pay attention. And he did it by using a prop: mosquitoes. This is how Bill Gates introduced his unusual prop in his talk: "Now, malaria is of course transmitted by mosquitos. I brought some here, just so you could experience this. We’ll let these roam around the auditorium a little bit. (Laughter) There’s no reason only poor people should have the experience. (Laughter) (Applause) Those mosquitos are not infected." Andrew Duglan of sixminutes.com says that Bill Gates’ prop was perfect because it met the 6 requirements of a great prop: it was totally relevant to his subject, and it was concrete, unexpected, dramatic, humorous, and entirely memorable. InsiderMonkey attribution: /99132385@N06/9338079871/
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    21 | Overcoming Your SpeakingNerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics “Hara hachi bu” or “Eat Until You’re 80% Full” One of the problems which both presenters and audiences have with traditional presentations is that they are so open-ended that they can become aimless, over-long, and hence boring. To counter this, Brady Forrest of O'Reilly Media in Seattle, came up with the idea of a style that he called Ignite and defined as "enlightening, but quick". In an Ignite presentation, the presenter has 5 minutes to talk and uses 20 slides that move automatically forward every 15 seconds. Garr Reynolds says that this style pleases audiences because it gives them a taste of the information rather than stuffing them full. Ignite works because it requires the presenters to prepare. They have to re-shape their talk to the slide their on or else get lost. It also means that flim-flam and side-tracking are avoided so that the audience gets a more concise and focused talk. The idea of limiting your presentation is often called, "hara hachi bu", aJapanese concept, meaning "eat only 80% of what's possible". It is a practice of the people of Okinawa who are among the healthiest and longest-lived people on the planet. Flickr attribution: /cc_photoshare/10728238955/
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    22 | Overcoming Your SpeakingNerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics BREATHING Breathing exercises before a presentation ensure that you are calm and relaxed when you begin to speak. There are a number of good breathing exercises, ranging from simply becoming aware of your breathing to meditation. This simple exercise can be carried out anywhere: Find a quiet place where you can be undisturbed. Stand still and feel the ground beneath your feet. Imagine yourself suspended by a thread connected to the crown of your head. Let your neck and shoulders relax. Bend your knees a little. Bring the thumb and forefingers of both hands together and turn the palms upwards. Close your eyes. Now just listen to yourself breathing and allow any thoughts to wander in and out of your mind at will. Feel at ease and if you feel hurried, tell yourself there is no rush. Slow your breathing. In your own time, come back.
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    23 | Overcoming Your SpeakingNerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics What Your Speaking Speed SaysAbout You There are 3 factors that determine the pace you speak. First, there is your natural speed which depends on how easily you connect to your emotions. Secondly, you'll speak quicker if you feel nervous or stressed. And third, you'll speak quicker if you use complex or long words and sentences. Andrew Dlugan of sixminutes.com measured a range of TED speakers and found that the speech rates ranged from 133 words per minute (wpm) at the lower end, (eg ex Vice President Al Gore), to 188 wpm at the upper end, (eg entrepreneur Jacqueline Novogratz). The average was 163 wpm, used by speakers such as Steve Jobs and Hans Rosling. The rates at which we speak are also related to the impressions we want to create in others: if you want the audience to get a mental picture, talk quite quickly; if you want the audience to hear internally, speak slower and deeper; if you want the audience to get into the feelings, speak even slower still and deeper. Research suggests that fast speakers (at 195 wpm) are more persuasive than slow speakers. However, if the audience inherently agree with the message, slow speakers (at 105 wpm) are more persuasive.
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    24 | Overcoming Your SpeakingNerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics Andrew Dlugan of sixminutes.com says that there are 7 deadly sins of public speaking that far outweigh the occasional slip-up or "ah" and "um". These are: 7 Deadly Sins 1. Sloth, or failure to prepare You cannot wing a presentation. It is unfair on you and unfair on your audience. 3. Lust The idea that all you have to do to overcome your nerves is to imagine your audience naked won’t help you at all 2. Envy of “natural” speakers There’s no such thing as a “natural” speaker. A “natural” speaker is someone who has mastered the art. 4. Gluttony, or info overload There is a limit to what people can take in, so where presentations are concerned, less is always more. 5. Greed, or talking too long Instead, finish early but with everything fully covered. 6. Anger, when things go wrong Don’t do this or you’ll lose all credibility with your audience and make them feel uncomfortable. 7. Pride, or putting yourself first It's never about you. It's always about them.
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    25 | Overcoming Your SpeakingNerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics RELAX Relaxing is the art of "letting go". This means letting go of the nervous tension in your mind and body, in particular parts of the body that tense in response to stress, such as the neck, the shoulders and the facial muscles. You can use any relaxation technique that suits you. Here are some additional suggestions: 1. tense and release any tight part of the body from head to toe tensing and releasing in turn 2. collapse on the ground like a limp rag doll 3. lie on your back on the ground and let the floor support your body as if you were floating 4. imagine that you are made of rubber and go wibbly- wobbly 5. relax the mouth by sitting in front of a mirror and making a horse's laugh with your lips.
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    26 | Overcoming Your SpeakingNerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics Be in a Team One way to inject more variety and interest into a presentation is to use a team of presenters rather than presenting by yourself. This approach has advantages and disadvantages. Pros: a team presentation enables everyone to concentrate on what they each do well.Teams reduce the levels of presentation anxiety by sharing the stress. If well-rehearsed, the talk can look slick. Cons: A team presentation is likely to be longer than a solo presentation and risks being repetitive. Audiences will watch everyone including those not talking and form an impression from their demeanour. An audience is likely to compare the speakers with each other. Not everyone in a team will be a good speaker. More time will be needed to rehearse. Flickr attribution: /imaginecup/9246814469/; /imaginecup/9250610204/
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    27 | Overcoming Your SpeakingNerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics What Did Lee Iacocca Tell Bill ClintonAbout Presenting? In his years at Ford and Chrysler, Lee Iacocca was a strong advocate of training in presentation skills. It was his communicating ability rather than his engineering talent that persuaded Congress to make loan guarantees of $1.5 billion to bail our Chrysler in 1979. By 1983, Chrysler had paid off the loans and the US Treasury was $350 million richer. In his autobiography, Iacocca wrote, “I’ve known a lot of engineers with terrific ideas who had trouble explaining them to others. It’s always a shame when a guy with great talent can’t tell the board or committee what’s in his head.” Image attribution: Wikipedia
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    28 | Overcoming Your SpeakingNerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics THAT’S IT! WELL DONE!
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    29 | Overcoming Your SpeakingNerves Presentation Skills MTL Course Topics THANK YOU This has been a Slide Topic from Manage Train Learn