7 Keys to Successful Public Speaking

Here are the 7 keys that can make you  a popular communicator.

Introduce a theme. Always introduce a theme at the beginning of a  presentation.  You can start by  a remark  saying, “I want to talk to you today about staying passionate about life,” or “I want to talk you to about having a big vision for your life.”  Introducing a theme gives your audience a roadmap.  Make sure your stories, anecdotes or examples tie back to your main theme.

Tell stories. Fill your talk  with personal stories.  Some can be  simple anecdotes about something that happened to you, your  wife or  kids.  Many  stories of friends, people you met, or churchgoers in the congregation.  Our brains are not programmed for abstract thoughts.  Tell personal stories to connect with your audience.

Use humor, sparingly. Start  each talk  with a joke or a humorous observation.  It is never recommended  starting a sales presentation with a joke because it will often land flat.  a good speaker can have   years of practice and and the audience can  expect him to start with a joke but It is not  recommended  for everyone.  However, humor is important.  It’s perfectly acceptable and even welcome to take yourself lightly during a presentation. Talks are more realistic if they  are delivered live and edited before broadcast.  I once saw a live talk  and, as every speaker does, everyone  make mistakes.  But don’t  let those mistakes derail the rest of your  presentation. .  It’s okay to make mistakes.  Don’t take yourself too seriously.

Use parallel sentence structure. Writing or speaking in parallel sentences is a rhetorical device that you will hear in most great speeches or presentations.  For example,, “Once you know you’re a ‘no lack’ person, you won’t run from your enemies, you’ll run to your enemies. You won’t run away from college, thinking it’s too hard, you’ll run to it knowing that you’re well able.  You won’t run away from that management position, thinking that you’re not qualified, you’ll run to it knowing that you’re well equipped.”  Consider using parallel construction somewhere in your presentation.  It’s a memorable way to get your message across.

Practice well ahead of time. A good speaker prepares for at least  five days ahead of each talk.  That means he begins to prepare, write, and rehearse on an advance schedule.  He must  spend hours for each 30-minute presentation and he must start fresh every week.  Whenever you see a leader who communicates so well it looks “effortless,” know that there’s a lot of practice that went into it.

Avoid notes. You must  rarely speaks from notes, although you  have notes.  The notes are placed discreetly on the  lectern, but always speak in front of the lectern or next to it.  As you move  to another part of the stage, you may  glance at your  notes, make eye contact and continue talking.  Don’t break eye contact with the audience by speaking from notes.  Give yourself enough time to practice so you can deliver your message with confidence.

Inspire your audience. Your  message must be  always positive and inspiring.  Whether you’re a religious person or not, inspiration is very important in presentations and communications.  Many people are uninspired, demoralized, and discouraged.  They are looking for someone to believe in.  As a leader of a congregation or of a business, people are looking to you for inspiration.  Leave them on a positive note.

Nobody can start out as a confident speaker.  Once you decided to talk infront of an audience you can be  a nervous wreck, .  Becoming a great communicator is no longer a skill that’s just nice to have.  It’s essential for success in any field.

source: Osteen’s 7 Keys to successful Speaker