How to Prepare for a Great Speech

Ponder this....What is the purpose of your speech? To inform? To persuade? To entertain? Once you have figured this out you will know where to begin.

You may ask, but where do I begin.  Here are a few helpful hints on how to prepare for your speech.

1. Where to Start?

If you have you topic in mind, you need to decide what your purpose is and keep that in mind throughout your preparation. Are you trying to entertain your audience?  Then search for entertaining stories that will keep your audience engaged.  Are you trying to inspire them, then you will need inspiring stories etc.

The best way to work on your talk or speech is to build your topic around two or three ideas that can be fully developed.  Any more than that and it is too much for your audience to remember and focus on.  In some cases it might be just fine to focus on one point. If you have too much material your inclination may be to talk really fast and still not get the topic covered. 

Now that we have decided what we are speaking on, let's put the thoughts into a logical structure. Which aspects of your topic you are going to speak about, and more importantly which you are going to leave out? It is very easy to come up with lots of information so you will need to keep it simple and decide what you will need to leave out.

Start with a simple Outline with the Introduction, list two or three topics for discussion with some key points you want to highlight for each topic and think about your conclusion and how you want to tie it all together.

Since you want to become an accomplished speaker you can your public speaking even before your next speech. This can be done through preparation, and also through visualization.

Focus on these key elements:

• Eye Contact - Using natural, direct eye contact helps your audience feel connected to you.
• Gestures - Gestures can help you paint pictures with words, but make sure they don't get in the way, and they are natural.
• Enthusiasm - Be enthusiastic. If you don't care, why should your audience? Your enthusiasm builds your audience's enthusiasm.
• Articulation - Articulate your words clearly so the members of your audience will understand you.
• Breathe - Breathing helps you control nervousness. It also gives you time to gather your thoughts. Remember that a pause can be used to provide emphasis.
• Posture - Correct posture conveys confidence
• Language - Use proper language and be careful not to use non-words and fillers such as "um" and "uh" too often.
• Smile - A smile will not only make you look and feel better, but also make your audience more receptive.

And finally, do not leave the podium immediately after you finish giving your speech. Count for a few seconds in your head before leaving the podium. This will not only give you a chance to enjoy the reaction of your audience (a confidence builder) and it may allow for questions.  It always engages the audience more to respond from the podium than to return to a seated position and attempt to answer questions.  Enjoy the applause.  Make Eye contact with your audience and remember how well this went as you get ready for your next speech.