It is quite common for an individual to feel butterflies in the stomach when he is called upon to deliver an important speech in front of a crowd for the first time. However, equipped with a few essential public speaking skills, one will have a higher level of confidence during the delivery of his speech. Thus, I would like to share three essential public speaking tips within this article.

Firstly, body language is extremely important for good public speaking skills because the bulk of what the audience perceives actually stems from the speaker's body language throughout his entire speech. Thus, it is important to adopt a suitable body language according to the speech context. Generally, huge gestures are used whenever the speaker needs to emphasize an important idea to a large group of audience. Besides, if there is ample room for movement, the speaker can employ the use of body movement in conjunction with his speech content to build a better rapport with his audience.

Secondly, the speaker must always remember to have sufficient eye contact with his audience. This is a highly crucial public speaking skill because a good eye contact will lead to a better interaction with the audience. But how does a speaker generate a good eye contact? Usually, it is ideal to have a 3 second eye contact with a particular individual within the audience. Once establishing a 3 second eye contact, the speaker should switch his eye contact to another individual from another corner of the audience. This ensures that the individual will not feel awkward from a prolonged eye contact. Apart from this, he can also shift his focus to the entire audience at certain points of his speech to avoid direct eye contact with a particular individual for more than 3 seconds.

Thirdly, preparation is the key to a successful speech. Thus, it is highly imperative that the speaker has a thorough research on his speech topic. Besides, it is essential for the speaker to rehearse speaking aloud as many times as possible until he has the speech content at his finger tips. This is an important public speaking skill because it actually provides the speaker to estimate his speech duration and improvise on his gestures appropriately.

Be mindful of the above tips, and you will be on your way to mastering effective public speaking skills!