Lecturing and speaking in front of a room full of people can be a nerve-wracking experience; however, there are techniques to convey self-confidence and authority even when you're feeling nervous. It is natural to get tense before giving a lecture, but the audience should not perceive it. If your body language conveys confidence and confidence, projects your voice, and prepares the presentation in advance, you will feel confident as an expert speaker.
Steps
Method 1 of 3: Use confident body language
Step 1. Develop good posture
During the lecture while standing in front of the audience keep your head up and your chin back, as if you were stretching the top of your head towards the ceiling. Keep your shoulders back with the center part aligned with your earlobes. Pull your stomach in, but being careful not to bend your pelvis. Keep your knees straight and the arches of your foot supported.
Good posture reveals to the audience that you are confident, trustworthy, and proficient. Also, maintaining good speaking posture allows you to project your voice, which will make your presentation clearer and more assertive
Step 2. Move around the podium
If you are looking to transmit security, do not be afraid to use the space around you. Try to circulate around the podium while you give the lecture. When a person feels nervous or anxious they tend to block their movements by standing with their feet together and hiding behind a lectern in an attempt to look small and unnoticed. This situation can cause nervousness and anxiety. Control your movements when walking to convey your experience, your knowledge and to make you feel more comfortable in the space around you.
Step 3. Reach out to the audience when you have to emphasize something
If you need to emphasize something, take a few steps away from the lectern and approach the audience. Do it only when the subject of your presentation requires it. If you're looking to emphasize or reveal interesting and unexpected information, now is the time to move. Unnecessary movements can distract the audience's attention and convey discomfort. Getting close to the public helps bridge distances and creates a sense of confidence and authority.
- Avoid getting too close and don't go beyond the first row of seats.
- As you move forward, think about staying there for 30 seconds. If you are heading to another point, stay there for another 30 seconds. As you move from place to place, try to connect with each of the people in the audience and try to make eye contact with some of them.
Step 4. Use hand language when speaking in public
Keep your arms open and avoid keeping your arms close to your body in a rigid position. Aiming upward reaffirms an opinion or fact, while opening your hands demonstrates trustworthiness and encourages public participation. When you touch the crux of a debate or go to summarize your presentation, point up with your index finger to consolidate your authority on the subject and show you are confident in your conclusions.
Avoid crossing your arms while lecturing. Although it appears to be a comfortable position, it could send negative signals to the public. It is a blocking position that conveys inexperience, disinterest or nervousness
Step 5. Smile
With a warm and welcoming smile you communicate to the public that you feel at ease and that you are comfortable. Your smile will make seeing and listening to you more pleasant; As a result, you will appear to the public as a receptive and serene person. Studies show that smiling can help reduce anxiety, blood pressure, and heart rate, which will make you feel relaxed when you give your lecture.
Step 6. Avoid showing concern
Feeling nervous is natural, however, if you want to show confidence, you must avoid transmitting anxiety. There are certain attitudes that show restlessness that can transmit boredom or nervousness such as moving from one place to another, biting nails and fiddling with hair. If you are restless, take a few deep, slow breaths.
Step 7. Make eye contact with members of the audience
Avoid staring at the floor, your feet, or your notes; Look up and make eye contact with the audience. It is not only a great way to convey confidence, but also to feel confident.
As you address the audience, keep eye contact with each attendee for 3-5 seconds. In this way, you will capture their attention and demonstrate reliability and passion for the subject
Method 2 of 3: Speak with confidence in yourself
Step 1. Project your voice
To show confidence, your voice has to reach the entire audience so that they can follow your presentation and understand your perspective. If you adopt the correct posture, the diaphragm, the umbrella-shaped muscle under the thorax, will support you and you will be able to control the movement of the air. As you take in air, you widen your stomach. The diaphragm controls this movement. Practice using your diaphragm to project your voice.
- Lie on your back keeping your abdominal muscles and stomach relaxed. Place one hand on your abdomen and focus on bringing it up and down as you inhale and exhale.
- Find out if you are using a microphone so that you can prepare ahead of time and adjust the volume of your voice accordingly.
Step 2. Adjust the speed, pitch and volume of your voice
On a day-to-day basis, the pitch, speed and volume of your voice varies if you are talking with a friend or if you are telling a story. A monotonous tone of voice can be boring and conveys insecurity and unpreparedness. Make it interesting by incorporating discursive dynamics, so that the audience is more likely to pay attention to your presentation.
- Incorporate these dynamics during your presentation and simulate a conversation with a friend or colleague.
- Practice reading a poem, play, or other literary creation aloud.
Step 3. Keep up
When the speaker is nervous, he tends to speak quickly and speed up. Try to maintain a slow and moderate pace when speaking that allows you to express your ideas clearly and confidently so that the audience can understand you. It is valid to accelerate the rhythm to break the monotony and it is a very useful tool to emphasize a particular point; however, your goal should be to maintain a regular, consistent, and articulate pace during the presentation.
- Lengthen the pronunciation of vowels to slow down. Imagine that the vowels are written in italics and focus on pronouncing each one clearly. Practice the technique to make sure it sounds natural.
- Divide your presentation into parts. Plan to pause at the end of each part. Take a few seconds before moving on to the next point.
Method 3 of 3: Practice the Exposure
Step 1. Prepare your material
The key to conveying confidence when giving a lecture is having a thorough knowledge of the subject. If you know that you are a specialist in a particular subject, the public will most likely perceive that domain and knowledge; Also, they will notice if you are not prepared or if you are nervous. Be sure to study the topic and carefully prepare the slides; you should also be ready to answer any questions from the audience.
Step 2. Rehearse in front of the mirror
Stand in front of a mirror and practice your exposition. Imagine that you are speaking in front of your colleagues and colleagues on a stage or in a room. This will allow you to practice your movements, your rhythm and the gestures of your hands; In addition, you will not only remember that you have to smile during the presentation, but you will also be more familiar with the topic and the flow of information. After you've rehearsed several times, you will feel more comfortable and confident.
Step 3. Practice deep breathing techniques
Breathe in slowly and deeply through your nose and hold the air for 10 seconds. Exhale slowly through your mouth, contracting your abdominal muscles as you release the air. Deep breathing will help you focus on the presentation and relieve your body of anxiety and tension. To help you relax, demonstrate serenity, calm, and self-confidence in front of the public, incorporate breathing exercises into your daily routine.