5 Secrets For Mastering The Art Of Public Speaking

Secret #1 Developing Courage and Self-Confidence

a. Start with a strong and persistent desire. Enumerate the benefits of this effort to train yourself . Arouse your enthusiasm for it. Think about what it can mean to you financially, socially, and in terms of increased influence and leadership. Remember that upon the depth of your desire will depend on the swiftness of your progress.

b.Prepare.You cannot feel confident unless you know what you are going to say.

c.Act confident.”To feel brave.” advises Professor William James, “act as if we were brave, use all of our wills to that end, and a courage fit will very likely replace the fit of fear.”Teddy Roosevelt confessed that he conquered his fear of grizzly bears, mean horses, and gun-fighters by that method. You can conquer your fear of audiences by taking advantage of this psychological fact.

d. Practice. This is the most important point of all. Fear is the result of a lack of confidence, and a lack of confidence is the result of not knowing what you can do, and that is caused by a lack of experience. So get a record of successful experience behind you, and your fears will vanish.

Secret #2 Self-Confidence Through Preparation

When a speaker has a real message in his head and heart -an inner urge to speak. He is almost sure to do himself credit. A well-prepared speech is already nine-tenths delivered. Do not sit down and try to manufacture a speech in thirty minutes.

A speech can’t be cooked to order like a steak. A speech must grow. Select your topic early in the week, think over it during odd moments, brood over it, sleep over it, dream over it. Discuss it with friends. Make it a topic of conversation. Ask yourself all the possible questions concerning it.

Put down on pieces of paper, all thoughts and illustrations that come to you and keep reaching out for more. Ideas, suggestions will come drifting to you.

Secret #3 The Improvement of Memory

“The average man,” said the noted psychologist, Professor Carl Seashore, “does not use above ten percent of his actual inherited capacity for memory. He wastes the ninety percent by violating the natural laws of remembering.” These, “natural laws of remembering”are three; impression, repetition, association.

If in spite of all precautions, you suddenly forget what you intended to say, you may be able to save yourself from complete defeat by using the last words of your last sentence as the first words in a new one. This can be continued until you are able to think of your next point.

Secret #4 Essential Elements in Successful Speaking

“Quest” were these lines engraved on a brass plate:

                             If you can dream and not make dreams your master;

                                 If you can think and not make thoughts your aim;

                                       If you can meet with triumph and disaster;

                                   And treat those two imposters just the same,

                               If you can force your heart, and nerve, and sinew

                                     To serve your turn long after they are gone;

                                    And so hold on when there is nothing in  you

                               Except for the Will which says to them, “Hold on,”

                                       If you can fill the unforgiving minute

                                With sixty seconds’ worth of distance run,

                             Yours is the earth and everything that’s in it,

                                And, what is more, you’ll be a man, my son.

“The Spirit of the Quest,” Shackleton called those verses; and truly, they are the proper spirit with which a man should start ours to reach the south pole or to gain confidence in public speaking. Think of success in your public speaking work. You will then do the things necessary to bring success above.

Secret #5 The Secret of Good Delivery

Put your heart into your talking. Real emotional sincerity will help more than all rules. Get a good ending and a good beginning; get them dose together. Always stop before your audience wants you to.”The point of satiation is reached very soon after the peak of popularity”