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Public Speaking & Presentations Coaching
- Zoom
- In Person
- Mobile
Do you want to speak and present with confidence?
- Do your knees knock at the thought of standing before an audience?
- Do you have to give presentations despite it?
- Do you miss out on opportunities because you avoid public speaking?
Your first step is to book a FREE 20-minute Zoom or phone call. You can explain what’s led you to get in touch and find out what coaching is and how it helps.
You may be one of the many people who experience anxiety and nerves at the prospect of speaking in public.
Yet the skills and confidence to speak, present, contribute at meetings and network effectively are a huge asset.
The ability to speak fluently, to provide information that is easy to understand and to influence decisions is vital in the world of work. Being a confident communicator is helpful too at social occasions, whether work related or personal.
The ability to speak in public with confidence and self-assurance is a huge asset both professionally and personally. It is equally applicable for both formal and informal occasions, internal and external work meetings, networking and social events.
Meetings: your role may involve regular or occasional meetings, both online and in person. Do you speak up, contribute, make your voice heard and express your opinions with confidence?
Speaking and training: has your role changed such that you now have to present, deliver training, attend networking meetings or otherwise represent the company at external meetings?
Job market: in today’s competitive climate you can expect to have to deliver a presentation alongside an interview when you apply for a job.
Coaching is mainly online via Zoom. Discover my booking and fees options or email me.
Coaching for public speaking and presentations
I work with clients to enable them to design and deliver confident, engaging speeches and presentations, providing the opportunity to practise delivery and receive feedback and guidance on skills and techniques.
Learning and developing best practice in speaking and presenting will serve to build your confidence.
For the slightly nervous to the truly terrified.
1-2-1 training & coaching helps you manage your nerves, gain confidence & even learn to enjoy speaking & presenting.
You may find it helpful to go over and practice upcoming presentations and gain personalised feedback.
Coaching is usually online via Zoom, enabling us to share the screen for slide presentations.
As a presenter and presentation and public speaking trainer, I am not only able to help you with the broad strategies you would expect from coaching, but explore in detail and in practice how to minimise anxiety, and develop the skills of a confident speaker.
"It usually takes me more than three weeks to prepare a good impromptu speech."
Performance anxiety & stress
The ability to speak with confidence is a vital asset, whether for work or in social situations, and sometimes there is an overlap, such as at work receptions & parties internally or with customers. Yet many people, regardless of age or seniority, experience performance anxiety and stress whether addressing, 2, 20 or 200 people! Poet, Mike Rosen, sums up pre-speech nerves with humour: “Ladles and jellyspoons! I come before you to stand behind you, and tell you something I know nothing about“.
Reducing anxiety, gaining confidence
There are many ways to reduce anxieties and increase confidence around presenting before an audience and here are a few of them. For some presentation tips and advice, click here.
Your preparation, including researching, writing and the layout of your notes, are crucial. After all, in the words of Benjamin Franklin: “to fail to prepare is to prepare to fail”. The knowledge that you are well prepared and really know your material is half the battle.
Public speaking and presenting tips
Create a relationship with your audience. Help them feel that you are having a 1-2-1 with each of them. Give eye contact here and there rather than looking into space so that your listeners feel included.
Be sure to ‘oil’ your voice well before you stand up to speak. Say ‘hello’ to people and chat with them. Avoid sitting quietly in a corner to go over your notes. Sometimes speakers think it’s best to conserve their voice, however it’s advisable to loosen the vocal chords to prevent dry throat. Chatting will also help you feel more relaxed.
Don’t diminish the importance of what you have to say before you begin the body of your speech. Starting with “I’m going to tell you a little bit about myself” is self-effacing. Be positive: eg. “I’d like to begin by telling how I came into the profession”.
Don’t look over the heads of the audience and into outer space; instead give eye contact where you can. Connecting with your audience enables you to build a relationship; it also helps you pick up clues such as if they can hear or understand. You may want to check: “Can you hear me?”
Ensure as far as possible that what you say is easy for the listeners to understand, with words that fit with the listeners’ age, experience and knowledge. Hence the importance of researching the audience make-up before preparing your speech.
Speak at a measured pace so your listeners can keep up with you. As people struggle to follow what you’re saying now, they will also miss the next thing you say. ‘Fast talking’ won’t make an impact here. Stop and breathe for a second here and there to give people time to absorb, digest and process your message.
You can also help understanding by providing in written material or on a slide, technical expressions and jargon that some audience members won’t be familiar with. People often feel embarrassed to ask if they don’t know a term. This way, they won’t get left behind!
If you suddenly realise you won’t have time to cover everything you’d planned, summarise with confidence the main points, rather than telling everyone you don’t have time to do x, y and z, or they’ll feel shortchanged.
Don’t undermine at the end the important content you have just delivered with such words as: “That’s all I have to say for now”. End on a strong, positive note with a ‘call to action’.
In the event that you meet challenges or hostile comments from one or more audience members, answer informatively and respectfully; never try to show someone up even if they tried to do that to you!
In the words of a client who initially found speaking and audiences daunting:
"You not only helped me over the past few months to overcome areas that were holding me back, but did so in a way I would not have imagined before I sought your help. You gave me confidence from the first session and I never felt I was being judged. I managed to achieve the goals I set at the start and I am extremely grateful"
