What are effective strategies for building confidence before a speech?

If you want to build your confidence before giving a speech, I truly suggest you know your material front words and backwards. Many speakers rely on a PowerPoint to give their speech. Always be prepared for the unexpected like IT problems. I have seen presentations crash and burn because someone relied too much on IT to get them through their presentation. Practice where to annunciate, practice your pauses, read the faces and body language of the crowd. Having confidence in these areas before you give your presentation will allow you to be a confident and more powerful speaker.

What has always worked for me has been thorough preparation and practice, knowing my audience, and visualizing success. Once I know my content so well, the next is my delivery. I usually imagine myself in a room of friends, just telling a story, and I know I am a great story teller, so that always works out for me. Even if it doesn’t, I appreciate the fact that it wasn’t meant to be perfect, so long as someone got the message. Arriving early too reduces last-minute stress. I use this moment to engage in light conversations with attendees to create a relaxed atmosphere. This way, they don’t place me on a pedestal once I get on the stage and they feel like they know me on a more personal level.

Effective strategies for building confidence before a speech include thorough preparation, practicing multiple times, visualizing success, and using relaxation techniques such as deep breathing. Additionally, positive self-talk and rehearsing in front of a small, supportive audience can boost confidence.

What I feel is knowing your content fully with all its subtle nuances is one of the foolproof strategies to build confidence before and during a public speech. You need to internalise your content thoroughly, memorise its key sections, connect personally with your content, incorporate meaningful and pertinent stories to reinforce your points and repeated rehearsing and practicing.. are the effective and tested ways to enable you fully familiarise with your content..!

The #1 way to increase confidence before a talk is to love your audience. When I’m focused on how I look, what people think about me, or if I’ll do a good job, I get nervous. But when I take the focus off of myself and meditate on how much I care about the people in the audience and how much they need my message, the fear goes away (mostly ??)

My current mentee had a big event pending and he had to address a panel, something he thought he might not be good at, yet. We rehearsed him addressing members of his community, which he does with ease in his daily life. It was so rewarding to receive his feedback that all had gone without a hitch after the real trauma felt anticipating the address. We must remember that we always know more about our speech than anyone else in the room, but I also say the best off-the-cuff speeches are the assiduously prepared ones!

Not only to imagine but understand who are we are speaking to, understand their level of understanding and thus increase their confidence in listening to you

Uno de la prácticas más efectivas para mantener la calma a la hora de hablar en público es trabajar y mejorar la respiración diafragmática. Aprender a realizar varias Inspiraciones lentas y profundas, manteniendo la respiración y alargando la liberación del aire antes de cada exposición ayuda a gestionar la ansiedad y los nervios previos a las intervenciones.

I teach two types of breathing to prepare for a speech. There is the deep breathing which is scientifically proven to break down the cortisol in your body and calm yourself. You want to do this leading up to the speech as you feel anxiety. But right before you want to switch to a performance breath. This is a short shallow breath to get your blood pumping and get you in that higher state of energy! You want to have your blood pumping and be in the zone. Actors and athletes do this before taking the stage or hitting the field. Try these two techniques and you will surely be successful!

Smelling a flower and blowing out a candle—nothing works better than this. I believe everyone should use this practice to handle anxiety. It helps release tension and boost confidence simultaneously. I have tried this technique many times. I always tell my students to practice it before attending important interviews, meetings, sessions, or presentations where they are likely to speak.

I've become a huge advocate of breathing exercises to regulate stress levels or anxiety prior to presentations. It's one of the go to strategies I use with my client and I certainly practice myself. Whether it's a few rounds of box breathing, (4 seconds in, 4 hold, 4 out, 4 hold) Andrew Huberman's 2 quick inhales through the nose and one long out the mouth (self-soothing breathing) or Wim Hof's breathing method you CAN calm your pre-speech anxiety and regulate your nervous system to have a great presentation!

Deep breathing exercises can be helpful. Another incredibly important tip is to make sure you slow your delivery down while you are presenting so that you allow time to breathe and pause during the presentation. When we talk too fast, it doesn't allow time for breathe which in turn causes us to speak even faster. The faster we speak the more likely we will lose the audience, and as importantly lose their confidence. When that happens our credibility can also be impacted even when the content is solid.

Another great method is a technique I developed after seeing the Matrix movie. I do this every time before giving a speech. In one of the final scenes, Neo breathes inside the Matrix and makes a corridor expand and wobble. 1. Stand tall, feet shoulder-wide apart and close your eyes. 2. Relax but keep your back straight without putting tension into your muscles. 3. Inhale slowly and deeply several times. 4. Now comes the "Matrix Breathing": While inhaling, imagine and visualize your environment expanding. 5. When exhaling imagine now the environment wobbling back into its initial state. 6. Let your imagination flow and if it helps, know that you are the creator of your life and environment.

Power posing can be a simple yet effective technique to enhance both how others perceive you and your own self-confidence. Adopting expansive, confident poses before a big moment, like a speech, can trigger physiological changes that make you feel more powerful and assured. Research suggests that standing tall with shoulders back, hands on hips, or raising arms in a V-shape can elevate your testosterone levels and lower cortisol levels, contributing to a greater sense of confidence and reduced stress. It’s a practical way to harness body language to positively influence your mindset and performance. I do it every time before I give a speech.

Before I step on stage, I make it a habit to do three things: ?? Find the largest stall in the men's room and pose big. Wonder woman BIG. While posing, chest expanded, I visualize a beam shooting from my chest and I point it upwards. "Where the wall meets the ceiling is a powerful feeling." ?? Smile BIG and think about my audience. Smiles are infectious so when we start the process before you step out, we've primed our audience! ?? On my way out, I put it all together in front the mirror. I look myself in the eyes and give myself a high five (Thank you Mel Robbins!) I never would have believed the power of posing until i began speaking professionally. But it's a game changer! Try it! ?? Bonus: Read Presence, by Amy Cuddy

Yes! Amy Cuddy did an amazing Ted talk on the concept and Tony Robbins often uses this technique in his events. When you change your physiology and embrace a more confident and powerful state/ stance, it lowers cortisol and releases dopamine and testosterone to make us feel more empowered! Hold them for 2 minutes and BElieve you are a super hero and your brain will get the signals of success!

El cuerpo transmite nuestro estado de ánimo. Por ello hay que procurar hacerse una imagen mental de nosotros mismos y de lo que vamos a hacer. Hay que adoptar una presencia relajada, atenta, serena, pero con aire de espera firme a lo que se va a hacer.

Use ice breakers, find someone in the audience or something to focus on... also polling tools that help participants answer quick questions with automatic answer displays are now available in various forms, use them to positively engage your audience.

This is extremely important for singers and speakers! Your voice IS your instrument as a speaker! Whether it is a few tongue twister exercises or singing through some vocal warm ups, getting your "instrument" ready for the performance is crucial. It reduces tightness, allows for better flow and projection of your voice, and creates a sensation of familiarity and calm. I also have my clients do a few practice reps before doing live or recorded videos too so they feel looser. Don't be afraid to incorporate some physical movement to reduce tension in your face and other parts of your body. Even some smiling exercises help! ??

To warm up before a speech, practice giving your speech at a pace that is both slower and perhaps a bit lower in pitch. When you feel the urge to speed up and talk faster while giving the speech it will feel less natural because you practiced your delivery slower.

La voz, además de contenidos, también transmite emocione y sensaciones. De ahí la necesidad de prepararla convenientemente antes de comenzar, como hace un , para que pueda expresar todo lo que queremos con gran variedad de matices.

To warm up your voice before a speech, start by doing gentle humming or lip trills to relax your vocal cords. Practice deep breathing exercises to support your voice and improve projection. Do vocal exercises like scales or sirens to improve flexibility and range. Massage your neck and throat muscles to release tension. Stay hydrated and avoid caffeine or dairy before speaking. Finally, do a few vocal warm-up phrases to ensure clarity and resonance in your speech.

INTERACT & IMPACT It helps the speaker to build rapport with the audience,if she/he can begin by asking questions. But you need to ask questions which are not controversial. A bit of humour is acceptable. Communication being a two way traffic, a good Speaker has to look for opportunities to engage and endear the audience. The more the interaction, the more the impact!

By engaging with your audience beforehand you can not only forge some important connections but also gain valuable insights about who they are and what they do. While ideally you will have that insight before arriving at the location, connecting directly and even incorporating some anecdotes into your speech can further personalize and help you connect with your audience. For example, "Sally just told me a great story about a problem she recently had with a client xxxx ..." use what Sally told you about a particular pain point and make that relate to what you are speaking about.

Having positive eye contact, body language are great contributors in engaging audience towards a speaker. It supports your speech when hand gestures are equally contributing towards the throw of your speech.

Practice your speech and know your lines/points by head. There’s nothing that gives confidence as being sure and know what you have to say. The words flow easily and freely from your mouth, you enjoy your speech and pay attention to your audience. Craft your content before hand and allow yourself enough practice, your confidence will be top notch

A lot of confidence challenges for speakers come from worrying about how they will be judged by audience members. It’s especially tough to stay confident if you’re struggling to shake concerns about how you’ll be seen by peers, higher-ups, friends, relatives, judges, media outlets, etc. One solution is to double down on preparation. Know your landmarks - the key words (like “talking points” but more personal and intimate) in your narrative that can arouse you emotionally and that you can lean on/backtrack to if you lose your place. Practice delivering your talk to the key words so you are bringing fresh language and ideas to the fore as much as possible. Knowing you’re not chained to a “script” will free you up and boost your confidence.

The most important way to build confidence before a speech is to KNOW YOUR AUDIENCE! Whenever I am asked to give a talk at a conference or major forum, I always asked the organizers, or reflect for myself - "who will be in the audience?"; "why will they be there?"; "why are they taking their time and making the effort to listen?". And secondly, I use what I call the "going down hall" rule. When two people in the audience leave my speech, and one asks the other, "what did you think of that talk?"; "what's the one thing you took from that talk?", I want to have presented the information at a level of depth that is valuable, but in way that is simple for someone to tell their friends about it. Try it! This works.

Try to avoid the tendency some of us have to overthink. Remember, you are the most unique and authentic version of you. Use your personal stories to really bring your content to life in ways that are truly unique to you. Always think about how you can use what you have learned to help your audience solve a problem(s) or address pain points -- both those that they know about and maybe even those they haven't considered. When we as speakers think about how we can serve our audience, it further helps us connect in ways that make our content even more meaningful and memorable.