How to eliminate Filler Words from your presentation

The use of Umms, Ahhs , Errs or other Filler words can be the norm for some people when they deliver a speech at work or in various forums – this is the way a speaker gives him or her-self time to think of the words they want to use. The problem is ,that if you Umm and Ahh, it is distracting to your audience- The audience are there because they are interested in your topic or about your experience. You may be brilliant and an expert in your field but alot of Umming and Ahhing will be disruptive during your performance.

How can the use of these rather annoying words be stopped so you can impress with your knowledge?

All the very best with working in this area – with awareness and practice you can certainly eliminate those Filler Words forever!

Sometimes, its not the presenting that’s difficult – its how to structure the presentation

So you might be fine with getting up and presenting – you may be comfortable to speak confidently in front of a group. But you’ve been asked to speak on a specific topic, there’s plenty of material but where do you start to create this presentation?

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Here are four easy steps to follow to get all the information you need together to prepare your presentation.

1. Use a Mind Map – see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mind_maps
Read through all your material and write down all the main points around the central theme. Then you choose the top three that are most important. Your audience can remember three main points – so go with that – anymore and your audience will start to forget some of the information.

2.Prepare a really strong opening – you need to get your audiences attention – once you’re underway its fine – its that initial opening that needs to grab them. See: How do YOU create a Strong Opening? http://bit.ly/18gPzZP

3. Work on the three points you are going to cover. Prepare all the relevant information and cut or increase depending on the time you have available.

4. Then prepare a strong message for the conclusion – give an overview of the three main points and then finish with a really strong message.

Remember to Practice after you have written your presentation and then you’re ready. Now, you can go confidently and present. All the Best !

Have a look at our website www.thespeakerspractice.com.au for more details and our free article on the 5 P’s to a Perfect Presentation

Speaking with Confidence

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Speaking with Confidence is an ideal that everyone who gets up and speaks aims for and the good news is that this is achieveable. This is a skill that everyone can learn and its just a matter of learning the skills and understanding the bigger picture.

It is always fabulous to see someone present who is confident and gets their message across with clarity, charm and confidence. In most cases, the presenter will have worked at this, had training and really developed the skills to be a confident speaker over many years. The majority of us have to go through a learning process to be polished and present with confidence.

What can you do to build your confidence and successfully present?

1. Be as Relaxed as possible. Find ways to be as relaxed as you can when you deliver your presentation – exercise, meditation, yoga, walking, and any relaxation you can think of are great ways to get yourself into a relaxed state.
Taking 10 deep breaths before getting up and presenting is another great approach – this will really assist you with the nerves and also importantly remembering those lines and what you are wanting to say. Often, because we are nervous, we stop breathing and this causes all sorts of problems especially with remembering what we wanted to say.

2. Proper Preparation Prevents Presentation Predicaments.
Be as prepared as possible. Have a checklist and get everything done well before your presentation. This includes writing the presentation ,of course, but is much more than just the script. There’s the visual slides, the equipment, the venue, the audience, etc etc.This will assist you to be able to not worry about other things and focus just on the presentation. Preparation is vital.

3. Practice – This is another area that needs commitment – if you are going to deliver a presentation then give value to having some practice runs – this will help you to know your presentation, get the points out you are wanting to say, deliver your message , and so on. This stage is also vital for you to deliver a polished performance.

4. Positive Thinking for Success – go into your presentation with positive thoughts – think positive, think about a positive outcome, think that you can do this. There is only room in your mind for positive thoughts when you are wanting to present confidently.

5. Feel, Think, Act cycle –
We operate via emotions – if we feel something this will make us think about it and then we act. So if your aim is to Speak with Confidence then you have to feel confident , then you think confidently and then you will act confidently.
Think of a time when you wear beautiful clothes and these clothes make you feel good and confident. Then you are thinking confident thoughts and you will appear by others to be a confident person.
This has an important impact on your presentation – Feel confident and you will speak with more confidence.

So when you know you have a presentation coming up – do these five things – and you will , over time, speak more and more with confidence. Any questions, add a comment below. Good Luck!!