Practice, Practice, Practice! There is an organization called Toastmasters. They are located all over the place and it is a great way to practice and receive feedback to help improve your public speaking skills.

Here is the best outline for a good speech:

1. Tell the audience what you are going to tell them about in your speech
2. Tell the audience.
3. Tell them what you just told them

This is how you begin and end a speech. Sounds funny but if you pay attention to any good speaker this is exactly what they do.

Example:
Beginning-
Hi I am going to tell you how to give a good speech using x, y, z.
Body-
You can give a good speech by x. Give an example
Another good technique is y. Give example.
Lastly doing z will help your speech convey its meaning and importance. Give example.
Close-
Now that you understand that x, y, z equals a good speech you will be able to use these techniques to do good speeches in the future!

You really do have to dumb it down that much!!! We are bombarded with other 50,000 messages a day. If you want yours to stick and be remembered repeat, repeat, repeat!!!

One thing that is left out and may seem obvious is…practice! All of these tips on how to speak effectively amount to nothing if the content is not clear or the presentation is not structured correctly.

I had a baseball coach in high school who said, “You play the way that you practice.” Naturally, practicing public speaking will help. What most people forget though is that it is equally important to practice non-verbal delivery skills as well. It is important to do so as practicing your non-verbal skills will help cement them in your muscle memory. If you do not practice that way, you are less likely to meet with success. Indeed, I always tell presenters that they need to use broader gestures since they draw the eye and project dynamism. Further, it is important to develop a vocabulary of gestures since they are both an effective and efficient way to communicate.

Another important thing to do when practicing public speaking is to not stop in the middle of the presentation no matter what. Most people will stop and start over and over to get each piece correct. The problem with this method is that it will not prepare them for their mistakes. If they practice like they are already in front of an audience, then they will be more adept at reacting and thinking on their feet.

Nice to know I am not the only one. ;o)

…I say this knowing my great weakness as a public speaker is I tend to be a firehose.

- Amy Gahran