Sections:

The first and foremost step to becoming a public speaking star is by grabbing every opportunity that comes in your way. Start from smaller speeches in the beginning. This helps in gaining confidence. Then over the period of time you can make a transition to longer speeches. In the beginning it would be much better if you speak on a more familiar topic. Also if you are a beginner you must try to gain as much time as possible to prepare for the day of speech. If the topic is not familiar, or the time is not sufficient to prepare for the speech, then one can always politely refuse the offer. It would be much better to refuse such an offer rather than face embarrassment on the stage at a later date. However, most speech issuers will give you adequate time and topic of choice. Still, it could happen that you are short on time and unfamiliar with a topic.

Length of Your Speech:

One of the major mistakes that novice speakers make is with the length of their speech. They try to be as explanative and descriptive as possible. The key to be liked by the listeners is a short and sweet speech. How many times did you yourself like to hear a half an hour speech? For most of the occasions a ten minute brief and to the point speech serves the purpose far better than a longer one. I personally hate sitting long hours in a room listening to people talk. Don’t think I am alone.

Reaching the Venue:

Also to be star speaker you don’t have to reach the venue late. Some people do this to prove their importance, and the result is that most of the people lose all their interest in the speech. It’s a good habit to be on the venue in time or if possible a few minutes before so as to become familiar with the staff, stage and the kind of microphone you will use etc.

Creating a Rapport with the Audience:

Another thing that you must try to do as often as possible is to greet as many people as one can, smile at the strangers and tell them a few jokes to lighten up the mood. This helps in creating an interest in the listeners and sets up the right mood. All of us like to laugh.

Relax yourself:

Also important is that one must relax himself before delivering the speech. A little bit of meditation or playing your favorite song in your mind helps a lot in the process. Always keep your chin upright and focus on the stage where you are supposed to deliver the speech. Some people tell you to visualize the audience without clothes; however, this is a humorous suggestion that could prove disastrous. Don’t do it!

You have been called to the stage