Giving a Presentation? How to Improve Your Eye Contact

According to one survey, more adult Americans fear giving a speech more than dying. Some show their fear by their inability to make eye contact with their audiences during the presentation. They look down at their notes, or up at the ceiling, instead.

Poor eye contact in the American culture conveys a lack of openness, of connection. The audience looks at the speaker, and the speaker looks elsewhere. The audience wonders why, and the message loses value quickly.

The audience wants the speaker to succeed; who wants to sit through another awful speech? Practice your presentation enough so that you are not reading it. (Can you give it if the technology and lighting failed?) Try choosing a few friendly faces throughout the audience and looking briefly at each one. If that is too hard for you, look slightly above their eyes at the tops of their heads, and be sure to look around the room when doing this. While it is not quite as good as looking at their eyes, it is better than not looking at them at all. 

For more tips on public speaking, from writing to delivering powerful speeches, get the e-book "Public Speaking: You Can Do It!" by Business Speech Improvement.

   

A secret of extemporaneous speaking

According to one survey, more Americans fear public speaking than dying. Probably a major aspect of this fear is extemporaneous speaking, when one is asked to "just say a few words" without preparation. Accomplished speakers know many techniques to help them. One such method is to develop a framework for what could be said in many such situation. For example, use a chronological framework. What happened first, second, etc until today? What do you envision happening next, and the impact this will have? Let's assume you are asked to speak about the opening of a building or program. In just a few sentences, explain the origin of the project, some highlights (maybe dramatic ones) of the intervening time, and describe briefly where you are today. Talk about your vision of the future of this project or event, and end by enthusiastically thanking the many contributors (by name, if possible). Again, remember to be concise. As an unknown sage phrased it, "Be brief, be brilliant - and be seated!" More such techniques are in a short e-book, Public Speaking: You Can Do It!