Exuding Confidence as a Speaker on Stage
By J.V. Yakhmi
How do seasoned experts develop such a great stage presence, delivering their talks to large audiences, so confidently?
Quite often, seasoned academic speakers like a university professor or a senior scientist, deliver a seminar, or a conference talk, so confidently that it leaves a lasting impression on the audience. How do they develop so much confidence even while facing a large audience? To add to that, they appear so relaxed and make no effort to rush through their presentations. In fact, they give appropriate pauses for the audience to grasp what they present, which they make sure to describe in simple words, avoiding any jargon.
During my career as a scientist for over 50 years, I have keenly observed top experts in different subject areas of scientific research delivering their talks at conferences in India and abroad. Besides, I have myself delivered over 325 talks on a variety of topics related to science or education. I think the confidence of a speaker gets a boost if he/she attends to the following points:
1. Well before his/her talk a successful speaker needs to check with the organizers about the nature, level, and size of the audience to be addressed, and prepare his/her talk accordingly. In my case, I have seen that even while speaking on the same popular theme, such as “Science, Innovations and Jobs” before a full house of college students needs a different style and content, vs. the same theme when spoken to an expert audience of academicians, industrialists and starts-up stars. The former need to be given lucid examples at the level that they would appreciate, whereas the latter audience needs crisp information, because most of them being experts don’t like to listen to what they already know. In fact, a gathering of such experts likes to be told at least a few points or analyses which are new to them, and which if done, would demonstrate the mastery of the speaker on the theme of his talk, and, in turn, reflect the confidence of the speaker, too.
2. All formal talks whether in PowerPoint mode or in oral text mode, even if delivered several times in the past, must be rehearsed a day before, at least thrice, even if quickly, to execute a smooth presentation.
3. Things are different if you are the only speaker of the day, or, if yours is one among the 2–4 talks in a Session of a big Conference. The former would give you ample scope to pace during the talk, maybe throw in a joke, and be a bit repetitive to let the audience assimilate the depth of your ideas. A talk in a Session has a limited freedom, more so when the speaker ahead of you would have most likely overshot his allotted time, and you may be requested to cut your talk short, just as you are walking up to the podium.
4. While delivering a talk, it is good to keep looking at the reaction of the audience, by making eye-contact. If you sense a bit of uneasiness or lack of interest among several listeners, then better skip that part of the talk or summarize it quickly and move to the next part of your talk. These days, there are distractions galore for the audience, viz. checking their mobile phones for any messages or updates, despite the request made by the organizers to keep the phones switched off; or worse still, a few listeners who appeared very attentive in the beginning of your talk, fall asleep, even while sitting in the first row. It can unnerve you as a speaker, but you have to ignore them, and keep marching on. In such a situation, it is advisable to rather look at a few chosen people in the audience who appear to be keenly listening to you, as you go through your talk, and avoid looking at the ‘nappers’, which would irritate you and affect your flow and confidence.
5. A sure-shot method to hold the attention of your audience as a speaker is to link the subject of your talk with some thought-provoking, emotional incidence that happened to you, personally. You can perhaps tell your audience in the beginning of your talk that you would touch upon it, but do so only towards the end of your talk. Expectation would hold their interest.
6. Announce in the beginning of your talk, that the listeners can stop you anytime in between to seek a clarification. It signifies your hold on the subject and your confidence level.
7. Never take the help of points/hints written or scribbled on small bits of paper. It does not put an expert speaker in good light. It belies your confidence.
