ADVICE ON ORAL PRESENTATIONS HOW TO DEAL WITH ORAL PRESENTATIONS NERVES: You will probably be nervous at the beginning of your presentation. Do not worry because most people are nervous in this situation. Try not to speak too fast during the first couple of minutes. AUDIENCE: Try to be enthusiastic: your interest in the subject matter will carry your audience along. Look around your audience as you speak: eye contact is essential for maintaining a good rapport. Do not look at the papers all the time! BODY LANGUAGE: Stand rather than sit when you are delivering your presentation and try to be aware of any repetitive hand gestures or mannerisms that might irritate your audience. VOICE QUALITY: Your must be clearly audible at all times. Speak up and do not let your voice drop at the end of sentences. If you change your intonation, your voice will be more interesting to listen to and you will be able to make your points more effectively. VISUAL AIDS: If you use the board or transparencies, make sure you allow your audience enough time to absorb or copy the information you are giving. AUDIENCE REACTION: Be ready to deal with all questions. When answering, try to be precise and polite. Suggest the audience to keep most questions until the end of the presentation.
THE LANGUAGE OF PRESENTATIONS SIMPLICITY: Use short sentences that you are comfortable with. There is no benefit in using difficult language. CLARITY: Concrete words are much clearer and easier to understand than abstract concepts. Avoid jargon unless you are sure your audience will understand it. SIGNALLING: Indicate when you have completed one point or section in your presentation. There are some signalling devices, such as: For introducing the topic: Let me start by... I will start by... First of all, I will... Starting with... I would like to begin by... For giving an example: For example... A good example of this is... To illustrate this point...
For ending a point: Right, I have told you about... We have looked at... That is all I have to say about... For changing a topic: Let me turn now to... Let´s move onto... Turning to... I would like now to... Let´s look now at... For sequencing: Firstly... secondly... thirdly.... lastly. First of all... After that... Finally... To start with... Later... To finish up... For summarising: I would like to sum up now... Let me summarise briefly what I have said. Let me remind you, finally, of some points I have made. NOW, IT IS YOUR TURN TO SPEAK... SO, GOOD LUCK!!!!
(Adapted from Cotton, D & Robbins, S. Business Class)