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Ashton Himes
Mrs. Cramer
College Composition 1 Period 1
3 November 2017
Dying or Public Speaking?

"Just picture everyone one in their underwear" is a quote some people say to anyone who

is nervous about a public presentation. When the tables turn and it is their turn to speak publicly

they would rather be dead. Eighty-five percent of the population suffers in some degree from fear

of public speaking, some case its immobilizing and in other case it is just common anxiety and

concern. (Cosnett et al.) Public speaking is the number-one fear among Americans. (Cosnett et al.)

You could read all of the survival guides and articles out there to help you ace the presentation and

get over your worst fear. You are going to engage well with the audience when they see you a

human being interacting with other human beings. Even though there are different ways to help

you ace your public presentation the important key points are getting to know your audience,

preparing yourself well, and thinking positively throughout and before your presentation. If you

use these three key points, you will be just fine.

First, getting to know your audience before a prime presentation is a fundamental, and

could more than likely be the fine line between acing the presentation or having it be a total fail.

Their problem is not that they do not know what they are talking about, it is that they are not

teaching in the right way for the audience they are trying to inform. (Cosnett et al.) A week before

your big presentation and call the person up who asked you to speak and ask them what kinds of

people are in the group you are speaking to and how interested they are in the topic you have been

asked to speak about. Figure out what they do and do not appeal to, then you can have a reasonable

estimate of how much of the audience attention you can captivate. You will never get more than
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90 percent of the people tuned in at one time, and the ten to fifteen percent who are not focused on

you are the ones you tend to focus on the most. Focusing on them tends to make you more and

more nervous throughout the discussion. Another key point is to scope out the audience while you

are being introduced, find the individuals who are "sleepers" or the "hopelessly bored" and make

sure you know who they are, then you will not get distracted because of them. (Cosnett et al.)

Knowing your audience will help you succeed with your presentation.

In addition, James B. Anderson wrote a book that has a fifteen-question analysis that he

uses to get to know his audience. Some of the questions are the following: *Why are these people

attending in the first place? *What is their basic attitude? *Are they basically friendly, receptive,

neutral, unpredictable, or hostile? *What is their level of technical expertise compared to my own?

*What possible objections might these people have to this idea? *What would it take to convince

audience members in their own terms and from their own viewpoint? (Cosnett at al.) Anderson

believes that this is the most important question to determine, relate to their world. Another great

key point is to target your talk to a specific action outcome, even the people at the highest levels

get nervous when they have to talk to groups. Do not focus on your discomfort about speaking

focus on your presentation. Involving your audience is also a big part of getting to know your

audience. Make sure to express who you are and to connect with the audience during the first

minute, but do not tell them how special you are, show them with your behavior. After you have

established yourself to the audience, it is time to involve your audience. Easy eye contact, and

involving all of their learning capacities such as, visual, auditory, emotional, and physical are great

ways to keep the audience focused. If you are using visuals or charts, interact with them through

altering the focus between them and yourself. (Cosnett et al.) Using James' strategies will help you

succeed also.
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Even more, preparing well for your presentations seems like common sense but there is

more to it than you expect. Knowing the material you are giving your speech on is common sense,

but making the speech creative and being able to interact with it is a good strategy. Steve Whiteford

finds that when he is teaching to his class he often discovers important new methods and teaching

points. While rehearsing your speech in your head or even to another person keep your mind open

to new observations and ideas you think of or the person you are rehearsing comes up with.

(Cosnett et al.) Whiteford also came up with "Seven Samurai Speaker Tips" which include the

following: practice deep, diaphragmatic breathing because it relieves stress and allows you to

support your voice for better projection and a more pleasant tone. Focus on feeling consonants in

words, focus on feeling the vibration of resonance in them. This improves diction. Exercise your

tongue, for example, stretch it out. Stretching the tongue out relieves vocal tension and creates

flexibility. Smile because a relaxed smile adds warmth to your voice and it is infectious. To relieve

stress or nerves before speaking, take a deep breath and exhale it slowly. If you tire or strain your

voice, massage your vocal chords with an easy hum, but make sure to keep it light and concentrate

on the easy vibrations on your lips. (Cosnett et al.) If you are prepared for your presentation, you

will succeed.

In addition, visualizing a successful presentation is important. If you expect to do poorly,

you will most likely rehearse a poor presentation over and over again in your head causing

unrealistic scenarios and anticipating problems that will most likely never happen. Instead

visualize yourself walking up to the lecture, getting comfortable, and looking out and seeing an

audience that is welcoming and interested in what you have to say. Visualizing a positive

experience will most likely lead to an actual positive experience because it is what you have been

imagining. (Cosnett et al.) Giving yourself credit is also a big part of thinking positively. You have
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to remember that you have been chosen to do a presentation or speech on this specific topic for a

reason. You have the abilities, skills, and a certain prospective that they are looking for. The person

who asked you to do the speech obviously thinks it is going to be valuable to the audience. (Cosnett

et al.) When you have a successful presentation visualized, you will succeed greatly.

Lastly, even though there are different ways to help you ace your public presentation the

important key points are getting to know your audience, preparing yourself well, and thinking

positively throughout and before your presentation. Public speaking is the number-one fear among

Americans. Believe it or not, Eighty-five percent of the population suffers in some degree from

fear of public speaking, in some cases its immobilizing and in other cases it just causes common

anxiety or concern. If you use the three key points stated in the essay, you will be just fine.

Works Cited

Cosnett, Gary, et al. “A Survival Guide to Public Speaking.” Training & Development Journal,
Sept. 1990, p. 15. Educators Reference Complete,
go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?p=PROF&sw=w&u=pl1949&v=2.1&it=r&id=GALE|A9413711&asid
=d8412f1d96dd52d48d186a9fe2e199f8. Accessed Feb. 2017.
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