Many people, when asked to give a speech, find themselves feeling very nervous. They may feel tongue-tied and have no idea what to say. Other people are able to address any crowd with confidence. Whether you love or hate public speaking, the following tips will be very helpful to you.

Feeling nervous before speaking in public is very common. To help overcome the fear of speaking in front of others practice the speech you will be giving several times in front of your family. This will allow you to work out any kinks in your speech. Additionally, this will give you the chance to speak in front of others.

Find one person in the crowd who looks trustworthy and focus on them. Pretend like the two of you are the only people in the room. A major reason why people are scared of speaking in public is because of the amount of people in the room. If you just focus on one person, you will forget anyone else is there.

Make sure you know your material completely. Even if you memorize your material, it’s helpful to know other aspects of your topic that are not included in your speech. If you have time, you can add in some of these things throughout your speech as needed. They are also useful while answering questions from the audience on in follow up conversations.

Try to relax before and during your speech. Breathe deeply and remember that you are well-prepared, so you have nothing to worry about. Some say that it helps to envision your audience members in their underwear to help you relax. This sort of visualization can help you look and feel more relaxed while speaking.

Make eye contact with your audience members. Doing so makes them feel as if you are speaking directly to them and helps keep them engaged. It also makes you appear confident and poised. Look at various members of the audience as you speak to help engage as many of them as possible.

Project your voice when you speak in front of an audience. This is particularly true if you do not have the benefit of a microphone. You want everyone in the room to be able to hear you, so do not be afraid to speak as loudly as necessary to accomplish that. There is no point in making a speech that most of the audience cannot hear.

Never tell the audience that you’re sorry for being nervous or any other issue that comes up. Chances are they didn’t even notice in the first place. Even if they do, coming across as lacking in confidence detracts from your position of authority on your speech that you are making.

Public speaking fills many people with dread, while others thrive by feeding off the energy of a crowd. Whether you are terrified of public speaking and avoid it all costs, or enjoy standing before a crowd of people, these tips can help. Remember them the next time that you have to give a speech.