chaos.

..without shaking and st st stuttering, AKA being generally anxious.

I don't do this normally, but public speaking scares the **** out of me.

I am assuming I have got the job I was interviewed for and no doubt there will be a, 'do a speech about yourself' or some topic equally fvcking stupid in the induction session.

I have plenty of time, so I might as well be prepared.

ta.

OllyK

No biggie - just get on and do it, keep your hands out of your pockets otherwise it looks like you are masterbating

eClaire

Imagine your audience is naked; that should make you feel better bout yourself

kingofturds

iTrader: (1)

get beered up that will keep you calm

Gav1

Chaos, had to do this yesterday at a job assessment centre infront of about 9 people.

Not nice.

I just kept looking at my cue cards and when i looked up i looked over everybodys heads so as not to catch anybodys eye as it were.

Got through it eventually.

Must of been alright as they,ve offered me the job today!!

Gav.

Brendan Hughes

Get five of your mates round, give them a beer each. Tell them to take the **** reasonably but let you finish. 3 speeches.

If you can do it after their heckling, an interview panel will be simple.

chaos.

9 people isn't too bad, its big rooms with lots of eyes on you that freaks me out.

Edit - how long was your speech and what kind of things did you say?

Gav1

My speech had to be about myself , my life and how i compare to an object that i had to take with me!!

I took a piece of string ( sounds cack i know, but here me out..), A piece of string is strong, versatile, re-usable, can do more than one thing at once, adaptable etc...

Lasted about 5 mins in all, which doesn't sound long but is quite a long time to be talking to a group of people without interruption.

chaos.

lol, thanks. A speech about myself would be well under a minute cos there's nothing interesting to say!

Like anyone cares about what I have to say about myself anyway fs.

Graz

<cough> Nose candy <cough>

Markus

Never had to give an induction speech, or any formal speech as such, however, I do run training courses and give demonstrations, sometimes in front of techs, sometimes in front of directors and such like, so I guess that could be considered formal speaking. Anywhere between 2 andd 10 people usually attend.

Just act natural, speak clearly and you'll get through it.

paul-s

make sure your fly's not undone too

paulr

Tell them what you are going to say.
Then tell them it.
Then tell them waht you've told them.

yoza

Show them the 'Pound and the Penny' trick, worked for me.

They loved it, and it broke the ice, the rest was easy, or easy-ish.

Jap2Scrap

Did plenty of this type of speaking. Major part of looking confident is believing in what you're telling them. How are you supposed to convince them you know what you're talking about if you don't believe it yourself, so thoroughly research the topic and ask yourself the questions before they're asked of you. If there are any senior members in the 'audience' make sure you occasionally make and maintain eye-contact with them for a few seconds at a time, whilst talking obviously otherwise you just look a weirdo
Don't turn your back on them (if referring to OHP's or posters, etc.) for more than a second or two and don't forget to smile now and again. Don't shuffle, twiddle your thumbs or pace too much. Keep your hands busy by either holding a pointer/marker or being expressive with them whilst orating.

If you're prepared you'll wonder where the time has gone when your done. Minutes fly past like seconds.

Oh and finally, practice in an empty room, or to your dog/cat, etc. Get used to hearing your own voice out loud in an otherwise silent environment. Don't do this and your first thoughts will be, "God I sound a tw@t when I'm talking."

Good luck.

matt85

Try doing an assessed speech or presentation on something you know nothing about, to 15 people, all wanting you to fail, and infront of a Dr who happens to be regarded as an expert in that area.

That will make your @rse twitch!!

Just make sure you do the following-

Rehearse it
Make sure you know what you are talking about inside out
Make eye contact with people so it looks as though you are interested.
Smile- Sometimes doing this convinces your brain that you really are comfortable and you satart to relax.

That will help you on your way.

Fox

If this is going to be at an induction session, then remember that all the other inductees will be scared sh**less too. It's always best to go first and get it out of the way, especially if you are nervous. By going first you are not building up the tension for yourself, nobody has made a blinding speech before you, and you get to set the standard and worry the rest of them.

Bearing in mind most of the other inductees will not be listening to you, they will be too worried about what they are going to say, try and include things which you think might be of interest to the people who are employing you and focus on them (eye contact).

If you can, include something funny about yourself and something about your interests out side work. Remember you have already got the job, what they want to know now is about the person. If you want to talk about previous jobs then don't slate your previous employers, only talk about what you are bringing to the new company (your skills, previous experience etc)

Above everything else, make it light.

Cheers

Fox

SJ_Skyline

I detest public speaking. You are lucky in that you will be speaking on a subject that you have experience on - you.

- Focus on what you are saying.
- Use pauses, slow your speech otherwise it's just a stream of babble.
- With a small audience (<12) make eye contact with each person in the audience.
- Change the inflection of your voice, nothing so boring as a monotone.
- Move, avoid the "rabbit in the headlights" look.

Above all, remember that you already have the job, they can't sack you for giving a dodgy induction presentation - what is the absolute worst that can happen and how does it compare to being knocked down by a bus?

Above all - Good luck!


DBW is probably the person with the best advice on this (IMHO)

Hanslow

Well, assuming you have the job, congratulations

On to your problems, SJ has covered most of the things, take your time, rehearse it a couple of times and time how long it takes to say what you want to say. If you are allowed cue cards and the like, write down some reminder key words in a structured order to keep the speech flowing. Remember, everyone will probably have to do it and they'll all be bricking it as well, so try and enjoy it and relax and you'll come across a lot better for it.

Best of luck

chaos.

Humiliation, I'd rather be knocked down by the bus

Thanks for the tips everyone.

Leslie

I never enjoyed all that much either but had to get used to it, especially as a lecturer.

You have to really know what you are going to say without having to think too hard about what comes next. Good, easy to read notes are essential. Dont gabble, speak in a normal almost conversational voice. You must appear confident and try not to lose the thread. Keep it in a logical order with respect to your life history.

Dont fixate on one person, look around the room at different people or over their heads while you are talking, but try not to look away from the audience anyway, never turn your back on them.

Practice what you are going to say until you know it so well that you are sick of it.

Its the first sentence which is the most difficult until you get into the swing of it and it gets easier.

Good luck-let us know how it went.

Les

StickyMicky

when i did mine in my last job there was about 20 people in the room, i stood up told them my name ans then told them i was an alchoholic, it worked

broke the ice 100% and they all started pissing thereselves laughing, i had them eating out of my hand from then on, people were still telling all the newbies when i left about the time "that nutter over there told all the gaffers he was an alcholic in his induction"

worked for me, might not work for you lol

astraboy

if you can get away with visual aids (powerpoint, ohp, wallchart) then do it. That way not only can you illustrate your point, but your auidences concentration will not be focused totally on you, allowing you to losen up a little.
works for me every time.
astraboy.

Vegescoob

As all the others have said. However if you can see yourself as "acting" it may help. We all adopt different "roles" throughout our daily life, you as well, although you may not realise it. Think about it, is the role you project on SN the same one you perform with workmates, friends, family?
Try to look at yourself from "outside yourself". Then picture yourself giving the talk.
You can do it.

Bonehead

Having been in bands for donkeys years try this.

If you start to worry about making the speech you'll get yourself worried and all the things you'll worry about will happen.
So, try and relax as much as possible, dont think about making a mistake, and try to find something to build your confidence up.

mart360

I do them as a matter of course,,

had an interesting one last year...

presentation to my director, business manager,

German plant quality manager (oem) & his other managers...

was not a happy bunny until it was my turn to talk,

then it just flows....

mind you i have dropped a clanger presenting a new product to Toyota uk,s md on a factory tour!!!

luckily it came accross as funny and i escaped the **** up!!

Mart