How to Properly Give a Speech in Front of Many People

Everybody has to give a public speech once in their life. Here's how to do it properly.

Steps

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    Prepare. Write your speech well in advance, and remember to shoot for your target audience. Make sure you get to the place where you are giving your speech with time to spare. A backup copy of your speech is useful, even if just for peace of mind.
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    Practice. Read your speech anytime you have the opportunity: to your friends, your family, or in the mirror. Try to memorize parts of your speech; this will leave you free to make eye contact.
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    Don't panic. Relax. Take a deep breath. Being nervous will not help your speech-giving ability any.
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    Voice is key. Keep your voice level and even. Don't go too fast or too slow. Enunciate clearly, and try to avoid having your voice crack. Drink a bit of water if you need to.
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    Make eye contact. Don't speak to your podium. Look at your audience. This will also help to project your voice.
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    Remember to smile! A smile will help put your audience - and you - at ease.
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Community Q&A

  • Question
    How do I introduce myself, and what do I say at the end?
    Community Answer
    Community Answer
    It depends on the setting and situation. If it's a more formal setting, I would suggest something like, "Hello, my name is [your name] and I will be doing a presentation about [subject]." For a closing, "Thank you" might be sufficient. If it's less formal, you can be more casual, "Hi! I'm [your name] and we'll be discussing [subject] today," then you'd end with, "Thanks! I hope you all have a great day."
  • Question
    Should I add a joke or roast to my speech?
    Community Answer
    Community Answer
    If the situation is appropriate- feel free to crack a joke to make your audience laugh and feel more comfortable. Make sure it is respectful, however! (e.g You don't want to go around dissing a dead person during a eulogy, but you could tell a funny story about your time with that person.)
  • Question
    How do I finish my speech?
    Community Answer
    Community Answer
    Summarize the key points of your speech and thank the audience.
  • Question
    How long should my speech be?
    Purplecakecaroline
    Purplecakecaroline
    Community Answer
    It depends on how long you want it to be and what type of speech it is. Most speeches are from 30 minutes to 1 hour. If you have time to say a lengthy speech, then you should take advantage of that time.

Warnings

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About This Article

wikiHow is a “wiki,” similar to Wikipedia, which means that many of our articles are co-written by multiple authors. To create this article, 10 people, some anonymous, worked to edit and improve it over time. This article has been viewed 36,952 times.
106 votes - 90%
Co-authors: 10
Updated: March 15, 2021
Views: 36,952
Categories: Public Speaking
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