Tips on speaking with confidence

Public speaking tips: We've all heard the oft-repeated "statistic" that the fear of public speaking ranks outranks death in many public surveys. While Samantha thinks that this claim may be a bit exaggerated (Jerry Seinfeld put it into perspective best when he said, "This means people would rather be in the coffin than be required to deliver the eulogy"), she has a few suggestions to ease peoples' stress whenever they are called upon to speak publicly…at work, in school, at church, at a community event or wherever…

Have a roadmap; know where you're going. You need to figure out what the point of the script is first because that will shade and shape the way you tell the rest of the story. Another way to think about it…"Is there a moral to the story or a lesson to be learned? Do I want the audience to draw some conclusion?"

If you don't buy into what you're saying, your audience won't either. Professional speakers and voice actors understand that their primary responsibility is to engage their audience…to get them to buy in…to suspend their disbelief. And whether you are representing yourself as the world's leading authority on integrated software solutions or a super-powered alien, the only way that you can get your audience to believe this, is if you believe it yourself.

You need to find where the "conflict" is in the script to create dramatic tension and interest, and hold your audience's attention. Since the basis for all drama is conflict, if you want to engage your audience, you need come up with a dramatic narrative that gives you a compelling reason for saying the words in the script…a way to frame it that gives your words more interest and importance, otherwise known as "raising the stakes. If you find something that you are passionate about communicating in the script, your message becomes more urgent, compelling and engaging.

A few more things to consider:

Who is your target audience and where will you be speaking? Clearly these considerations will affect the general tone, style and volume of your talk.

By the way, don't assume that you'll be preaching to the choir; think about talking to someone who either has no opinion or is mildly skeptical.

What is the "takeaway"? In other words, if listeners remember only one thing about your talk, what should it be?

Is there a "call to action?" Do you want the audience to follow through in some way?

About voiceover work:
Professional voice actors audition all the time because that is the how they find new work. How often do voice actors typically audition?