The short answer is you should practice your presentation as much as you possibly can. Know your content backward, forward and sideways. There is no such thing as over-rehearsal.
Here’s why and how.
A Lesson From a Wedding
My wife and I gave ourselves just four months to plan our wedding, from proposal to vows. That kind of timeframe inevitably leads to tense moments.
One of those occasions came just weeks before the big day when Karen and I were driving out to meet with the minister. I wanted to try out a new intro I’d been working on for a major speech I had coming up.
Karen, more occupied with the details of the major wedding we had coming up, asked, “When is the speech?” I told her it was in March.
This was November. Kind of ironic that I might spend more time preparing for a speech than for the wedding.
Always Be Rehearsing
This is how I usually work. I’ll spend months rehearsing a big presentation. At the end of this month, I have the first of what will be six speeches in three weeks. I started working on that first one in January.
Even though it’s just a longer version of a presentation I’ve given multiple times, it requires customization for the audience. And I wanted to create a special intro.
So I practice it, over and over, in my head. In the shower, at the gym, at the grocery store. I’m constantly adjusting, refining and testing.
Internalize, Don’t Memorize
This was an important lesson I learned from doing theater. Preparing for a play is about more than memorizing lines. You need to get the script down so thoroughly that you can do it in your sleep.
Well, maybe not in your sleep. But the key is, you know you’ve got your material properly internalized when you can recite it even while doing other stuff—the dishes, the laundry, whatever.
And that’s what you have to do with your presentation. You don’t need to know it line-by-line, word-for-word, but you need to know the general points well enough that you can deliver them without prompting from your slides and regardless of distraction (like when a technical glitch prevents you from using your slides).
How Long Should You Rehearse?
How long you rehearse your speech is up to you. At least one expert recommends 30 hours of rehearsal for a one-hour speech. (And that’s just the rehearsal part—she recommends many, many more hours in development of the content and visuals.)
And someone who commented on this article I wrote made the point that rehearsal is really a life-long endeavor, since a speech is the expression of the wisdom, experience and point of view you’ve accumulated and developed over a lifetime.
For me personally, I like lots of time. There is certainly more danger in being underprepared than over-prepared.
Preparation Equals Freedom
Some people fear that too much rehearsal undermines spontaneity and authenticity. Actors know the opposite to be true. Having your material internalized actually frees you to live in the moment.
To understand how, check out this post on Patricia Fripp’s Executive Coaching Blog. She was kind enough to excerpt a favorite portion of my book, 11 Deadly Presentation Sins.
And, of course, there’s a lot more in the book itself if you’re interested.
Photo Credit: Geoff… via Compfight cc
On my podcast, I often ask my guests about their process for honing their presentation skills. How much do they practice? How many times do they rehearse their presentation before they go on stage?
What I’ve found is that there’s no one answer to the question “how many times do you need to practice a presentation.” Everyone’s different, but their answers might surprise you.
Issac Lidsky practiced his speech What Reality Are You Creating for Yourself over 1000 times. That’s roughly 191 hours of practice for his 11.5 minute speech.
Jill Sherer-Murray practiced her speech, the Unstoppable Power of Letting Go over 600 times. That’s 115 hours of practice.
Both Issac and Jill practiced more than you probably expected.
Was it too much? Definitely not. Watch their TED talks and you’ll agree that both of their talks were inspiring and memorable. Their confidence radiated while they shared their stories.
Jill and Issac both received standing ovations at the end of their talks. Millions of people have watched them. All the practice was worth it.
How many times should you practice your speech?
Of course, not every talk is a TED talk. The reason why Issac and Jill devoted so many hours to practice is because they knew that their eleven minutes on stage could easily change the trajectory of their career.
But even if you’re not booked to give a high-profile talk like these, you probably do need to practice your speech more times than you think you do. A general rule of thumb is that you should practice for at least 30 hours. So, if you’ve written a 60-minute keynote speech you should aim to practice it at least 30 times. You should practice a 30-minute presentation at least 60 times, giving yourself 30 total hours of practice. It’s not a magic number, though—how well you practice matters a lot more than the number of times you do it. Longer presentations, of course, take more time to perfect than short ones.
If you can, try to practice your speech 2 to 3 times per day over the course of a few weeks. Spreading out your practice sessions (rather than trying to cram it all in over one weekend) helps to embed your presentation to memory more effectively and efficiently.
It’s tough not to be nervous before your presentation. Those first few minutes on stage are nerve-wracking. Practicing helps to calm your presentation nerves. You’ll stand on stage knowing your speech inside out, with full confidence words will flow without having to think too much about them.
There’s no need to practice your speech from start to finish every time. I tell my clients that once they know their presentation fairly well they should just practice the parts of the speech that cause them to stumble. Practicing a presentation in its entirety is onerous. Practicing just the tough bits saves time and gives you more value from the time you have.
As event day draws near, put all the pieces together. Practice from start to finish until you can’t stand the sound of your voice anymore. And then a few more times.
Remember, it’s just just the words of the presentation that should be practiced. It’s also the delivery. Especially in those final weeks and days before the event, make your rehearsals as “real life” as possible, and practice how you make eye contact with your audience, what body language and gestures you’ll use, and what tone of voice is appropriate to give emphasis where needed.
If you find it motivating or encouraging, count how many times you practice, just like Issac and Jill did.
When (and How) Do Expert Public Speakers Practice?
Jill practiced her presentation in the shower, on the road, walking her dog, in a yoga class, and at a university. Nearly 500 of Issac’s 1000 practice sessions were for his wife. (The woman is a saint.)
It is important to find someone you can trust that will give you honest presentation feedback. “It was good” isn’t good enough. It’s best to find someone with expertise in rhetoric, communication, influence, and persuasion.
An executive speaker coach like myself can help you. I work with clients to help them develop, practice, and deliver bold speeches that influence and engage.
Get in touch … I’d love to show you how.
Rehearsing Your Speech for an Effective Presentation
You have done your research, written your speech, and now it is time to rehearse it. One of the most important benefits of rehearsing a speech is the building of self-confidence. While the ultimate goal of rehearsing is to find errors and to make adjustments, the goal of building confidence in yourself and in your material is extremely important. The more comfortable you are with your material, the better your delivery will be.
We will take a step-by-step approach to describing the best way to rehearse.
1. Practice in front of a mirror. In addition to hearing you speak, it is also important to see how others will see you. If you are going to use gestures during your speech, this is the time when you will notice how they will look at an audience. You may find that you need to make adjustments. Are you facial expressions appropriate to the words you are using? Practice making a mistake as well, perhaps using the wrong fact or misstating it. Practice apologizing to the audience and see how that will look in the mirror as well. A good rule of thumb is to have the first 20 seconds of a speech completely memorized so that you can make constant eye contact with an audience. This makes for a very impressive opening.
2. Record your speech. Recording your speech will serve many purposes. In addition to allowing you to hear your own voice exactly as it will be portrayed to an audience, it will also allow you to time the entire speech and distinct sections of the speech. If you need to make adjustments to the total length of the speech, analyze how long each section took and how many necessary adjustments. As you play back your speech, analyze where you need to make a pause for emphasis. Make notes on your written speech, your outline, your key cards, or whatever you will be using during your speech.
3. Videotaping your speech. It is also a good idea to videotape your speech. Just as some people are uncomfortable hearing their own voice, many people do not like to see themselves on video. However, watching the video will be a great way to boost your confidence and to practice your delivery.
4. Ask one person to be your audience. Ask someone you know who will give you honest feedback to listen, and watch, your rehearsal. Even if you watch your videotape or listen to your recording a hundred times, you will still miss something that a different pair of eyes and ears will discern. It is always desirable to get the benefit of someone else's opinion.
5. Rehearse in front of a small group. If possible, also rehearse in front of a small group of people, even if it is family members. Ask them to be constructively critical and to make suggestions on how your speech could be made better. Rehearsing in front of a small group is a particularly good way to combat anxiety and that will help you to alleviate your fears.
6. Monitor your mannerisms. While you are watching your speech on videotape, you should pay particular attention to your mannerisms. We typically do not notice, or even know we have, certain mannerisms. However, watching ourselves on videotape will provide you with an excellent opportunity to see yourself in action and notice some mannerisms that perhaps should be avoided.
7. If possible, practice at the site of your speech. This is not always possible, of course, but it is an extremely valuable opportunity if you can do so. Practicing at the site will ensure that you will have few surprises on the day of delivery. You will know the look and feel of the place and when you arrive to give your speech, it will be familiar ground.
8. Be sure to practice with your visual aids. This is a common mistake beginning public speakers make. They assume that the important part is to practice their verbal delivery and that it is easy to refer to visual aids. Not so. You want to ensure that you know exactly how, and when , you are going to incorporate your visual aids into your speech. Make notes in your speech on when you will use which aid.
9. Practice with some background noise. To better prepare using a more realistic setting, play some light background music while you are rehearsing your speech. This will mimic some of the noise you will hear while you are giving a speech. It is surprising for some people to know just how much noise an audience can make while listening to a speech, and this can be disconcerting for some speakers.
10. Finally, rehearse in the same clothes you intend on wearing on speech day. This might sound silly at first, but the goal of rehearsing is to mimic as closely as possible everything that you will experience on the day of your delivery. If you clothes are ill fitting, you will notice this during the videotaped playback.
Preparing Materials for your Speech
An important part of your rehearsal process will be the preparation of materials you will have during the delivery of your speech. It is on these materials that you will be making notes as you listen to your voice recording or videotape. Most speakers use one of two options, a printed version of their entire speech, word for word, or note cards. Let us look at both options.
Note Cards
Note cards accomplish three goals, they can contain the right amount of information for you to remember important points in your speech, they are easy to use, and they will not be seen by an audience.
Note cards can be index cards, 3-by-5 inch cards. You can easily fit these cards in your pocket and then take them out when you arrive at the podium. The audience never has to see them. Make sure the cards are numbered in numerical order. This is very important because your cards will be sorted in the order in which you will be delivering your speech. If you drop your cards, it might be disastrous to remember the proper order.
On each card, you will write the main point for each section of your speech, and then the important evidence that you will be citing as support for your main point. You will also make notes about inflection and placing emphasis on certain points.
Full Text of Speech
As an alternative, you could rehearse with the entire text of the speech. For very important speeches, this is considered standard practice, even if you are a seasoned professional. In addition to important speeches, here are some other situations when a full text version is recommended.
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Every word is vitally important, for example, a political speech.
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Your time limit is very strict and you cannot deviate from your prepared remarks.
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You are extremely nervous. Having the full speech in front of your will relax you.
Rehearsing a speech is vital to its success. Never compromise or skip this important step. It will build your confidence and make you an effective public speaker.
Body Language and International Customs
We communicate in a number of ways, and body language is indeed a universal language. The way you communicate with your body can, without overstating the issue, either ensure a successful delivery or ruin your chances of ever bonding with an audience. In this article, we will discuss how to use nonverbal communication effectively. We will end with a brief discussion on nonverbal communication specifically for international audiences.
Eye contact, the way you move on stage, and the motions you make is an important part of your message. In fact, there are speech experts who have concluded that the words we use account for less than 40 percent of our message delivery. The rest is communicated through body language and other nonverbal communication. You want to use these movements to your advantage, and you do not want the audience to misunderstand them.
The main obstacle that most people have with poor body language is that they are unaware that they are using such language. The majority of people are not conscious of receiving nonverbal communication from a speaker, but we do register a great deal of thought and we constantly draw conclusions throughout a speech. Therefore, it is often difficult to control what you are not conscious of. This is why rehearsal with a videotape becomes invaluable. It gives you an opportunity to see your body language and to make any necessary adjustments.
Your speech does not begin the moment you start speaking at a podium. Your speech begins the moment the audience sees you. This could be while you are walking toward the stage or across the stage to the podium. First impressions are vitally important for a public speaker, and the audience will form an opinion about before you speak even your first word.
Here are some tips on how to approach a podium before you begin speaking.
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Walk in an energetic, comfortable manner, but not quickly.
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If you are using a full text version of your speech, hold it inconspicuously, and then arrange it quickly on the podium.
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If you are using note cards, pull them out of your pocket after you have arrived at the podium, not while walking toward it.
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Hold you head up and do not look at the floor. When you arrive at the podium, make sure you are looking directly at the audience.
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Pause for a moment and take an inconspicuous deep breath before you begin speaking.
Such an approach to the podium will immediately convey self-confidence to the audience, and you will have made an excellent first impression.
Eye Contact
It is an established fact of public speaking that the more eye contact you make with an audience, the more effective you message will be communicated. Try to select several members of the audience and make eye contact with them throughout the speech. It could be people you know well who are there to support you, or you can select a stranger. However, be careful not to make eye contact with the same person constantly unless they are a close friend and have given you permission to do so. Too much eye contact with the same person will make that person uncomfortable.
Eye contact also serves one other important purpose: it gives you feedback during a speech. You will be able to read the body language of your audience just as they are reading your body language. If you sense that your message is not getting through clearly enough, or you sense other thoughts about the audience, you can make any necessary adjustments.
Gestures
If you are nervous, it is best to keep your hands on the podium at all times, out of sight of the audience. Nervous people tend to have shaky hands, and this will be seen by the audience. You should refrain from drinking water during a speech if you are nervous because your hands will be shaking and the glass will too. If the speaker feels that the audience is noticing this, it will make the speaker even more nervous. However, if you are comfortable using your hands to make gestures during a speech, it is a powerful way of communicating your message.
Here are some gestures that will help you to connect with an audience.
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Emphatic gestures. These can be used to emphasize a point strongly. Perhaps you are delivering a motivational speech and you want the audience to become involved in something. You can point to them. This is not considered rude. They will feel as if they are involved in your speech. Other emphatic gestures include making a fist, and sweeping your hand in the air to motion to the audience.
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Using fingers to count points. When people are giving a list to someone else, they often use the fingers on their hands to count them. "Number 1. Get milk, number 2. Get bread, and so on." In a speech, this is often a subtle but very powerful way of letting the audience know that you are enumerating several important points that they should understand.
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Descriptive gestures. We all know that a picture is worth a thousand words and if a picture is vital to your message, you will have a visual aid. However, if you have not prepared a visual aid and you want to give the audience a general idea of the object you are referencing, you can draw a picture with your fingers and hands.
Stage Movement
If you are not using a podium, you may simply be standing on a stage and addressing an audience. If this is the case, you should, contrary to popular belief, keep stage movements at a minimum. No one wants to see someone moving back and forth on a stage while they are giving a speech. It will look amateurish. The simple rule of thumb is to move when it is required, and not much more than that. If you are using a chart, for example, you might occasionally have to walk toward it, and then you can move back to center stage. However, keeping your movements to a minimum will serve you best.
If a podium has been provided for you, use it. Do not leave the podium and walk around the stage. This is especially true if you are nervous. The podium will help you to maintain your calmness throughout the speech.
International Customs
Nonverbal communication is especially important when you are visiting a foreign country. You may be speaking in front of an audience who knows your language, or you might have a translator. Either way, the gestures you think are appropriate in your native country might not be appropriate elsewhere. If you are not absolutely certain about the use of certain hand gestures or body movements, do not make them. It is perfectly acceptable to remain at the podium with your hands on the podium throughout your speech.
We all know by now that you must thoroughly research your audience before you arrive for your speech, and this is especially important when you are visiting a foreign country. However, in addition to research, it is important to convey to a foreign audience that you are honored to have been invited to speak to them. You are an ambassador of your native country and there are some people in the audience who will know some positive and negative stereotypes of your native country. One particularly powerful tactic a speaker can use is to rehearse at least one line of your speech in the foreign language. Make sure that the line is very important or, at the very least, would be very warmly received by the audience. You do not need to speak it perfectly, the audience will be very forgiving and they will be impressed that you made an effort. Either at the beginning or at the end of your speech, deliver this line and you will immediately gain a high level of rapport with the audience.
Most foreign audiences are delighted to see and hear a foreign speaker. Make it a rewarding experience for both you and the audience.