What are some tips for keeping your emotions in check when speaking?

Breathe - Your body just needs a bit more oxygen to get the nerves down so take a moment - relax and breathe Story telling - Its your story which no one knows. Play with it!

Backup your speech with facts and figures. Make the emotional appeal sound logical, while people love to connect through their heart, they want an approval of their head in order to establish that connection. Know your audience and what is most likely to strike a cord with them. Last but not the least, believe in your version, it’s your story and you know the best.

I love it when a speaker lets their emotions ( love, gratitude) show and they actually tear up a bit. Being authentic is the key to connecting. If you are afraid, sure, say so. If you feel deeply, let a tear leak out.

Here's the absolute best mindset to keep your fear and anxiety under control. Imagine you are bringing a valuable gift to a person. How would you feel? Chances are, you would feel very confident. No fear. No anxiety. Right? Well, your speech or message is a gift that you are bringing to the audience. Walk on the stage to present the gift. Stop focusing on yourself. It's not about you. The speech is not for you. It's for them. You are not the customer. They are. What you think is an ordinary speech or not that important maybe a life-changing moment for others. Finally, no matter how spectacular your speech is, it will not land for everyone. Accept that reality. That's life. Now go deliver your gift or message.

Focus on what is best to really help those in the audience and speak from your own experience. People are looking to you for motivation so focus on the end result and stay on track. Keep it all simple and to the point. Be excited but be real. Be yourself.

When preparing, I find it helpful to list out the first key talking point on an index card and then rehearse that talking point several times. Next, I write the second key talking point and then start from the top and rehearse both talking points together several times until I am comfortable with the flow. Then, I will add the third talking point and do the same. By the time I have written down all my talking points, I can speak fluently to each of them. I also tend to arrive at the venue early to walk the stage and visualize my experience up there prior to when I go live. It helps to maintain a sense of familiarity and preparedness when I step foot on that stage in front of the live audience.

In terms of practice and rehearsal: 1) I write my key points on large colour-coded post-it notes with a sharpie on a large whiteboard. I do this is because it helps me reinforce the structure of the talk, which gives me confidence to deal with whatever challenges may arise. 2) After I have my post-it board done, I rehearse the talk in micro-components. Ex: The opening/Part 1/Part 2/Part 3/The Closing. 3) I then rehearse the whole talk from start to finish with slides if I have some. 4) Timing is paramount. I ensure that I'm on time by mapping out how much time each section takes. 5) I edit only after I rehearse because it's easier to see and hear what might be redundant or hampers the flow when you get a talk on its feet.

Definitely practice. I like to have so much more than I’ll say to practise as on the day if there’s no autocue or reminder prompts then you’ll remember what you do and it will all be gold. Another trick I love is writing out my speech in short format like you might do for an exam. It helps you remember the order and writing by hand sends quicker messages to your brain so you are more likely to remember. Never forget nerves are there not because you aren’t good enough. They are there because you care. You care to do a good job. You care to share well with the audience. You care to share your message and wisdom. Reframe nerves and nervousness and learn to use it as a tool that inspires you and motivates you.

One thing I have found useful in public speaking is preparing adequately for the target audience with the required message per time, as well as having a good self esteem and good command of the language for delivery.

Know your content very well and be prepared to make minor changes if you see audience is not participating. Have main points written down as key points as this will help you stay on track. Use simple language to deliver your message and try not to impress but rather focus on the fact you want to help others. This will help your nerves and not forget your content.

The key to breathing is simply breathing your nose, 5.5 breaths (give or take) in, 5.5 breaths out. This type of breathing has been a game-changer for me after I read about it in science journalist, James Nector's book, Breath. Breathing in this way has played an important role in managing my nerves, improved the quality of my voice and enhanced my speech endurance during longer sessions. Before sessions, I do online yoga classes, tapping, writing in the 5-minute Journal and listening to the type of music that reflects the talk I'm giving. How you show up energetically is a key part of a speaker's performance that sometimes gets neglected by the more technical components of a speech. People feel your energy as well as hear you.

Practice , practice , practice - do it and fail , do it and fail , analyse it , practice alone or with someone , do it again .

I use the breathing method in through nose slowly but deeply, hold the out slowly through your mouth. repeated a few times. This relaxes the nerves. I also make sure that before I go on stage and am excited internally so it shows externally as people respond better to an excited and happy person who smiles.

Dealing with emotions as a speaker can be expressed and channelled like the pros: Before your talk, do yoga or mindfulness meditation. Get grounded in your body. Invite those challenging emotions in. When anxiety comes up say: "You belong." When your monkey mind starts repeating imposter syndrome thoughts, say to yourself, "I hear you". Feel the emotion where it resides in your body without judgment. Steve Martin talks about feeling nervous before EVERY comedy routine. Bill Russell threw up before every game. I produced a comedy tour for top, young comedians. On the tour bus, several wrote in journals to deal with their emotions and channel them into new ideas. Sometimes the best ideas come through nerves and tough emotions.

I use my whole body and face when I talk so that my emotions, movement and voice assist me in delivering my talk as this draws all the audience in to listen. I try not to be boring or monotone as this will loose the audience's attention.

One way to connect with an audience as a speaker or workshop creator: Eye contact: Look at individuals in the audience throughout your presentation. Don't look over their heads, which is bad advice I've heard. When you look at a specific person in the eyes as you make a point, it feels conversational to the whole audience and connects you to them. If you are speaking to a virtual audience, look right into the camera lens on your computer or camera. Try not to blink too much. If you can manage both of these at the same time (direct eye contact and minimizing blinking, the person, or audience, on the other end of the camera will feel like it's a one-on-one connection and forget the barrier of technology that exists between you.

Eye contact with as many people in the audience is crucial as it makes them feel that you are talking to them. I use the whole stage if I can and come down if the stage is elevated and audience is small. If big venue I make sure all can see me not just the front rows. I involve the audience too. This helps me see if I am relevant to them so I can help them etc.

1) Hire an excellent speaking coach to give you notes on your talk. You will be able to apply what you learn to future talks. 2) Enrol 3 trusted friends. Tell them you're going to buy them dinner and you'd appreciate specific feedback from them on a talk. Perform your talk once to them after practicing it 10 times. Give them a 1-page checklist. On it provide a rating of your talk from 1-10 on areas like clarity, which stories/examples they liked and didn't like as much, what their takeaways were, if you repeated certain words too much, your body language, where they were engaged and where they were bored. This will elevate your talk and skills significantly because it will illuminate your strengths and eliminate blind spots.

Emotions of different scenes should be felt so that those could be passed on to the audience, however when coming to fear - it should be controlled. Enjoy your stage presence and audience will enjoy with you. Let's see how we can do that! 1) Before you step on the stage remind yourself of your strength, the times you succeeded. This will give you confidence. 2) Remember even if you make a mistake - No one is going to kill you! You are a human like everyone else in the room. 3) Prior practice, clear structure and purpose gives you comfort - you know where you are going and that makes it easy for the audience to walk with you. 4) Stay hydrated - You need energy 5) Reach early online or offline, to get familiarised with your audience.

Maintaining emotional composure as a motivational speaker is crucial. Focus on controlled breathing, grounding techniques, and mindfulness to stay centered. Prioritize preparation to build confidence, and embrace pauses to gather thoughts. Remember, authenticity connects with the audience, so acknowledge and channel emotions purposefully.