2.7: Plan Out The Details
All too often, novice speakers find themselves derailed by seemingly insignificant mistakes they failed to think of beforehand:
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Technology details
- EXAMPLES : extension cord availability, software versions, video files, DVD vs. Blu-Ray capability, etc.
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Timing
- EXAMPLES : when to advance a presentation slide, arriving early to load a presentation
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Feeling of one’s outfit during the speech
- EXAMPLES : an itchy shirt tag or painful heels
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How the room looks from the speaker’s vantage point.
- VISUAL EXAMPLE :
When anxiety levels run high, even the smallest overlooked detail can easily fluster a novice speaker, detracting attention from the message and/or the audience and instead, causing the speaker to focus on themselves. The best speakers can spend hours considering all of the details, imagining vividly how every moment of a successful presentation will go. Such speakers incorporate all of these details into their practice sessions, which helps them eliminate all traces of uncertainty and the anxiety it often breeds.