How to quiet your nerves before a big presentation

Public speaking can reduce even the strongest, most confident person to a bundle of nerves.

There’s no way around presentation jitters, but here are eight ways to tamp down the nerves:

1. Always prepare.

Even if you’re confident speaking off the cuff, it’s wise to prepare–over and over and over again.

Take ownership over your speech, and introduce vivid anecdotes and examples to illustrate your points. Don’t just let it fly; prepare fastidiously before your big day arrives.

2. Tidy up your slides, and don’t lean too heavily on them.

If you’re nervous, and not entirely confident with the subject matter, you might feel compelled to read your slides aloud. Don’t do that.

Reading slides aloud will turn off the audience, and they’ll quickly become restless. This will make you increasingly anxious.

Restrict the amount to text on your slides to a few words or ideas so that you do not become reliant on them. Use them to support what you have to say.

3. Troubleshoot your equipment.

If you are already battling nerves, the last thing you need are technical difficulties.

Fiddling with a USB stick and praying that it will work on the event laptop will do you few favors.