Public Speaking Tips: 12 Techniques Our Trainers Use to Build Confidence

 

Your heart races. Your mind goes blank. Your voice sounds smaller than you hoped. If that is what happens when you stand up to speak, you are in good company.

Public speaking is a skill, not a talent. You can learn it the same way you learn to swim or drive: one technique at a time, with practice. The 12 public speaking tips below are the ones our trainers at Speech Academy Asia (SAA) use in class every week. Since 2012, we have taught them to more than 10,000 students, from Primary 1 pupils to senior managers.

Public Speaking Tips at a Glance

• Calm your body first. Slow breathing and an upright posture settle nerves faster than positive thinking.
• Use a structure. I.P.A.D for speeches and PREP for answers on the spot, so you never lose your place.
• Deliver with B.E.S.T. Body language, Emotions, Sentence structure and Tonality.
• Speak to your listeners. Adapt to your audience and treat questions as a second chance to make your point.

Why Does Public Speaking Feel So Scary?

When you stand up in front of people, your body reacts as if you are in danger. Your breathing turns fast and shallow. Your heart speeds up. Your thoughts scatter.

None of this means you are a bad speaker. It means your body is trying to protect you.

In our public speaking course for adults, the first thing we do is a Speech Limiters Test. It checks which of 12 common “limiters” hold a person back. Examples include fear of criticism, holding back around senior people, and avoiding disagreement. Most people find their fear is very specific. That makes it much easier to fix.

Tips 1 to 3: How Do You Calm Your Nerves Before Speaking?

1. Breathe low and slow

Fast, shallow breathing feeds panic. Before you speak, take three slow breaths into your belly, not your chest. Let your stomach rise while your shoulders stay still.

This is the starting point of Neuro Somatics™, our own method for managing nerves through the body. The idea is simple: your emotions affect your body, and your body affects your emotions. Change one and you change the other.

2. Use a power pose, then stand tall

Spend one minute in an open, expansive posture before you go on. Try standing with your feet apart and your hands on your hips.

On stage, plant both feet, keep your shoulders back and spread your weight evenly. When you look confident, you start to feel confident.

3. Aim for growth, not perfection

Many speakers freeze because they want a flawless speech. Set a smaller goal instead, such as “hold eye contact a little longer than last time”. Each talk becomes a step forward, not a test you can fail.

Tips 4 and 5: How Do You Structure a Speech?

4. Plan your speech with I.P.A.D

A clear structure stops you rambling and helps people follow you. Our I.P.A.D framework works for almost any talk:

• Intrigue: open with a question or moment that makes people curious.
• Problem: describe the challenge so clearly that people feel it.
• Address: share the plan, the effort or the solution.
• Delight: end on a surprise, a happy moment or a punchline.

If you stop after Intrigue and Problem, your speech sounds like a complaint. I.P.A.D makes sure every talk lands on a resolution.

5. Answer on the spot with PREP

For surprise questions in meetings, interviews or Q&A, use PREP:

• Point: say your answer in one sentence.
• Reason: explain why.
• Example: give one real example.
• Point: repeat your answer to close.

Two more quick structures: Past, Present, Future for updates, and Problem, Cause, Solution for issues. Before you answer, pause for a second. It buys you thinking time and makes you look calm.

Tips 6 to 9: How Do You Deliver With Confidence?

Our trainers teach delivery with B.E.S.T: Body language, Emotions, Sentence structure and Tonality. Tips 6 to 9 put it into practice.

6. Make real eye contact

Hold each person’s gaze for one full thought, about five seconds, then move on. In a big room, split the audience into four sections and visit each one. People remember speakers who looked at them.

7. Let your hands help, not hide

Keep your hands visible and use open, palm-up gestures. Avoid crossed arms, pockets and gripping the lectern. Natural gestures make your message easier to follow.

8. Match your face to your words

Audiences trust speakers whose expression fits the message. Smile when you share good news. Look serious when you talk about a problem. It sounds obvious, but nervous speakers often wear one frozen expression throughout.

9. Vary your voice

A flat voice loses a room within minutes. Practise changing your pitch, volume and speed. Slow down and lower your voice for key points, and stress the most important word in each sentence.

A quick daily drill: read a short passage aloud with expression for two minutes.

Tips 10 to 12: How Do You Connect With Your Audience?

10. Borrow the language patterns great speakers use

Our Speech Linguistic Patterns™ (SLP) method teaches simple techniques that make ideas stick:

• Repetition: repeat one key phrase so people remember it.
• Analogies: link a new idea to something familiar.
• Rhetorical questions: get the audience thinking along with you.

Use one or two per speech, not all at once.

11. Adapt to your audience

People like to be spoken to in different ways. Our trainers use the four DISC types:

• Dominant: want short, results-focused answers.
• Influencer: enjoy stories and discussion.
• Supporter: value harmony and reassurance.
• Conscientious: want facts, data and clear logic.

Speaking to a mixed group? Include a headline result, a short story, a team benefit and one solid piece of evidence. Everyone gets something.

12. Treat Q&A as a second chance

When a tough question comes, stay calm, thank the person and bridge back to your key message. If you do not know the answer, say so and promise to follow up.

Using slides? Give each one an action title that states the takeaway, such as “Sales grew 20% after the change”, not just “Q3 Sales”.

What Public Speaking Mistakes Should You Avoid?

• Memorising word for word. One forgotten line can derail you. Learn your structure and key points instead.
• Reading your slides aloud. Slides support you. They are not your script.
• Rushing. Nerves speed you up, so pause between ideas.
• Apologising at the start. Skip “Sorry, I’m not a good speaker”. Open with your Intrigue.
• Fading out at the end. Finish on your Delight or a clear call to action, then stop.

How Can You Build Confidence in Public Speaking?

Confidence comes from repetition in a safe setting. Start small:

• Speak up once in your next meeting.
• Give a short toast at a family dinner.
• Record a one-minute talk on your phone and watch it back.

Then ask for feedback from someone who will be specific, not just kind. In our courses, every speaker’s final speech is recorded and reviewed one-on-one with a trainer. Seeing yourself on video is the quickest way to spot habits you never noticed.

Improv games help too. In class we play “Yes, and…”, where each person builds on the last person’s idea. It trains you to listen and respond without freezing, which is exactly what you need for Q&A.

Do These Tips Work for Children?

Yes. The principles are the same, but children learn them through play. In our kids’ classes, children practise eye contact, gestures and voice through games, stories and show and tell. They focus on one body language skill each month.

See our public speaking classes for kids for ages 3 to 16.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is public speaking?

Public speaking is sharing information, ideas or stories with an audience, in person or online. It includes presentations, speeches, pitches, interviews and speaking up in meetings.

How can I overcome my fear of public speaking?

Calm your body first with slow breathing and an upright posture. Prepare a clear structure such as I.P.A.D. Then practise in small, low-pressure settings and aim for progress, not perfection.

What is the best way to start a speech?

Open with Intrigue: a question, a surprising fact from your own experience or a short story. Avoid opening with an apology or a long list of thank-yous.

How do I answer a question I cannot answer?

Thank the person, admit you do not have the answer yet and promise to follow up. Then bridge back to your key message.

Where can I learn public speaking in Singapore?

You can practise alone, join a club or take a structured course with personal feedback from a trainer. Speech Academy Asia runs a public speaking course for adults, corporate public speaking training and classes for children.

Put These Public Speaking Tips Into Practice

Tips work best when you practise them with someone giving you feedback. Speech Academy Asia specialises only in public speaking. Since 2012, we have trained more than 10,000 students and worked with over 300 MOE schools, across 15 branches in Singapore, Malaysia, Brunei and Indonesia.

Explore our public speaking courses in Singapore for adults, teams and children, and take your first step to speaking with confidence.

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