Public Speaking Tip: Taking a Pause

During their public speaking presentations, many speakers get so excited that they try to finish the whole thing in a single breath without having any pauses in between. This not only takes the dramatic effect away from their speech, but also makes the audience restless. Suppose a man in your audience wants to ponder on a point and analyze it – so he does not listen to you for a few moments while he ponders. However, once he rejoins you, you have already rushed ahead a few minutes or so, and now he cannot figure out where you are. If this happens a couple of times more, he gives up the effort to understand and waits impatiently for your presentation to be finished. Surely you don't want your audience to rush out of the room as if their hair is on fire as soon as your presentation ends. So, what's the solution? Simple – take some pauses.

Think how you speak to a friend or with your family members. You speak in a calm tone, with pauses here and there. Apply the same to your speech. Imagine that you are talking with your audience and not at them. Let them get involved by taking adequate pauses. After you have shared an important story, or a lesson - pause. Give them the time to think about the story, the lesson hidden in it or analyze the golden nugget. After some time, resume your speech.

Taking some pauses will not only make your public speaking presentations a lot better but even let you do things at your own pace without rushing through the whole schedule. Unlike what many people think, taking a pause isn't a sin. Rather, it's a necessity to take your presentation a notch above, if not more.