Great public speaking is a complicated process of communication. It requires the integration of exceptional writing and speaking abilities, a passionate emotional life and a dynamic stage presence. To become a successful public speaker one must increase one's ability to go beyond what is considered normal communication and connect intimately with an audience. PRESENTATION SKILLS AND PERFORMANCE ANXIETY Stage Fright and Performance Anxiety – Managing stage fright means learning to relax; as well as analyze, cope with fear provoking thoughts, and deal with issues of procrastination. Anxiety can eventually be transformed into a great source of empowerment enhancing spontaneity, allowing the public speaker to live on the edge and extend their personality. Performance Techniques – Learning to modulate the rhythms of speech, communicating effectively with stage movements, learning to listen, creating a fluent vocal range, infusing energy, varying intensity in delivery and applying humor can add magic to presentations. EMOTIONAL LIFE Objectives – The ability to inspire, validate and educate audiences should come from having a strong objective in the beginning, middle and end of a speech. Speaker’s objectives should infuse a sense of urgency and be the driving force behind presentations. Obstacles – The major hurdles that make it difficult to reach objectives are varied and multidimensional and consist of professional, interpersonal and emotional issues. Powerful Inner Life – The infusion of depth and complexity will allow presentations to be layered with nuances that will create a truly human experience. The practice of personalization can be used to create deep emotional connections. SPEECH WRITING AND DEVELOPMENT Shape Sense – Shaping a speech so it embodies its message entails putting together its parts and clarifying how they relate to one another. Subordinating what is incidental to what is most important will orchestrate a speech so that it could culminate both forcefully and truthfully. Learning to act through the pauses and finding action key words will improve the effectiveness of the content by increasing its maximal emotional effect. Sound Sense – The sounds of words should echo what they mean. Sounds speak to the senses. Audiences do not hear sensuously spoken language as much as they experience it. Speeches should be developed as soundscapes that are bits of sound expressiveness. The rhythm of a speech should be determined by the use of polysyllables, monosyllables, punctuation, acceleration, deceleration, conflict and dynamic fades. Speech Architecture – A speech should have a unique architectural plan that contributes to its overall structure. Framing a speech, capturing it’s central moments, finding inner conflicts, layering and discovering opposites can put a public speaker in touch with the essence of their message. Images and sections should build one upon the other eventually forming an impression upon an audience. Powerful speaking should feel alive and unpredictable culminating in an unexpected journey. It should place an audience on the edge of their seats. The ability to master the complexities and intensity of a speaking experience can make the difference between success and failure.