<p>as valedictorian, i have to give a speech at graduation and im FREAKING OUT! im very introverted and the thought of speaking in front of all those people treeifies me. not only that, but i have no idea what to talk about or how to give a good speech. graduation is this saturday and i havent even started writing. im the last valedictorian ever at my school, so i wanted to make it memorable. any advice on the speech or how to calm my nerves?</p>
<p>anyone???</p>
<p>maybe you should talk about the experiences you have had with your peers throughout the years and how it has made you a better person.</p>
<p>Start off formal, you can get less so if you think you can crack a joke without messing up. Look above the heads of the crowd - that way, everybody feels your looking right at them. Since you’re the last one, talk about the History of vals at your school. Practice - doesn’t have to be in front of a mirror, but it helps. Just constantly reread it. Make the speech size 16, you’ll probably want to make changes. Walk with SWAGGA, or at least with confidence. Lower your voice a tiny bit and speak normally - speaking louder only makes the crowd speak louder. Constantly look around the audience - you should only have to look at your speech every other line,’ to remind yourself where you’re at. It’s OK to improv if you forget your lines - deviation is fine. Speak with confidence. Life’s a joke, the worst they could do is laugh at you, have fun with it. Practice in front of people. Read out loud and in your head. Talk about your experiences at the school (the good ones. Make stuff up; let creative juices flow!). Tell teachers you’re working on a speech and would like their help so you can work on it during school. If you really want it to be a success, work on it 3+ hours a day. Confidence isn’t something you can get in a week unless you PRACTICE. </p>
<p>Good luck!</p>
<p>thanks! i think i figured out what im gonna talk about now. im just worried about getting too nervous lol</p>
<p>Good luck tomorrow!</p>
<p>Good luck! While you’re speaking, it’s helpful if you can find someone in the audience who’s smiling at you and focus on them. When I gave my speech, a classmate’s mom was beaming at me the entire time, and looking at her really helped calm my nerves. :)</p>
<p>thanks guys, that really helped a lot. the speech went very well :)</p>
<p>Awesome! Glad it went well. It’s a good idea to try and get as much public speaking experience as possible - confidence helps when appealing to bosses or others at meetings. Toastmasters is one example of a public speaking club, but to gain experience, all you need to do is join a club and ask to be in charge of a project. If you do that, then you can speak at every meeting and also gain experience in working as a team, working under a boss, delegating, getting people to follow through with what they say they’ll do, and a bunch of other generic things like. All those things really will help you in life, and there’s no better place to learn it then at a school/college club.</p>