Yes, you have to do your homework! Put in that extra effort and you will find that the words will come naturally to you. Another advise would be to present about a topic that you enjoy. That way, there would less likelyhood of you 'freezing' or fumbling with your presentation. And when you speak about something that you really like, you would genuinely be very enthusiastic and this enthusiasm would be transferred to your audience. Try it!
2.) Act confident and you'll BE confident
The moment you face your audience, please smile. Stick your chest out and stand with your feet about shoulder width apart. When you do this, you will feel confident. Remember, your audience are there to hear you speak so you are the authority on the subject.
3.) Do some deep breathing
Yes, it really does help. I shall talk more about the benefits of breathing exercises in my other posts but just know that by taking deep breathes, you take in a lot more oxygen, which make you feel less tense. That in turn allows you to be more comfortable and confident. So, do about 3-5 minutes of breathing exercises before facing your audience.
4.) Connect with your audience
Yes, the people that matters the most! You must give your audience the respect by looking at people in the eye, one at a time, as you speak to them. Occasionally shift your focus to different groups of people. Add a few jokes no matter what your subject matter might be. This would put your audience in a light hearted mood and it would in turn be easier for you as I am sure that you would agree that it is much easier to talk to a groupd of people who are smiling than a group who look so serious!
5.) Use real life stories
Everyone loves hearing real life examples and stories as in most cases, people can relate to those situations and it would definitely strike a cord with them. It can also be very entertaining to add stories as it shift your presentation away from your more technical information/statistics.
