 No Sweat!
 This month: David Montera, a speech and debate teacher at Pueblo Centennial High School in Colorado, presents his best advice for speaking in public.
If you feel nervous about speaking in front of people, remember: The message is always more important than the messenger. By concentrating on the points you want to make rather than focusing on yourself, your confidence will naturally increase.
Mean what you say. As Lyndon B. Johnson said, “What convinces is conviction.” If you don’t believe in your own message or possess passion for it, don’t deliver it.
Drive your point home. There is nothing wrong with repeating the same idea two or three times with different words, in different ways, to make sure it is understood and remembered. For example, you could say that “schools are underfunded,” that “dollars are needed for supplies,” and that “the debate team is forced to fund-raise to meet expenses,” all in the same speech to hammer the message home.
Illustration: Getty Images
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