Unaccustomed As I Am…

Over the past year, public speaking has become a much bigger part of my professional life. As Chair of CIPR Midlands, I’ve found myself opening events, introducing speakers, leading discussions and representing the region at industry gatherings. Alongside that, I’ve contributed through my role on the Local Area Advisory Board for Staffordshire Chambers of Commerce, while also supporting clients with conferences, workshops and presentations across a range of sectors.

It’s fair to say I’ve become rather more “accustomed” to it all than the title of this article might suggest.

That doesn’t mean it always feels natural.

Because here’s the truth about public speaking: even people who appear confident often still feel nervous. The trick isn’t removing the nerves entirely –  it’s learning how to work with them.

Preparation Is All

The biggest lesson I’ve learned is that confidence rarely appears by magic. It usually comes from preparation.

That doesn’t necessarily mean scripting every word. In fact, I’ve discovered that over-rehearsing can sometimes make delivery sound stiff or unnatural. But preparation does mean understanding your subject, knowing your audience and thinking carefully about what people actually need from you: context, relevance, purpose.

People don’t want to sit through presentations packed with slides, jargon or endless bullet points. They want something useful – key takeaways that are relatable and relevant to them.

Whether I’m speaking to PR professionals, business leaders, students or clients, I try to ask myself the same question beforehand:

“What will this audience take away from this?”

Technology Will Betray You

If there is one universal truth about presentations, it’s this: technology will eventually let you down.

The microphone will crackle.
The slide deck won’t load.
The clicker will stop working (as recently happened at a client conference…I made a joke of it!)
Teams will freeze or your broadband is ‘unstable’
The video won’t play.
Or someone will spend five minutes searching for the HDMI adapter and you are desperately trying to appear a ‘swan’ while paddling like mad to stay afloat.

It happens. Those seconds of ‘dead air’ can often feel like minutes but when it happens, but audiences usually care far less than speakers think they do.

One of the most valuable things I’ve learned is that people respond more positively to calmness than perfection. If you stay composed, acknowledge the issue lightly and carry on, most audiences will stay with you.

Some of the best speakers I’ve seen aren’t necessarily the slickest or most polished. They’re the ones who can adapt when things wobble slightly.

Because they always do.

Keep Calm and Carry On

There’s also something reassuringly human about imperfection.

A slightly fluffed sentence.
A forgotten point.
A moment where you lose your place and recover.

Audiences don’t expect robotic precision. In fact, overly polished delivery can sometimes create distance. The best presentations often feel conversational rather than performative.

I’ve learned not to panic if things don’t go exactly to plan. Pause. Take a breath. Carry on.

And importantly, remember that the audience is usually on your side.

Nobody attends an event hoping the speaker fails.

Take the Stage

One thing that has helped me enormously is reframing what speaking actually is.

It’s easy to think of public speaking as ‘performing’ and although you do need to ‘project daarling’ increasingly, I think it more as communicating (and we do that all the time, right?). Sharing knowledge. Starting conversations and this can include opportunities for two-way engagement – posing a question, incorporating a poll.

That mindset shift removes a lot of pressure.

As someone working in PR and communications, I spend much of my professional life helping organisations and individuals find clarity in what they want to say. Standing up in front of an audience is really just another extension of that.

And like most things in communications, authenticity matters.

People remember warmth, relevance and honesty far longer than they remember perfectly designed slides.

Still Learning

I’m still learning every time I step behind a podium, chair a panel or walk to the front of a room.

Some events feel effortless. Others less so. Occasionally you walk away thinking, “I’d do that differently next time.”

That’s part of the process.

But one thing I do know is this: the more opportunities you say yes to, the easier it becomes to trust yourself.