Hi everyone

I’ve been out of the office the past 2 days, but thanks for everyone’s contributions as I’ve been reading them with interest.

I’m a systems librarian working in the Irish national health service.  I’ve given quite a number of presentations and have organised many seminars and conferences.

However, it wasn’t all rosy.  My worst experience was a presentation I gave in Australia of all places, many years ago.  My ‘communications manager’ at the time wrote a very eloquent speech for me to recite.

Because I didn’t write it myself, I was at my most nervous, and struggled to speak, never mind deliver the talk.  It was a harrowing experience.  The lesson was:  make sure you write your own material.  Once I got over the speech, I started to talk about what I knew about, which is key and then it was much easier. 

I am no longer fazed by public speaking, the only reason I’ve gained confidence is through practice.  And I would encourage people to give a talk/presentation at least once a year, preferably more.  Practice is what helps.  Try to find out as much as you can about the audience and deliver content that is going to appeal to them.  Stick to the theme of the conference & if speakers have gone before you try to join up your presentation with theirs or ideas they have introduced.

It’s very important to come across as being confident, even if you are trembling inside.  The audience do not realise this at all.  Breathing helps of course!  If you are terrified of public speaking, try doing a poster first, this will help build confidence.  Some people plant a friend/colleague in the audience to ask a question which can be useful too.  I would always have one of my last slides with Questions?  To open up the discussion.

Make sure you practice your presentation out load to a ‘critical friend’, this really helps.

Myself & 2 other librarians ran a workshop together at a conference recently.  This is a type of ‘team teaching’ that worked very well.  We visited the venue before-hand so we knew what to expect, tested the Wifi etc.  I know this is not always possible, but really helps.  We had an interactive element to this, using whiteboards & post-its which got the audience involved and interested from the outset.  It was an experiment that paid off.  Don’t be afraid to try new things.  Again, if you can deliver a workshop/presentation with another librarian/colleague then this is a bonus.

That’s all for now,

Regards, Aoife

P.S. Recommended reading:  Quiet / by Susan Cain

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