How to rehearse a speech

Speech Rehearsal
1. Read your speech out loud to see how smoothly it flows. If you find yourself stumbling over a certain word or statement, rephrase it so that you are able to continue without any struggling.
2. Time your speech. Speeches often have time limits, so you want to practice completing your speech within those limits. If you find yourself below the limit, then you see if speaking slower fixes the problem. If it doesn’t, try adding more details or include another point. If you are above the limit, cut out parts without eliminating key ideas. Continue to rehearse while timing until you are comfortable with your ending time.
3. Practice keeping eye contact when you rehearse. You don’t have to find an audience to do this. Look in front of you and focus on different objects pretending that you are looking each person in the eye.
4. Use your visual aids during rehearsal. These aids can greatly change the time it takes to deliver your speech and if you don’t practice with them you may end up going way over your time limit. It can also help you to continue moving smoothly throughout your speech.
5. Stand up when you rehearse. You are likely to be standing when you deliver your speech and you want to practice as close to the speaking situation as possible.
6. Give your speech in front of a family member or friend. Practice eye contact and listen to any feedback that they have to offer. Use the feedback to help you to improve your speech’s delivery.
7. Record your rehearsal with a video camera. Play back the tape to see what type of gestures you make. Identify things that you may be doing that can distract the audience from the information that you are delivering.








