Today is your day Boomer! I have three weddings to attend in the next month, and that means I likely have three speeches to make. As a former radio news journalist, retired teacher, and current school trustee, I am pretty comfortable in these situations.....but, many Boomers aren't. Here are five tips from a public-speaking expert to help you. Wade Paterson says (1) eliminate filler words: "Filler words are the unnecessary words and sounds we add between sentences as an alternative to silence. Words like “uhh,” “ahh,” “umm,” “err,” “so,” and “but” are commonly injected into speeches because amateur speakers feel uncomfortable with the sound of silence." (2) practice good speech structure: "Good speeches are usually built with a beginning, a middle and an end. But the best speeches have a strong opening statement, a middle that builds on that idea, and then a conclusion that references the idea that was mentioned in the intro." (3) use body language: "When I’m smiling and I add excitement to my voice, it indicates I’m being honest and truly am enjoying myself; so, purposeful body language adds depth to a speech and helps keep your audience engaged." (4) have vocal variety: use different voice volumes, speed-up and slow down your pace at crucial points and use inflection. (5) inject humour: "Humour does two powerful things, it relaxes you (the speaker), and perhaps more importantly, it relaxes your audience." Just don't overdo it...not too many dumb jokes! Good luck with this Boomers. By the way, a Toastmasters course is still a good idea. Cheers!

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