On stage, he comes off as quite confident. Watching him, you’d think he was loaded with self-esteem.

In fact, the opposite is true. And at a recent presentation, he let his audience in on this personality “flaw” right from the start.

Now I wouldn’t recommend doing this all the time. If, for example, you are delivering a sales presentation to a room full of businessmen, playing the “low self-esteem card” could backfire. Your listeners might think: “Gee, does this guy need a hug or something?”

But in my friend’s case, it helped him bond with his audience immediately.

Why? Because he was giving a speech at a self-improvement seminar. He knew his audience — and he knew what they would respond to.

His eager listeners almost certainly thought, “WOW! This guy has his own image problem. And yet, he’s accomplished all his goals. If he can do it… so can I!”

But though my friend has proven that you don’t need high self-esteem to be an effective speaker (or a successful entrepreneur) — he’s also shown that you need to be able to present your material with aplomb and conviction.

Fact is, your audience starts checking you out the minute you step on stage.

They look at the way you’re dressed and the way you move. But it’s the way you deliver your speech that makes the biggest impression on them.

Telltale signs that you have low self-esteem:

• You stand up there and just read off PowerPoint bullets.

• You don’t make eye contact with your audience.

• You use unnatural hand motions.

• You speak softly, and your voice tends to trail off at the end of a sentence.

Whether your self-esteem is high, low, or somewhere in the middle, you can learn how to turn on the switch when it’s “show time” and put on a splendid performance.

It starts with knowing your subject inside out. When you feel like an expert, you will exude self-confidence from every pore.

That said, here are four tips to help you give one great presentation after another — and keep getting asked back.

1. Deliver One Big Idea

As Michael Masterson often says… every effective communication is based on one BIG IDEA. Create a speech that has one BIG IDEA and it will stand out in the hearts and minds of your audience.

Worried about length? Don’t be! You do not have to deliver a long and exhaustive speech for it to make an impact.

Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address — with just 271 words — is one of the most quoted and most powerful speeches ever given. Imagine: In less than 3 minutes, Lincoln not only summarized the Civil War, but redefined it as a struggle for freedom and equality!

2. Speak in the Moment

Practice, practice, practice… so the words, as Shakespeare said (when he was alive of, course) are spoken “trippingly on the tongue.” Do not give a canned speech or read your presentation. Outline your important points, know them, and then speak to your audience as if it is one person sitting across from you and hanging on every word you say.

3. Tell Stories

Don’t quote boring industry facts and figures. Any “B” speaker can do that. Be an “A” speaker. Capture your audience’s attention with a story.  If you are giving a speech on customer service, for example, tell them a customer service horror story. They will LOVE it!

Tell the truth… but embellish the anecdote a bit (using dramatic license, and adding humor if you can). The idea is to eventually lead your audience to the conclusion that you (or the product/service you are selling) have the solutions to their problems.

4. Fake It ‘Til You Make It

That’s what most top-gun speakers did in the beginning. With enough stage time, you’ll internalize what you need to know to overcome your self-confidence “issues.” And then, it will be second nature to come across as cool, collected, and in control.

Just like riding a bicycle. Guaranteed!

[Ed. Note: Want to dominate your niche market and become an in-demand public speaker? Get the training you need to learn how to tell humorous and captivating stories... and put yourself head and shoulders above the rest.

For more information on Peter "The Reinvention Guy" Fogel's Gold Public Speaking Package and to sign up for his FREE 7 Days to Effective Public Speaking E-Course (value $65), go to www.publicspeaklikeapro.com]

—————————————————–Highly Recommended —————————————————–

MaryEllen Has Met the Man of Your Dreams – He’s got dark hair, piercing eyes, and he brings in sales of $5 million per month. He’s gone “beyond Google” with a homegrown strategy for powerhouse marketing that 99.9% of Internet marketers out there have never even seen…

The best way to "seal the deal" with potential clients is to have a question and answer (Q&A) session after your speech. And that’s where you have to be firing on all eight cylinders.

Your prospects will have questions – and you’d better have the answers. Here’s how to prepare for it:

1. Set guidelines before launching into the Q&A. Tell your audience that you have time for few questions – but set a time limit. And keep to it. Make your answers as succinct as possible so you can answer as many of their questions as possible.

2. Learn to paraphrase rather than repeat a question before answering it. Paraphrasing allows you to remove any skepticism or hostility from a question.

Here’s an example. Say an audience member says something like, "I’m in customer service… and I tell you, it’s tough. We already sell a product similar to the one your company has, and we seem to get a lot of irate customers who want to return it and get their money back, even if they bought it more than 10 years ago. How would you handle this?"

In that case, you might paraphrase the question this way: "Okay, a customer bought that widget way back when Clinton was in office and NOW wants a refund. Here’s what you do…"

3. Listen carefully to the entire question. Never interrupt people before they are finished speaking (even if you know where the question is going). Maintain eye contact to show you’re focused on the question. And when the person is done speaking, address your response to the whole room.

With these three techniques, you can make your Q&A sessions more valuable to everyone in your audience.

[Ed. Note: You don't have to be a professional speaker to benefit from public speaking techniques. They can help you convey your message to colleagues, employers, and clients. Get public speaking expert Peter Fogel's guide to speaking like a pro right here.]

1. Let’s Play "Stump the Presenter." Some people get a kick out of asking super-hard questions about the subject you’re supposedly an expert in. So what do you do if you don’t know the answer?

The last thing you want to do is give them the satisfaction of seeing you sweat. Respond by saying something like, "That’s a great question and I don’t want to give you the wrong information. Let’s exchange contact info and I will get back to you."

2. Attack of the Angry Audience Member. Every once in a while, you’ll run into an audience member who is aggressively confrontational – maybe because he had a bad experience with a product made by the company you’re representing,. The best way to defuse the situation quickly is to acknowledge the problem.

Ask the questioner for his name. Then say, "Leonard, you’re right. But I know for a fact that the engineers are working to get the bugs out. See me after this talk and give me your phone number. I will personally make sure you either get a refund or we satisfy you with another unit that works."

As long as you’re honest with your audience and don’t allow yourself to get flustered, you should have no trouble dealing with any difficult questions that come up during or after your presentation.

[Ed. Note: You don't have to be a professional speaker to benefit from public speaking techniques. They can help you convey your message better to colleagues, employers, and clients. Get public speaking expert Peter Fogel's guide to speaking like a pro right here.]

After giving the same talk for the umpteenth time, some of them get complacent. They start ascribing to "The Lazy Way of Giving Speeches." But if you are slumping over a lectern, you are diffusing the energy in your body – and in your presentation.

The only person who has any excuse for doing that is the CEO of her own company. Her company, her rules. In essence, she doesn’t have to impress anyone. She signs the checks… so the rank and file will be hanging on every word.

But that’s NOT the case for any speaker who is trying to make a good impression on colleagues, an employer, or prospective clients.

Remember: You are being judged on your entire presentation. Your body language, the way you speak, and how you articulate your message. Leaning against the lectern leads your audience to believe that you might be tired… that you don’t care about what you’re saying… or that you’re not being truthful. And all these impressions could make your audience discount your words – or just plain stop listening.

So leave the lectern in a corner. Don’t be afraid to move around while you speak. You’ll increase your energy and add enthusiasm to your words. And your audience is sure to listen with more interest.

[Ed. Note: Like it or not, if you've ever had to speak to a group of colleagues, employees, or clients, you are a public speaker. With the help of public speaking expert Peter Fogel, you can learn how to get the best response from your audience. Get the details here.]

Instead of making broad, sweeping statements, spice up your presentations with lots of details.

• Use concrete examples.

Let’s say you’re giving a sexual harassment seminar for your employees. Come up with real-life or hypothetical examples of what constitutes harassment – and what doesn’t.

• Use facts and figures.

Telling a prospective client that you’ll make her company "more money in the long run" will make her eyes glaze over. Instead, explain exactly how you can increase her bottom line by 62 percent over the next three years.

• Use visual aids.

Visual aids can get your audience’s attention and stick your message in their minds – especially if you’re talking about something abstract or complex. Trying to explain to your employer how much better you could do your job if you worked from home? Show him graphs illustrating the rise in productivity of other telecommuters. Throw in a chart showing how his expenses will drop, and your words will have a much stronger impact.

Making any speech or presentation more specific will make it really hit home with your audience. They’ll remember you and what you talked about. And isn’t that the point?

[Ed. Note: Peter Fogel is a copywriter, speaker, author, and creator of Peter "The Humorator" Fogel's Guide to Effective Public Speaking. For more information on it or his free 7 Days to Effective Public Speaking e-course, click here.]