5 Ways to Improve Presentation Skills Effectively

What is presentation skill? Why is it so important?

Presentation skill is the ability to convey a message coherently, persuasively and attractively in front of listeners. This is a combination of many factors such as preparing content, organising the talk, expression ability and using body language.

When presentation skill is used effectively, the speaker can make listeners easily receive information, remember the content and be persuaded by the message. This skill is not only related to “standing in front of a crowd”. It is also the ability to express thinking, convey meaning and connect with others through speech. Some benefits of presentation ability are:

• Role in studying: Presentation skill helps students clearly present content in project defences, subject presentations or group reports. Thanks to coherent expression ability, learners can convey ideas more accurately, thereby helping lecturers understand the correct focus and highly value the work.
• Role in work: The ability to present clearly in meetings, progress reports or persuading customers helps you build a professional and trustworthy image. For work related to pitching or presenting projects, a good presentation can decide whether the project is approved or not.
• Connection with other soft skills: Presentation skill is closely related to many other soft skills such as communication, logical thinking and improvisation ability. The presenter needs to use communication skills to choose suitable words, tone and expression. At the same time, logical thinking helps structure the content tightly, avoiding rambling, ensuring listeners easily receive information.

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5 ways to improve presentation skills effectively

Presentation skill is not an innate talent but can completely be trained every day. Below are 5 ways to help you be confident and convey more clearly in both study and work.

Practising regularly and with a plan

Practice is the most important factor for improving presentation skills, because the more you practise, the more clearly you understand your strengths and weaknesses. Practising speaking in front of a mirror helps you observe your facial expressions, posture and body language, thereby adjusting to become more natural.

In addition, recording audio or video yourself also allows you to listen back to your voice, pronunciation, rhythm and detect small mistakes that are hard to recognise when speaking directly. You can set goals by each week such as improving your voice, reducing filler words (like “er”, “um”) to increase coherence or practising an impressive opening. When you maintain a scientific practice habit, your presentation skill will progress markedly over time.

Focusing on building a clear outline

A presentation only becomes persuasive when listeners feel the clarity and coherence in the content. Therefore, building an outline is an important step before starting any talk. An effective outline usually includes an attractive introduction, a logical body and a conclusion that wraps up the main idea. This structure helps listeners easily grasp information, while also helping you be more confident when presenting.

When making an outline, you should identify the most important information, avoiding putting too much unnecessary content that makes the talk long and diluted. Breaking the main ideas into clear sections also helps you express fluently and limit forgetting ideas. Because a good outline is not only a content framework but also a guideline that helps you keep a stable and professional presentation rhythm.

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Improving voice and body language

According to research at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), when communicating, about 36% of the level of conveyance comes from the voice and up to 57% comes from body language. Therefore, you need to practise clear pronunciation, a reasonable speaking speed and an attractive rhythm. A flat, monotonous voice easily makes the audience lose focus. You can train your voice by reading aloud every day, emphasising important ideas or practising breathing to keep a stable breath.

In parallel with the voice, body language also contributes to conveying confidence and creating a good impression with listeners. Eye contact, smile, hand gestures and standing posture all need to be adjusted to be natural and professional. When you control body language well, your presentation will become more vivid and persuasive.

At HUFLIT, students will have the opportunity to train this skill through clubs, teams and academic competitions. The school organises many events such as HUFLIT Career Fair, HUFLIT Career Talks, etc. so that learners have more opportunities to communicate and present opinions, etc. In addition, students can also participate in competitions such as the English debate “Save the green planet” or the English Speaking Contest to improve intonation, voice and train expression ability.

Training confidence through real experience

Confidence does not come from reading theory but is formed through contact and experience. Participating in presentation clubs, extracurricular activities or competitions will create opportunities for you to stand in front of a crowd regularly, thereby gradually reducing anxiety.

In addition, real experience also helps you learn how to improvise flexibly with unexpected situations while presenting, such as being asked difficult questions, encountering a technical problem or forgetting an idea. Once you are used to facing these situations, you will become calmer and more proactive.

Learning from good presenters

Observing experienced people is the fastest way to learn to improve presentation skills. You can watch TED Talks, talks by famous speakers or sample presentations on YouTube to learn how they use words, create highlights and control rhythm. Notice how they start, how they tell stories and how they interact with the audience because these are the factors that create the appeal of a presentation.

Besides observing, you should also analyse and apply the techniques suitable to your own style. It is not necessary to imitate completely, but choose the strengths from others to adjust to harmonise with your personality and voice. When you know how to learn selectively and make it your own, your presentation skill will develop quickly.

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Where to study to improve presentation skills?

If you are looking for an environment to enhance knowledge and improve presentation skills, refer to HUFLIT. The school builds a training programme following a model that closely combines academic knowledge and real experience. Thanks to this, In particular, during the study process, teachers will create many opportunities for students to present, debate and present projects.

In addition, at HUFLIT, students also have the opportunity to participate in many skill and academic clubs such as the Media & International Club, the HUFLIT Law Club, the ABS Economics Club, the 7SEC Club (English Club), etc. In addition, the school also regularly organises Talkshows and Workshops so that students can practise, interact and develop confidence in a real environment. For example, the Talkshow “The Speech Miracle” – Where students share about presentation skills.

The most effective way to improve presentation skills is to put yourself in an environment with many practice opportunities, be guided in the right direction and continuously train through real experience. When you present regularly, you will gradually form confidence and expression ability. If you are looking for a place to help you comprehensively develop these factors, refer to HUFLIT!

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