Here are a few things that show confidence and authority to the audience:
- Make eye contact with each person in the audience, take a deep breath, and speak to them as you would to a person over a cup of coffee.
- Remember, it’s not about how intelligent your audience sees you, but rather how intelligent you make your audience feel. So don’t use a lot of acronyms or terminology that your audience may not understand.
- Make sure that they understand the context of what you are saying and why it is important to them.
- Demonstrate understanding of their industry, their company, or their personal situation, by giving examples and asking questions.
- Don’t try to have all the answers, but make sure you ask the right questions. The more thought provoking, insightful, and intriguing you are as a speaker, the more credible you will be to your audience.
