How Do I Know What to Say?

How do you know what to say? Here it’s very much “do as I say, not as I do.” You’ll notice I just stand up and talk — but that’s 17 years of practice. I didn’t used to do that. If you’re starting out, there are a couple of good options.

Speaker notes on your slides are a good option. Just write down the key points ideally, not every word. Writing out every word makes it really hard, because you spend all your time reading and can’t focus on the audience while looking down.

Physical note cards. Nothing wrong with them. Again, just the main points, not every word. It sounds more natural, because you can glance down and think, “Right, I definitely want to talk about that thing.”

If you truly can’t manage any other way, then yes, write it all down, but aim for key points on cards rather than a full script.

Use what’s on the slide. That’s one of the reasons I have slides up: they remind me what I’m going to say next.