Air in the lungs – presentation skills and business presentations

Air in the lungs is not only for opera singers, but also marvellous presentation skills

The diaphragm is an umbrella shaped muscle which helps push air out of the lungs. Locate your diaphragm by placing your hands, with fingertips touching, across their body below the ribcage. If you then breathe out making the sound 'huff', you should be able to feel the diaphragm working and see their fingertips being pushed apart. This allows you to experience how proper voice production should feel. The sinuses and other cavities in the skull act as resonators. In order to get these working well, hold your nose and say 'Many mighty men making much money in the moonshine' with as much force as you possibly can. Then immediately release your hold on your nose and say the same phrase. You will immediately hear the difference in the force of their vocal sound. Fabulous presentation skills are quite technical. Humming before speaking is another way of improving voice projection through resonation (though this should be done before you go to the presenters' platform, of course!) Did you know that more people are scared of speaking in public than are afraid of dying? If you're one of them, don't worry, with these tips you'll soon have them eating out of your hand, giving you a standing ovation and demanding an encore. It's true - standing up and speaking in public does get easier with practice but for everyone, there still has to be a first time. Learning to overcome the fear is vital if you're going to take your business to the next level of success - and magical presentation skills are part of the deal!