Effective comm's tip

10 public speaking mistakes (and how to fix them)

Bram Smets · 8 October 2026

Most presentations don't fail because the speaker doesn't know the subject. They fail because of a few habits that nearly everyone has. Here are the most common ones, and what to do instead.

1. Opening with "Thank you for having me. I'm so excited to be here."

Almost every presentation starts this way, and the line adds nothing. Your first sentence is too valuable to waste on it. You have about three seconds before your audience reaches for their phones or starts thinking about lunch, so a good presentation starts with a bang.

Instead, connect with your audience from the very first sentence:

Ask a question that gets people thinking straight away.
Bring something and show it. Treat your talk as an experience your audience takes part in. Props, photos, charts and product demos let people see, hear and experience your idea, and an experience that uses more than one sense is far more memorable.
Open with a striking fact or a counterintuitive statement that challenges what people expect.
Tell a story, and drop your audience straight into it with a place and an action: "It was 6 a.m. on a rainy platform in Ghent, and my train had just been cancelled."

2. Apologising before you begin

This happens at nearly every conference:

The first speaker apologises because it's early and nobody is awake yet.
The next one apologises for being the last speaker before lunch, when everyone must be hungry.
The speaker after lunch apologises because everyone has eaten too much and can't stay awake.
The last speaker of the day apologises because it's nearly aperitif time.

Skip the apologies. They don't help, and they tell your audience to expect less from you.

3. Showing an agenda slide

An agenda slide is a dull and pointless way to open. You don't need to tell people what you're about to tell them. Instead, grab their attention with a strong opening.

4. Dumping data on your audience

A few well-chosen numbers can make your point. A wall of statistics will lose your audience. Tell a story with your data and make the figures relevant through analogies. "The size of 40 football pitches" sticks in people's minds far better than "285,000 square metres".

5. Reading or memorising your speech

When you read from notes or recite a script word for word, you lose eye contact, energy and your connection with the room. Know your key messages and the structure of your talk well, then say it in your own words. A natural delivery is far more convincing than a perfect script.

6. Being boring and using slides full of text

Your audience will forgive a lot, but not boredom. Use stories, examples, humour, contrast and a varied voice to keep people with you. If something bores you while you rehearse, it will bore your audience even more.

Text-heavy slides are one of the quickest ways to bore people. Your slides support you, not your script. If your audience is reading, they aren't listening. Slides are useful only if they do three things: clarify, simplify and amplify your message. Keep text to a minimum and use strong images, simple charts and one idea per slide.

7. Thinking you have to fill the whole time slot

Nobody has ever complained that a presentation ended early. Say what you need to say, say it well, and stop. Your audience will thank you.

8. Thinking you can wing it without practice

Anyone can become a good speaker, but it takes preparation and rehearsal, which are two different things:

Prepare your content and your visuals.
Rehearse your delivery out loud, ideally more than once and in front of someone.

9. Standing behind a lectern or a laptop

A lectern or a laptop puts a barrier between you and your audience. Step out from behind it and use the space. Move with purpose, keep an open posture and let people see you. Use a remote clicker so you aren't tied to your screen.

10. Ending weakly

People tend to remember the first and last things you say and forget most of the middle. Don't waste your closing moments on "Thank you for your attention." End with an inspiring message, a clear call to action, or a repeat of your key message.

Want to avoid these mistakes in your next presentation? Get in touch, and we'll help you make your next talk one people remember.

All insights