Everyone is nervous when giving a wedding speech – it's natural to have anxiety over public speaking. However, most of us want to channel that anxiety and stress into a great performance that is going to be memorable and appreciated by the audience. You might just be able to achieve that goal with practice and by avoiding the pitfalls below.
1) Rambling
Wedding speeches can be tough enough on the audience without hearing you drone on for twenty minutes without a coherent point. This is why preparation and practice are critical. You need to know what you're going to say, say it, and sit back down. That's the essence of good public speaking.
2) Apologizing
Whether you're apologizing for not being a very good speaker, apologizing for talking for too long, apologizing for not knowing what to say, or just apologizing for almost anything, you really want to avoid it. People don't like hearing that you're sorry for all of these things. And apologizing for your speaking performance only draws negative attention in your direction.
3) Being Intoxicated
Even a small amount of alcohol is enough to throw you off your game and make your words sound like a rambling mess. Hold off on the drinks until you're done.
4) Avoid Controversy
You definitely don't want to touch on anything controversial during your speech, including issues of religion, politics, or anything else that might cause a stir. Remember you're not a celebrity at an awards show.
5) Making the Speech about You
Giving a speech does put you in the spotlight but don't let that fool you. The event is about the bride and groom so keep it that way. Keep your own stories and memories that don't involve them out of the speech (unless they are directly relevant).
6) Ending Abruptly
Another bad idea is just to let the speech end suddenly with no formal conclusion. Maybe you let your last words fade off or maybe you just return to your seat after the final statement. In any case, you're making a big mistake that is going to affect the impression of your speech.
7) Bringing Up the Bad Past
Being nostalgic in your wedding speech is great but if you start reminiscing about the bride's ex-husband or about the days when the groom was free to hang out with his friends freely, you're moving into territory that should be avoided at all costs in your wedding speech.
8) Giving Too Much Advice
While already married couples can give advice in their speeches, too much advice is not usually going to go over well with the couple or the audience. Advice is a bit tricky anyway because you don't want it to come off like "We're so wonderful. Look what we've done" so you want to be careful if you add any to your speech.
9) Saying Inappropriate Things
If you've always thought the groom was sexy or if you had a sex dream one night about the bride, don't bring it up now. In fact, you really want to be careful about using any type of sex references, profanity, or offensive language in your speech. You never know who might be in the audience.
10) Mumbling
Make sure the audience can hear you. Talk loudly and clearly; otherwise, there's no point to you giving the speech in the first place and all of your planning will have been a waste.
If you're interested in learning more about how to create the best wedding speech possible and dazzling the audience with your skills,
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