5 Phrases That Will Aggravate Your Audience

When you are giving a presentation, your main goal is to engage your audience and get them interested in what you are talking about. The last thing you want to do is bore your audience, or even worse make them angry. There are a few phrases that every unrehearsed speaker starts with. Those overused statements are the ones that will make your audience roll their eyes and say, “oh no, not this again.” These are the phrases you want to stay as far away from as possible. Our CEO, Kenny Nguyen, provided us with five phrases he avoids at all costs to keep his audience from getting annoyed.

1. “I’m not really prepared, but here it goes…”
This is possibly one of the worst things you can say. Your audience will feel like you are wasting their time, because you didn’t even prepare to give your presentation. Take the time before your presentation to go over what you’re going to say and how you are going to say it. Understand what you are talking about so you will be able to answer any questions when the presentation is over.

2. “Well it will be hard to follow up after that person.”
Don’t downgrade yourself in front of the audience! Practice and prepare before you presentation, and you will be an amazing presenter. Stay confident in yourself when you are presenting. This will keep the momentum going with your audience and keep them excited throughout the presentation.

3. “Today, I’m going to present to you [blank]…”
You don’t need to tell your audience that you are about to present to them. They know that you are a presenter, and you are giving a presentation. That is the whole reason they came. You don’t want to sound like a reporter to your audience; you want to win them over. Get enthusiastic and jump right into presenting.

4. “I’m going to make this as painless as possible.”
This sets your audience up for boredom. If you say you are going to try and make it easier for them, then they will automatically know it is an awful topic to sit through. Try to make your presentation as interesting as possible and continuously interact with your audience. This will keep them from getting those glazed-over eyes and zoning out.

5. “Ignore this slide.”
If the something is unimportant, don’t put it in your presentation. Your audience doesn’t want to be weighed down with useless information. Keep your presentation short and to the point. Make your slides stimulating and easy to read, and remember to stay focused when you’re presenting. Don’t get distracted and travel off into a subject that has nothing to do with your presentation.

Remember to always practice before a big presentation, and try to stay away from these irritating phrases. Comment and let us know about any other phrases that have annoyed you in the past presentations, and don’t forget to subscribe to our blog for more great tips on presenting.