[fatbird]

A couple tips on public speaking:

1. You're not speaking to a group, you're speaking to each individual in a group. Your voice should be pitched as if you're in a one-on-one conversation with someone, and in a group, you can simply look at one person, talk to them for a minute, and then at another person. Always focus on someone briefly, including eye contact, and then on someone else. It's a lot less intimidating talking to one person, and that shows up as confidence in a group.

2. Learn to not say "um" or "like" or any other verbal placeholders that you use to give your brain a chance to catch up and figure out the next thing to say. At first, just pause instead of saying "um"; over time, you'll either stop pausing, or you'll keep pausing and realizing that you weren't sure what you wanted to say, which means learning to take a moment before you start and get a clear idea of what you wanted to say.