1. Write a talking script. While you won’t be able to read directly from it while presenting, having an outline that summarizes your presentation clearly can help keep your talking points clear while you are presenting.
   1. If you struggle with coming up with a script, I find pulling up my poster/slides/etc., turning on a recorder, and talking through it as if I am explaining it to someone else can be helpful (although it may feel funny talking to yourself).
2. Keep it short. Most people will want a quick summary of your topic- not a 20 minute explanation. Try to spend the majority of your time highlighting the most important ideas of your presentation and define words your audience members may not know along the way.
   1. For example, I explained what words like “rural”, “Appalachia”, and “psychosocial” meant so the rest of my poster made sense to people as we walked through it.
3. PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE!! Whether you do this with your coworkers or in front of your bathroom mirror, practice makes perfect. Allow yourself the space to stumble over words and make mistakes in privacy so that when it does come time to present, you know what words or parts you need to go through at a slower pace so you don’t make any mistakes.
4. Remember: you’ve got this! You did the work, made the poster/presentation. You practiced. You adjusted your mental talking script to make it as clean and coherent as possible. You know this content like the back of your hand! Have confidence in yourself (and remember that it’ll be over before you even know it!).