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Many people are intimidated by public speaking, but by following a few simple tips, you can calm your nerves and engage your audience. Presentations, whether virtual or in-person, are a part of the day-to-day work of many professionals. This is especially true for entrepreneurs and company leaders, who frequently have to present to employees, clients, board members, the media, and other stakeholders. However, if you're new to public speaking, you may not be sure how to prepare your remarks, structure your presentation, or—most importantly—settle your nerves. Getting tips from a seasoned speaker can help you get ready to effectively engage and educate your audience. No strangers to giving presentations themselves, the members of Fast Company Executive Board have learned ways to prepare and give presentations that make a lasting impression. Below, 15 of them share their best tips to help novice speakers successfully find their voices and hone their skills as presenters.

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Waiting for things to fall into your lap will only slow your progress.

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Most organizations have specific rules and protocols workers are expected to follow, as well as carefully developed missions and visions that are intended to guide the entire team's actions. However, employees won't just blindly follow these rules if the leaders who established them aren't modeling that behavior themselves. And it's not just about hard-and-fast policies and procedures either—teams are influenced by everything from a leader's speech patterns to their attitudes. Consciously or unconsciously, employees often pick up habits, mannerisms, and mindsets from their managers and other higher-ups—an instinct that often trumps paying close attention to "the rules." That's why leaders must stop and think about the messages they may be unconsciously sending to their teams. It can be difficult to know how you may be setting a bad example if you aren't aware of some of the more common missteps leaders make. To help, a panel of Fast Company Executive Board members shared 15 ways leaders might be unknowingly setting a bad example for their teams and how they can turn things around.

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Stress is a natural part of life, but it doesn't have to derail your focus and productivity. Leaders generally deal with some level of stress on a daily basis—but they can't let it sidetrack them or shut them down. With multiple responsibilities on their plate, leaders need to have go-to strategies and coping mechanisms to ease both everyday and situational stress and get back to the work at hand.  With plenty of experience coping with the myriad responsibilities of leadership, the members of Fast Company Executive Board have their own methods for handling high-pressure moments, big responsibilities, and heavy workloads. Below, 15 of them share their favorite ways to find calm and move forward. Follow their recommendations the next time you find yourself carrying the burden of stress.

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Writing informative content can set you and your organization up as experts in your industry—but only if it provides real value to your audience. Gone are the days when producing business content simply meant writing copy for ads. With today’s broad variety of 24/7 media outlets, organizations have the opportunity to create messaging that will not only give them top-of-mind awareness but also showcase their expertise, boost their brands, and help them build real, meaningful relationships with their target audiences. By producing content that shares their knowledge with the public, a leader and the organization they represent can show that they’re genuinely interested in serving the public’s needs, not just in making a sale.  It can seem like an intimidating task to develop smart, meaningful content, but it doesn’t have to be. You and your team have plenty of valuable information to share; you just have to learn the best ways to uncover it and get it out there. To help, the members of Fast Company Executive Board have shared ways leaders and their teams can brainstorm and create content that not only demonstrates their expertise but also provides real value for their audiences.