Numerous online tournaments are around the corner. Here are 7 ways to make sure you get the most from the experience:

1) Take it Seriously

Online debates are less dramatic and social, but they’re still a valid medium for competition. You can hone 95% of the skills you need to be an excellent speaker using online debates. If you give this activity your all, it will give back to you generously. 

2) Assemble your Gear

For an audio-only online debate, you need a place to stand to deliver, a place to sit and take notes, and a solid speaker/microphone setup. Examples:

• Simple. Sit at your kitchen table. Skype with a phone in speaker mode. Stand at the table to speak. 

• Standard. Sit at a desk in a silent room. Skype with your phone using earbuds. Stand at a music stand to speak.

• Fancy. Sit in a room with a computer. Skype with the computer, using a gaming headset. Pace around the room to speak.   

3) Check your Equipment

At least a day before the round, do a call with a friend to make sure everything is working. Deliver a few paragraphs from a script, then ask your friend these diagnostic questions:

• Was reception consistent, or did I break up?

• Was the sound quality clear, or was I muffled?

• Is the room silent, or can you hear a lot of ambient noise?

Keep testing your setup until you’re confident that you can depend on it.

4) Prepare a Backup

Technical issues happen. Plan for them by figuring out backups you can use if your main setup doesn’t work for some reason. Example backup plan: 

Borrow mom’s phone, skype from the garage, bribe my little brother to be quiet for an hour. 

5) Practice Prepping

If you’re a team debater, you and your partner should practice prepping together. Use a separate window (NOT the debate group call) to send messages. This is a more limited way to communicate, so you’ll need to trust each other as much as possible and coordinate with a minimum of back-and-forth. 

Connect with a team in your club or the Ace Peak Society to set up a practice debate. Focus on excellent communication at the table. Talk to your partner afterward about what went right and what didn’t.

6) Get Dressed

Why dress up for an audio-only debate? Because it changes how you act. Sure, you’ve been quarantined in your pajamas for weeks. But you shouldn’t sound like it. You don’t need to wear a suit and tie; dressing like you’re going to church will make a difference. Most people are more confident and focused when they’re wearing shoes.

7) Eliminate Ambient Noise

Set up in the quietest room you can. Talk to your family about the importance of quiet. Close the doors and windows. Turn off objects in the room that make noise, like refrigerators or ceiling fans. If there’s something you can’t turn off, like the desktop computer you’re using to Skype, see if you can block the noise by putting a blanket between it and the microphone.

In the next article, we’ll talk about what to do during the live debate.