Lesson 1: Facing Your Fear And The Power Of Public SpeakingChange Your ExpectationsThere is no right or wrong way to approach public speaking. There are no bad public speakers as long as a connection is made between the speaker and the audience. (We will talk more about connecting with your audience in lesson 2). Stephen Covey has his own style, Zig Ziglar has his style, Tony Robbins has his style. These people all approach their presentations differently, but they are able to connect with their audiences. As long as they are making this connection and people receive their message, they are a success. Learn Strategies for Coping with Your FearsExperts on overcoming fear of public speaking and professional speakers themselves have offered some excellent advice on ways to overcome speech anxiety. The following strategies, collected from their articles and books, will give you some ways to cope with your fears. Visualize SuccessRather than anticipating your speaking experience with dread and imagining yourself fumbling and stammering, picture yourself delivering your speech the way you would like to. Judith E. Pearson, in her article, “Overcome your Fear of Public Speaking,” recommends: “See yourself speaking confidently with a smooth delivery to an appreciative audience. Hear the words coming out of your mouth in a flowing cadence. See yourself with an erect posture and easy, regular breathing.” 11 When you can visualize yourself speaking confidently, you will become more confident. This technique, called “positive imagery,” has been used in sports psychology for years by athletes like Martina Navratilova, Mary Lou Retton, and Kristi Yamaguchi. 12 An athlete can train mentally prior to a competition by mentally running through a successful routine in his or her mind, picturing a perfect serve, or imagining the path of a golf ball as it rolls into the hole. You can anticipate a similar successful outcome before every speech. Think PositivelyReplace any negative thoughts that tend to fill your mind with positive ones. Prepare positive thoughts beforehand so that when you feel yourself thinking, “I am going to make a fool of myself . . . Everyone is watching me,” you can immediately switch modes to “Everyone gets nervous . . . I am well prepared, I am excited to give this speech, and I think my audience will enjoy what I have to say.” Project ConfidenceEven if you feel tense, act confident. Stand tall, gesture emphatically, look directly at your audience, and speak forcefully. Avoid playing with your rings, jingling change in your pocket, or shifting body weight from foot to foot. Eliminating your nervous behaviors will help you change your perception that you are nervous. 13 Remember that your audience cannot see inside you. They see only what you show them. 14 Never tell your audience that you are nervous; this will only make them uncomfortable, obligated to worry about you, and distracted from your message. 15 You’d be surprised how often students confess after a speech that they were quaking in their shoes, only to discover that the rest of the class was impressed with how confident they looked. Make Nervousness Work for YouRemember that anxiety about speaking in front of people is a natural reaction. Michael and Suzanne Osborn advise you to: Accept [apprehension about public speaking] as natural, and remind yourself that you can convert these feelings into positive energy. One of the biggest myths about public speaking classes is that they can or should rid you of any natural fears. Instead, you should learn how to harness the energy generated by apprehension so that your speaking is more dynamic. No anxiety often means a flat, dull presentation. Transformed anxiety can make your speech sparkle. 16 It’s natural to get butterflies when you have to give a speech. According to the legendary news reporter Edward R. Murrow, “The only difference between the pros and the novices is that the pros have trained their butterflies to fly in formation.” 17 |