How do I get over my fear of public speaking?

Answer 1

First of all, know that it is perfectly normal to be somewhat nervous before getting up to speak in front of others! Even the most seasoned presenters will be a bit nervous beforehand. I've taught Engineering workshops for over 30 years and would still be a little nervous before each new class.

The good news is that you can reduce your pre-talk jitters to a manageable level, and you can learn how to manage the nerves or anxiety during your presentation.

The key to reducing your anxiousness or nervousness before you give you presentation is to maximize your confidence: Your confidence in the material you'll be presenting, and your confidence in your delivery or presentation skills.

Increasing your confidence in your material requires you to prepare as much as is practical. If you're presenting from a PowerPoint slide deck, for example, practice-practice-practice to the point where you know exactly what you're going to say for each slide as soon the slide appears, or even better, learn to anticipate the next slide. If there are no visual aids, then memorize your speech as best as possible, with minimal glances to your notes. During your prep also try to anticipate any questions or concerns or objections that may arise, and prepare appropriate responses. Asking some friends or colleagues, or an expert coach to listen to your material after you feel prepared, doing some role playing and allowing them to ask you questions, giving you feedback about the flow of your talk, how clear and understandable it is, etc, can be very helpful.

Increasing your confidence in your delivery or presentation skills is easier if you are or will be presenting often - the more you do, the more confident you become with time and practice. However, if this is not something you do regularly, getting some expert coaching can really make a difference.

From my experience with 100's of presenters, I can guarantee that, once you're comfortable and prepared with your topic and you're confident in your ability to deliver your presentation, your level of anxiety will be drastically reduced. Trust that your confidence WILL overcome any nerves or anxiety that remains. As soon as you start talking, within the first 30-60 seconds, you'll get into the groove of your presentation, and the nerves will magically melt away.

What if you're still nervous during your presentation, or worse, what if you lose your train of thought or you simply forget what to say next or you forget what a slide is about, and you start to panic, what do you do then!?

They key here is to remember that your audience does not know what you're thinking or what's happening on the inside! You can be totally freaking out on the inside, panicked about forgetting your next line or some other issue, but as long as you "keep your cool" on the outside, your audience will never know what's going on! The trick, if this happens (it happens to all of us!), is to simply be quiet, and allow yourself the time to regain your train of thought, while maintaining your outward composure. Maintain a pleasant facial expression (neutral, or a tiny smile), stay standing still, or walk slowly/deliberately as though you're thinking, maybe looking at the screen (if applicable), or looking up or down, or even directly at your audience, but remaining silent all the while. Believe it or not, you can do this for 3-5 seconds, and if done correctly, your audience will simply believe that you are in deep thought, really searching for the right words to say next, or you're stopping for some dramatic effect, or you're giving them time to catch up or think about what you've said so far. They will NEVER suspect that you are panicking on the inside. Most of the time, these 3-5 seconds are enough time to allow you to remember what to say next, and continue as though nothing happened. And if, worst case, you still don't remember, you smile and simply admit to your audience that you forgot what you were going to say, and that you'll get back to the point as soon as it comes back to you - and it usually does come back! No one will bat an eye if you do this, because it happens to everyone. The key is to maintain your composure and stay calm.

Answer 2

Hello.

One of the very best ways to get over this fear is to join a Toastmasters group in your local area. There are groups all over the country, and it's very reasonable $65 to join and $45 each year after that. The clubs are literally everywhere, with over 16,000 clubs worldwide, and almost certain to be one in your city. Their program is very interactive, and not at all scary for fearful folks like you. They have specific training, and real life challenges in front of a small boardroom type audience. The other approach is to go to Meetup {dot com} and find public speaking groups. Again, there are almost certainly Meetup groups in your area.....they're everywhere. These are much more casual gatherings, although some of them have more structured approach. It can be anything from a meetup at a cafe once a week, to a very structured arrangement where everyone must give a speech once a month or something like that. Just search within the Meetup site, and you should find lots of opportunities. Yet one more strategy is to work toward finding ways you can make the composition of your audience less fearful for you. Depending on what you need and what kind of speaking engagements you're wanting to give, you might be able to break up the groups into smaller and less intimidating audiences, or ask to co-present with someone you trust, who would allow you to be interactive with them in a scripted presentation. Good luck to you!!