CHAMPION STRATEGIES – PUBLIC SPEAKING WORKSHOP – FEBRUARY 22, 2021
Overcoming Speaking Anxiety
Do your knees feel like Gumby’s when you have to get up and speak in front of a group?
Do you feel like the next words out of your mouth are going to be the dumbest words ever uttered by a human?
If you said yes to either of the questions above, be advised, you have a full-blown case of stage fright.
According to the book of lists, the fear of speaking in public is the #1 fear of all fears. The fear of dying is #7! Over 41% of people have some fear or anxiety dealing with speaking in front of groups. People who have this fear can experience all kinds of symptoms: Sweaty palms, accelerated heart rate, memory loss and even difficulty in breathing.
Some of the world’s most famous presenters have freely admitted to nervousness and stage fright. Mark Twain said it best, “There are two types of speakers: those that are nervous and those that are liars”.
Everyone, even experienced speakers, has some anxiety when speaking in front of a group of people. This is perfectly normal. The best way to deal with this anxiety is to first acknowledge that this fear is perfectly normal and you are not alone. To reduce your fear, you need to make sure you properly and thoroughly prepare yourself before you speak. Proper preparation and rehearsal can help to reduce this fear by about 75%. Proper breathing techniques can further reduce this fear by another 15%. Your mental state accounts for the remaining 10%.
Below are just a few suggestions you should use to overcome your speaking anxiety. The first and most important of all is preparation. I like to think of it as the 9 P’s:
Prior Proper Preparation
Prevents Poor Performance
of the
Person Putting on the Presentation.
Nothing will relax you more than to know you are properly prepared. Below are 10 steps you can take to reduce your speech anxiety.
- Know the room – become familiar with the place in which you will speak. Arrive early and walk around the room including the speaking area. Stand at the lectern, speak into the microphone. Walk around where the audience will be seated. Walk from where you will be seated to the place where you will be speaking.
- Know the Audience – If possible, greet some of the audience as they arrive and chat with them. It is easier to speak to a group of friends than to a group of strangers.
