Public Speaking Anxiety - How To Conquer It

Public speaking anxiety can grip anyone when they hear they calls of "Speech, Speech". Others may be given notice in advance of a presentation they have to make before a group. Again, fear can almost overwhelm many an individual.

Look over the 4 main ideas here and see how to incorporate them in your own preparation so you can knock public speaking anxiety on the head:

1. Thorough Preparation

Kill audience fear with one powerful weapon - very thorough preparation. Don't take shortcuts.

If you have carefully researched your material so you are convinced it is worth delivering, and you firmly believe your audience needs to hear it, and you have practiced and practiced the delivery, you can stand up in front of an audience with confidence!

2. Breathing

Control nervousness by taking deep breaths to relax the body. Concentrate on your message and the things you have prepared to present to your audience rather than on your nervousness.

Use positive speech, even in your own thoughts. Instead of saying to yourself, "Boy, do I feel nervous", which only reinforces the feeling, say, "My adrenaline is pumping and I'm going to use it to deliver an unforgettable presentation!"

3. Confidence Visualized

Use visualization techniques as another weapon against public speaking anxiety. They can be very effective in combating nervousness.

Play the runup to the presentation like a movie in your mind. With vivid imagination, see yourself confidently, slowly, approaching the speaker's stand. See yourself making that initial pause as you look around the room with a warm facial expression making eye contact with the audience. Now you see yourself and hear yourself repeating the first few sentences of your presentation and you are away!

4. End Result Visualization

Be sure to include the end result when you perform your visualization exercises.

Picture the end result of your speech as you graciously accept the applause of the audience, you see the smiles of appreciation, and you hear the complimentary remarks.

In a TV interview, Mohammed Ali once explained how he prepared for a fight. He would concentrate his mind on imagining actually being there in the ring, in the stadium, at the venue. He would see himself there at the end of the fight, victorious.

The sights, sounds, feelings, smells, were all very real to him in his mind and he created the experience right there in his head. It was so real to him he had a name for it. He called it creating a 'Future History'.

You can do the same. Before your next speech or presentation, create a Future History for yourself and see how it can trigger confidence so you powerfully overcome any negative feelings of doubt.

Of course, to be realistic, it is unlikely most people will totally conquer public speaking fear. Some experienced public speakers however can just walk out in front of an audience with no feelings of nervousness at all.

For the majority however, who may only be called on occasionally to speak before a group or an audience, there will always be some anxiety. A realistic expectation regarding public speaking anxiety and following the suggestions above can however do much to control it so it does not overwhelm the speaker.

Tags: public speaking, confidence in public speaking telecourse version, public speaking anxiety, public speaking techniques, how to conquer public speaking, public speaking workshops