Imagine your manager asks you to do a presentation in front of important clients about a new product of the company. Will you feel butterflies in your stomach, a dry mouth, sweaty palms, and a rapid heartbeat?
Don't worry. You're not alone! The fear of public speaking is a common type of social anxiety that many people, including me, experience.
We don't want the fear of public speaking to ruin our career advancement. We want to seize the opportunity to impress the manager. From my experience, a few tips will help you overcome the fear and nail it!
Tip 1: Make friends with your fear
When I was in university, we had group presentations almost every week. As an introvert, it was a real challenge for me. My blood pressure would rise, my palms would sweat, and I even started to tremble. I tried to find ways to stop these reactions, but nothing seemed to work.
Later, I came to understand that these bodily responses are just a natural "fight or flight" reaction to stress. Don’t let this fear or your bodily reactions intimidate you. Sometimes, you just can't control this feeling. Instead, try to make friends with it.
Be brave!
Trust me, I know it's hard! Easier said than done, right? That natural response can be very intimidating.
There are several mantras that have pushed me through this challenge. I hope these mantras will be helpful for you, too:
"There are things in life that are more important than this fear. You need to speak about them."
"Think about the bigger goals you've set for your life."
"This speech will bring growth and positive changes to your life."
Tip 2: People want to see you succeed
When I did public speaking, I was once afraid of judgment and negative comments. But later I understood that people are generally kind and nice. They want to see you succeed. There is no need to fear rejection.
Speak up calmly and confidently to your lovely audience, who are there to witness your success.
Tip 3: Preparation is key
Good preparation will boost your confidence and help you overcome your fear.
Don't try to memorize every word you’re going to say. Instead, structure and outline your speech and make notes of key points.
Make cue cards with key points to guide you through your speech.
And practice!
For me, I would ask a friend or family member to be my audience while I practice. This way, I can get feedback from them and improve on things like eye contact, voice volume, posture, gestures, and even get suggestions on the content.
Quiz
How should you prepare for a public speech? Select all that apply:
Tip 4: Don't be a perfectionist
Don't dwell on mistakes during public speaking — a slip of the tongue, a long pause, or a brain freeze. They're all fine.
Once, when I made a mistake during public speaking, I would regret it and let it linger in my mind, which caused me to stumble and make more mistakes.
Now, when I do public speaking, I tell myself, "You're there for the audience, not to be perfect." This helps me a lot in focusing on conveying my messages clearly and smoothly, despite any mistakes.
Take Action
From my experience, I overcame my fear of public speaking by:
understanding that feeling nervous is a natural bodily reaction to stress
empathizing with the audience
being tolerant of mistakes
preparing well
Since my university days to now working in a school, I’ve explored and applied these tips, and I've become much more calm and confident in public speaking.
You can make this change too if you keep putting in the effort!
What's next?
Try the following tips to help combat the fear of public speaking:
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