“There are only two types of speakers. 1. Nervous and 2. Liars” - Mark Twain
Public speaking is the art of communicating information, knowledge, beliefs and ideas to a group of listeners which is usually a large audience. It is not a conversation but a one way communication that, in order to be effective, requires the speaker to bind the audience together to convey the intended message and leave an impression on the listeners.
Though public speaking is inevitably an integral part of human communication in our daily lives yet people find it difficult to stand in front of an audience or even a group of people, for that matter, to convey their thoughts and opinions clearly. Each one of us experience nervousness or panic attacks before going on to the stage to speak in front of a wide audience. However, some of us learn to control it whereas some get succumbed to it.
Imagine yourself in a scenario where there are only ten minutes left for you to deliver a speech in front of an audience of over a thousand people who are waiting all eyes and ears for you. In that intense situation, you feel that even your slightest of mistakes will get noticed and will become a cause of embarrassment for you for many days to come. So, it is natural for you to get nervous. Palms sweat, dry throat, tight stomach, that adrenaline inside you is very common and nothing to distress about. Trust me, you are not alone! Even Warren Buffett used to get anxious before making a speech in his early days.
Therefore, it is crucial to enforce composure upon yourself in this public speaking world. You cannot let nervousness overpower your sanity. We cannot afford to have a fear of speaking in a world where communication is the key. The earlier this nervousness is conquered, the easier your life becomes. Here are 7 useful ways to fight nervousness and anxiety before Public Speaking:
1. “Best way to conquer stage fright is to know what you’re talking about.” - Michael H. Mescon
Immerse yourself into the topic of discussion. You must know and understand the topic from the depths to be able to talk about it. Don’t just mug up and prepare & learn a speech, but understand everything in its entirety. If you know and understand what is the message you are going to convey exactly, you may not even need a paper in front of you. Feel the topic and resonate with it. Nothing works better than understanding your intended message. It automatically infuses confidence in you.
2. Tell yourself - “I am confident!”
Tell yourself, “I am confident!”. Speak it up loudly, find an isolated place and give yourself a pep talk. No matter how underconfident, anxious or nervous you are, put it in your head that you are a confident person and you can do it and there’s nothing in this world that can stop you. Lie to yourself and to others about your anxiety, and it’ll work wonders. Think and believe that you are a confident person rather than embracing panics because it won’t bear you any fruits.
3. Do the Worst Case Analysis
Often, we are so fearful of getting embarrassed that we begin overthinking and tense ourselves up, days before we even have to speak. Don’t do that. This massive fear of making mistakes just piles up your anxieties and when the moment finally comes, you’re blank
Hence, it is always wise to do the worst case analysis. Think what is the worst thing that could happen to you and how will it affect your life. Will people hang you for stumbling on few words? What is the worst thing that could go wrong? Is that worst thing bad enough to distress about so much? Is it worth it? Think and you’ll realise that it is not worth it. Even if you stumble in few words, that is okay, nobody is going to hold it against you for eternity.
4. Avoid Talking too Fast
There is no rush. The impact of speaking slowly and giving every word the required time is much more powerful than rushing into words. When you speak slowly, word by word, you understand your speech yourself, and you are able to make sense of it and hence, avoid potential mistakes. Also, going slow will not only make you comfortable on stage but will also engage your audience with you.
5. Focus on Yourself and not the Audience
Think only about yourself in that moment of anxiety. Think about ways you can make it better and feel confident. Don’t dedicate your last minute thoughts to your audience or their post-reactions. Start by saying what you want to say, think as if there is no one in the room. It’s only about you. Converge your focus on the speech and forget about the reactions or even the applause coming from the audience. If your full focus is upon yourself & your words and not on the audience, all your fears will evaporate away.
6. Don’t Give the Script the Last Look
Avoid taking glances at your the script again and again especially at the last moment, because it will only give you anxiety. You will panic because you will feel that you don’t remember each and every word by heart even though mugging up was never an option. Hence, do not give those last minute glance to your script although, you can take it with you for a certain support. Taking a quick glance sounds really intimidating, but it may cause severe anxiety and leave you speechless for some time on the stage.
7. Accept That You Might Make Mistakes
Nobody is perfect in this world. So, don’t expect perfection from yourself. Accept the fact that you may make mistakes and people may take notice. Accept it and don’t try to dodge it but realise that it is okay. It is not going to cost you, your life. The earlier you embrace this fact, the easier you will make public speaking for yourself.
Remember Public Speaking is a skill developed and groomed through experience. The nervousness in the first experience will gradually be minimal overtime and there will come a time when you will not even find the need to prepare any written material because it will all be impromptu.
- Apoorva Garg
Source: https://mindgrad.com/free-reads/f/7-ways-to-fight-nervousness-before-public-speaking
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