From rapid heartbeats to sweaty palms, public speaking can be a nerve-wracking experience for many of us, says Henric from www.educationisaround.com. Even with days of planning your speech and preparing on what to say and how to say it, there is always something holding us back: Stage Fright.
To help you get over your fear of public speaking, we’re here to help you understand the mental part of straight fright and how you can overcome this fear.
Here are 7 ways to overcome your fear of public speaking.
Speak For Your Heart
Speak about your own experiences. Tell the audience personal stories related to your topic. This is a great way to inspire others and build their attention as it is also easy to remember our own stories. Just be sure to skip complicated language and terms. This will surely cause you to lose your audience before you even get started.
Prepare Yourself as a Winner
Those who prepare themselves mentally before speaking will set themselves up for success. Visualize the venue and the audience. This will contribute to how you build up your confidence. Being aware of your audience and what you will talk about will mentally prepare you for the big presentation.
Calm Your Nerves
Be aware of your breath and how it controls your nerves. Take deep breaths before the presentation as well as after to calm your nerves and add power to your voice. Practice deep breathing to keep center your voice and prevent dangerous distractions that may undermine your confidence and credibility says Danny from geteducationskills.com.
Skip the PowerPoint Presentations
PowerPoint may seem like a friendly voice to your audience. However, aim to make them invest and listen to you for your energy and confidence rather than look up at the slides. Make your business the sole focus of the presentation rather than features on your power point slides.
Practice Effectively
Simulate the experience by rehearsing in what you will wear. Practicing underperformance will create pressure and make you meet the demands of public speaking. Rehearsing your lines will transfer your thoughts and words into the brain and create a fast activation to perform those actions says Jonny from theeducationlife.com.
Understand that Public Speaking Is a Skill, Not a Born-Instilled Talent for Everyone
Never assume that you are born to be a public speaker, without the practice. Understand that speaking in public is a skill that promotes your confidence in business. This means it is important to put time into your practice and absorb feedback says Petre from petrefine.com.
Start and End Strong
The opening will set the tone for your speech and how you leave the audience. Public speakers must learn to leave the audience with a call to action plan or some way to get them involved into something bigger. The most crucial parts of the speech are the opening line and the ending conclusion says Josh from whizzherald.com.
How have you helped improve stage fright? What has worked and didn’t work for you? Comment below and let us know what you think!