Overcome Public Speaking Anxiety

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We saw that your public speaking fear has nothing to do with how courageous you are.  When you start analyzing your beliefs about public speaking, you will learn how to manage your fear.

So, let’s take a practical look at the three limiting beliefs you hold and the actual reality.

Belief 1: My ideas are not worthy enough to be presented

When you lack conviction in your presentation content, you feel powerless in front of your audience. When there are seniors or experts in your audience, the feeling gets even worse. You fear that you may disappoint them when they find your ideas to be shallow or incorrect.

Solution : Build confidence in your content

The practical solution to manage public speaking anxiety, is to build your content with your audience’s problems in mind. Your audience are then focused on what you are saying (and not YOU).

You may find it worth your while learning how to start by creating your presentation outline .

Strong presentation content will help you get the conviction you need to stand up in front of your audience, with confidence.

Since you have complete control over how well you prepare your presentation, you have the power to manage your fear. Let us see the second limiting belief, which is…

Belief 2: I can’t speak well enough to excite my audience

You expect a lot from yourself and you feel depressed when your audience is not entertained and excited by your talk.

Here is the truth – your audience doesn’t care if they are entertained or not. All they want to know is what is in it for them. Thus, a benefit-rich presentation delivered with an average style scores many times over an average presentation delivered with a great style and panache.

Solution : Focus on your audience benefits

When you focus on your audience benefits, you increase your chances of winning your presentation. You can strengthen your chances even further, by using strong support elements like visual slides.

Even if your words fail you in the first few minutes of your talk, your visual slides can help you get your composure back. They can make your audience to want to listen to you.

Solution : Engage audience with visual slides

We recommend you to spend some time learning how to create design visual slides . This will help you to use PowerPoint to support your ideas, instead of using it as a teleprompter.

Since you have complete control over how well you create your slides, you have the power to overcome your fear of boring your audience. Now, the final limiting belief…

Belief 3: I always panic when I am asked to speak in public

You acquired this public speaking anxiety from your past experience. It is your reality. You can’t wish it away.

The only way you can change this belief is to…

Solution : Experience small successes

After all, nothing succeeds like success.

How can you experience success in public speaking?

The answer is – by creating your own opportunities. Start creating ‘less risk’ opportunities to present to public. Join Toastmasters International or any similar local forum to try your skill and gain confidence. Once your mind believes that you can deliver effectively, you will start seeing a miraculous transformation in your confidence.

Thus, when you follow these ideas, you will replace your limiting beliefs with more empowering ones. You will realize that you have more power to manage your fear than what you imagine now.

Here is a quick recap of how to overcome your public speaking anxiety:

1. Build clear and strong content with audience focus, and create visual slides the right way
2. Back yourself by getting some ‘small wins’ in speaking forums.

This will set you on the right path to becoming an effective speaker in the times to come.

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