The fear of public speaking is a very
common thing for people to deal with. It can be a big deal for those with
anxiety and those who do not have anxiety issues. The anxiety of public
speaking is one of the most common fears that people are afraid of but not many
people know what it is that can be done to help overcome those fears.
The fear of public speaking is known
as Glossophobia which also has connections to social phobia. It is the fear of
being judged which can be triggered by all the people focusing their attention
on you while speaking in front of a crowd. When you have doubts of your ability
to speak effectively while knowing that people will be paying attention to you,
it can create a level of fear that can be terrible for some.
Unfortunately no speech is perfect.
Even if you did a great job you will keep dwelling on the mistakes you made and
this will help reinforce your fears.
There is the thought that the
lifestyle of today has been making the fear of public speaking worse than it
has been before. This thought comes from the idea that more people are spending
less time out in the public which reduces the amount of time generally talking
in front of people. People can become somewhat anonymous when they spend more
time online and the skills of being around people can diminish.
With the ability to send emails and
the ease of talking on the phone from anywhere you do not have to think about
people looking at you and making judgments which can lead to less experience in
public speaking as we move into the future.
Your age or experience has no bearing
– the lifestyle we live today gives us less personal interaction with other
people which in the long run can only lead to more people developing anxiety
towards public speaking.
So How Do We Reduce Anxiety towards
Public Speaking
It is normal for someone to become
anxious before making a speech regardless how good or outgoing they are, that’s
human nature. When trying to overcome your anxiety do not expect to become
completely anxiety free, it just will not happen. You can get to the point that
you can channel that anxiety to give you the ability to give a great speech,
not hold you back.
When you are overwhelmed by the fear
of public speaking you need help. It is not always easy to overcome this
anxiety quickly because we tend to focus on the mistakes and you can convince
yourself that you are justified to be fearful.
There are some that get public
speaking anxiety just talking with their friends. Anxiety such as that may be
related to social anxiety which may take more effort to overcome. In this
situation we are talking about being able to speak in front of a group of
people in a more formal situation. It could be making a speech or giving a
presentation in a meeting either way you will have to deal with your anxiety.
You need to learn some strategies and
practices to help overcome your fear of speaking. An important first step for
anyone giving a speech or presentation is practicing it. You need to practice
for a number of reasons. One is to remember your speech and to be comfortable
giving it. It will be more instinctual when you give it. You become more
familiar with it so if you get off track it is easier to get back on. Even
better is to practice in front of someone because it can help you with your
anxiety knowing you are being watched and working your way through it.
Prepare well for your speech do not
stop practicing because you feel you know it well. When you reach the point
that you are getting sick and tired of it then do you think about stopping.
Even then you should go over it again at least three more times. What you are
trying to do is go beyond just knowing it well. You want to reach the point
that you know it very well, that is the point you are ready to go.
The next step for you is work on
getting used to the fears you have about public speaking. This step is done
only after you have thoroughly practiced. Now you will use visualization to
help get ready. Picture the crowed of people you may be facing. See them as
angry and imagine what those angry faces will make you feel like if it was for
real. Will it bring on the anxiety you fear?
Visualizing this scenario you should
feel some anxiety. Your heart rate may be elevated and your fear level
should go up. When your anxiety level gets up there try deep breathing and try
to relax. Think about how those angry faces really do like your speech and the
angry faces are because they are being overwhelmed by how good it is. Continue
trying to calm yourself but keep on with your speech.
One great way to overcome your fear of
public speaking is to overcome the idea of being embarrassed. If you can
overcome being embarrassed you will be on your way to overcoming some of those
fears you have of public speaking and are closer to being cured.
One way to overcome embarrassment is
to go outside your comfort zone. Do something in public for example that you
would never otherwise do. Whatever it is you chose, do it long enough or enough
times that you are used to it and no longer embarrassed. You reach a point that
it no longer bothers you and it is not a big deal, in fact you may have fun
doing this.
The day of you speech there are some
things you can do to prepare your mind. First is to get a good night’s sleep
before hand. It may be difficult for some to sleep worrying about the speech
You want to do what you can to calm
your mind and relax. Drink plenty of water as being even a little dehydrated
can contribute to your anxiety. You can do something physical such as running
to help relieve some of your tension.
Have everything you need prepared and
ready in advance so you are not scrambling at the last minute to get ready. You
can go over your speech one more time and try some of the visualization
techniques.
The less anxiety you have this day the
better your speech will come across. The buildup of waiting for speech time can
wreak havoc on some people, so doing what you can to avoid the pre-speech
anxiety can benefit you. Do not worry about everyone else; remind yourself that
you have prepared and whatever happens you will get better.
When you begin to make your speech
there are some things that you can do to reduce your anxiety. One is to start
off strong by using a loud voice. Do not worry about being too loud, it will
come across just fine. Some people start off slow with the idea of easing into
the speech, starting strong is best for you.
Do not look at anyone in the room. Let
your gaze drift around the room while not really focusing on anyone’s face. Remember
the angry face visualization to help you here.
If you stumble do not worry about it.
Never expect a speech to go perfect, in fact those watching you may not even
notice. Well known speakers had troubles stumbling through their speeches; they
learned to just keep on going like nothing happened. If you lose your place
figure out where you left off and continue.
After you get into the speech there is
not much you can do but finish it. When you are done act like you did a great
job and worry about any mistakes you made another time. Congratulations you did
it, now applaud yourself. Keep in mind that the more speeches you give the
easier it is and the better you will get.
You can get past your fear of public
speaking if you try the above methods. If you suffer from anxiety on a regular
basis then these methods can work to help alleviate that also. Having anxiety
problems can accumulate over time to the point that it can cause problems out
in the public also. Do what you can to help yourself; there are programs
available to allow you to get over your fears on your own.