public speaking is more about the conveying of ideas and less about the speaker. The attention of the audience is caught by the information and ideas rather than the elocution and performance of the speaker.

If you are new to public speaking and presenting it is an anxiety inducing prospect. This is an entirely normal response. Conquering the “barrier of public speaking anxiety” is an important step in career and business advancement – many an opportunity is lost because of a hesitancy to start.

The ideas expressed here will get you on the first steps towards public speaking and presenting to groups mastery, so that you can obtain the benefits of being an effective speaker at your workplace and business or even as a professional speaker.

Proper Preparation and Presentation Necessary

Master the subject you are to present, be as knowledgeable as you can. It is important that you are convinced about your ideas and information so that you can presently forthrightly and with enthusiasm. If you have not mastered your subject you can not hope to master your audience and speak with conviction.

The material you present should be thoroughly prepared but also personal, because to present it effectively at a management meeting or to present to a group convincingly it is important to put yourself into your talk.

Fighting Your Fright

The first real lesson in public speaking is gathering up the confidence to try. A speaker must realise that it is not the audience he fears but themselves. Your listeners will typically want you to succeed and will be supportive towards you.

It is a normal human anxiety that is faced by most speakers when they first start. Experienced speakers can still suffer with “nerves” but they may refer to it as anticipation and use it as motivation to deliver an effective speech. By careful preparation and practice you will add to your self-confidence. The better prepared you are the more self-confident you will be when delivering your speech.

Persistence Pays Off

Public speaking and presenting, more than any other human activity is learned by doing and improved with practice.

Any normal person can become a successful public speaker by being natural and working at it on a consistent and regular basis.

Be Brief

Your first appearance need only be brief – it may only involve stating your name and occupation. Use something like “This is my maiden appearance before an audience and frankly I’m scared stiff. My name is….and my business is……..

Invite Feedback

Find someone of experience to evaluate your speech and ask for feedback. Their observations if implemented will greatly help in improving your public speaking skills.

Public speaking today is in the grasp of people who are prepared to take the first step. It is about the effective conveying of ideas not about a polished performance with little or nothing to say. The advantages of confident speaking are many and are in the grasp of those willing to take that first step.

st public speaking today is conversational in style. It is like a conversation addressed to more than one listener. The only significant difference between conversation and public speaking is that during a speech there is no exchange of remarks.

In adopting a conversational style in public speaking there are conversation techniques that can be applied to public speaking

Be natural and improve.

When you are in conversation you are being yourself. In adopting this approach your speaking is not forced or false. However, as with conversation there is an opportunity to improve your speaking by observing yourself and noting your strengths and weaknesses.

Brevity

In great conversation it is recommended that you keep your talking brief, i.e. you keep your speaking to the point. In public speaking, you are normally expected to speak for a certain length of time. However, your speech should be like a great book: long enough to get your ideas across and leave your listeners wishing there was a little more. Maintaining eye contact

In conversation it is very important to maintain eye contact with your listeners. Similarly with public speaking you should maintain eye contact with your audience because this will help you gain feedback to gauge whether your listeners can hear you etc. It will also help to draw the audience into your speech and involve them. Added to this you will find the listeners with encouraging expressions.

Speaking as equals

In good public speaking you treat your audience as equals. As in conversation your listeners do not like to be “spoken down to” – it can cause resentment, or to be “spoken up to” – it can come across as phoney.

Make a good first impression.

In conversation you do this with a smile, being polite and friendly. The first impression for your audience will be after you have been introduced and have moved to the podium. It is important that you show good manners by confidently walking to the podium, smiling at the audience and acknowledging the leadership and the audience. Also dress appropriately for the occasion it shows respect to your audience. You are there to communicate with the audience not to show off any possible eccentricities.

Asking questions and active listening

In conversation listening is the most important part of being a good conversationalist and shows that you are interested in what is being said. When delivering your speech you will be doing most of the talking and the audience the listening. However, before your speaking engagement it is advisable to employ active listening and questioning to fully understand the requirements and to determine the audience’s interests, so that your speech meets the organisation and the audience’s wants.

When you adopt the conversational style of public speaking the speech is the thing. It is not a performance and by focussing on conveying of your ideas and by being yourself this approach can lessen the anxiety that accompanies public speaking.

thought of public speaking makes you start to shake and sweat. You are not alone. The fear of public speaking and presenting to groups is regularly voted the number one fear when surveys are carried out to determine people’s number one fear.

The fear of public speaking is a learned response because we are not born with it. Because it has been learned, it can be unlearned and many people overcome the fear of public speaking and go on to become effective speakers. There are a number of reasons why people face their fear and overcome the shakes:-

- Their job demands it

- To promote their business

- To develop self confidence in themselves

- They like a challenge

- Confident speaking is a great way to get noticed at work

- Speakers are leaders

- Successful executives use the same skills as those used in public speaking

- To promote a cause or club they believe in

To overcome the fear of public speaking apply the following 5 “P’s”

1. Preparation

Prepare thoroughly for your speaking engagement. Firstly understand your audience and what they expect. Who are they, their age etc? This will help when choosing your subject. Meet some of them beforehand it is easier to deliver a speech to people beforehand.

Choose a subject that will interest your audience and will be worthwhile to them. Research your topic thoroughly. Your primary source should be your own personal experience and after that read up on topic. Thorough research will make writing and preparing your speech easier. When you are starting out it is easier to write the speech out word for word. If you are going to read your speech, ensure it is written in spoken English.

The more thoroughly you are prepared the more self-confident you will feel. .

2. Passion

Choose a topic that you are interested in and will interest your audience. Your enthusiasm for the subject you are presenting will make it easier for you to speak on the topic and that enthusiasm is contagious. Also, you will have talked about this topic before and when you are presenting you will merely be extending the conversation.

3. Positive

Envision a positive outcome. Create a vivid picture in your mind of a successful speech and keep focussed on it. Just before you go on stage to present take several deep breaths to calm the nerves and really go overboard on your positive self-talk. Tell yourself how great you are. Your audience will respond well to your positive demeanour as you approach the stage and begin to speak.

4. Practice

Practice is of prime importance in building confidence. Practice as often as you can in front of a mirror and in front of your family and friends. Re-write your speech to make it easier to read and to make it more conversational. If you are going to be reading your speech, practice the tone and pace of your speaking. Lift your eyes up from the page. Practice until you are comfortable with the speech.

If possible have a dry run in the room you are going to deliver your speech. This will help your nerves because when you start speaking it will be in familiar surroundings. It will also have given you chance to address any issues with the facilities and the room.

5. Persistence

After you have taken your first step, the best way to overcome public speaking fear is to keep on doing it. George Bernard Shaw used this method to overcome his public speaking fear. To improve on his method, develop a short speech and deliver it frequently.

There are groups and organisations that meet every week that are ideal places to practice, e.g PTA meetings.

The advantages of public speaking to organisations and to the individual make it worthwhile making the plunge to overcome the fear of public speaking. The skills and techniques learnt are the same as those needed to be a successful executive.

In summary the fear of public speaking is a normal fear, but it has been learned and can be overcome by using the 5 “P”s. The rewards are there to be claimed by you in taking the steps to benefit your audience

Whether you run a small business or are a CEO in a major corporation, if you don’t speak up, you will not reach your full potential. Susan RoAne, in her landmark book, How to Work the Room tells us that 93 percent of people report that they are shy. This number astounded me and tends to astound the groups I speak to. What it means is that only 7 percent of us believe ourselves not to be shy!

When I walk into a room full of people and see all those friendly faces, conversing freely with each other, I have to believe that more than 7 percent of them are confident, outgoing people. On the other hand, the 93 percent statistic comes from what people say about themselves. That means most of us consider ourselves shy, regardless of how we act in social and professional settings.

How can we learn to Speak up for Success? Many people decide they cannot do it. They decide to live in a quiet world in which they spend time with close friends and family. They decide not to Speak up for Success and remain on the back row.

But, others of us want more. Others of us are reading Oprah’s books on how to become successful’how to set challenging goals for ourselves. Millions of people are spending time and money on coaching to become more than just average. Those are the people who want to learn how to Speak Up for Success in as painless a way as possible.

As a person who most people would call outgoing, as a person who has spent most of her life in front of groups, and as a person, who, yes, would say, if asked, she’s shy, I have learned some ways to make Speaking Up for Success easier.

How to Speak Up for Success

*Start small. Look for places where you can speak up safely. You want to build your confidence. That means not volunteering to speak to the local Chamber of Commerce. It means speaking up at dinner when your son challenges you. It means telling your wife that you need some time to yourself. It means asking your boss for some time off.

*Join a coaching group. Coaching groups will give you both the support and the skills you need to Speak up for Success. Coaching in a group costs a fraction of one-on-one coaching. It is the first step you can take to build your confidence and to reach that goal. In a coaching group you can determine what speaking up means to you, you can set your own personal goals, you can learn tips from the coach, and you can get support from the group. Take a look at the virtual coaching group offered on my site.

*Deal with your “inner critic.” The inner critic is that little voice inside your head that tells you things like, “You’ve got nothing important to say,” or “No one wants to listen to you,” or “Whatever you say will sound stupid,” or “Everyone else is better educated than I am.” This voice will put the brakes on anything you might want to say. Recognize that we all have an inner critic. We all hear the same voice you hear. Some of us have learned to turn that voice off. You can do it, too! *Research and study the blogs that deal with public speaking. You can find a lot of information on my blog. There you will see posts with tips about speaking out, not just public speaking. You will also see a list of other blogs (blogroll) that you can explore.

*After you have practiced speaking up in safe situations, graduate to more challenging places. Speak up at the next meeting of department heads. Speak up the next time your book club meets. Speak up in your Sunday School class. Make small goals but goals that move you forward from the kitchen table to the Sunday School class to the board room to the Rotary Club.

* If you’re thinking I’m too old, or I’m too young, or I’m too shy, or I’m too whatever, I suggest you take a look at Aimee Mullin’s video at www.kennethcole.com/thinkers/bio1.asp. That short video will blow you away. Her advice: “I don’t think any of us reach our full potential when we become comfortable. I look for ways to get comfortable with being uncomfortable. . . We have an opportunity to start over everyday.”

You’ve taken the first step toward Speaking Up for Success. You’ve read this entire article. The challenge now lies with taking that second step. It’s not so hard, you just have to do it!