How To Overcome Performance Anxiety (Public Speaking)
In surveys done about people…apos;s greatest fears public speaking is often rated the same as death. Getting up in front of an audience to speak is an extremely daunting task for most people. In fact, many of us will do whatever we can to avoid having to do it. Performance anxiety (public speaking) is very common, but it can be overcomes by following a few simple steps.
The first and most important thing that you need to do to overcome performance anxiety (public speaking) is to be confident with what you are talking about. If you have to give a work presentation, then ensure that you are fully prepared and you have practised what you want to say over and over. If there will be a question and answer session, then you should try to predict the type of questions that will be asked and have a response ready. You do not have to memorize your presentation and answers by heart, but have the key point accessible.
In order to avoid stage fright and forget what you want to say have visual keys in place such as a PowerPoint presentation or a flip chart. This also helps to take some of the focus off you and place it on the visual prop, which can reduce the pressure you feel you are under.
In order to make you feel less alone up there in front of everybody…apos;s gaze having something in your hand can make you feel more confident. It could be something like a white board pen or a computer control for your PowerPoint presentation. Tactile things can help you in much the same way that children sometimes have toy animals or blankets for security.
try to reduce the amount of attention you get by having audiences participate themselves. Getting them to do some kind of activity as an ice-breaker or to brainstorm ideas at the beginning of the presentation can relieve a lot of the tension in the room, making them more open to your information and it will ease you into the presentation.
Performance anxiety (public speaking) is a super common thing to experience. With practise you will get better, but in the meantime by implementing the above advice you can survive the experience without coming out in a cold sweat.
Tom Binns is a writer with a Creativity Coaching practice.