MY HORRIBLE EXPERIENCE IN PUBLIC SPEAKING
He walked confidently down the aisle and went straight to the lectern; I looked at him with my eyes wide open. My heart kept beating faster and faster… I kept thinking, “Who is this drop dead gorgeous young man and what does he have to offer?” He looked at the audience with mesmerized eyes and smiled, chin high, shoulder high, hands on the side, well-groomed and ready for takeoff.
As soon as the cordless microphone was handed over to him, he began his 30 minutes speech on a high. His diction, vocal variety, body language and content was a force to reckon with. I forgot what it meant to blink. My heart stopped beating for a second! I wanted to listen to him repeatedly. He made me embark on a journey of self-discovery. Before I knew it, I heard the moderator invite the next speaker by the name Patricia. My ears heard what he said, but I could not believe my ears… What would you have me say after such an eloquent man had spoken? I sluggishly dragged myself up the seat, walked confidently yet inwardly intimidated to the lectern.
The moment the cordless microphone was handed over to me, I realized I had forgotten everything! My train of thought was completely damaged! I began to shake like a leaf. You can imagine the speech I gave. What happened to me that day will forever remain in my mind as a reminder of conquering Glossophobia .
This experience taught me lessons in public speaking that I would like to share.
- BELIEVE IN YOURSELF
You must retrain yourself to get rid of fear, anxiety and self-doubt in order to build self-esteem and self-confidence. No one can beat you at being you. You hold the power to bring out your best. When you believe in yourself, you command your mind to work at its best. I was unable to deliver a good speech that day because of comparison and lack of self-belief. You must believe in yourself no matter where you are in your journey to sharpening your public speaking skills. Every great speaker was once a novice speaker – the difference lays entirely on your ability to do it afraid and keep at it.
2. RESEARCH ON YOUR TOPIC
When you go up on a stage to speak before an audience, you have a responsibility to them. You have a message that you want to deliver; you want to teach them something new. You are not there to spread misinformation, or tell a lie to them. You are there to educate them and prepare them for the future. Your audience’s take away from your presentation is always going to be your message and your facts. Your performance is what is going to make them believe they will have a good time but it is your research and your facts that will make the audience believe you have something worth listening to.
3. EFFECTIVE PREPARATION
Adequate preparation is not fun; it is often boring and uninteresting. However, it is one of the most valuable skills you need to avoid the buildup of stress, anxiety and stage fright. Preparation is a skill that can be learnt and which, with discipline and practice improves over time. The advantage of preparation is that you can manage any issue that may arise at any given time during your speech presentation. For instance, you can easily change a topic if you feel what you had prepared does not strongly align with your audience. You can speak up and project your voice in case of any technical challenges before they are solved or you can easily change the points to share without anyone picking this sudden change from your presentation.
I have had several horrible experiences in the past in the journey of public speaking that I considered failures. I bellowed in pain and constantly told myself I am not good at public speaking; I should probably try out a new path. What kept me going is the realization of not striving for perfection but progress. I have since grown to become a professional speaker. Every time I get an opportunity to speak before an audience, I always refer to the above three points.
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