How To Control Your Anxiety When Having To Speak In Public?

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Public speaking anxiety, also called glossophobia, is one of the most commonly reported social fears. In fact, public speaking is the number one fear in the US, with fear of death only ranked number two.

You read it right, we seem to be more afraid of public speaking than our death, jumping out of a plane, heights or the dreaded in-laws.

So, when you need to stand at the center of a stage and speak to the public – whether in the presence of professionals with B2B conferences or presenting a proposal to your team – here are some tips on how you can reduce your anxiety and increase your confidence to deliver an awesome speech and presentation.

1. Pick a Topic That Interests You

Do some research on how to prepare for a TED talk, and if you are able, choose a topic that you are passionate about. Alternatively, you may be able to find an interesting topic to study using a different approach.

For instance, you can tell a personal story from your life which is related to the topic, as a way to introduce your presentation or speech. This ensures that you’re engaged and motivated to prepare and research the topic. So that others will feel your enthusiasm and be interested in what you say.

2. Get Organized

Carefully plan out the information that you wish to present ahead of time, including visual aids, audio or props. The more organized you are, then the less nervous you will be. You can use an outline on a small paper in order to stay on track. If possible, you can also visit the place where you will be speaking in order to review available tools before presenting.

3. Avoid Memorizing Every Word

Unless you are reciting your marriage vows or the Pledge of Allegiance, there is no need to memorize word per word of your speech. Attempting to do so can simply increase stress and causing greater anxiety if the sequence of the words that you are trying to memorize go amiss.

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4. Do Not Fear That Moment of Silence

There is a time when you lose track of what you are saying or forgot something that your mind suddenly goes blank for a few seconds. And while it may seem like you have been silent for an eternity, it is probably just a few seconds or longer. Nevertheless, your audience will not mind a pause to consider what you have been saying. You can take a few slow, deep breaths or jokingly say that you forgot what you’re saying while thinking of your next words. If it is not too formal, your audience will probably have a good laugh.

5. Don’t Expect To Be Perfect

No one is perfect. However, when it comes to public speaking some of us tend to push ourselves to have a perfect image and stress over little mistakes that we make.

The truth is, even the most experienced speakers can make a mistake. The only difference is that when they do, they recover and keep going gracefully. The audience will never know most of your mistakes, unless you stop, break down and confess.

You will need to carry on with poise and give yourself permission to make mistakes.

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Having Control Over Your Anxiety

Fear of public speaking – this is probably because of the fear of being criticized. We feel exposed and naked in front of an audience, that we think people are going to scrutinize what we say and do. We dread the possibility of rejection and we pressure ourselves to be perfect or we lose our self-worth.

However, by understanding and following the tips from above, you should be able to accept yourself, reduce your anxiety and have fun speaking in front of a large audience.