In a survey done by Dr. Laurie Rozakis, author of  The Complete Idiots Guide to Public Speaking, it was found that many people are scared to speak before a group. It is the number one fear among Americans, “–and the number 6 is fear of death,” according to Dr. Rozakis.

Even the most experienced speaker gets anxious when speaking in public. However, this fear can be controlled so that you can put your fear to your advantage. This topic teaches us why people are nervous when speaking in front of a crowd and how you can conquer your fear.

FEAR OF THE AUDIENCE

People are afraid of rejection by their audience. Thus, many are terrified of speaking in public for fear of being criticized by the crowd for how they look or how they deliver their speech. On the contrary, audiences are very understanding about the speaker’s problem with stage fright. You become more nervous when your fear of the audience increases.

A few strategies to help you overcome a fear of the audience are :

• Choose a topic that you like and you are familiar with. The more comfortable you are about your chosen topic, the more confident you are in facing your audience.
• Concentrate on your topic. Focus on your topic and not on yourself. When you start to think of your subject matter and not yourself, your fear of speaking will likely decrease.
• Say to yourself: “I am the BOSS.” Trust in your capability of delivering your speech. Showing that you are in charge decreases your fear and increases your confidence in facing the situation.
• Don’t think of your audience as a threat. Bridge the gap between your audience and yourself. Analyze carefully to establish rapport. You should consider age, gender and their level of expertise. Remember to analyze your audience.

FEAR OF FAILURE

There are two ways to win over your fear of failure.

• Picture yourself succeeding. If you think that you will stutter in front of many people, chances are you will stutter. But if you visualize yourself delivering your speech well, then, you will.
• Face your fear. You cannot overcome your fear unless you show it and admit that you are afraid of it.

FEAR THAT YOUR SPEECH IS A BAD SPEECH

• Write well. Take time to write your speech. Review it and rewrite if necessary. If you are confident with your speech, the less terrified you will be about speaking in public.
• Practice and ask for suggestions on how you can improve your speech. Ask a friend of relative to act as your audience. Once you have delivered your topic, ask for their feedback. Don’t be afraid to hear about what they will say. Their feedback can give you insight on what is good or bad in your speech.

Most of us believe parts of life are inherently stressful. In fact, most of us have been taught to believe that life as a whole is very stressful. To deal with any type of stress effectively, you must first understand that life itself is NOT inherently stressful. Thousands of human beings have learned how to speak in front of groups with little or no stress at all. Many of these people were initially terrified to speak in public.

Their knees would shake, their voices would tremble, their thoughts would become jumbled – you know the rest. Yet they learned to eliminate their fear of public speaking completely. You are no more or less human than they are. If they can conquer the fear of public speaking, so can you. It just takes the right guiding principles, the right understanding and the right plan of action to make this goal a reality.

Many of us have observed public speakers and thought to ourselves, “Wow, I could never be that smart, calm, witty, entertaining, polished – or whatever.” Well, I’ve got news for you – you don’t have to be brilliant or perfect to succeed. That is not what public speaking is all about. You can make mistakes, get tongue tied or even forget whole parts of your speech and still be successful.

It all depends on how you and your audience define “success”. One of the biggest secrets to successful public speaking is understanding that your audience does NOT expect perfection. The essence of public speaking is to give your audience something of value. That’s all there is to it. If they walk away feeling better about themselves, feeling happy, they will consider their time with you worthwhile.

You don’t have to deliver mountains of facts or details to give your audience what they truly want. Many studies have shown that people remember very few of the facts or information that speakers convey. Remember, all your audience wants from you is to walk away with one or two key points that will make a difference to them.

While it may seem paradoxical, the best way to succeed as a public speaker is not to consider yourself a public speaker at all. Just go out there armed with a little knowledge and a few main points and be yourself. That’s all there is to it. Of course you may need to practice. Just keep throwing yourself into the arena, and in no time at all your confidence will come to the surface.

Public speaking ranks right up there with death in terms of the things we are terribly afraid of. Whether it’s the fear of being watched closely by others, or the insecurity and self-conscious feeling of slipping up during the presentation, these six tips will help you give a polished, professional speech that you (and your audience) can be proud of!

1. Know your audience. This is the single best piece of advice for delivering a presentation that really hits home. What are there interests? Their backgrounds? Why are they coming to hear you speak or present? What ideas do you have to share with them? Approaching your speech as more of a “me-to-you” discussion rather than a full-blown broadcast will make it more manageable (and less stressful) and easier on you.

2. What do you want your audience to do as a result of your speech? What’s really at the heart of your presentation? By concentrating on the “end result” rather than slogging through the beginning, you can create a powerful punch that drives home your message instead of rambling on and losing your audience’s interest (or missing the point entirely!)

3. Share a story. In public speaking circles, this is called a “hook” – something that gets your audience’s attention and makes them sit up and listen. Start off by asking questions or sharing an experience you had. People like to be active, rather than passive listeners. By giving them something that they can identify with, you’ll find that these people are, in essence – just like you! And that makes giving a presentation a whole lot easier. Just be sure your story has a beginning, a point, and an ending. There’s nothing quite as bad as telling a story to an engaged audience and then forgetting why you told it!

4. If you’re selling a product, focus on the benefits instead of the features. People would much rather hear WHAT a product can do for them than HOW it does it. Narrow down your product’s features until you get to the core of how it solves a problem. If you need help with figuring out the difference between a feature and a benefit, ask yourself “So What?” For example, if you’re selling a vacuum cleaner that has a hypoallergenic filter, put yourself in the customer’s shoes and ask yourself “so what?” The answer would be something like, “It picks up dust, mold and pet dander”. Again, “so what?” Answer, “You’ll feel relief from runny nose and sneezing plus itchy, water eyes.” Now THAT’s a benefit!

5. Don’t lean too heavily on media to make your message clear. Powerpoint presentations are great for making specific points, but they can be overwhelming – or downright boring. Instead, give your audience something to DO by providing them with fill-in-the-blank flip charts or “team activities”. These help reinforce and emphasize your message in ways that a computer presentation simply cannot.

6. Above all, make sure your speech ends in a way that reiterates the beginning. Too often, speakers get carried away with the details and leave their audiences asking, “What was the point of all that?” People naturally digest information in “chunks”, so focus on the big picture rather than all the pieces. If the details are just as important, save it for an after-speech handout that the audience can take with them and read over at their leisure.

If you keep these six tips in mind, you’ll not only have an easier time overcoming your fear of public speaking, but you’ll have a very appreciative audience who will in turn be more receptive and eager to try your product or service. Go get ‘em!