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HOW TO PREPARE FOR YOUR SPEECH AND OVERCOME SPEAKING ANXIETY
Article by Herb
Rubenstein, Founder and President, Growth Strategies Inc. and Ron
Ball, President, Inroads, LLC
Introduction
It has been
reported that the fear of public speaking is the number one phobia
in America today. There are currently at least 27 books in print
on the fear of public speaking. When you type in "Fear of Public
Speaking" in the advance search engine of Googletm, you get
14,100 web hits. Organizations like Speaking Circles®, Dale
Carnegie® and Toastmasters International®, active in 80
countries, are devoted to helping people overcome their fear of
public speaking and improve their willingness and ability to give
a speech in public.
There are many
clinics, workshops, training courses and seminars all designed to
help people get over the fear of public speaking. Some take the
psychological or psychoanalytic approach investigating the "causes"
or historical contexts for each individual that may give rise to
the fear. Some take the experiential approach, suggesting that if
one speaks in public often enough and in a successful enough manner,
one will "get through" the fear. Recent research by Inroads,
LLC suggests that the two biggest fears regarding public speaking
are:
- Not being
perfect (or good enough)
- Mentally
going blank
This research
also shows that the size of the audience has an effect on whether
someone experiences significant fear in a public speaking setting.
The people surveyed experienced more anxiety or fear when the audience
was 50 or more people.
The purpose
of this article is to provide insights on a new, successful set
of strategies for eliminating, or at least greatly reducing, the
fear of public speaking. These strategies all begin with our "philosophy
of public speaking."
Philosophy
of Public Speaking
Early, youthful
attempts at public speaking are often "tests" in a school,
church or other setting where the youthful speaker expects to be
judged and where the goal of the speaker is to pass some test or
meet the standards (either implicit or explicit) that key people
in the audience have set for the speaker. These key people include
parents, teachers, fellow students and peers. These "speeches"
are often based on the memorization of some text written by others
and the speech is given to an audience composed of people whose
primary interest in the speaker and the speech is to judge the speaker
and the speech rather than to learn from or be entertained by the
speaker.
This form of
public speaking is unnatural and, thank goodness, uncommon in the
real world. This type of public speaking, as a "test,"
is just as hard as practicing a speech to a mirror and not losing
eye contact with yourself. This is not what takes place in the real
world and the good news is that giving a speech in the real world
is a lot easier than the early speaking auditions that we put people
though to test them in their youth.
Three
Keys to a Successful Speech
There are three
keys to giving a successful speech:
- Connection
with/knowledge about your audience
- Clarity
about the purpose of the speech
- Knowing
your subject matter and presenting it at the right level and tone
for your audience.
Based on these
key anchors to give a good speech, the rules for overcoming public
speaking anxiety become very clear:
The
Rules for Excellent, Fearless Public Speaking
- Know your
audience and build a strong relationship with your audience.
- Know exactly
why you are giving the speech or presentation.
- Know your
subject matter and narrow the speech to only a few key topics
or themes.
- Show up
for the speech early, with all logistics handled.
- Prepare
the speaker for the event as much as you prepare the speech.
- Use spontaneity
in the speaking process to your advantage.
- Use visualization
(see yourself give a great speech) in the preparation for the
speech.
- Fully grasp
that giving a speech is an act of leadership, not a mere performance.
- Be very
clear about the results you want to achieve with your speech.
- Be prepared
to challenge your audience rather than merely having them challenge
you. Audiences love to be challenged.
- Get coaching
in advance and feedback after you give every speech.
- Record your
speeches, with video if possible.
- Keep a written
record of your speech, but do not read your speech to your audience.
- Regarding
your "introduction", be sure to write, or at least approve
this in advance, especially if someone else will be introducing
you. Know what will be said in your introduction and tie it into
the first section of your speech. Be sure to realize the importance
of the introduction. It prepares your audience for who you are,
what you do, why you're qualified to speak on the topic and why
the topic is important to the audience. Make sure the introduction
is brief, informative and tied in with the basic theme of your
speech.
Never
Let Fear of Public Speaking Interfere with Your Desire to Express
Yourself
The sources
of speaking fears can be unconscious and may have been developed
by you many years ago. Having "butterflies" before a speech,
before the beginning of any athletic event or whenever your body
or brain is called upon to undertake an activity that is unusual
and not in your common routine, is actually a desirable state, Instead
of trying to overcome, suppress or ignore these physical feelings
we call "butterflies," allow them to "take their
course." They often completely disappear as you get into your
speech.
In fact, the
major anxiety that you may experience as you begin to think about
giving a speech, may fade quickly as soon as you commit to becoming
an excellent public speaker or to give an excellent speech on a
topic of great importance to you and your audience.
A second key element to overcoming fear regarding public speaking
is to understand that faith trumps fear in life. (Remember the wise
old saying, "Fear knocked; Faith Answered; No one was there.").
In order to generate ‘faith' regarding your speech you must
know that for each speech you give:
- why you need
to give this speech
- how what
you will say in your speech could make a real contribution to
your audience,
- what you
intend to accomplish by the speech.
Tips
on Overcoming Speaking Anxiety
Besides having
these strategies in place, here are some proven ways to help you
handle public speaking related discomforts and anxieties.
- In whatever
way works best for you, rehearse or practice your speech or performance
to get comfortable with it. This could be walking through it in
your mind or physically on stage. Be sure to practice with the
same passion and same delivery you intend to use during the real
speech.
- Worry is
using one's imagination in a negative way. Be aware of any negative
"self-talk" going on in your head. Instead of imagining
things going wrong, imagine them going right.
- Be aware
of negative thoughts or uncomfortable feelings you may have. Just
gently notice them. Don't judge them or fight them.
- Rather than
"labeling" or stigmatizing your butterflies as anxiety
or fear, think of these feelings as excitement and enhanced physical
awareness.
- Slowly and
easily, do deep breathing to relax your body and mind before your
speech.
- Think of
a person in the audience that you know. Imagine seeing, hearing,
and feeling that person and the rest of the audience giving you
a fine reception at the beginning of your speech and acknowledgment
at the end of the speech. See yourself relating to your audience
during the speech.
- Trust that
part of you that guides you along and knows exactly what to do.
The
Secret of Public Speaking
The major secret
of public speaking is that it is a wonderful learning device. In
order to prepare your speech or presentation you will need to learn
about your audience, your subject matter and your intended outcomes.
As you speak, your mind will be working for you and you will learn
not only from the questions and audience interaction, but you will
also learn from the act of public speaking itself. If you surprise
yourself by starting to say something during your speech that you
did not expect to say when you planned the speech, the odds are
that it will be a very good addition to the speech and will be the
result of your realizing during the speech itself that you had something
important to say to the audience that you had not realized was important
to say when you were preparing the speech. Trust yourself to make
these "spontaneous" additional comments that come to your
mind during a speech as they are the result of your learning, your
heightened attention and your being "in the moment" of
giving the speech and the learning that led up to giving the speech.
A second major
secret of public speaking is that it is one of the purest forms
of making a valuable connection with a large audience. Writing "articles"
is another great form of making a valuable connection with a large
audience and it may be appropriate to write an "article"
or memo and give it to your audience either in advance of your speech
or at the time of your speech.
There are some
techniques for writing key words or key notes, highlighting certain
phrases in your speech and using audio visual support that is beyond
the scope of this article that may bear some investigating. Since
every speech has an opening section, and that section is vitally
important, here are the basic elements to the art if giving a successful
opening section to a speech. In the opening section of a speech,
which should last no more than a minute or two, follow these three
rules:
- Say something
that only you can say.
- Say something
that can only be said on that day in front of that audience, and
- Say something
that will show the audience that you know why they are there,
that you care about them and that you understand their goals.
Take
the Next Step
Once you fully
commit to becoming a good speaker, the next step is to take action
and find opportunities where you can begin to speak in public. To
find public speaking opportunities take a look at your work, your
social organizations, your volunteer activities, your clubs, conferences
and government public hearings and find a subject, cause or idea
about which you would like to speak in public. Then get clear that
you are an appropriate person to say what you want said. Make the
arrangements to get yourself invited to give the speech or get yourself
put on the agenda of an event to give your speech. Social clubs
like the Rotary or Kiwanis, public hearings, nonprofit organizations
and church gatherings are always open to hear someone speak on many
topics.
It is worth
repeating that it is important to get a coach to help you prepare
for the presentation. There are many professional speech coaches
and if paying for one is an issue, a friend who is willing to sit
and listen to the speech five times and spend a few hours with you
is certainly better than not using anyone as a critical sounding
board. Then, at the right time, at the right place and in front
of the right audience deliver your speech, with passion for the
subject matter and gratitude for being given the opportunity to
share your views with a public that is willing to listen to you.
Finally, get feedback on your speech and do it all over again and
again.
Conclusion
A major penalty
of the fear of public speaking is that it shuts people down. Speaking
anxiety can have negative consequences on careers and accomplishments.
Over the years, not being able to eliminate or greatly reduce the
fear of public speaking can cost a person dearly.
The fear of
public speaking is broad in that many people experience it. However,
it is not deep. It is like a large lake that is only a foot deep.
When you look at it from the shore, it looks huge and deep. But
when you step into it and realize it is only a foot deep, you realize
that it is easily manageable.
Finally, we
must add one insight about speeches and humor. The best humor in
speeches is situational and spontaneous. Never tell a joke you hear
in someone else's speech. Your speech is about your story. It is
your gift to the audience. Remember, "If you are not going
to give your own speech, who will?"
The overwhelming
majority of audiences want you to do well, are supportive of you,
want to learn from you, laugh with you and truly appreciate the
fact that you are taking your time, energy and personal resources
to stand up in front of them and share yourself with them. Don't
be any harder on yourself before your speech or after your speech
than your audience will be during your speech. We hope you find
this article useful in your path to giving great speeches and enjoying
the process of preparing and delivering speeches in public.
Biographical
Information
Herb Rubenstein
is an attorney and the CEO of Growth Strategies, Inc., a leadership
and management consulting firm. He is co-author of Breakthrough,
Inc. – High Growth Strategies for Entrepreneurial Organizations
(Prentice Hall/Financial Times, 1999). His email address is herb@growth-strategies.com
and he can be reached at (301) 718-4200 in Bethesda, Maryland or
(202) 236-7626 in Washington, D.C.
Ron Ball brings
over 20 years of experience as a marketing executive in high-tech
and consumer packaged goods companies, ranging from start-up entrepreneurial
ventures to international organizations. Currently, he heads up
Inroads, a speaking and consulting firm focused on employee branding
and internal marketing. Ron is a member of the National Speakers
Association and serves on the Board of Directors for the Washington,
DC Area Chapter. His email is ronball@inroads.cc.
He can be reached by phone in Vienna, Virginia at (703) 255-5261.
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