Eleven Ways to Minimize Your Speaking Nerves

Eleven Ways to Minimize Your Speaking Nerves

A good article on managing Nervousness from this site..

http://www.mikekerr.com/pics/ManagingNerves.pdf

1. Remind Yourself That It's NORMAL to Be Nervous Don't beat yourself out because you're nervous, this will only serve tomake you more nervous and stressed out. Remind yourself that most people list public speaking as a top fear, and that 89% of Canadians in a survey said they were afraid of public speaking. So relax – you're not alone if you're nervous, in fact, you are in good company that includes some very famous celebrities, actors and professional speakers. Use this fact to remind yourself that virtually everyone in the audience is on your side as a presenter (even if they disagree with your message!) and that they only want to hear what you have to say about the topic your speaking on. They key then, is not eliminating your fear altogether, but harnessing in that nervous energy and making it work for you, rather than against you.

2. Plan, Plan, Plan and Practice, Practice, Practice According to research, practicing a talk can reduce up to 75% of your nerves and contributes up to 90% of your ultimate success as a presenter It is especially important to practice and memorize your introduction: If you "nail" your opening and build an instant and confident rapport with the audience, your nerves should be reduced substantially. And, contrary to popular belief, practicing does not take away from your ability to be relaxed, natural and spontaneous, in fact, it is just the opposite. The more you practice and gain a command of your material, the more at ease you will be, so the more natural and spontaneous you'll come across because you won't be so focused on just surviving your presentation!

3. Visualize Your Performance Beforehand Athletes and performers do it because it works and has been proven to enhance performance. If at all possible, check out the room you'll be speaking in beforehand so you feel more comfortable in the space and can visualize yourself in the actual setting you'll be speaking in.

4. Reprogram Your Brain It's not the audience that is freaking you out: it's what your brain is telling you about the audience and the talk you need to deliver. "What if they hate me?" "What if I forget something?" "What if someone in the audience knows more than I do about this topic?" Train your brain: Reprogram it with more positive messages about your talk. This isn't just hocus pocus, this has been proven to work! So instead, tell yourself: "I'm just going to do the best I can do, and that's all I can do." "I'm just going to have with this." "There's a reason they want, and need, to hear me speak." "I'm going to be in control of my presentation, not the other way around!"

5. Get to Know the Audience Beforehand If there is time and the opportunity, chat up the audience beforehand – introduce yourself or ask them questions related to your talk. This will accomplish three things, all which will help reduce your nerves: > It will help you to get to know who's in your audience so you can possibly adapt your material or add examples based on what you've learned about who's there > It helps your build a rapport before you have even begun to speak > It helps to remind you that that "scary audience" is actually made up of (usually!) friendly, smiling folks who are truly on your side

6. Prepare for Possible Pitfalls A lot of our nerves and fears are based on imagined problems in our talk. So the more you can assure yourself that your have thought about, and indeed, planned for most conceivable problems, the less nervous you should feel. Have cheat notes available in case you lose your place Know your material inside and out Have back up audio visual support, including spare bulbs and batteries Prepare funny recovery lines ("oops, my train of thought just derailed") Remove/alter potential tongue twisters

7. Eat Properly Beforehand Avoid milk, cream, coffee, alcohol; and avoid eating too much. Eat lightly and drink warm water - so that your vocal chords don't constrict and cause you to sound like Minnie Mouse (or is that, Minnie Mouth?)

8. Practice Deep Breathing and Stretching Exercises Relax yourself beforehand by stretching, practicing a few yoga techniques or by taking a few deep breaths to center yourself. Remember to pause and breathe deeply before you being to speak as well, most presenters rush too quickly into their talk, and if you can give yourself a few minutes to calm your nerves and center yourself before you open your mouth, it will help you make sure you are in control of the presentation from the onset.

9. Arrive at the Room Before Your Audience If Possible Psychologically, this helps put you in the position of "owning" the room, of playing host to your guests, an advantageous position to be in when it comes to controlling your nervous demons.

10. Tap Into Your Sense of Humor Laughing has been proven to reduce fears, and tapping into your sense of humour beforehand, and during the talk, can remind you to take yourself lightly (but the talk seriously), change your perspective and keep you loose and relaxed. A simple way to reframe things humorously, is to ask the following questions about your talk and have FUN with the answers: "What's the most ridiculously, outrageous worst case scenario thing that could happen during my presentation? "What if an alien lands during my talk and asks me a question?" "What's the good news/bad news scenario about this presentation?"

11. Reducing Your Nerves During a Talk > If your body starts to shake, that's a sign your body has some built up energy it wants to decapitate, so move around a bit. Gesture to avoid your hands from shaking. Walk around a bit to avoid your legs from shaking. > If you get a case of DRY mouth, take a sip of warm water (and don't worry about pausing to gather your strength, the audience won't mind!). You can also try gently biting on the inside of your tongue to produce more saliva. > If your voice is shaky, this is a sign you need to RAISE the volume a notch

Final advice: Above all else, HAVE FUN! Speaking can, and indeed most of time, should be about having a fun time.

© Michael Kerr, Speaking of Ideas, 2002

Michael Kerr is an international professional speaker who trains and coaches speakers.
You can reach Michael at 1-866-609-2640, mike@mikekerr.com
www.mikekerr.com