Do you feel very nervous about speaking in front of other people? You are not the only one. Here are some proven tools to help you conquer you fear of public speaking.

Is it only you who is nervous about speaking before other people? No. Everyone, even celebrity performers, feel nervous in front of audiences.

Speaking before a group was the primary fear for the 2,543 male and female adult Americans surveyed by Bruskin Associates (1973). Similarly, data gathered over an eight-year period from 20,000 students at Michigan State University, Illinois State University, and West Virginia University showed that between 15 and 20 percent of students suffered from fears of public speaking (McCroskey, 1977).

How can you face your fears and come to terms with your nervousness?

You are just about to go on stage and give your talk. You are terribly nervous and sweating - what does this tell about you? This just shows that you wish to perform well and you care about the results of your efforts.

Fear is natural, fear is not your enemy and fear alerts you to potential dangers and is at your service. But if fear controls you, you crumble and cannot perform. Stage fright is your body’s way of alerting you to prepare. What you do about your nervousness is crucial.

Three things to remember about conquering fear:

The panic intensifies the more you try to escape it.

 

You have to accept your fears and make them an ally working for you rather than against you. Accept your fears as a signalling mechanism that alerts you and then fear will stop torturing you.

Stage fright seems awful to the speaker.

Most of the time, people in the audience may not even notice that you are nervous. Almost everybody in the audience understands that stage fright is human and don’t pay much attention to it. But if the speaker is bothered by it, the symptoms escalate. The audience notices it only when you’re really messed up.

Accept that nervousness is actually good for you and then learn to use the anxiety to your advantage.

Most speakers are nervous at the beginning of a presentation but get more relaxed as the presentation goes on. If you manage to channel the energy of nervousness in a constructive way it relaxes you.

There are very many techniques for dealing with nervousness and stage fright.

Breathing technique

First clear your nostrils by breathing in and out quickly several times in a row. Next, use the thumb to close your right nostril and your ring finger to close your left nostril alternately. Begin by inhaling through both nostrils. Then breathe out through one nostril, while blocking the other, and then switch and breathe in through the other nostril. After three complete breaths, exhale without switching sides, and do three more breaths. Now rest and breathe deeply and evenly through both nostrils for a few minutes. Then repeat the cycle two more times.

Visualization technique

Visualize your words issuing from you and going over to the audience like a cloud or a wave. Next see the audience feeling energized and good about it. Then visualize them getting interested and asking question or nodding in agreement. Finally visualize them clapping enthusiastically as you finish. See yourself glowing in happiness there in front of the audience after giving your successful presentation.

Transforming the energy of nervousness

One strategy for transforming the energy of nervousness is to discover the physical feeling of anxiety in our body by paying attention to physical sensations. Where is this feeling centred? Is it in the stomach, throat, hands, feet or somewhere else? When you discover this spot, usually near the stomach, move it up slowly towards your heart or head and notice how the emotion changes. This mental and physical relocation will shift the emotion to the higher, more positive pole of anticipation or excitement. Do this exercise anytime nervousness strikes, even just minutes before the start of the presentation.

Physical activity during presentation

Another tactic to cover up your nervousness difficulty with handling stress is to plan an explicitly physical activity as your introduction or icebreaker. This is not a physical exercise to necessarily get you giggling or sporty, but to activate everyone. Some presenters go and shake hands with everyone in the audience (for small audiences).