OVERCOMING FEAR

In our first lesson, we talked about why many of us dread situations that require us to speak in public. Negative past experiences, fear of judgment, or even a natural tendency toward introversion all contribute to the fear of public speaking. In fact, some of the world's greatest leaders—like Gandhi—have feared public speaking.

Something else you might not know about Gandhi is that he didn't really say, "Be the change you wish to see in the world." He actually said, "As a man changes his own nature, so does the attitude of the world change towards him." (Read more about that here if you're interested.)

The quote's not about public speaking, but Gandhi changed his own attitude about public speaking in order to conquer his fears and spread his message of activism. In this lesson, we'll offer practice strategies to help you prepare for any public speaking opportunity so that you can wave goodbye to fear and say hello to increased enthusiasm, a closer connection to the audience, and a more powerful and effective message.

TEARS FOR FEARS

Gandhi and King George VI weren't the only famous historical figures that wrestled with a fear of public speaking. The Roman philosopher Cicero dreaded speeches, though he was an accomplished orator.

Even Harrison Ford had to overcome his communication anxiety to become Han Solo. That's right: the entire future of a far, far away galaxy hinged on one rugged smuggler overcoming a fear of public speaking.

When you think about it in that context, you can breathe a little easier knowing your stakes aren't quite as high…but that's not to say your words and ideas won't have far-reaching effects. Next week's presentation on third quarter sales, the upcoming city council meeting when you'll support a new ordinance, or even a job interview all present opportunities for you to change hearts and minds through the power of speech.

First, though, you've got to get over your fears.

Easier said than done, right? You won't be totally confident speaking in public just by telling yourself to be confident—you've got to work at it. Start by acknowledging that it's totally normal to feel nervous and anxious when speaking in front of others.

Like we learned in the last lesson, communication anxiety ranks higher than death on the terrifying-o-meter—it's our number one fear. The fear may never completely disappear, but that's not necessarily a bad thing if you can channel that energy into excitement and purpose.

And the only way to do that is to practice, practice, practice.

Ten Thousand Hours

In Outliers, Malcolm Gladwell shows how Canada's best hockey players, Bill Gates, and the members of The Beatles excelled in their respective crafts—they all put in at least 10,000 hours of practice, which took around ten years to accumulate.

You won't need to put in 10,000 hours to do well at a public speaking event, but practicing early and often is the key to confidence. Here are a few strategies to make your practice efficient and fruitful:

Know Your Outline

The best public speakers seem completely at ease; speaking extemporaneously comes naturally, and they're totally flexible in the ability to field and answer questions, deal with technical difficulties, or even deflect a heckler. Successful public speakers can handle the unexpected because they know their material inside and out.

We've already warned you against memorizing your speech word for word, but you should memorize the main message, essential points, flow, and transitions of your speech. Start by outlining your speech on paper or electronically. Refer back to Unit 1 of this course for a refresher on writing an outline.

This outline can also help you when developing visual aids for your presentation. If you're creating a slide show to accompany your speech, it should obviously augment your message and communicate information to the audience, but it can also serve as a visual outline to keep you oriented while you're behind the podium. Technology can be finicky, though, so don't always count on the PowerPoint to guide you.

From your outline, you may try to write out the entire speech as you would like it to sound, and you may even try practicing the speech with the complete text you've created.

Watch out for relying too heavily on rote memorization. Unless you're a trained actor, speeches recited verbatim from text may sound stale, robotic, unspontaneous and inauthentic.

Practice in Front of a Non-Judgmental Audience

Once you've got the outline and visuals squared away, you'll need to rehearse saying the speech out loud. If you don't quite feel ready for an audience, try practicing in front of your dog, your infant, or even your dusty collection of vintage Furbys.

It might sound silly, but there's some evidence support the practice of rehearsing in front of a supportive audience, even if they don't understand what you're communicating. The New York Times even reported on a program that offers anxiety-prone students opportunities to practice in front of dog audiences.

If you feel silly practicing your speech with Sparkles the cat, try recording yourself with your phone's voice or video recording apps. This will allow you to hear your pacing, cadence, and tone so you can adjust your outline accordingly.

Virtual Preparation

If practicing in front of your pets feels a bit inauthentic and you aren't getting much out of a plain recording of your voice, consider using virtual and augmented reality to simulate speaking in a social, business, or academic environment.

This article points to a number of apps you can use that include features that track your use of "filler" words like "um" or "like" and even let you "share" your slideshow with your virtual audience.

Get Feedback

Eventually, you'll have to practice with—gulp—real people. You'll even have to make mistakes. But mistakes are good, because that's the only way you'll learn, grow, and improve.

Go ahead and ask your your BFF (or whoever) to pretend to be in the audience as you deliver your speech. Give them a list of three things to pay close attention to, such as your pacing, eye contact, and hand gestures. After the speech, debrief with your audience and ask them what they would suggest you do to sharpen your message and strengthen your speech.

True Confessions

For more strategies for dealing with communication anxiety, crack open your copy of Confessions of a Public Speaker and read Chapter Two, in which the author explains why the old saw of people fearing public speaking more than they fear death is actually hogwash.

Nobody has ever died from fear of public speaking, Berkun says. "The problem is that our brains are wired to believe the opposite." In fact, from an evolutionary perspective, our reptile brains interpret exposure in front of a judgmental crowd as a threat to our lives.

As you read, consider:

• What antidote does Berkun offer to tame our fear responses?

• How does Berkun suggest you use cognitive restructuring to reshape how you use fear of public speaking?

• What rehearsal strategies does Berkun suggest that you might incorporate into your own practice?

Then meet us over at Lesson 3, where we'll learn all about how to improvise through the unexpected moments of any public speaking opportunity.