Public Speaking: So what if They’re Naked?
5 Things you can do prior to giving a speech to alleviate anticipatory anxiety

You may have heard, many-a-time, the old expression with regard to public speaking. “Just picture your audience naked!” and all of your fears will disintegrate. However, I’d have to declare it vastly ineffective as a strategy. Today, more practical advice serves us – that being the intention of this article. There are 5 creative strategies which I would consider highly effective for overcoming a fear of public speaking, but before we get into that, let’s examine why this simple task can be so anxiety-inducing.

First of all, public speaking is not dangerous. It does not pose an imminent threat, nor has anyone died from giving a speech. So, why then do we dread it? We dread it because, in part, we fear the physical symptoms we will most likely experience. On top of that, we dread being judged. The main thing to remember, however, is that these physical sensations are an important part of being alive. The body perceives a stressful situation and works to make you more alert or “on guard” in case it is forced to protect itself. Thus our heart rate increases, we sweat more and our senses become heightened. Trust in your body to do all that it can to protect you from harm and focus more on the speech itself. If you think you may pass out, remember your body is regulating itself in order to keep you from danger – not put you in the middle of it.

Now that you have a very basic understanding as to why your body reacts this way, there are 5 simple things you can do today that will make it less painful for you to deliver a speech in public. I use the acronym “LET GO” to summarize these 5 key points because that is what it is all about –letting go of your preconceived notions with regard to delivering a speech and rebuilding that framework from the ground up. You can think yourself into a nightmare or you can think yourself into a daydream, either way – the same speech is given.

Live in the Moment
Today you are not giving the speech. Today, you are suffering with the anticipatory anxiety. Don’t dwell forever on the “what ifs.” Give yourself a time limit to work on the speech and then redirect your focus when it comes to mind outside of this designated time period.

be Excited
It is important to draw the distinction between being enthusiastic and being anxious early on. Due to the similarities in physical response, those who are experiencing anxiety may avoid being “excited” altogether, but if there are things you are excited to present, allow yourself the joy or excitement of getting up there and having an opportunity to share! You are presenting because your mind contains something of value – something that others have sought to have themselves – so be proud and allow yourself to become excited for this opportunity to showcase what you know.

Teach your lamp
It helps to practice the speech prior to delivering it to a live audience. If you do not have the fortune of practicing on a friend or family member – tell your lamp. Tell your lamp all there is you want to say on your topic. The lamp will not judge you, applaud you, fall asleep or offer any feedback afterward, so you have nothing to be nervous about.

Give the audience credit
The audience is not there to watch you humiliate yourself or fail. They truly want you to do a good job and they will overlook any or all of the mistakes you make. Most of them are not thrilled about the idea of public speaking themselves and are simply looking to take something away from what you are saying. Don’t work on your speech forever. Come up with one valuable piece of information and that is sufficient for delivering a great speech and winning the approval of your audience.

be Objective
Do not focus on all of the subjective factors – the lighting, the tone of your voice, what size font you use on your PowerPoint slide or what they think of you – all of these factors will not matter once it is all said and done. All of the preparation prior to giving a speech can truly drain a person once combined with the physiological factors of anxiety. Nothing you do will ever be good enough and you will never be ready to present until you lower that bar for yourself. Remain objective in your preparation. Am I delivering the right information? Am I on time? Am I making good eye contact? These are all great things to concern yourself with prior to or during a speech. Do not pollute your mind with tedious, unanswerable questions.

Overall, I know that public speaking can and will become less stressful for you over time. You may never fall in love with it, so don’t expect that from yourself. The idea is to work on small, yet significant improvements in your thoughts and consequently, your behavior. I wish you the best of luck on all of your speaking occasions and just remember to “let go.”

Love, Lindsay