The Fearless Presenter

By Kathy Cooperman

How would you rate your fear of speaking? Do you dread getting up in front of a group to make a presentation? Do you have trouble sleeping the night before you are s heduled to speak to a group? !re you filled with an"iety the last #$ minutes before you are introdu ed to speak? %f you answered& 'yes&( to any of the above )uestions& you*re not alone+ Publi speaking is dreaded by millions of people around the world+

!ppro"imately ,-. of the population has some level of stage fright or fear of speaking in publi + %t*s at the top of the list when people are asked to rank their greatest fears+ Think about that/ 0peaking in publi is a greater fear than the fear of death& whi h omes in at number two1we*re talking about some serious fear/ 2ver the past twenty3five years as an e"e utive oa h& % have worked with do4ens of lients who have a signifi ant fear of speaking+ Here are 5ust a few fears they*ve e"pressed6 o I mostly fear the questions and Im afraid Ill appear like Im under-qualified to present. o My biggest fear is totally losing track of where I am in the presentation and it will be obvious to everyone. o My greatest fear is looking like an idiot who doesnt know what Im talking about! o I tend to get too wordy and detailed. Im afraid Ill lose their interest and theyll

be bored. o My face turns red and my voice gets shaky. o I hate it when my mouth dries upcottonmouth. o Im always afraid I might faint. o I get sweaty and my stomach starts grumbling. I don t want people looking at me in that condition which only causes more stress.

Control 8our 9ervousness The term 'glossophobia( is relatively unknown to most of us+ %t*s a fan y word for speaker an"iety+ :ikipedia des ribes it as an intense an"iety 5ust before or simply at the thought of having to verbally present to a group+ %t goes on to e"plain that people with glossophobia e"perien e 'physi al distress& nausea or feeling of pani in su h ir umstan es+( Try Taking Deep Breaths The power of taking deep breaths at the first sign of an"iety is real+ Take ni e& slow long breaths in through your nose& hold it and slowly e"hale through your mouth+ Do this several times while fo using on your breathing+ This is a te hni)ue that many of my lients have found to be instantly helpful+ %t*s also su h a subtle te hni)ue that you won*t draw attention to yourself while you*re doing it/ %t an slow your ra ing heart& alm your nerves and prevent your mind from swimming with negative self3talk+ Channel 8our ;nergy ! ept the fa t that feeling some in reased tension is perfe tly normal+ %n fa t& view it positively+ The in reased energy will allow you to be more passionate about your

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topi + 8ou may feel an adrenaline rush 5ust like winning athletes feel as they ross the finish line + + + first/ =edire t the physiologi al symptoms into an e" iting delivery through strong vo al pro5e tion& natural& animated gestures and an e"pressive fa e+ 8our e" itement will be ontagious to your audien e+ Clear 8our >ind ;ven su essful& highly paid professional speakers feel an"iety right before going on stage+

o Take a short walk before going on stage+ This ould be a simple walk around the building before heading inside to perform+ %t ould be a short walk down the hall and ba k before entering the ballroom or onferen e room+ o Listen to your favorite music+ 0peakers often rely on their portable musi devi es to listen to musi that inspires them& rela"es them or reates 5ust the right mindset for delivering their best presentation possible+ o Visualize success+ :inning athletes& a tors& orators and singers share the pra ti e of visuali4ation+ Pi ture yourself1a tually see yourself1standing in front of your audien e+ 0ee how they are hanging on every word that you speak+ 9oti e their fa ial e"pressions as they respond to all your main points+ =epla e any negative thoughts with only thoughts and visual pi tures of your best presentation ever/

For more information or to re)uest a proposal for personali4ed presentation skills training please onta t Kathy Cooperman6 kathy?kathy ooperman+ om& ,<$3-@<3##<@+