7 Sure Fire Ways To Overcome Stage Fright When Speaking Or Performing – Public-Speaking
7 Sure Fire Ways To Overcome Stage Fright When Speaking Or Performing
Prayer or Meditation: If you're a believer you can pray if you are not at least take time to clear your mind and meditate. (On clearing your mind) A short prayer for God to guide you and give you the right words can't ever hurt. God has promised to give believers words even when they are under a heavy persecution; Mt 10:19. Why wouldn't he also help when there isn't any persecution? He would. Obviously you must do this before you speak. If you don't pray before you speak you might find yourself praying in the middle of your presentation for God to get you out of it as quickly as possible. Do not overlook this little gem because although it seems unimportant, it can actually be what makes or breaks your performance or presentation.Concentrate Only On what Your Doing or Saying: Finding something to focus on in the room, the podium or in your own head is the quick road to failure. If you are concentrating on some external matter your attention is divided and everyone will see that as clearly as a red blinking light on you head. One hundred percent of your attention on your subject, your music or anything else leaves zero percent wasted on fear, faces and nerves. It also goes without saying that you should never give any attention to time. It is another great false detractor. If you're in a hurry, it shows a lack of confidence, if you go over time you must be approaching expert levels in your field. Take that as an unspoken compliment.Ask Yourself One Single Question: Before you begin speaking ask yourself one all important question. Who in this entire audience could do or say what I am doing or saying? If you consider the answer very carefully you will always arrive at the same answer which is, few to none. When I was playing American and Irish Folk music I constantly reminded myself that I had a repertoire of about one thousand songs. I wasn't trying to feed my ego but I was reminding myself of one fact. If I were to ask my audience how many people could do one thousand songs, I would get no answers at all most of the time. When I get up to speak I am reminded of years of schooling, hours of personal preparation, scores of published articles and two published books. Ego, no, it is only the answer to the all important question. The bottom line is that since no one can say or do what you are saying or doing just get on with it. Waste no time on what anyone thinks. If they could do what you are doing they would be in the podium and you would be in the audience.Get Emotional: If you stuff doesn't move you it won't move anyone else either. This is an immutable rule of presentation. If you are singing your interpretation of Twinkle Twinkle Little Star pour yourself into it. If you are speaking about the nocturnal habits of fire ants do it with gesticulations, reverberations and tremors. Ridiculous you say, think again. One of the greatest influences in my days of performing music was a man I had never met and I never heard even one note of his music. His influence came from the remarks I heard others make about him. They all agreed that his shows were amazing because he was so overwhelmingly emotional and caught up in what he was doing. I soon discovered that when I got all wrapped up and emoted in my music that even when I thought my performance was poor the audience did not. Try it you'll like it.Use Humor: Not everyone is good at telling jokes and humorous stories but almost everyone knows at least one or two good ones. Nothing breaks the ice quicker than humor. If you get them laughing early you have already invoked at least one basic human emotional response, provoking others will be a great deal easier from then on. Don't comb the joke books looking for the best jokes. Think of the jokes you have heard others say recently. The key is twofold. Pick a joke or humorous story that is somewhat related to what you are presenting. And do not pick jokes that you alone think are funny. Use jokes that you have seen bringing others to a belly laugh. Use humor that has worked in the public domain. Don't overdue the humor angle because people can recognize filler material very easily. The other side of the coin is not to ignore this useful tool of the trade. Laughter is a great equalizer for both audience and speaker.Get Personal: This is far more than good advice, it is a rule that if ignored will become the difference between success and failure. I have watched skilled musicians who never once addressed their audiences. Their performance may have been impeccable but in the end met with little acclaim. I've heard speakers who know their subject forward and backward but left people yawning and fidgeting. What was missing was often if not always the personal touch. You must get a rapport going with any audience on the personal level or will get nothing else going at all. How can you do that? Take a cue from the stand up comedian or the storyteller. They ask mundane questions and they wait for someone to answer or acknowledge it with a gesture or murmur. Where are you from, any one here from New York? Hey, does it ever stop raining here in Washington. Let me see how many of you are here tonight; if you're here raise your hand. For those of you that didn't raise your hand I have a question, where the heck are you? I often started off by saying, thank you for having me here tonight and it is good to see you all here to hear my music, now get out of here every one of you. Some were shocked, some giggled some roared but all came to attention. Sound silly, it is but make no mistake, it works.See The Crowd As Only One Person: No science is available to prove how or why this little tool works, but be assured it will never fail. Always speak to the audience as if you were talking to only one single person. It makes them feel that you are being very personal with each individual, they can feel the difference. It shrinks the crowd on a perceptional level for you. Remember that perception is often the better part of reality. It moves the entire matter to a, one on one. Who wouldn't admit that they are more comfortable talking to their neighbor or some stranger but not a whole crowd? Approach your performance or address as if you were doing just that and you will succeed.Rev Bresciani is the leader of a non-denominational ministry in the New Orleans area. He has written many articles over the past thirty years in such periodicals as Guideposts and Catholic Digest. He is the author of two books available on Amazon.com, Alibris, Barnes and Noble and many other places. Rev Bresciani wrote, Hook Line and Sinker or What has Your Church Been Teaching You, published by PublishAmerica of Baltimore MD. He also wrote a book recently released by Xulon Press entitled An American Prophet and His Message, Questions and Answers on the Second Coming of Christ. Rev Bresciani has his own website at http://americanprophet.org
Executive Public Speaking for English as a Second Language (ESL) – Public-Speaking
Executive Public Speaking for English as a Second Language (ESL)
Public Speaking is a challenging skill. It is TOUGH! For some of you, it's probably the hardest thing you will ever do; and I can sympathize. Standing in front of the employees and coworkers that you want, (or need) to impress, all the while hoping that you remain clear, memorable, persuasive, entertaining and fun isn't a piece of cake. It is TOUGH, TOUGH, TOUGH!!Public speaking is a difficult thing on its own; however, imagine being in a leadership role and speaking in a language which is not your first language. These people have a second layer of challenges about which to worry. When someone is speaking English as a second language, they are also worried about their accent, pronunciation, intonation, grammatical errors and whether or not they are being perceived as a knowledgeable person despite their choice of words.The U.S. Census Bureau reported that in the United-States, 1 out of 5 people speak a language other than English. Many of these people are hired in at mid-level management. By 2030, demographers predict that English as a second language learners will account for approximately 40% of the students in the United-States. In some areas, that projection has already been exceeded. For instance, in California, 60%-70% of schoolchildren speak a language other than English as their primary language. It is therefore clear that many people are faced with this situation since a good majority of North Americans speak English as a second language.Accent is one of the major concerns for ESL speakers, especially for someone in a management role. Many accent reduction techniques and courses are out there, but my advice is to embrace your accent rather than to run away from it. Be true to yourself: if you have an accent, don't try to cover it up or camouflage it. An accent is a great way for you to differentiate yourself. You want people to remember you for who you are. About a year ago, I was training a gentleman from India. When he spoke in a social and conversational way his accent was easily detectable. The strange thing was, when he presented in front of a group he would put on a Deep-Southern accent. He sounded like a cross between Gandhi and Uncle Jesse from the "Dukes of Hazzard". When questioned about this, he said he thought he would be more respected and understood if he sounded like an American. Well, his approach totally backfired because the audience was more interested in his fake accent than in his words. In today's world, everyone has an accent; we all come from different parts of the globe and we all have different ways of saying things. Accents can even be an asset since some audiences find them charming and aesthetically pleasant to the ear. You will be your best when you let yourself completely be who you are. You will sound natural and it will be a pleasure to listen to you.Another concern that might arise is the apprehension resulting from the proper choice of words, or grammatical errors and syntax. Many times, people feel that since they are in a leadership role, that they have to use complex and technical words to be taken seriously. Finding the right words to express yourself in a language in which you are less comfortable can be a challenge. Regarding this, my advice is two-fold:Firstly, don't try to chew off more than you can swallow - use a vocabulary that makes you comfortable and that you understand. An audience will be much more impressed with a presenter that uses logic than with a presenter that uses a lofty, pretentious vocabulary.Secondly, use gestures, facial expression, and a "conversational" way of speaking. This will result in a warmer and more comfortable presentation. In addition, the audience will feel like they are communicating with a friend and that will make your talk much more effective. Your choice of words will consequently become less important.
Finally, an audience will be far more tolerant and responsive to a confident, happy speaker, therefore embrace your culture and don't be afraid to let your audience see where you're coming from!Martin Perras, martin@leadersinstitute.ca, is a Management Consultant and President of The Leader's Institute Canada, http://www.leadersinstitute.ca.He offers management training and consulting to companies in the US and Canada. He can be reached at 1-800-872-7830 x103.
How to Get Started In Public Speaking – Public-Speaking
How to Get Started In Public Speaking
Public speaking is among the five most feared activities human
beings encounter.The majority of us fear it worse than anything else. Yet, the
mastery of public speaking is an important tool in our business
skill set.It's never too early (or too late) to learn to speak in public.
Every one needs to start somewhere. The best strategy is to look
for non-threatening opportunities with familiar surroundings,
friends and colleagues. Plan your speaking gigs in stages
starting out with a small comfortable group then increasing the
number of members in the audience and finally tackle the
prominence of the engagement.Become a member of the leadership team where you need to give
reports or host meetings. In these instances, you will have
prepared material in front of you. Practice with the material as
if you were giving the speech. Don't just read the material; live it and convey it with feeling. When you begin with an audience, remember to make eye contact. Watch how people are receiving your information. Do they look bored? Adjust your inflection
accordingly.Do you participate in a professional association, social club or
sport that hosts regular meetings? Ask to make a short
presentation. If this is too daunting volunteer to introduce
another speaker. This will get you in front of an audience but
the spotlight won't be on you because you are not the primary
focus. It will help you to feel comfortable with a stage, a mike, and an audience. If you are comfortable with jumping right in, ask to be the keynote. Plan for it to be informal so that you get the experience of speaking in front of a group but you don't have to extensively prepare or make a formal presentation.Make sure to ask for feedback. The simplest way to do this is to
have an evaluation sheet. Write the questions using a ranking of
1-5 for answers. Leave space for writing an additional
assessment, but the less work someone has to do in an evaluation
the better the response.Tip: Make sure to collect the completed forms before the audience leaves the room. Otherwise, you will never get them back.After a few informal speaking occasions plan to make a
"real" speech. Make it about something you are an
expert on so the material will come naturally. Prepare for 20
minutes tops for this type of presentation with a ten minute
Q& A You will want to have notes but it is imperative that
you are comfortable with the topic. It has to be part of your
repertoire so that it comes to you even if you get off track. The more you know about the subject the more comfortable you will be with your audience.Tip: About 8 pages of typed material equals 20 minutes if you
speak in an even measured rate.Tip: As a friend or a moderator to ask a question even if the
audience doesn't have one (Prepare several questions in advance).Look for panel opportunities that allow several participants.
Once again, this gives you time in front of the microphone where
the focus is not just on you. It also helps because there is a
moderator who will keep the dialogue going if you hit a rough
patch. It's also good to discuss before hand what the moderator
will ask and what they expect from you in the way of a
presentation. How long will it take? How many questions you will
be asked, etc.Tip: In this instance, you are part of a team. Don't hog the
limelight. If your material is good and you are well prepared,
you will come out as a credible participant.Tip: Never serve on a panel blindly without knowing what you are
going to be asked in advance.After you have mastered the informal and the panel, it's time for some serious speech giving: The 45-minute program with 10 minutes of Q&A.This requires preparation and practice; a good venue for this is
a trade show or conference. At these affairs they are always
looking for speaker. Plan months in advance. Contact the
organizing group about your topic. Make sure your topic fits with the conference theme otherwise it might not draw the audience you want.Tip: Abstracts are required in advance of the actual event.
Unless you are an expert at winging it, do your homework early.
The abstract should be the framework for your presentation. This
will give you ample time to prepare your speech and presentation
and add new material should something relevant happen.Tip: You want your material fresh. Always look to current events
or hot button issues to make the presentation contemporary.Tip: As a beginner, be advised to stay away from the more exotic
aspects of speech giving. If you use PowerPoint, make it simple.
Remember, the more complicated it gets the greater the chance for something to go wrong. Always take a backup CD and at least two printed copies of your speech.There are groups such as toastmasters that you can join that will allow you the opportunity to speak in front of a group in a
non-threatening environment. To find out about a group near you
go to http://www.toastmasters.org/Remember everyone has to start somewhere. The more you speak
front of people the more comfortable you will become. The
audience is not the enemy. They are there to learn from you.
Share the wealth of your knowledge. Keep that thought in mind
when in front of the podium.JoAnn Hines' specialty is PACKAGING PEOPLE. Whether you want to be paid more, you just lost your job, or you want to progress in the one you have, Ms. Hines advice and expertise can help you transform your personal brand. She can show you how to package yourself and make your brand a hot commodity. It's easy once you know the ropes and begin to utilize her insider's secrets. She shows you step by step how to increase your visibility, credibility and marketability with easy to use tutorials and templates.It is time to get started "Packaging Yourself." To learn the ropes and "Package Yourself" for success email Ms. Hines @ pkgcoach@aol.com