(The Solu­tion is NOT “Prac­tice, Prac­tice, Practice!”)

Do your hands sweat at the mere idea of pub­lic speak­ing? Does your stom­ach flip-flop, your mind go blank?  Although there is no golden bul­let to pre­vent stage fright, mil­lions of peo­ple man­age it effec­tively every day. These guide­lines from pro­fes­sional speak­ing coaches can help!

1. Become friends with the part of you that is scared.
Don’t hate the part of you that is ner­vous. You will only end up being “ner­vous about being ner­vous!” Your goal is NOT to over­come fear itself. Instead, it is to design and deliver an effec­tive mes­sage. Focus on the mes­sage, and love yourself.

2. Be able to state clearly the pur­pose of your pre­sen­ta­tion.
If you’re not able to state the pur­pose in one short sen­tence, start­ing with “The pur­pose of my pre­sen­ta­tion is to…” you are not ready to deliver the pre­sen­ta­tion. If you are unclear about your presentation’s ulti­mate goal, your nerves can under­mine you.

3. Keep your­self phys­i­cally fit.
Phys­i­cal fit­ness reduces anx­i­ety. It’s as sim­ple as that. What­ever phys­i­cal exer­cise you like to do—do it, and do it reg­u­larly. Your low­ered blood pres­sure, height­ened endurance, and increased oxy­gen will act as a “shield” against an attack of nerves.

Let these three sug­ges­tions guide you as you pre­pare for your next pre­sen­ta­tion. Remem­ber, the anti­dote to ner­vous­ness is not “out there” somewhere…the keys are already inside of you.

Read more arti­cles about Pre­sen­ta­tion Skills. Learn about Guila Muir’s Pre­sen­ta­tion Skills Workshops.

Guila Muir is the pre­miere trainer of train­ers, facil­i­ta­tors, and pre­sen­ters on the West Coast of the United States. Since 1994, she has helped thou­sands of pro­fes­sion­als improve their train­ing, facil­i­ta­tion, and pre­sen­ta­tion skills. Find out how she can help trans­form you from a bor­ing expert to a great pre­sen­ter: www.guilamuir.com

© 2009 Guila Muir. All rights reserved.
You may make copies of this arti­cle and dis­trib­ute in any media so long as you change noth­ing, credit the author, and include this copy­right notice and web address.

Related posts:

1. They ARE Hear­ing Your Body Talk!
2. 3 Tips to Deal With Audi­ences From Hell
3. Pre­sen­ta­tion Is Not Training
4. Pre­sen­ta­tion Skills: Can Dreaded “Ers” And “Ums” Actu­ally Be Positive ?

Tags: fear of public speaking, Presentation Skills, stage fright

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