There is nothing like the sick feeling of dread before giving a public presentation or speech.  Your stomach is in knots, your mouth is dry, and you are shaking. As the time of the event draws closer, you feel like you are going to throw up.

When I gave my first presentation, it was at work for a management class of 30 people.  I felt so ill and scared that I almost bolted from the room. What was supposed to be a ten-minute PowerPoint presentation turned into an exceedingly fast two-minute fly-by slideshow. There was very little gained from my presentation, and I was horribly embarrassed.

During my college years, presentations were required in almost every class. Speech was a required course, and all presentations and speeches were graded, so I had no choice but to give my best each time. I still shook and felt pale, but I managed to make it through those terrifying moments.  I was always fearful that I looked like a fool and that everyone was secretly laughing at me.

My turning point came when I was asked by a college club to give two 30-minute workshops on business web design. As their consultant, it would have been discourteous of me to turn them down. I also knew that if I was ever going to conquer my fear of public speaking, I had to do it each time an opportunity to speak publicly came up.

My workshops were one of nine workshops set up to teach area high school business students different skills of the work world to enhance their knowledge, and to prepare them for what lay ahead. My first workshop had 35 students. 

At first I was very nervous, but as I got into delivering my presentation, I didn't notice that I was no longer shaking or concerned about how I looked. I felt my words come out smoothly as I looked around the classroom at the students, and highlighted the key points of designing a business website. When it came to the question and answer session, I was as relaxed as I had ever been when I spoke in front of a group of people. My next class had 25 students, and it went just as well.  I was invited back the next year to give three workshops, and I even walked around the classroom helping the kids with their hands-on skills.

Public speaking doesn't have to be intimidating. What I learned inside the classroom and during my public speaking engagements helped me to overcome my fear and make the best of every situation where I have to speak in front of an audience.  

These 7 tips will help you to make public speaking less painful:

1. Breathe deep and let it out slowly.  Breathing slowly helps to calm your nerves.
2. Before your presentation, make small talk with different members of your listeners. Creating a rapport sets a good tone and lets       them see that you are friendly and approachable.
3. Have a small bottle of water with you, and sip it randomly while you are speaking.  Sipping water will prevent dry mouth, and will keep your tongue from sticking to your lips.
4. Remember that you are formally offering information to your viewers. They are interested in the information itself, not in how you look or how nervous you feel.  
5. It isn't always possible to make eye contact with your spectators, so look at their foreheads as your eyes sweep the room. It will look like you are making eye contact.
6. Watch movies that have characters in public speaking roles. Make notes on how they carry their speech off, what you liked or disliked in the delivery of the information, and what you would do differently.
7. Practice, practice, and practice some more.  One of the best speeches that I gave was practiced at 6:00 a.m. during breakfast in a restaurant using my allowed cue cards.

Fear will control us as long as we give it the power to do so.  Taking small but firm steps to overcome your fright by making the speech or presentation about the content and information that you want to convey instead of making it about you will make public speaking a joy instead of something to be afraid of. 

© Copyright 2008 Patti McMann. All rights reserved.