Afraid of Public Speaking? Learn to Control Your Fear
I’m often asked how to not be nervous for a presentation. It’s one of the biggest issues I hear about from clients. They are simply afraid to give a presentation. Standing up in front of a group makes their heart pound, hands sweat and knees shake.
While I can’t guarantee these tips will immediately eliminate your fear, they will certainly help you manage it by increasing your confidence:
- Focus on your audience: Think about what you can do for the audience, not the personal anxiety you may have about presenting.
- Pause for power: Take a deep breath and calmly stand still until your thoughts return to you. A great time to pause and catch your breath is when you change a slide or walk from one side of the room to the other. Pausing will not only help you catch your breath, it will also give your audience time to process what you’ve said.
- Remember, the audience does not see fear: They cannot see your heart pounding, stomach churning, knees wobbling or hands perspiring! Your audience wants you to do well. They want you to motivate, educate and inspire them.
- Eye contact: Holding sustained eye contact is the number one way to not be nervous for a presentation. Watch this presentation skills training video to learn how eye contact can help reduce your nervousness.
Looking for presentation skills training to avoid being nervous? Power Presentations offers customized presentation and communication skills training for all levels of expertise.