Not surprisingly, one of the most common fears people have is the fear of public speaking. For some reason, it routinely ranks near the top of any survey of phobias, along with fear of flying and fear of heights. It’s a very deep rooted thing for some. I think we can all remember being in grade school and having to make a presentation in front of the class, and the anxiety that came along with that. It seems silly now looking back as adults to being so worked up over a 1 or 2 minute presentation - a book report, or a verbal report on what you did over the summer.
Being alone in front of a crowd at the center of attention is not a comfortable thing for many people even into adulthood. As with every other critical business skill (or life skill for that matter), preparation makes all the difference.
When people say they are afraid of public speaking what they really are saying is that they are afraid of being unprepared in front of an audience and not knowing what to say. That feeling of helplessness, or of unpreparedness, can be easily addressed by preparation.
Some people are just natural salespeople or natural performers. But, I submit that everyone can become a decent public speaker if they take a few very practical, common sense tips that follow and put them into practice.
To learn more, you can purchase The Art of Persuasion in the TLO Store.
