People in the room don't see how you feel, they only see how you look and act.
Darlene Price's first public performance took place when she was 15 years old. She was talking about Great Expectations (by Charles Dickens) in Mrs. Weaver's 10th grade English class. She was very nervous and felt her hands trembling, her heart beating, her knees shaking, her palms sweating. She stood in front of the class, and as soon as she looked at her classmates (33 people), she froze.
As time passed, giggles were heard. Mrs. Weaver asked 15-year-old Price to begin the performance. As soon as her eyes met those of her audience, all signs of nervousness disappeared, not because she became calm, but because she became weaker.
Three decades later, Price, an author and communications coach, author of Well Said, and president of a leading public communications training company, recalls that she could barely stand when she spoke.”
Price says that this experience at school helped her realize that to perform well, you don't need to get rid of nervous tension and emotions. You need to manage them to communicate effectively with your audience. She also realized that what she realized in the tenth grade was not something special. In fact, research shows that fear of public speaking is at the top of the list of human fears. "Percentages vary across studies, but it's fair to say that most of us are nervous about public speaking," she explains. “As speakers, we often fear that we will fail, get confused, be criticized, judged, compared, or rejected.”
Physically, we are nervous, anxious, and the following symptoms may appear: rapid heartbeat, nausea, trembling voice, stuttering, headache, dizziness, shortness of breath, your mouth becomes dry, you begin to blush, your knees are shaking, or you may even faint.
But besides the threatening list of symptoms, there is some good news. There are no negative consequences from being nervous. “The trick is not to show these manifestations.” Listeners can't see how you feel. They only see how you look and act. Therefore, it is worth learning to look and behave calmly, confidently and calmly. This is exactly what people perceive and believe.
Here are 11 ways to calm yourself before a performance:
Make sure you don't look nervous
Speakers who watch videos of their speeches almost always say, “Wow, I don’t look nervous, even though I felt that way.” “Remember, the public doesn’t see how you feel. They just see how you look and act,” Price says. When, as a speaker, you speak calmly and confidently (or at least pretend that you feel that way), you earn yourself a lot of points: they believe you, the public likes you. “When you are able to control your nerves, take the microphone and create a connection with the audience, you increase your career opportunities many times over,” Price concludes.
A few days before the performance
Rehearse
It’s trite, but the main recommendation is to rehearse, rehearse and rehearse again. Experts confirm that responsible preparation is the key to successful public speaking. You can choose a convenient way for you to work out your future speech - rehearsing in front of a mirror, recording on a voice recorder or video. Pre-filming on camera is especially useful for those who are likely to be holding any objects during the performance - after watching the recording, you will be able to understand how to stand up correctly and what gestures are best to avoid.
Perform in front of friends
The second tip to help overcome the fear of public speaking: before going on stage, voice your speech to your acquaintances, relatives or friends. Imagine that they are your future audience.
Present your speech
During rehearsals, imagine that you have a microphone in your hands: how you hold it, what you do with your free hand, and what actions you will take if unexpected problems occur with the equipment.
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Calculate the time
Be sure to allocate how much time you will allocate for the greeting, introduction, body of the report and conclusion. “It is important to rehearse until you meet the allotted timing. Don't make your speech too short or long. In such cases, information should either be added or reduced. You need to learn how to manage your time, taking into account possible force majeure,” explain Leila and Laura.
Prepare a Plan B
Always think about what you will do if something goes wrong. “Save extra information at the end of your presentation so you can use it if you end up early. Or prepare questions that you can ask the audience,” experts recommend.
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Visualize
If you have a good visual memory, remember the flow of the speech through pictures. There is a special psychological technique that will help you better capture the key moments of your speech. “During your presentation, imagine that your speech is a tour of your own apartment. The beginning of the performance - you open the front door, the main part - you take off your outerwear, the conclusion - you go from the corridor to the living room. It is necessary to present your speech in the form of an excursion to a place that is known and safe for you,” experts advise.
See examples
Analyze how the presenters of a television program present this or that information. Study where they pause, increase their intonation, and change their delivery.
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Create a strong beginning and ending
The start sets the tone for the entire performance. You'll only have a few seconds to grab everyone's attention: if you don't captivate viewers right away, they'll be glued to their mobile phones. Try starting with an interesting statistic or a powerful quote. You can ask a rhetorical question or tell a compelling story related to the topic of the speech. It is advisable that this be a real incident that happened to you or someone you know, but if nothing comes to mind, feel free to fantasize - after all, absurd stories can be quite captivating.
The ending also needs to be well thought out: towards the end of the lecture, the audience’s attention will again reach its maximum. You can summarize your speech by repeating the main points, or save a surprising fact for closing. Another option is a mystery ending. Ask a question or show a photo at the beginning of your speech, and explain what you mean at the end.
Try to practice more
Every speaker needs to clearly understand that public speaking is a practical skill, like carving wood or driving a car. That is, it can be mastered through constant practical training.
That is why try to regularly find time and place to practice public debate. In fact, we have a lot of opportunities to practice. This can be done at meetings with friends, during family meals, at work in front of colleagues, and so on.
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The main thing is to have an irresistible need to become better and better. Then you yourself will not have time to notice how much your skills will improve.
During the performance
Control your speaking speed
Avoid speeding up your speech, even if you are pressed for time. Experts recommend feeling what you say, and not doing it mechanically, quickly reciting a memorized text.
Take breaks
Pauses will help you catch your breath and emphasize an important point. “It is necessary to take short pauses so that the audience can perceive and analyze the information,” experts add.
Find a visual comfort point
When speaking, you should find your visual comfort point. As Leila and Laura explain, everyone individually chooses a calming object for themselves. For example, this could be someone you know in the entire audience or an imaginary point in the middle of the hall. Of course, “the ideal is when you communicate with everyone present, and eye contact occurs with as many people as possible.”
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Be honest with your audience
If you are nervous while on stage, which is natural, you can calmly tell the audience about it. “This kind of recognition will help resonate with the public, as everyone has experienced stress during public speaking at one time or another. Most likely, they will understand you and will treat you more leniently.”
Watch your gestures
“If you start to tremble during performances, it is highly recommended not to hold something in your hands, as your fear will immediately become noticeable,” experts say. Also, be sure to watch your gestures. “Nonverbal communication with the audience is no less important than competent speech. Don’t cross your arms, straighten your hair, or jerk your leg—these are signs of insecurity and embarrassment.” When you don't know where to put your hands, just lower them down.
Remember that every performance improves your skill
“Learning how to speak in front of a large audience requires constant practice. Only through experience will you understand your mistakes, overcome fear and learn to behave well,” experts add.
Take a confident posture
This is a fairly effective life hack that not everyone thinks of. If you stand in a confident position while performing, your body will radiate confidence on a physical level. Thus, the mind will follow, for which there will be nothing else left.
Many speakers also recommend not sitting during a speech in order to have the desired effect on the audience. The thing is that sitting is a passive position. Meanwhile, a standing position with a straight back and an elevated head conveys strength and authority, making a person feel more competent.
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At some points, you can also walk from side to side during a public speech. It is believed to calm the nerves.
Get exercise
To keep your verbal skills in good shape, don’t forget about physical exercise. After all, as you know, our cognitive abilities largely depend on the physiological parameters of the body, and not on the universal plan.
Get your blood pumping with jogging, exercise and exercise in the gym. Then it will circulate normally throughout your body and nourish your brain.
In addition, it would be a good idea for the speaker to maintain his physical fitness in order to create an impressive visual effect on the audience.
7. Smile
A positive approach will be useful not only during a speech, but also in any other circumstances. The thing is that a smile can increase the level of endorphins, as well as overcome anxiety and calm you down.
At the same time, it helps to gain confidence and win over the audience. The main thing is not to overdo it with a smile, otherwise it can give you a manic look.
How to overcome the fear of public speaking on stage with a large audience through rehearsals
The more often you rehearse, the more likely it is that everything will go like clockwork. Having re-read your text more than once, you will remember it and be able to navigate the written thoughts. However, you should not cram - fully memorized speech is perceived dryly, without interest. Record the training on video to evaluate your behavior, facial expressions, and gestures.
Immediately before the performance
Meditate
Take a few minutes to meditate. Experts recommend the Body Scan technique - exercises aimed at studying your body and focusing on breathing.
Regain your breath
Breathe deeply and exhale slowly.
Visualize the result
Think about how you will feel after the performance. Elles Coach specialists recommend visualizing a successful result and your feelings at this moment. “Imagine how you feel when you are preparing, how you stand on stage and what emotions you experience after a successful performance,” explain Leila and Laura.
Do a facial workout
Do an articulation warm-up for your lips, tongue and jaw.
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Learn from the best
This is the very case when copying someone is possible and even necessary.
To improve your oratory skills, watch lectures by famous people who often speak in front of the public. Pay attention to their gestures and facial expressions, the construction of phrases, and the techniques they use to communicate with listeners. If you are especially taken by a certain gesture, try to screw it in as well when the opportunity arises. You may notice that experienced speakers do not stand still, but move around the room from time to time. This makes it possible not to tire the audience and to rest a little yourself - anything is better than awkwardly shifting from foot to foot. In addition, they do not forget to smile slightly to win over the audience.
The best way to learn public speaking is through real-life examples—for example, attending professional conferences. There you can listen to cool speakers, expand your horizons, and immerse yourself in the atmosphere of the event.
Image: Anastasia Zagardinova
For example, you can plan a trip to the “404 Festival” - it will take place from September 25 to 26 in Samara. This year, representatives of Ecwid, Yandex, Raiffeisenbank, MTS Cloud, Tinkoff and other large companies will speak at 404. They will talk about mobile applications, front-end and back-end, product and project management, UX, management, marketing and content - in general, about everything that is interesting to those who have already entered IT or are just planning to do so. And the first day of lectures will end with a powerful afterparty with host Denis Kolesnikov, the creator of the Courage-Bambey project.
View program
Find “your” people in the audience
Another interesting psychological life hack that many speakers use is to find “your” people in the audience and contact them at the right moments.
These people can be your acquaintances and friends, or completely random people who you just liked.
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This way, you can look at them from time to time, as if you were addressing them directly. This technique will not be noticeable in the audience, but the person you are addressing may catch your gaze.
All this is done in order to feel the non-verbal support of a person, which can give you confidence and enthusiasm.
