How to Calm Anxiety and Fear of Public Speaking
Most of us feel at least a few butterflies before we speak in public. Sometimes the butterflies are more like hammers in our chest. Some actors think they need a little anxiety to do their best and will “pump themselves up” before a performance. Some of us go straight into panic mode. One study suggests a strategy that reframes anxiety as excitement, as both have similar physiological manifestations. However we view or experience anxiety, as speakers, we want to make sure that we are in control, rather than being controlled by our anxiety.
Simply doing the work to prepare and present gives us more ease in public speaking so that anxiety is managed and subdued.
The three main skills that we use are:
The more we practice, the more fluent we are in our content, the more familiar we are with the space, audience, and technology, the less anxious we are. Simple as that—we put in the time and our anxiety recedes. The more we practice, the more confident we become. Preparation takes lots of time, so it’s important to carve out that space even in busy lives.
When I was a practicing therapist, I used daily, simple breathing exercises with my clients who had panic disorder. Every one of them was able to ween off of anxiety medication after a few months. Breathing grounds us, calms the body, voice, muscles, and slows the heart-rate. Simple, always accessible, and powerful.
Intention reminds us to put our attention on the other, the audience. Intention gives us an action, something TO DO. Intention connects us to the very reason we are speaking, our big WHY. I worked with a woman with Tourette Syndrome who’s symptoms would ramp up whenever she felt the spotlight upon her. We worked to find her vital reason for speaking to a particular audience of newly minted entrepreneurs, many of whom had struggled financially. She said, “I want them to know that if I can do it—a single mother with little education—they can do it. I want TO GIVE THEM HOPE.” “To give them hope,” was her clear and grounding Intention. She did not shake during the entire talk.