From the Inside Out

Franklin D. Roosevelt once said, “You have nothing to fear, but fear itself.” Maybe this is the mantra that people should repeat over and over again in their heads before they attempt a task they fear. How many of you remember the television series, Fear Factor? It was a reality show where contestants had to face the things they feared in order to win a $50,000 cash prize.  I was always amazed that people would volunteer for the show. I watched them eat rotten eggs and pig brains. Some people even placed their heads in a box with live tarantulas and snakes. It’s insane, but what’s even more amazing is that — according to the statistics — these activities are feared less than public speaking!

Personally, I can relate to this feeling. The thought of speaking in front of a group used to paralyze me with fear. It was odd. I could stand on stage and act in front of hundreds of people, but when I had to give a presentation, a sense of dread (and sometimes panic) would take hold.

For many people, public speaking can cause great anxiety — the heart begins to beat rapidly, mouth goes dry and voice begins to shake. It’s not pretty. Those of us who have experienced these feelings can easily understand why people don’t want to go through that type of an ordeal again.

The good news is that you can overcome it. I now speak in front of large groups at industry conferences and make regular presentations during the course of my work week. The dread and anxiety are gone — and most of the time, I really enjoy the experience.

If you struggle with a fear of public speaking, here are 5 steps to help you silence your fears forever:

• Always Be Prepared: Advance preparation can help you overcome nervousness when speaking to groups. It doesn’t matter if it’s a presentation to your boss or a keynote speech in front of hundreds, being well prepared can help you feel more relaxed and confident. You don’t need to script every word, but you should have a general outline of the facts and the key points you want to make. You should also take the time to research your audience and understand their needs. This helps you avoid questions you can’t answer and ensures that your content will be appropriate for your audience. By covering all the bases, you can increase you chances of success and minimize many of the common failures and mistakes that are typically made during presentations.

• Practice Makes Perfect: This is a mistake that many people tend to make. Many corporate executives and political candidates hire speaking coaches to help them prepare for important speeches and presentations. They don’t just show up one day and speak. They have fine tuned the presentation by practicing it many times before they give it. The more you practice, the more confident you will become. A few helpful tips for practicing are:
  • say the speech out loud
  • look into a mirror to see how you look when speaking — watch for distracting gestures and be sure you have a pleasant expression
  • use a tape recorder or video camera to study how you sound
  • practice with a friendly audience like your friends or family — it’s one of the best ways to simulate the experience of speaking in front of a live audience

• Embrace Your Audience, Don’t Fear Them: By now you’ve probably heard the various approaches for reducing your fear of the audience. The most popular approach is to visualize everyone naked or in clown suits. To be completely honest, that never worked for me. I don’t want to look out and see a room full of naked people. It’s not comforting - it’s gross. And, I’ve always thought clowns were a bit creepy.  As a result, I prefer to use the positive approach. Almost everyone in the audience wants to hear what you have to say - that’s why they showed up. They want you to do a good job, and they want you to succeed. You just have to realize that the audience is usually on your side. When you can think of the audience in a more positive manner, it’s easier to speak to them, and becomes more like talking with your friends.

• Join a Speaking Club: Organizations like Toastmasters International can help you overcome your fear by letting you practice in a non-threatening and supportive environment. Toastmasters will teach you the tools to become a skilled speaker. It’s time well spent. You won’t regret it.

• Relax Before Speaking: Before going on stage, take a few deep breaths to calm your nerves. At this point, you should smile and have fun.  If you’ve followed these steps, then you’ve already done the hard work. It’s your time to shine. Just step up to the plate and hit that home run, you earned it!

When you face your fears, you grow stronger. Eventually, you will look back and wonder what you were so scared about in the first place.  Simply follow these steps.  It won’t be long before you achieve your goal of pain-free speaking, and then you can honestly say that fear is not a factor for you.

I went into the office today instead of working from home.  I had to provide a customer presentation in our Customer Briefing Center (CBC), and I wanted to attend a kick-off session for a new leadership group at the Richardson campus, The Women’s Action Network (WAN).  It’s a networking group for female employees, and it’s supposed to be a forum where women can share best practices for leadership, mentoring, overcoming challenges, and career advancement. 

The executive sponsor is a sales VP and a friend of mine (we used to work together at Nortel).  She’s great, and I wanted to hear her speak.  During the meeting, she told her success story of how she evolved from a typist to a vice president.  It was inspiring and educational.  I could easily relate to many of her experiences. 

While I’m happy with my career, it did make me think that I may need to take more risks, especially if I want to move to the next level.  She surveyed a number of female executives on what they would go back and change if they could.  Most of them said they would take more risks — and do it sooner rather than later.  Roxann talked about the risks she took during her career.  She said if it didn’t give you a knot in your stomach, you probably weren’t going to learn anything new.  In the end, her risks paid off.

Looking back on my career, I’d have to agree with her.  The jobs that were the most frightening were also the most exciting.  Those were the experiences that taught me the most.  They were also the ones that brought major advances in my career.

Normally, I’m not too much of a risk taker, but it’s definitely something to consider.  You never know where the next risk could lead you or the adventure that awaits. 

Who knows…it might be worth the journey.