Are you happy to talk about others' contributions and achievements, but not about your own? Do you allow yourself to make mistakes doing your work, but think speakers must never make mistakes? Have you thrown together a slide deck just hours before a presentation, then felt stiff and uncomfortable in front of your audience?
These are the expressions of fear about speaking and presenting that I hear all the time. And because of these fears, people refuse to speak and thus deny themselves the benefits that speaking and presenting generate.
There is good news for fearful speakers. These fears and others like them can be diminished with some simple, focused steps.
1 - Audiences love it when speakers and presenters talk about them (the audience) and tell relevant stories about other people like them. Speakers should not put themselves in the starring role or fill their speeches and presentations with "I". Those of you who like to talk about others will find the speaking platform very comfortable if you do this during your speeches and presentations.
2 - Audiences really crave authenticity--a sense that the speaker is being real and the same person they would meet in the hallway. Everyone knows that real people make mistakes. It's what they do about the mistake that's important. Just as you would do in a conversation, if you make a mistake during your speech or presentation, you simply correct yourself and move on.
3 -Throwing slides together minutes or hours before you speak is a terrible mistake and one that you can prevent from ever happening again. First, reduce the number of slides, and the content on them. One slide for 5 minutes, with one image or two bullets is plenty. Then you speak about it from your deep expertise. Second, schedule time in your calendar for your slide writing and do not give up that time. Your audience deserves that amount of commitment from you. If you stand firm on your prep time, others will respect you.
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