Be Bold and Overcome Fear of Speaking

Without a doubt, the best way to overcome fear of speaking is - in the words of a famous ad - to "just do it!"

And that's a lot easier than most people realize. The reason is simple, in that public speaking doesn't have to be thought of as something a speaker will be remembered for years after they are gone.

True, the pages of history are populated with greater orators who inspired nations and led causes. But most speakers aren't expected to give speeches that will motivate millions.

Instead, all they are really expected to do is share their expertise. Thus anyone who is willing to prepare remarks and is capable of sharing them in a manner that requires no more eloquence than if they were speaking to friends, already knows what is necessary to overcome fear of speaking.

The first thing to remember to overcome fear of speaking is for a speaker to not lose sight of their purpose, which is sharing their expertise with others. They're not speaking to make friends, come across as humorous or appear suave.

Of course, there's nothing wrong with sharing humor and displaying a sense of personality. But audiences are far more interested in learning about a speaker's expertise and a speaker who has prepared thorough remarks can be confident of success.

What are some of the other ways to overcome fear of public speaking? Among them:

* Not being intimidated by questions they cannot answer or difficult audience members. A speaker who is stumped by a question should admit it and ask for contact information so he can get back with someone who has a question. In doing so, he doesn't appear ignorant, but can impress his audience with his honesty and commitment to finding additional information

* Being flexible. This involves not becoming rattled with delays in when he will speak, power outages, failure to audiovisual equipment or any other problems that might cause some speakers to become nervous

* Preparing remarks beforehand that the speaker knows are accurate and current. Knowing that his information is correct also prepares a speaker to refute any challenges to his remarks

A speaker should also remember three tips that will guarantee he has nothing to fear in sharing his remarks:

1. Determine exactly what he is asked to speak on to assure his audience will not be disappointed with his remarks

2. Research his topic and anticipate any questions that may arise

3. Rehearse his remarks to determine how he sounds and if there are any wake spots in his presentation, which is best accomplished by recording and listening to his speech

An individual who doesn't know how to overcome fear of speaking because of a perception he might fail may in fact make such a scenario reality. That's because his nervousness can indeed lead to a lack of confidence in sharing remarks.

And, unfortunately, that's a reality that just doesn't have to happen!

Effective speaking is a lot like preparing for a wedding. All the planning in the world can't assure there will not be problems. But preparing speaking disasters and knowing in advance how to tackle speaking disasters means they do not have to ruin your presentation.

Check out Surviving Speaking Disasters to discover how to handle and avoid seven different kinds of speaking catastrophes. Get real solutions for real-life speaking disasters.

A business executive from Singapore, Martin Ng uses his finely honed public speaking skills in the course of his everyday work for training, presentations and making pitches. Martin's e-book, 'Surviving Speaking Disasters' (available at href="http://www.survivingspeakingdisasters.com">www.survivingspeakingdisasters.com), is highly regarded by life coaches and professional presenters, as well as everyday business people.