Everybody can fall victim to speech anxiety: even celebrities and prominent people who are regularly under the spotlight sometimes still have the “butterflies in the stomach,” the sweaty palms, and the shaking knees that accompany the fear of public speaking. The possible causes of speech anxiety are numerous.

One could be previous failure in delivering a speech. The fear of repeated failure may cause an individual to develop an extreme fear to try again. On the other hand, inexperience, or never having given a public speech, results to an almost similar fear. Another common cause is shyness. The feeling of having all eyes focused on you at a particular time can cause much anxiety for a shy person who do not normally speak too much even in front of small groups. Some people just hate being the center of attention and the feeling of conspicuousness when speaking in public increases the level of anxiety and embarrassment one feels.

Another, and easier to resolve, cause of speech anxiety is lack of preparation. Without practice, the level of discomfort in speaking words that you don’t really know by heart is considerably larger. If you are not intimately acquainted with the content of your speech, if the words coming out of your mouth are not things that you actually have strong feelings for, chances are you will have the fear of being “found out.” The chances of being provoked into discussions you think you cannot have a strong opinion about and can defend increase the level of anxiety of many public speakers.

One of the first steps in overcoming speech anxiety is to identify your personal reasons on why you fear it so. Once you are aware of the cause, you can then work on finding solutions to your concerns. Whether you fear speaking in front of thousands or even in front of one other person, there are ways to manage your fear and improve your performance. From something as simple as practicing your spiels, making use of visualizations, or self-motivation to something like searching for professional help by taking up a skills training course, speech anxiety is not without “cure.”

These actions will help you develop strategies to overcome your fears or, if not, at least handle it in such a way that your anxiety will not be evident to your audience. There are several self-help books available that discuss tips and strategies to be better communicators.

Speech anxiety is a behavioral condition that is common to all humans. Different personalities may experience different levels of such an anxiety but the good news is that it can be overcome. With proper training and practice, anybody has the potential to be an excellent speaker. Bobby Dyland is a expert on anxiety and panic attacks who recently developed a free eCourse that lists a step by step process for understanding, controlling and finally beating anxiety.

If you are interested in learning more about his “Crushing Anxiety and Reclaiming your Life” eCourse and beating panic attacks once and for all, please go here: http://www.crushanxiety.com

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About the Author

Andrew Rondeau transformed himself from a $4 an-hour petrol-pump attendant to a highly successful Senior Manager earning $500k every year. Discover How to Maximize Your Income and Minimize Your Effort by receiving Andrew’s free e-Course and report: http://www.greatmanagement.org/

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The first question to address when confronting a community dialect phobia is why the fear exists in the first place. For most folks, the thought of status in front of a group of people makes them worry about how they will be perceived by the crowd. No one needs to be laughed at, or seen as foolish, and putting manually in the broadcast eye seems to intensify the odds of that stirring. You may be alarmed that you will forget what to say, or that you will stumble over your words. If you endure from this kind of fear of known words, here are a few tips to help you overcome them.

How to See your Audience

There is an age-old model of advice that suggests you will be minus worried before a crowd if you visualize the people in the listeners in their underwear. Most community speakers will perhaps approve that this is not the most effective way to style the viewers coolly and professionally. Perhaps a better structure is to ponder the verity that these folks want to see you work in you’re civic chatting work as much as you do. Think of the group as pulling for you, and you will have a, much better gamble of connecting with your crowd. It also helps to calculate to ten once you consider the pedestal, and, before you dawn language. This will give your audience a fortune to groom for what you have to say, and will allocate you to take hegemony of the extent. Once you open dialogue, grin and make eye call with your group to get them to reply to you with addition and enthusiasm. It may not be a relaxed mission if your knees are knocking below, but it will help you to relax a bit and gain some confidence before launch your tongue.

Of course, overcoming a communal dialogue phobia begins before you ever pierce the auditorium. If you have prepared your sermon thoroughly, and researched the scope that you will be dialogue in, the crowd that you will be talking to and the capital that you will be using, you will purely contact the happening with a great pact more confidence. It also helps to follow your oration several epoch before the big day. Don’t rely only on the mirror for your routine time each (though this is one good technique). Practice in front of your family and links, and allow them to suggest constructive opinion to help you improve. This applied will intensely help you to get gone your broadcast dialogue phobia.

Finally, consider that many people bear from the same public dialect phobia that you are experiencing. Even some prominent performers still have to wrestle with stage dread before a performance. Knowing that you are not lonely in your fear will be a great help in overcoming your public idiom phobia. And once you have delivered a few of these speeches, the treat will most definitely become much easier. Practice makes textbook or at slightest minus dreadful.

For tips on list of phobias and commitment phobia, visit the Phobia List website.

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Public speaking is often said to rank higher on our list of fears that laying six feet deep in the dirt. Some people draw the analogy of a funeral by saying that most people would rather be in the casket than delivering the eulogy. I don’t know about you but I’m on a streak of leaving funerals alive.

Let’s dive headfirst into the Top 3 Reasons Why Public Speaking Fear is Ridiculous.

1 – It’s Unavoidable

What is that you’re saying.

You can avoid public speaking?

You don’t have to present ideas if you don’t want to?

You hate it so much that the very thought makes your stomach turn so you’ll never do it?

OK. You got me. If you prefer to live your entire life in a cave you can avoid it. If robbing yourself of the best life possible is your forte then go for it. If cowering in fear is your preferred plan then have at it. I hope you have fun and I’m glad you raised those concerns.

The story is a little different for the rest of the humans on earth. You know who I’m talking about. I’m talking about those strange people that interact with others. Those crazy people that have careers. Those insane few that attend social events with the intention of (gasp) talking to other people. Those absolutely loony married men and women who are raising a family together.

Those people absolutely can’t avoid it. I’d be willing to bet you a pair of my favorite socks that you are one of the 99.9 percent.

2 – It’s Simple

When I was in college there were quite a few classes that I didn’t care much for. Computer Science was an annoying class that didn’t interest me at all. Calculus struck me as arbitrarily overcomplicated math that someone with too much time on their hands thought up.

As much I as I hated those two they were no comparison for the class I hated the most.

That class was . . . physics.

I liked the idea of taking a physics class and learning about the world around me. The actual course design was another monster altogether. Every week there were multiple homework assignments due. Each assignment had 8 questions with 4 or 5 sub questions. Every week there was a three hour lab (Did I mention my lab was on Friday?). Once a month we would have an insane test with 8 or 9 questions on it. The room for error on those tests was 2 questions max. After that you could consider the test failed. The material was foreign and poorly explained. If you had any hope of getting a decent grade in the class then you had to commit at least 15 hours to the course each week.

Physics was the bane of my college career because it was unconstitutionally hard, boring, tedious, and time consuming. I won’t name my professors because I like to protect the innocent.

Public speaking will never rival physics on the difficulty scale. There are no ballistics, kinematics, kinetics, or gravitational force formulas to memorize and apply. When you’re speaking its usually you and 20 or so people in the room. All you have to do is grab their attention, stuff them full of good information, and give them a closing they can’t forget.

Which would you rather do?

1. Calculate the thermodynamic potential of a system
2. Convince 20 people that its worth their time to listen to you

I’ll take menu option #2 waiter. It looks good from here.

3 – Public Speaking is Harmless

Here’s a list of phobias that I agree and sympathize with:

• Androphobia – The fear of men (men are silly, insane, immature creatures).
• Allodoxaphobia – The fear of opinions (the world would be better off with more facts and fewer opinions).
• Caligynephobia – The fear of beautiful women (they can be so harsh when they reject you).
• Coprastasophobia – The fear of constipation (constipation isn’t fun . . . not that I would know or anything).
• Zemmiphobia – The fear of the great mole rat (never seen one but it sounds mean).

Men, beautiful women, opinions, constipation, and the great mole rat have all caused great pain. Men start wars so that beautiful women will have high opinions of them. Constipation usually puts an end to the war.

The great mole rat just has a reputation of being a mean fellow.

The only thing public speaking has ever hurt is the occasional ego or 2 (other than that its completely harmless).

Conclusion

The fear of public speaking really is ridiculous. Each of us gives some sort of public speech day in and day out. Don’t be afraid because you have to stand up in front of a group. Public speaking is an unavoidable, simple, and harmless part of life.

Embrace it as such.

Marcus Smith is a creative force in the public speaking world who strives to meet the needs of each and every client. His experience as the Toastmasters President at a fortune 15 company will prove invaluable to you.

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The Typical Origin of the Problem At some point in your early schooling, you likely had to read in front of the class, give a book report, solve a math problem up at the blackboard, or some similar undertaking that resulted in embarassment for you. So you developed a fear of talking in front of a group. Another option is that your home environment as a young child was such that speaking out was, shall we say, not encouraged. Whatever the origin of your issue, please know that hypnosis does not undo the past, it upgrades how you feel about it.

The Solution What if you could go back and undo the impact of the original cause of your problem? You can. And that’s what hypnosis can do for you. For example, what if you at your current age could go back and help your younger self undo the hurt and pain of the original event? You can. After hypnosis, whatever happened to you all those years ago will still have happened, it just won’t bother you ever again.

Does It Work? Absolutely. I’ve helped lots of folks get over their fear of public speaking, and so have my fellow clinical hypnotists. Most do it in person, I do phone sessions all over the world as well. Here are the basics of hypnosis to help you understand how it can help you.

Hypnosis 101 Not believing in hypnosis is like not believing in Tuesday or February. You already go into trance every time you watch a tv show that you like, or read a book that you like, or see a film that you like, or, well, you get the idea. You already go into trance when you sit down to read your email for 10 minutes, and suddenly an hour and a half has passed. You already go into trance when you fall in love or make love. It is like daydreaming to the tenth power. No one can make you go there, just as no one can make you like a movie. When you do like a movie, you naturally enter into a light state of hypnosis. The state deepens when you love that movie. But when you do not like that movie at all, it is exactly because it does not entrance you. Point being, you already love hypnosis, my friend. You spend good money on it. Seen your cable bill lately?

What Hypnosis Is Not It is not what Hollywood has told you. Sadly, there has never been a single film or television show that accurately portrays how hypnosis actually works. No one controls you in hypnosis any more than they do when you daydream. Hypnosis is not sleep. You can hear all the sounds around you during trance, as you are neither unconscious nor asleep. Hypnosis can not make you murder anyone. Ask any mob boss or CIA agent, and you will hear how money works best as an inducement to criminal behavior; they don’t use hypnosis because it won’t work for their nefarious intentions. Hypnosis is not mind control. Ask the armed forces if they use it to interrogate prisoners, and their answer will be no. They do not use it because they can not. No one can force you to do anything, legal or otherwise, in trance. And you can come out of trance at any time by simply choosing to do so.

What Hypnosis Is Please understand that the feeling of being an individual is a necessary part of being human, and for that experience, we need a conscious mind. It works like the RAM of a computer. However, there’s another part of your mind, the far more powerful subconscious. The subconscious mind is the hard drive of your inner computer, it stores your files. Hypnosis simply sets aside the conscious part of the mind, and accesses the far larger, more powerful subconscious. This allows you to make real changes in how and why public speaking has frightened you in the past. And your fear departs.

A Relevant Bit About Me From 1984 to 2001, before becoming a fulltime clinical hypnotist, I worked on the road as a standup comic, touring nationally for decades. No speaker has a tougher job than road comics, who work in bars speaking to drunks. Back in the day, we developed lots of ways to do quite well under difficult circumstances because we had to; that was our job. This background helps me to help my hypnosis clients overcome their fear of public speaking with singular accuracy. I get it because I’ve done it. I can help you get it, too.

So Easy, You Do It with Your Eyes Closed Hypnosis is easier to do than you think. And your friendly neighborhood hypnotists, like me, are happy to help you. So what are you waiting for?

Michelle Beaudry, board certified hypnotist near Orlando, Florida, takes clients in person and by phone from all over the world. Email hypnofemme@aol.com.

Beaudry Hypnosis

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It’s also unnecessary.

Involving the audience in your presentation or speech is a great way to eliminate this fear from the beginning. You dictate the mood when addressing an audience. Showing signs of distress will cause your audience to lose interest. An easy way to show comfort is to engage and involve the audience from the word go.

This article will discuss 2 types of questions that will ease your pain.

Broad Questions

Questions are always a good way to start a presentation or speech. Whenever someone hears a question their natural inclination is drop their guard and think of an answer.

Think about this for a second. We’ve all been in conversations where someone has asked a thought provoking question like:

• What is the meaning of life?
• What will you be doing in 5 or 10 years?
• If you won the lottery what would you do with the money?
• Why do you support the Democrats/Republicans?
• Is green investing a good idea?

Each of these are broad questions with no right or wrong answer. Each and every one of these questions forces you to free your mind and begin to think.

Wouldn’t you like an audience of open minded thinkers in your audience?

Direct Questions

The same theory applies to direct questions. Anytime someone is asked a question they begin to think of an answer. Direct questions invoke a stronger response. By answering these questions the right way you can quickly establish rapport with your audience.

The object here is to select someone from the crowd and ask them a question. You don’t want to embarrass someone or make them look incompetent. You want to show your audience that you are a warm and knowledgeable person worthy of their attention. If the person is wrong then acknowledge their error and elaborate.

Let’s walk through the best way of addressing a question when it is answered incorrectly.

Scenario 1 – The Wrong Way

You: “How many licks does it take to get to the center of a tootsie pop?”

Audience Member: “You know, its interesting that you asked me that. I had a tootsie pop yesterday and I counted. The last official lick was 654. So it takes 654 licks to get to the center of a tootsie pop!”

You as the presenter have several options at this point.

You can sound an alarm, scream at the top of your lungs, or display a flashing ride neon sign reading “WRONG”. This approach alienates your audience and sends sliding towards the door.

Scenario 2 – The Right Way

You: “How many licks does it take to get to the center of a tootsie pop?”

Audience Member: “You know, its interesting that you asked me that. I had a tootsie pop yesterday and I counted. The last official lick was 654. So it takes 654 licks to get to the center of a tootsie pop!”

You: “That’s very scientific and exact. I’ve never had someone answer that question with such razor sharp precision. I’d love to tell you that you are right but I can’t. Think back to the old tootsie pop commercial. The owl proved without a doubt that it takes 3 (and only 3) licks to get to the center of a tootsie pop.”

That answer was diplomatic, fun, and informative. It sets the tone for your presentation. If you want your presentation to take a different route then you can answer the question differently. You can choose to be serious, mysterious, fun, intriguing, or scientific. No matter the route you still need to be diplomatic and informative. Do that and the audience becomes your property.

Conclusion

Questions are a fantastic way to drum up interest in what you’re saying. Questions force us to think of an answer (right, wrong, or indifferent).

There are 2 ways to use questions as a lever to dilute public speaking fear:

1. Broad- Broad questions are large scale and they involve your entire audience. You ask this type of question to wake up the entire audience and get their gears turning.
2. Direct – Pointed questions are directed at one member in the audience. You ask this type of question when you want to set the tone for what is in store. Answer this question right and the red sea will part.

Don’t be afraid to involve your audience when you speak to the public. Getting them involved early is a way to make sure they are interested and engaged. Engaging the audience makes everyone in the room comfortable. When the audience is comfortable you can put your fear to the side and deliver the incredible presentation you were meant to give!

Marcus Smith is a creative force in the public speaking world who strives to meet the needs of each and every client. His experience as the Toastmasters President at a fortune 15 company will prove invaluable to you.

Visit his site at www.marcusasmith.com for more information

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Let’s take a hard look at these assumptions. What happens to you, personally, when you have an attack of Performance Jitters? A case of Rollicking Stage Fright?

In other words, your body tries to shut down! Now why would such unpleasant body symptoms serve you? Do they really make you an exciting and interesting speaker?

It’s important to separate stage fright and the deep fear of speaking in public from excitement. Think of excitement, not as dread, but as pleasant anticipation. When you’re looking forward with pleasure to an activity your body does not try to shut down. It perks up. Your brain goes into high gear. What is about to take place feels good, fulfilling, gratifying, perhaps fun.

You may indeed be one of those people who has some of the good feelings, but still suffers from several of the nasty ones.

5 Tips that will stop your Stage Fright suffering:

1. Think about your responses to having to speak. Separate the actual fear-symptoms from the excitement feelings.

2. See how many of the negative responses you can shift to the excitement category.

3. Learn and use deep breathing in your daily life and certainly use it in your speaking life!

4. Check out your Self Talk. If it’s full of “I’m going to be a failure”, consciously change it to “I’m an excellent speaker and I enjoy speaking in public.” Never mind if that’s a screaming lie at this moment. Your subconscious mind, which has diligently followed your instructions to make you feel like a failure can change its tactics and, over time, alter your belief so that you do indeed enjoy speaking in public and you become very good at it. However, it takes considerable discipline to continually remind yourself to cancel your negative Self Talk and replace it with healthy thoughts. It’s worth it!

5. Various energy techniques and hypnosis can be very powerful in developing and fulfilling positive, healthy expectations.

During my thirty-some years as therapist and public speaking coach I’ve observed that these techniques work very well for many people. If, however, a person has underlying and deep feelings of insufficiency, counseling may be helpful in clearing out the personal debris to free up a person to be–and to feel–truly successful.

Carole McMichaels http://getridofpublicspeakingfears.com

Carole McMichaels: Speaker, Therapist, Musician, Coach, Author: “Fearless Public Speaking: How to Get Rid of Your Stage Fright and Prepare and Deliver a Winning Presentation”, invites you to to visit her website http://GetRidOfPublicSpeakingFears.com and download your free report, “How to Write a Mind-Gripping Speech”.

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It’s not just actors who need stage fright tips. We all have to put on a performance from time to time – giving a presentation at work, going for a job interview, going on a first date and so on. These situations put us in the spotlight, and very few of us are naturally comfortable being there. Fortunately we can learn to be comfortable, and this step by step guide will show you how.

Step 1: Accept

The first and most important thing in any list of stage fright tips is the recognition that it is actually a perfectly natural response. Going on stage, whatever that stage happens to be, separates us from the group – and that’s something we have an inbuilt resistance to. For our distant ancestors, being separated from the group would have meant a swift demise, and we’ve inherited this feeling from them.

Although giving a presentation won’t literally kill us, our bodies react as if it will. All of the physical symptoms of stage fright – sweaty palms, racing heart, urge to vomit etc – are the result of the primitive fight-or-flight survival mechanism kicking in with a big hit of adrenaline.

Step 2: Take Back Control

Once you’ve accepted that to be frightened is normal, you can stop worrying that you’re somehow weird or deficient and get on with the business of taking back control. The following stage fright tips are practical ways to do just that.

The adrenaline in your system is urging you to get moving, so discharge it by going for a short walk, doing some stretching exercises, or whatever else is appropriate for your circumstances.

Combat hyperventilation by deliberately breathing slowly and deeply, ideally breathing out for longer than you breathe in, which activates your body’s natural relaxation response.

Be AWARE. This is a technique used to control panic attacks, which are just an extreme form of stage fright.

• Accept that you are frightened
• Watch what happens inside your body and mind
• Act normal
• Repeat these steps until the fear subsides, and
• Expect the best

Step 3: Turn It To Your Advantage

One of the greatest stage fright tips of all is that it is actually your friend. Even the greatest performers suffered at some point, but they knew that it was this surge of adrenaline which gave their performance charisma and edge.

You may not be playing Hamlet at the National Theater, but you can do the same. When the symptoms begin to strike, think of them in a new way – excitement. Exactly the same stuff happens in your body whether you’re excited about getting on a roller coaster or dreading it. It’s only your personal expectations which determine how you view the sensations you’re experiencing, and those can be changed. Learning to welcome stage fright as juice for your performance radically transforms the experience.

Follow these tips, step by step, and you’ll soon be delivering star performances in all areas of your life as you become a more confident person. It is a skill to control your thoughts and actions and you can learn more by CLICKING HERE

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Dian_Winter

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The majority of people suffer from some form of stage fright, dread of public speaking, or even speaking phobia. Can a person reach a point where they never have these fears and feelings?

Let’s study experienced speakers for a moment. Do they suffer from nervousness and speaking fear?

Yes and no. Most look forward to speaking and don’t dread it. However, the majority do experience some nervousness, adrenaline rush, and a shot of fear before going on stage.

Why would a speaker with over 600 engagements feel this? Here are a couple reasons.

First, your body senses the big event and pours adrenaline into your system. This can cause the shaky knees, sweat, etc.

Second, no matter how many times a person has spoke in public, a speaking event still has the possibility for major failure. We could mess up, the audience may be hostile, or our voice starts to shake.

This of course causes your body to pour more adrenaline into your system.

You may be thinking, “If the experienced speakers still have some nervousness, how do they speak with such confidence and calmness?”

Or you may be asking, “Is there anyway I can cure my speaking fear?”

There is hope! Don’t get discouraged.

Experienced speakers have learned how to control their feelings and fear. They may feel nervousness and fear before going on stage. However, it does not effect their presentation, because they know the secrets to saying no to fear and yes to confidence.

Learn these secrets and you can conquer speaking fear and speak with confidence every time.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Arlen_Busenitz

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