So you have an upcoming presentation. It’s big and your worried to your guts that you will definitely screw this up. Knees are shaking, palms are sweaty, and the shortness of breath starts. Then, you go blank and beat yourself up for being a coward on stage. But what if I tell you that there’s a way to kick those nerves to the curb and thrive instead? Reality check, majority of humans aren’t born as instantly confident babies. Just like any skill, public speaking is learned and practiced through time. Here are my tried and tested approach to being confident during big presentations.
1. Prepare like a madman.
Seriously, whenever you see someone talk confidently onstage, that’s just the tip of the iceberg. It takes years of practice to be that good. Making any skill look easy is in fact the hardest part of the job. So don’t worry if you have an epic fail once or twice, because a big chunk of excellence comes with so many failures. Research like crazy. Organize your thoughts. Make an outline and practice, practice, practice. When you give your all, there won’t be any regrets, whatever the outcome may be.
2. Study your confidence heroes.
We are in an almost limitless era when it comes to digital resources. Youtube is the new Pandora’s box. Whenever you see someone who’s so good at speaking and you heard the voice that says, “I want to be like that.” Then study that person. Watch how they move onstage and take notes. This doesn’t mean that you’re a copy cat. You just have to make your own spin on things. Use your unique personality in your talk.
3. Get a tribe.
Have a support system on call. This can be your family, friends or your partner. Let them push you to greatness. Call them when you’re scared. You have to surround yourself with people who fiercely believe in your capabilities. Have friends who can give you constructive criticism and practice in front of them. Maybe they can offer great advice and tips on how you can make your presentation better.
4. Focus on your message.
Before you make your manner of presentation perfect, you must keep in mind that conveying the message is the most important part of public speaking. Let the ideas come through. You have to really know what you are talking about and focus on that more than your appearance or gestures. People will only listen if you can connect effectively. So make sure that you know and truly believe in the message of your talk.
5. Screw confidence. Just be brave.
Even when you have read a gazillion of information about your talk, you can still end up being far from confident. Here’s my challenge for you, why don’t you throw confidence in the bin and develop a different approach? What if instead of being confident, consciously choose to be brave? Start with the small things like raising your hand during meetings or graded recitations even if you know that you might mess up. Repeat this mantra, “I don’t need to be confident, I just have to be brave.” As Merriam says, brave means having or showing mental or moral strength to face danger, fear, or difficulty. Confidence on the other hand is the quality or state of being certain. If you mix these two definitions up, brave plus confident equals being certain of the uncertain. You cannot predict what will happen onstage but you can prepare like an olympic athlete, kick some ass and let it go.
How about you my lovely reader? Have you experienced extreme stage fright? Tell me how you have overcome it. I believe public speaking is an essential skill for us women so we can effectively communicate our million dollar ideas. Put it down on the comments section and let’s brainstorm. Together, we thrive.
kate samaniego 