“People will forget what you say … people will forget what you do … but people will never forget how you made them feel.” – Maya Angelou
I love speaking. It is a great passion of mine to share what inspires me to help others live their best lives. Yet, every time I take the stage to open a keynote or run a workshop … I am always nervous. My blood is pumping. My heart is racing. It’s crazy. And I hope that never changes. Why? Because it means that what I’m about to say or do really means something to me. That the words I speak are my truth and the stakes are high because I believe in them with my whole heart. It also reminds me I’m alive. Very much alive. Public speaking is the #1 fear of most people on earth. It is not an easy thing to do. However, it’s pretty much guaranteed that you will have to speak in front of others at some point in your life and your career. If you have anything to say or sell, it’s critical you understand how to resonate with an audience and speak in public. It separates the good from the great and the forgettable from the unforgettable. Here are some things you can start doing now to really rock the mic and resonate with an audience:- Believe – If you don’t believe in what your doing, saying or selling the audience will smell it like dirty shoes. If your passionate you can create incredible impact.
- Tell A Story – Storytelling is the new way to sell, so open with a story! If you haven’t gotten on board with this yet, your missing out. Find the story in whatever your selling or saying, and tell it!
- Be Real – Speak your TRUTH! If not, the audience will pick up on it. Be you, be vulnerable, be quirky. It’s so refreshing to see “real-ness” on stage. Because, guess what, we are all freaking human and make mistakes. And if we didn’t, we’d be robots. Which would suck.
- It’s not about YOU – So leave yo’ ego at the door! I replace any thought of “I’m so nervous!” or “Will they like me?” or “What will they think about me?” with “I’m so excited!” and “I can’t wait to give them these gifts!” and “This is totally going to help them!” … it’s amazing how your mind will shift!
- Death by PPT – Ugh … powerpoint. What I mean is … use slides, yes, but make them impactful and do your best to put as little words as possible on each slide. Use your words instead, tell a story and enhance it with impactful photos or graphics. DO NOT do anything else that will require them to read a bunch of crap on a screen rather than listen to YOU!!! (PS – my favorite thing about getting my MacBook, is Keynote, it’s dreamy and crushes PPT, highly recommend!)
- Why should they care? – Ask yourself this after every slide, every point, every statement. Why? Why? Why? What’s in it for them? Why should they care about your message, your vision, your product? How will it make their life better?
- Rehearse, Rehearse, Rehearse! – Self explanatory and CRITICAL! I put in 30 hours of rehearsals alone for every 60 minute speech I give. It sounds crazy and it can make you feel crazy doing it over and over and over. But trust me it will make HUGE impact and your audience will FEEL the difference. And record yourself, you’ll find things you do that you need to STOP doing and it will help you become more aware.
- Mirror Others – watch speakers you like to study what they do and why they resonated with you. A great source of inspiration!
- Do it – The more you speak the better you get.
- HAVE FUN – It’s a no brainer. Get up there, breathe, have fun, be yourself and smile. It’s amazing how something so simple can go so far. Plus, always remember … the audience is gunning for you. They want to see you do well, so knock ’em dead!
What do you do to help you overcome your fear of public speaking?
Be Well. Be Inspired!
Judi
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