You Only Fear Public Speaking When You Do This

The only way to fear public speaking is to think about yourself.

It's so simple isn't it!

Just in case you're not convinced that your entire fear of speaking will disappear when you truly get this ... let's discuss this point a bit more.

Every single time in my life that I've been afraid of speaking in public, (and that would be a lot of times) I have been thinking about myself. Will I screw this up? What if they don't laugh? What if they don't get the message? If I muck this one up I could lose this client/my bosses' respect/my chances of a promotion etc etc etc. I'm not experienced enough/good enough/qualified enough etc etc. What if someone questions my credibility to be giving this talk?

You get the idea. Just insert your own thoughts.

The content of the thoughts that make you afraid isn't particularly important. What is interesting is to notice where the focus is.

That's right. 100% on you.

Now consider how you'd feel if your whole concern, your whole focus, the only thing you're interested in was (drumroll ...) The Audience!

Actually isn't that where it ought to be? I mean if I was talking to myself it'd be different, but Public Speaking by definition means speaking to an audience of at least one other human being!

When you speak in public you have the privilege of some time, however brief it may be, to communicate your message to others. You transmit, they receive. They've given you permission to express yourself in front of them. At that time guess what?

They do not care about you.

Neither should you.

What they care about (and what you need to care about) is whether your speaking will make them feel better.

Make the audience feel better and you never have to worry about how you feel when you're speaking again.

The only way to fear public speaking is to think about yourself.

So stop doing it!

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