Public Speaking Articles

5 Tips on How to Overcome Stage Fright in Public Speaking

Public speaking comes easy for some but is difficult for others. If you find public speaking to be intimidating, you’re not alone. In fact, according to research by the Cleveland Clinic Foundation, between 15% and 30% of the general population have social anxiety, which can have a significant impact on the ability to get in front of a large (or small) crowd and give a presentation. 

Of course, there are different ways to manage your social anxieties and overcome your public speaking fear. With the right strategies in place, you can feel more comfortable and confident opening up during meetings at work, presenting in school, or leading a conference for colleagues. 

Whether you need encouragement in the workplace or you’re pursuing your dream of becoming a professional public speaker, there are dozens of ways to settle your nerves and boost your confidence. Here are five tips on how to deal with stage fright public speaking:

Concept of stage fright with blurry image in front of a podium

1. Prepare and Practice, Practice, Practice

One of the easiest ways to fuel your public speaking anxiety is to come to your presentation underprepared. You can help mitigate feelings of nervousness and fear when you approach your audience with confidence, knowledge, and organization. Here are a few different ways to prepare for a public speaking event:

  • Do your research. The last thing you want to do is approach a topic like you’re an expert, then fall flat with the delivery. Set aside time to do thorough research on your speaking topic, so you don’t have to rely on your notes or a script so heavily. 
  • Get organized. Do you have all of your presentation items ready? Make sure you plan out your presentation props, audio, and visuals well in advance, so you don’t have to worry about fumbling around during the presentation. 
  • Practice! If you have a public speaking fear, it’s best not to wing it. Practice in front of a group of people, and practice alone in the mirror as well. Get a few different perspective angles on your presentation before the big day. 

2. Stay Focused on Your Presentation Material 

It’s easy to get on stage and feel overwhelmed by the number of people in the room. And it doesn’t have to be a large audience to feel this way, either. Try your best to pay less attention to the audience and more attention to the information you are presenting to them. 

If the idea of working through moments of silence brings you anxiety, consider this: these silent pauses can be intimidating during a presentation – especially if you’re the one who’s center stage – but they can also be very valuable. This gives you a chance to catch your breath and for the audience to reflect. Plus, when these moments occur, they likely won’t last longer than a few seconds (even if it feels like an eternity.) 

3. Practice Deep Breathing Exercises 

Deep breathing is an anxiety reducer that shouldn’t go unnoticed. Taking slow, deep breaths creates better airflow throughout your body, which can be pertinent to calming nerves, reducing stressors, and mitigating anxiousness. Work on your deep breathing exercises in advance of the presentation so that you understand how to manage your fears and get your breathing under control.

4. Seek Support 

Overcoming stage fright, and public speaking can be made easier with a support system. Reach out to co-workers, friends, and family members about your upcoming event and ask for general support and assistance practicing the presentation. This can help you overcome fears, feel more confident about your delivery, and make your loved ones proud. 

5. Browse eSpeakers Marketplace for Inspiration

Want to learn how to get over stage fright and public speaking from other public speakers? 

If you find yourself struggling to build confidence for an upcoming presentation, find inspiration from the professionals. eSpeakers marketplace is your go-to resource for learning about professional public speakers and how they started before making a career out of presenting to large audiences. This can be an encouraging way to face your fear of public speaking and feel more comfortable getting in front of an audience in the future. 

And once you feel comfortable with your own public speaking skills, you can even join the eSpeakers marketplace yourself! This space offers an opportunity to grow your public speaking business, pursue leads, gain more experience in the industry, and even boost your confidence.

Looking to hire a public speaker? Want to become one on your own? Browse eSpeakers today for more information.

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How to Establish Credibility in Your Public Speeches: Tips and Tricks

A career in public speaking means being a strong-willed communicator. Understanding how to persuade your audience in a way that shows you have their best interest in mind, all while spreading your own message, is critical. Establishing credibility in persuasive speech allows you to build trust, enhance your reputation, and ultimately expand your book of business.

How Do You Establish Credibility With Your Audience?

Here are some simple tips and tricks on how to establish credibility in speech:

No More Bad Events: Science, Serotonin, and Saving the Hotel Industry (ft. Michael Dominguez, President & CEO of Associated Luxury Hotels International)

This episode features one of the top experts in the meetings industry. Not only is Michael Dominguez, CHSE, President & CEO of Associated Luxury Hotels International(ALHI) – a global sales organization known for its exclusive membership of the world’s most distinguished, independently operated, or owned hotels and resorts – but he’s a science guy. A self-proclaimed tech geek.
 
And he loves mixing science with human nature to create the best environments for mental acuity, alertness, and collaboration.
 
And in this episode of No More Bad Events, Michael shares with us some highly effective scientific-based tools that can make a better event; simply because the scientific effect will make people plugged in and feel good.
 
From how the use of the color and brightness of light in a meeting room suppresses or increases melatonin and serotonin. To how… serving Vitamin D enriched foods, replenishes and repairs… To how plants restore the air … it’s fun, fascinating, and phenomenal stuff.
 
You can tune in here or wherever you find your favorite podcasts (link below).
 
No More Bad Events is produced and presented by eSpeakers.com, the premier full-service platform for event organizers, and sponsored by ImpactEleven, a comprehensive speaker support service. Thanks to Michael Dominguez for joining the conversation and Scott Bloom for being the podcast host.
 
#podcasts #events #conferences #meetingprofs #eventprofs #ALHI #keynote #keynotespeaker #nomorebadevents

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No More Bad Events: Cruising with Carina Baur – Part 2

Last week, the long-awaited IMEX America show rolled into Las Vegas. And we got very lucky. We snagged Carina Bauer, CEO of the IMEX as our featured guest on No More Bad Events.

In this episode (Part II of a two-part podcast), Carina gives us more insight into what went into building the architecture for this award-winning show. From the overarching show concept… which was grounded in nature… to integrating gender-neutral devices… Carina waxes prolific on the myriad of micro-moments that were designed to provide experiences and inspiration for producing nothing but the best events.

The interview is followed by a bonus segment of IMEX attendee interviews that you won’t want to miss.

#NoMoreBadEvents is produced and presented by eSpeakers, the premier full-service platform for event organizers, and sponsored by ImpactEleven, a comprehensive speaker support service.

IMEX 2022

Hello friends!

We just returned from the IMEX 2022 event in Las Vegas. If you’re unfamiliar with IMEX, it’s one of the largest conferences in the meetings industry. This year, the show attracted over 12,000 attendees — a 45 percent increase compared to last year. After spending the week at IMEX and talking with meeting professionals, it’s clear to us that business in the meetings industry is back and booming!

Attending IMEX helps us learn things about the meetings industry that we use to guide our own ship and that we use to help you, our speaker friends.

We took some notes on a few things we learned that we think you’ll find helpful in making intentional plans for growing your speaking business in 2023. Hot off the press, In no particular order, here they are:

No More Bad Events: Cruising with Carina Baur – Part 1

The IMEX America conference is next week in Las Vegas. I’ll be there and will report back with some industry insights. But to get you started, in our latest episode of No More Bad Events, we had Carina Bauer join us, CEO of the IMEX Group, organizers of trade shows for the international business events industry.

And according to Carina, her sole purpose as CEO is to help clients and partners make more profitable connections and create even better events.

In this episode (Part I of a two-part podcast), Carina sets the stage for the conference by reviewing the impact that the pandemic had on IMEX… how IMEX evolved as the pandemic subsided… and how she feels that next week’s show will be like a special homecoming for people from around the world… and from every sector of the meetings industry.

It’s a great interview and a great setup for “Carina Bauer, Part II,” a post-IMEX program that will include a bonus segment of IMEX attendee interviews.

A Guide to Booking Famous Celebrity Speakers

You’ve done it — you’ve grown your event, and it’s ready for a celebrity speaker. So how do you book one?

Celebrity speakers are in another league. When someone reaches a certain level of fame, they have whole teams working for them to handle their reputation. 

That means they won’t speak at just any event. The event needs to be worthy of their time, and you need to understand exactly what that means for the celebrity you’re trying to book.