Public Speaking: You Were Taught the Wrong Things

Speaking
Written By Liam Sandford
Public speaking: you were taught the wrong things

75% of the population has a fear of public speaking.

This is referred to as ‘glossophobia’. What that does mean is that if you become a comfortable speaker you automatically jump into the top 25%. That’s before you even think about becoming a confident speaker.

All you need is purposeful practice. Practice will get you comfortable. Successful practice will get you confident. Targeted practice on one thing at a time will get you competent.

Part of the problem is you were taught the wrong things about public speaking during education, and have since taken well intentioned but unhelpful advice from friends and colleagues. But these things should not hold you back from becoming a comfortable and confident speaker.

Overcoming negative speaking experiences

If you have had negative experiences in the past, part of your fear might be that they happen again. Maybe that is your worst-case scenario, so before every speaking engagement it is worth considering what that scenario looks like.

Write down the top 4 fears you have so you can see them in front of you. Writing down your fears will help you process and reduce anxiety around speaking in public. For each of the fears ask this series of questions:

  • What is the worst possible outcome from this fear?

  • Am I in control of the outcomes?

  • What is the reverse of this fear if it goes really well?

  • How likely is it that your fear becomes the reality?

  • Is the fear really that bad?

The chances are that the greatest fears you have about public speaking are not actually that bad. By writing your fears down you gain control over them and reduce the overwhelm you feel before delivering your presentation.

Step away from disengaging structures

Have you ever been bored out of your mind listening to a presentation where a speaker opens with ten minutes outlining what they are going to say, then saying it, then spending the last ten minutes summarizing what they spoke about?

This is a horrible way to present and you shouldn’t do it either.

It is not you fault. That is what you were taught. But there are ways to structure your presentations that do not have audience members checking their watches or planning their early exit. Ways that will make you stand out and be different in a very positive way.

Stop an agenda. Open with a story, or why the audience should care about the topic.

Stop ending with a summary. Close with a call to action that inspires the audience.

Simple changes make all the difference. The nano speech is the way forward. A quick open-body-close that can last 10 seconds or 30 minutes.

Reframe what public speaking is

You have been taught to believe public speaking is standing on stage speaking in front of hundreds of people. You will rarely have the opportunity to do that which makes it unhelpful. It is also a pressure cooker environment. Pressure is not usually a good starting place for developing a skill.

Think of public speaking like building a house. You have to lay the foundations first. You do this by learning how to prepare in the best way for you and coming up with a consistent structure that is engaging. Once the foundations are down it is time to assemble the house. Every time you speak in public another brick gets added. In the grand scheme of things, a brick is very small, but if you lay just one a day, you will eventually have a house. By starting small and replicating your speaking success with a series of building blocks, you will realize your speaking goals.

Most speaking advice is not good advice because it focuses too much on technique and not enough on how to scale up from speaking in front of one person to speaking in front of thousands.

In its most basic form public speaking is just a conversation. That’s where you should start.

Actionable takeaways

  • Write down your worst case scenarios and run through the question checklist. This will help you to gain control over your worst case scenario and realize it isn’t really that bad.

  • Step away from using an agenda and closing with a summary or a throw away comment. Instead open with a bang and end on a call to action. Use the nano speech framework to structure everything from conversations to key note speeches.

  • Reframe public speaking in your mind. It is just a conversation. Use the analogy of climbing a ladder to achieve your speaking goals — one rung at a time.

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Liam Sandford
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