Blog Writing Number Two.

WHY DO I FEEL NERVOUS IN FRONT OF THE PUBLIC & HOW DO I OVERCOME NERVOUSNESS?

Everyone has a stage fright before delivering a speech. Stage fright is an anxiety over the prospect of giving a speech in front of an audience. Nervousness is normal. Everyone is nervous before a ‘play’. It is actually normal to be nervous at the start of a speech. Your body is producing extra adrenaline, and that is what makes us feel nervous. It also makes your heart race, hands shake, and knees knock and skin perspire.

I feel nervous because I rarely stand in front of large group of people and deliver a speech. When I was younger, I dreamed to sing or ‘perform’ in front of other people, but due to my extreme nervousness, that dream was never achieved. I also feel nervous because I am afraid the audience will not like my speech or the way I deliver the speech. I am afraid the audience might think I am boring and they will not pay attention to me while I speak. The other reason why I feel nervous is that I am afraid I will trip or fall while making my way to the stage. I am also afraid that people will laugh at me or bad-mouthed me if I say something wrong during my speech delivery.

I did so many things to overcome my extreme nervousness. The first one is preparing my speech thoroughly with the intention to communicate with audience. I practiced my speech for hours so that I will remember most of it. Besides that, I tried to think positively as positive thinking will result in confidence. Usually, if you think you can do it, you can actually do it. Speakers who think negatively about themselves in public speaking are much more likely to face stage fright. Another thing I did to reduce my nervousness was pretending like there was no one in front of me, as if I was talking to the walls. I did that for the first one minute of my speech, then slowly making ‘connection’ or eye contact with the audience. That way, I did not feel nervous anymore.