PUBLIC SPEAKING TIP: CONQUER STAGE FRIGHT

Perhaps, there is no effective way to deal with nervousness but to deal with it squarely. Everyone who’s in the business of public speaking understands the feeling of standing in front of the crowd and delivering your speech.

There has been no more dreadful experience as compared to speaking in front of a huge crowd. In fact, in more than 1,000 people surveyed in a certain study, they would rather jokingly prefer to die instead of participating in a public speaking engagement.

This provides evidence that more than 86% of people object to the idea of delivering speeches and conducting talks, which in turn exposes themselves to possible ridicule should mistakes arise.

Symptoms of Stage Fright

Let’s face it; nobody is perfect. Famous orators, statesmen, leaders of nations, and even the most well-read scholars become fidgety before and during speeches. This very same fact puts you on an equal level with them and confirms its normality.

Despite these facts, people sometimes find it difficult to handle such situations and end up ruining such an important event. Among the symptoms of the above conditions are the following:

Excessive perspiration (sweat)
Unexplained nervousness
Sudden drop in body temperature
Abrupt onset of sore throat
Dry lips and mouth
Skin starts to look pale
Trembling knees, lips and voice
Increased palpitations
Nauseating feeling
Irregular breathing pattern

Overpowering Stage Fright

Before devising plans to minimize the effects of social phobia, it is best to identify the source of nervousness, why it occurs and how you could possibly lessen, if not ultimately abate such physical anxiety.

Just as experts in the field suffer from such feelings, ordinary people need not be overly concerned that they are alone. The truth is, such physical trepidity is a fact of life.

Swart, Margolis, and Den Boer, three authorities in public speaking, articulated on their views about speech and oration and the reason for the characterized physiological responses of people undergoing such processes.

They commented on the truth that people expecting humiliation and fear of public inspection and examination become overly saturating to the point where one is no longer able to deliver a quality talk.

Perchance, as long as you are alive and you are able to respond to the many things happening in your environment, the feeling of anxiety, nervousness, and fear arising from such a situation prevails.

Tips for Overcoming Stage Fright

Below are tips on how to get better with the dangers of public speaking. They are not meant to take away the feeling of panic during your speech but will, in a way, help you manage the stress associated with the situation.

You don’t have to follow all the recommendations listed below but choosing one or two or a combination of any of the ones which you think will work best for you is one roadmap to making your speech as perfect as you want it to be.

Don’t let the situation control you. Use that nerve to your advantage and walk with confidence with your speech as your effective tool in controlling others with your convincing remarks.

Take a Deep Breath – relax and focus on your breathing. This will ease up your stressed muscles and will help you concentrate on your speech.

Resist Intimidation – Forget speaking in front of people who are smarter than you. A university study shows that more often than not, more than 80% of your audience at a time does not have a complete background on your topic. This gives you a leading edge and puts you on a higher level of intellectual advantage.

Be Prepared - Nothing beats a well-prepared speech plan. Get enough practice and repeat it as many times as you can.

Ward Off Physical Distractions – Eliminate details which can cause confusion and distract you from your main business. Uncomfortable clothing and accessories that are irritating to the skin causes skin rashes. Wear light clothing or something which you are comfortable with.

Establish Eye Contact – Making eye to eye contact with your audience is the best way to deliver sincere and convincing oral discourse. It allows your audience to keep their attention on you and concentrate on what you have to say.

Choose the Right Food at the Right Time – Eat at least 3 hours before your actual speech. Food taken long enough before you do your talk perks your body up and provides you with the necessary energy to carry on the task of speaking.

TIPS TO OVERCOME YOUR FEAR OF PUBLIC SPEAKING

Speaking with VIPs is such a nerve-racking ordeal, just as speaking in front of the public with a mixture of a crowd who’s educational qualification is more than yours.

But surely, this is not the only qualification that is being considered in public speaking. Being a speaker means being a subject matter specialist on the topic you are to discuss with your audience.

No matter how well-prepared you are, you will experience the “butterfly” thing in your stomach which can cause you to lose focus if left unmanaged. Unless you are cold dead, you will experience the nerves in you and feel the usual symptoms of delivering even the simplest pep talks.

You Are Not Alone

In two separate studies conducted regarding public speaking, it shows that more than 40% of the respondents are afraid of speaking in public and do not consider doing it in their lives.

In another related study of fear, 70% of the respondents ranked public speaking as something they will most consider as a panic situation. Additionally,, more than 80% of the surveyed population would consider dying instead of delivering an actual speech in front of a huge crowd.

No matter what the circumstances are, handling a speaking engagement requires skills, intellect and time management intertwined to produce the best results characteristic of experienced individuals.

Tips for a Perfect Speech

There are rules and there are rules in public discourse. While you are limited to your imperfections, there are things that you can do to speak in front of a large audience like a pro and create that good and lasting impression.

Not only will that effective and convincing speech delivery make you popular among the larger audiences, it feels good as well on your part for it is something that you can consider as part of your accomplishments.

Below are sets of guidelines and advice proven effective for people involved in such projects. It should be emphasized that none of these rules are effective for one person for every individual is unique.

Your personality will be your auxiliary tool in choosing which among the recommendations listed below works best for you and will also provide you with the best oratorical output possible.

. Fear is Human – To err is human, to forgive is divine, says the old cliché. While this old saying does not pertain specifically to public speaking, it gives an idea of human’s imperfection to everything else.

Although our technology has advanced a lot, our ability to commit mistakes is likely guaranteed. However, this same reason should not become a part of your excuse for unsuccessful delivery. Give yourself enough time to practice and master your piece!

. Practice – For every successful oratorical activity, there are three things a speaker has to put in mind: first is practice, second, practice, and third practice again.

No one can underestimate the power of a constant yet effective speaking drill. This helps you memorize your lines and master them paving the way to creating adlibs as you go along the way.

. Fill in the Bucket of Confidence – Confidence is what matters in any public speaking activity. Do not let the fear of a speaking presentation control you. Use these emotional and physical limitations to your own advantage and overpower performance anxiety.

. Expect Nothing But Perfection – Nobody is perfect just as your audiences are not perfect. People fear speaking in front of a large crowd because they are afraid to fail. In a number of studies in psychology, the brain has an inherent ability to store any emotions, be it negative or positive, in the subconscious mind.

The subconscious mind as you know, operates on a non-conscious level of brain activity. It functions without you knowing and creates activities that do not come from your normal willing.

If you convince yourself into believing that you can achieve perfection in your target activity, there is a greater possibility of achieving it. Your mind prepares your body for such an activity and operates as if it has done it before and you won’t feel as though you are new to it.

. Act as If No One is Watching – We sometimes fail because we set standards that are way too high for us to achieve. This limits us from achieving the level of success that we are capable of reaching and hinders us for further accomplishments in the task.

Your audience would definitely not want to see you trembling and communicate the sense of nervousness in yourself so you better hide it as much as possible. Do not make a big deal out of your own errors but instead move ahead and keep a positive outlook that everything will turn out just fine.

To ensure triumphant communication within a group, it is essential to enhance your communication skills. Speaking in front of an audience can be fun only if you are well prepared. Here are some techniques that can help you improve your public speaking skills.

• Make eye contact. It signifies your interest and desire to be honest and credible.

• Posture and gesture are also effective ways to communicate your message.

• Dress Appropriately. How you look is also important. Your appearance should convey a message for dignity and respect.

• Be conscious of other people’s space.

• Keep your message understandable and straightforward. Remember, “Less is more.” Clarity is important because it affects all areas of your message. Avoid using jargons. Use words that your audience can understand.

Why “Less is more”? First and obvious, is to avoid information overload. Speaking involves great concentration. If you provide too much information, chances are your audience will not listen to you anymore.
Second, clarity and pausing allows your audience to understand and acknowledge what you are saying.

• Be prepared. Remember the 6 W’s:
Who? - Determining your audience’s age, gender and interest are among the ways you can classify them.

What? - What topic would you like to discuss? Usually, when you get an invitation to speak in public, follow their theme and purpose.

How? - How can you communicate your message? Language and non-verbal cues are important. Proper choice of words helps your audiences understand you better.

When? - Obtain a logical timing of your discussion. Learn how to pause when necessary.

Where? - If you have time, visit the area where you will conduct your speech. Determine the best seating arrangement according to the type of your audience. You also need to consider the temperature, space and lighting conditions of the area. Visiting the area also helps you determine where to place your visual aid.

Why? - Convey the advantage and purpose the will gain if they will listen to you. Preparing a list objectives can help you narrow down the key points you need to emphasize.

• Do not overwhelm your audience with numbers and statistics. You can put this information in handouts for easy reference in the future.

• Use visual aids to support your message.

• Establish dialogue and rapport. Allow your audience to participate in the discussion. You can also create rapport by call your audience by their names.

What would you say if you could learn the process of using proven strategies and technologies that could help you build an internet based business? If you learn to tap into a proven business building system with a long history, your business success is that much more predictable. Remember when starting an internet based business that systems and real credibility succeed where individuals and hype fail.

A formal system definition is that a system is “any organized assembly of resources and procedures united and regulated by interaction or interdependence to accomplish a set of specific functions”. The simple version is that a system is a proven set of steps that have been used and proven to work over time.

A formal definition of credibility is the quality, capability, or power to elicit belief. A system allows you to gain credibility from the existing process. This credibility builder can be the key to maintaining your energy. When people believe in what you do even if they are not a customer, it sustains your energy.

To help you evaluate your proposed internet based business opportunity for the strength of its process and systems and depth of credibility, the following list points out a number of proven strategies and technologies that can help you get a handle on your proposed business choices.

1. You want your business opportunity to be successful at online promotion not just offline promotion. Remember people online are different then those who market offline. Get appropriate training.

2. Does your business opportunity offer products that people have been buying and re-buying for decades which ensures people will come to you, money-in-hand.

3. You also want a fast start earning process if at all possible. A process that jumpstart your earnings reduces your exposure and lets you quickly assess the benefits of a particular program.

4. Make sure the business opportunity program offers a proven marketing system and more importantly that it is inline with how you like to market. Does it make you feel good when you market? If you always hated cold calling, don’t start now.

5. Determine how many tools and advertising avenues the program makes available before they try and upgrade you. This will help you reduce your initial cost and eliminate the worry of your marketing efforts costing you much more money then intended.

6. You may have an idea of using a marketing strategy from the past and assume it will succeed in your new business opportunity. Don’t assume and be full of ideas until you clearly evaluate the business opportunity being proposed.

7. Understand the competition within the industry. Sales people tend to be optimistic. Don’t be overly optimistic as the industry may be overloaded with your selected program.

8. Does the business opportunity process attract customers now only or is there a long term program that can bring you continuing sales years from now.

9. Make sure you don’t have to do all the work. Does the business program have a way to have people find you and ask to join the program?

Answering these simple questions will allow you to make a valid decision on some key points along your way to selecting your next internet base business opportunity. You need to take the time because your success or failure, your income potential, and the speed with which you recoup any investment depends entirely on YOU.

Have you been wondering if you should or should not start an internet based business opportunity? It should be clear that deciding to join an internet based business varies by person and that prior to joining an internet based business, the following questions and statements are designed to stimulate your thinking and open your mind to the possibilities and pitfalls to watch out.

The following list of evaluation criteria should be considered in making your decisions when reviewing your home based business opportunity.

1. Apply commonsense like you would use in any offline business building situation.

2. Attempt to understand their past and what have they have done before.

3. Can you get a reference? Do they have credible testimonials?

4. If you get in trouble with their process, can you ask questions of them?

5. Define their complete process to success. Is it a step by step handholding process?

6. Is there an adaption process to your real world?

7. Hopefully the opportunity doesn’t cost you a dime to get started.

8. The opportunity or system contains a serious internet based advertising component.

9. The manner in which duplication of process and system should be readily evident.

10. Determine if there is someone real that can help take you over or through a hurdle, if and when a problem or unplanned fork in the road occurs.

11. Determine if the system can quickly produce results. Does the system or process give you confidence in taking on your next steps?

12. How specialized is the system? Is it a process that you and others like you can use successfully?

13. Is there a process to remove the technical issues and get you to the business operation quickly?

14. Will the new business model provide you with respectable credibility?

15. Will it provide prospective customers or clients a taste test or freebies that are of substantial value to your prospective customers?

16. Does the process help create long term loyalty amongst your customers and potential partners?

If you answer the questions and statements above in the affirmative, then you should now be comfortable knowing that you can change your mind, and then change your life. If you follow the guidelines above, you can set in motion a chain of events that will move your life dramatically in new directions. Because your success is mandatory, follow this process and you will earn a significant increase in income from your internet based business that will allow you to work from home.

Do you want to get your business on the internet, operate your back office more efficiently, reduce your cost to talk and help devise a plan to get clients now?

Is this you?

You are in business for any length of time, have probably tried a million solutions and spent lots of money, and you come to the realization that you may be in business and having fun but not making money. You may have discovered that you are spending money, not making money and not having fun.

Or you may be getting ready to start a career transition and want to make a change. An internet business seems like a great possibility because it let’s you stay closer to the neighborhood, family and other personal activities of interest to you. It has a strong appeal to you, your lifestyle, but you feel a little overwhelmed at getting started and all the options available.

You are looking to grow your business, you feel stymied with your identified market and you love your business and career options but you do want to build a long lasting and rewarding relationship to live your business not just work your business.

Find a Job You Love and Never Work a day in your Life Again.

Whether in career transition mode, just starting out or in need of a business overhaul, you feel a little exhilarated but stressed because you are in business and having some fun, but know there must be a better way to pull it all together,

Take the time and explore the many ways you can increase your customer base and improve your business using the internet. The internet can help you operate more efficiently, communicate more profitably and help you get more clients, now.

• your need could be as simple as building an awesome but effective website that sells your services.
• your need s may be that you want more time and need to automate your business processes and operate more efficiently
• if you talk a lot with your customers and need an affordable option to sound professional and want to reduce your cost to talk and make the process profitable, professional and cost effective.
• maybe you need more clients and want an effective long term strategy for client acquisition and management, you want to get clients now

Too many businesses start small and never grow because they never look end to end and see what hampers them. They never seek outside help and use the strategies that large business use to help themselves grow. You are usually lost fighting the day to day battles and don’t take the time to pull back to look and remember your long term goals.

Being lost in the forest, it is hard to see the beautiful trees, the golden nuggets right before your eyes"

And no we don’t propose any radical get rich quick strategies here, no magical internet in a box solution that sounds so tempting but gives you a thousand templates and why to but now how to or support. To us it is about the people, your unique vision, the right supporting technology and addressing the end to end business development process, now not later.

Remember, it is not a question of how well each process works; the question is how well they all work together.

When I write about getting your business on the web or building your business through an internet based business model, I usually spark a lot of thought in the community. When I reviewed the queries on this series, a common question I get is, just what is the selection criteria? Specifically what would one look for when making a decision on an internet based business opportunity? Well I thought about it and here is the process in a nutshell one should pursue.

How did you come across the internet based business opportunity? The approach says a lot. Put more credence in someone you know then someone you just met. The internet is no different. Ask yourself; does it appear that these folks who just approached you will be around for a long time? Are they living a life or appear to have some sort of lifestyle besides pushing out email after email.

One of the things I notice is that after a while, the same email shows up in my email inbox from 5 different internet marketers but they are all offering the same unbelievable solution to life. After a while the warning signs should be going off since they are probably all using the same “canned” email letter and are probably sitting right next to each other.

Longevity, did the guru just appear in your inbox? Does his operation appear to have a history? Will he or she be around for a while? Is there anything they are doing that you feel you could talk to them about one-on-one if required? Notice the distinct absence of any personal information in their emails or on their websites, but notice there is lots of personal talk. It’s a big disconnect. Can you find any past information on them anywhere, in any ezine or website or even offline?

Are they offering a follow-up plan? Scammers or those people whom have never really tried the product they are selling usually have no follow up plan whatsoever. If the objective is to sell someone else’s great product and move on, then the worst thing to them is a committed customer. The only commitment they want from you is for you to purchase their next product, not using and exploring the good and the bad of the current product.

In terms of follow up, one great way to see if there is a real sales person behind the business opportunity is for real. Send them an email. See if they answer and how do they answer. If you don’t get an email, then they really don’t need your sale because they are building their business off of the quantity of sales, not the quality of sales. Don’t fall for your email in my spam box because if you don’t pay or pay incorrectly, they somehow magically find you.

Ask them about their process to greatness. How have they done it in the past and why does it work? As a career coach and consultant the important thing to me is that success is mandatory and it should be to you also.

Summing it up, you should notice that the answers followed the recommended plan of earlier models. First, use the same common sense you use offline, who are they and where did they come from? Attempt to understand their past and what they have done before. Can you get a reference, do they have credible testimonials? Finally determine their next steps and their process. Can you touch them? Will they answer an email or a phone call? Is it a step by step handholding process? Is it a clear enough process that you can execute and get an update if your circumstances don’t fit their cookie cutter process? As you move your self through this process, your next step and direction will clearly reveal itself.

Are you sick and tired of people “showing” you an income opportunity and then not demonstrating how you can earn an income with it using your situation? How many get rich schemes have you seen so far?

I hate to say it but you are just being charitable by giving your money to someone without getting an exact procedure that they used along with how it will be adapted for you to do what you have to do to make it work for you. We all start from different points in life and most times you do have to adapt for your current life’s situation. If you don’t then this is where the formulaic business book in a box approach falls off. You encounter something not in the plan and have no clue whether to avoid, ignore or attack it. You stumble for a while, give up and walk away. Another great idea, book, software left on the shelf.

Well to truly change your life you do need to change your mind. Start changing your mind today by applying a proven method. First, you research and look for proven business models that have stood the test of time. Then understand it, start to adapt and change your mind to take it all-in. Then get a hold of the business process and ensure you understand the step by step process that takes you to the long term goal. We don’t go the moon or on vacation with out a map so why make a career change without a supporting process.

As we say, first map out a process for an internet based business by defining the supporting IOVC technology components. These components are internet, office, voice and clients. Use the internet as your website store front, ensure office automation to improve your back office, use your voice to reduce cost and ensure intimacy with your customer, and make it personal. Finally we say attend to your customers or clients because without a customer you will not have a business for long. You need a way to help manage them on an ongoing basis. An IOVC strategy and technology approach has a history with proven experience and a process attached because it is a set of standard tools applied systematically that have been use, combined and applied over time.

Applying the IOVC, internet, office, voice and customer focused strategy and technology process means you get an exact almost blueprint copy the components needed to make a success of the new business model you are considering.

Bottom line is don’t let a few bad apples and negative experiences of the past cause an opportunity to learn something new, past you by. Take the time to learn about what may be your next great career transition. Find out exactly what you have to do in order to achieve your desired results. Then make sure you have someone along like a coach, consultant of past business owner to help you achieve your desired level of success.

So, it is possible to drastically change your mind then change your life? Do you wonder if you can really change your lifestyle fast by applying and using one of the internet based business building systems that are all out there just waiting for you to join?

The answer is it’s probable. Why am I saying probable and not giving you the absolutely wonderful, over the top – you have got do this and make a trillion overnight story line. Well it is because I understand the game, painfully so as they say and probably like you, can say, spent the money, saw the absence of real results and closed this past section of my life out with the familiar saying, been there, done that.

As you can already tell, I like you in the past, have been working for other people and looked to grow a business and get away. And being stepped in corporate tradition, one tends to apply the corporate mantra to the internet based small business world and figure all you have to do to be successful in a new business model is to follow what they are already doing!

Well to be successful in the small business world and especially the internet based business world, surprise, surprise, it does work that way. There is a big if though and the big if is - if you have someone demonstrate a proven process and demonstrate that they intend to stay with you for the long haul. You do not want the short term, here is the solution, give me your money and then they are gone with the wind as they say. You are then left to implement with your own devices.

In order to make a success, a few changes are definitely needed by you, they are that you need to change your mind and then start to change your life. The change of mind is to open your mind to ignore some of the negatives of the past, and to try things you don’t know. Then you need to not walk blindly into the next situation, versus make sure you have a plan. To change your life successfully, you need a proven plan and a process that you can follow because it has every step laid out for you precisely in the manner that it was done before.

As a current and former business process analyst, we make systems work, new or old by applying age old processes that are sometimes tiring to the newbie or existing user but work well over the long term. It is this dedication to sticking with a working and proven systematic business process that ensures success.

The next component that ensures success is tha application of systems to the process that ensures the system will continue even when you can’t sometimes. The process needs to have office automated procedures to help you increase your work and effort. This way you start to enjoy the work and the mundane activities get handled automatically. And yes sometimes even while you sleep.

So what’s a person to do? You need to retain not lose your common sense. If it’s too good to be true, it is. You should look for a proven process, a strong systematic approach with a real supporting person. My final advice is if the E-book promises untold millions and yet has no supporting team, RUN!

 

Do you dream of being the CEO of a Fortune 500 company? And the Fortune 500 Company is your own? Have you wanted to buy that new home you’ve dreamed of for so many years? Exactly what is your idea of success? Success is having achieved that which you determine you will do.

If you have not decided what you will do and what your life will be then someone will decide for you. It is up to you to determine what your success will be. It’s not dependent upon materialistic measurements and it cannot be based on any judgment other than your own.

Success may be something material, such as money or a new home. It could be something egotistical, as the power and notoriety that comes with the position of CEO. It could be emotional, as finding love and commitment. Success may even be unselfish and altruistic, as seeing children in third world countries healthy and safe. Success has no particular name or identity. There is no one method to describe what success is, other than the definition above. It means something different to each individual.

All successful people, however, have one thing in common - they act and for some, success is the journey. The journey in the end is the most important part of all. The journey is what you do when you move, grow, and build your self and your business. How you execute the journey can be hard or easy. A key to making the journey a success is to change your mind then change your life. If success is mandatory in your life then you owe it to yourself to follow a systematic process

Think about it what make s the building of a building so successful. It is that they follow a blueprint. The people who build the people are not necessarily schooled in constructing buildings for years. Usually the brick layer knows how to lay bricks and the electrician puts the wires in the wall and the glass maker fills in the holes in the wall. Individually they are all great, but none of them are builders of buildings by themselves. So don’t you put the burden of your success on yourself and try to do it all. So think about it, because when you change your mind it will force a change of life. Follow someone who has changed their life, think like them but be you. Follow their path but make it your own.