The truth about visualization for public speaking success

Many people think that this type of visualization can help you not only speak better but also help reduce your fear of public speaking.

It may make you feel good at the time, but the scientific evidence doesn’t support the belief that it will help you achieve your best performance or reduce your fear of public speaking.

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How to survive watching yourself on video

Do you hate the idea of watching yourself on video? Most people do. But on our courses it’s one of our most powerful tools for helping people to reduce their fear of public speaking. Watching yourself give a presentation can give you a tremendous confidence boost.

That’s because the way that you come across is often better than the way you imagine you come across. That’s because you can feel your nervousness, but the audience can only see it or hear it. Mike Bogle from the TechTicker blog writes:

In listening to the recording I was actually amazed how relaxed I sounded relative to the whirlwind of anxiety that was actually going on inside my head.

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3 Reasons not to use NLP to overcome fear of public speaking

Neuro Linguistic Programming (NLP) is a controversial topic.

I started my research for this post with a relatively open mind.

I say relatively, because I do have some biases against NLP. Many NLP-trained people spout the nonsense about only 7% of your communication being based on the words you say. If you’ve been reading this blog for a while you’ll know that I like to have scientific research to back up what I say – my experience was that NLP doesn’t always meet this standard.

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Review of top 10 methods to overcome fear of public speaking #2

This is Part 2 of a review of the top 10 methods for reducing the fear of public speaking. In Part 1 I reviewed affirmations and visualization. In this post I explore the use of hypnosis and relaxation training.

3. Hypnosis

I have no personal experience of hypnosis, and as I began my research for this review I was reasonably sceptical. But I have now been enlightened. It’s clear that hypnotherapy is an effective treatment for many issues, including anxiety. The British Psychological Society published an authoritative report in 2001 entitled “The nature of hypnosis”. In relation to its use in therapy they concluded: [Read more]

Review of the top 10 methods to overcome fear of public speaking #1

There’s a ton of internet advice on how to overcome the fear of public speaking. Much of the advice is of the “what worked for me” kind. Or the advice is the first stage of trying to sell you a a hypnosis CD. So how do you decide what advice to follow? In this post series, I’ll be reviewing the 10 most recommended methods. Here’s the list (not in any particular order):

1. Affirmations
2. Visualization
3. Hypnosis
4. Relaxation techniques
5. Neuro-Linguistic Programming
6. The Lefkoe method
7. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
8. Medication
9. Just do it
10. Toastmasters

If you think there are others that I should be looking at, let me know. My aim is to look for evidence of effectiveness on a more than anecdotal basis. In this post, I’ll start with affirmations and visualization. [Read more]

I wish I’d spoken at my father’s funeral

Being able to express yourself publicly at important ceremonies and celebrations – funerals, weddings, christenings and birthdays – is one of the greatest gifts.

My father died 10 years ago. I was going to speak at his funeral. But when we arrived at the church all I could see were the distinguished, CEO-looking men in the audience (my father was an international businessman).  I felt intimidated and chose not to speak. That’s something I regret.

I’ll never turn down an invitation to give a eulogy again.

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Mice show that you can overcome fear of public speaking

If you get nervous about speaking in public, the recently published results from a scientific experiment on mice, should give you some hope. The experiment showed that mice that had been trained to feel calm, coped better with stressful situations.

The mice were trained to associate a specific sound with safety. They were then subjected to a stressful event – a mouse swimming pool that they could not escape from. The mice would eventually give up swimming as if they had given up hope. But when the “safe” sound was made, the mice started swimming again.

The lead researcher, Eric Kandel said: [Read more]

Overcome your fear of public speaking the proven way

Advice on overcoming the fear of public speaking is easy to come by.

You may have been told, “Just go out there and do it, take every opportunity you can to speak”. But you still get nervous. Here’s a story from someone who has suffered through just going out and doing it:

At one point in my life I was a teacher. I did fine with students, but when it came to parent-teacher conferences, I would dread the experience (the “exposure”) weeks and weeks ahead of time. The anticipatory anxiety and fear was so strong that it gripped at my stomach and made me feel like it was bloody and raw. Over the course of nine years, I was required to go through thirty-three weeks of parent-teacher conferences. I was exposed to one of my greatest fears, and the repetition and further exposure to this fear did not cause me to lose my anxiety and feel more comfortable. Instead, I faced my fears and my fears became even stronger.

Maybe you know that as well as going out there and doing it you need to “think positively” – so you’ve practiced affirmations and visualized your success. If it works for you that’s great. But for many people, positive thinking is not the answer. [Read more]