It's almost time. Your palms start to sweat. A knot forms in your stomach and your heart begins to race. Your vision narrows slightly. You check for the tenth time that your notecards are in the right order. Questions and doubt flood your mind, "What if I say something wrong?" "What if I trip over my words?" "What if I lock up?" "What if I knock the podium over?" "What if I fail?" "What if I look like a fool?" "What if nobody likes me?" "What if... what if... what if......"

Today's topic is: public speaking.

(Intro)

Now, I'm no expert on this but I do it enough that I thought it'd make a good episode topic just to share my experience, how I prepare, some other tips and tricks, and the like.

Did the intro feel familiar to you? I personally know people that would rather gouge their eyes out with spoons than have to get up on a stage and talk in front of people. Likewise, I know people that relish it, love it, heck, Dr Jess Kapp, my guest on episode 26, has even done a TED Talk. That's kind of  21st century peak public speaking, right?

So, obviously, public speaking isn't for everyone. In fact, most people, I would imagine, will never actually have to do it in any formal sense. A speech at a wedding, maybe, or a presentation in class, but that's probably about it. For others, like me, we do it virtually every day and it becomes second nature.

But let's talk about the fear of it, first. And I should note here that when I say "public speaking" I mean any kind of presentation of spoken content to a group of people beyond simple social interaction.

It actually has a name: Glossophobia, from the Greek "glossa" meaning "tongue" and "phobos" meaning "fear." Interestingly, people can have either this specific phobia, related just to public speaking , or it can be part of something larger and more general, like social anxiety disorder, for example.

So why do we fear public speaking? And when I say "we," I mean fully a quarter of people. Well, it's multi-faceted, says a Psychology Today piece from 2017. And, sources and more in the shownotes, as always.

First, it can trigger our fight-or-flight response. The intro you heard at the beginning? Basically that. When faced with the anxiety generated by those doubts, you can get shaky, nervous, and uncomfortable. The last thing a public speaker should be is uncomfortable. This can translate to being, essentially, shaky, both physically and in your voice. We've all seen those really nervous, uncomfortable public speakers, and heard their voices wobble and shake. Fight or flight.

Second, people just get in their own heads about it. They've already convinced themselves they're no good at it, so it becomes a kind of self-fulfilling prophecy. In this sense, it's possible to view that public speaking event as an actual threat, whether that's to the speaker's credibility as an expert on a topic or just to their personal image. Again, "What if I make a fool of myself" and "What if they don't like me?" When what could possibly be the same conversation being had between just a few people turns into something that's being judged (or, at least, perceived as being judged), this can become crippling. Interestingly, this kind of concern travels beyond just a fear of public speaking and into other areas of public, more or less, presentation of self, something often referred to as "imposter syndrome." 

Third, uncertainty. Uncertainy in a number of different arenas, whether that's a perceived (or actual, I guess) lack of expertise in the topic or not. Public speaking typically works best when you're actually familiar with the topic at hand, after all. Novelty is another aspect of uncertainy, whether it's the ideas you're presenting that are new or it's the audience you're speaking with that's new to you. Both of these can trigger intense amounts of anxiety. Perhaps it's just the perceived difference in station between you and your audience. I think of graduate school defenses, in this case, where a student has to speak authoratatively to a group of experienced professors. That's nerve-wracking. And again, you might just be scared of being judged, and, honestly, I think that's perfectly natural. Nobody likes being critiqued.

Finally, just... inexperience. Some people have natural talents and affinities for some things. Others have to work very, very hard at them to feel like they achieve the same proficiency as those others that just seem to do it effortlessly. In reality, the ones that work at it are going to be better than those that let their natural talent suffice. What are the sayings? "If you want to be a writer, write. If you want to be a better photographer, take more pictures." If you want to be a better public speaker, you have to actually do it. Then do it again. And again.

Now, as I said before, I'm fairly comfortable with public speaking in a variety of forms, whether that's in a classroom or giving a presentation or delivering a keynote speech to a large crowd. How did I get that way, I hear you ask? Well, since you asked for it so nicely, here's my anecdotal and completely unstructured, unofficial advice:

If I have a speech, something that's a bit more formalized, I have some tricks that help me get through that.

First, memorize the beginning and end of the speech but only just the highlights of the middle bit. This can help you start and close strong with jokes that actually land or powerful words that leave a lasting impact. The middle bit is the easy bit; it's the start and finish that people will REALLY remember, after all. 

Second, stay loose. Unclench your jaw. Drop your shoulders. You might be anxious but don't let that own your body. Your preparedness and skill can go right out the window if you're physically tensed up. Maybe you fix this by doing some stretches or some jumping jacks before you talk. You'll have to experiment for yourself. For me, if I'm actually super keyed-up for something, it's just 10 seconds of eyes-closed, deep breaths, preferablly somewhere quiet. Let that anxious energy calm down so you can actually focus.

Third, don't take yourself too seriously. I mean, if you're a leader wielding immense political and financial power and influence, you should probably take what you're saying very seriously since it has the potential to create international incidents or impact the lives of millions of people on a daily basis, but if you're NOT and you're just giving a speech on some particular topic at some particular event, you'll do yourself a world of good by acknowledging that you're human and humans make mistakes. We're silly, imperfect creatures that sometimes fall down. Own that, make light of it, and move on. Don't try to be perfect unless the context calls for actual perfection. In which case, try...

Number four: practice. If you're already uncomfortable doing it, giving a speech that even YOU'RE not all that familiar with is just asking for trouble. Practice with a stopwatch. Practice with your family or friends. Practice in the clothes you'll be wearing when you do it. Make it so when you actually get there, when you're "on stage" or whatever, it's not so new. One little trick I use if I have to have an actual speech in front of me is to print each sentence on a different line, make them very big, and highlight keywords with different colors so I can quickly glance down at it, find my spot, grab the main idea for what I'm saying next, and continue without missing a beat. Preparedness returns its value many, many times over.

Fifth, if this is feasible (and I fully recognize that in some contexts it's not), I try to make eye-contact at least once with every single person in the audience. Instead of talking to an audience as a collective, I'm talking to a collection of individuals, making that one-on-one connection that they can really end up feeling. It's an old teacher's trick, basically: if a student isn't paying attention, you can start speaking directly to them, and that will bring them back. Works just as well with audience members.

Finally, a little bit of apathy goes a long way. Now, I don't mean that you shouldn't care about how you do. That would be unprofessional and probably undermine the entire point you're trying to get across. What I mean, and this kind of goes along with number 3, is that you might just be caring a little too much. There is immense freedom in shedding that need for 100% approval. And that goes for a lot more in life beyond just public speaking.

So, okay, "What if these self-directed tips aren't enough?" I hear you asking.

There are more structured, official ways to help you become a better speaker. 

The most well-known and SUPER structured method of improving your public speaking comfort and ability is the Toastmasters group. This is an international non-profit that helps people create groups or clubs to support their shared goal of improving their skills. Chances are there's one near you and, if there isn't, you can create one. I've been a guest at a few Toastmasters meetings at my university and I can absolutely see their value. It's INCREDIBLY structured, though, which I can only imagine is in order to give someone a kind of scaffolding to begin their journey into comfortably and confidently speaking. That said, it's a bit TOO structured for me, but... then again... I'm already comfortable doing it. 

On the total opposite end of that, I always suggest improv classes. Whereas Toastmasters helps you become a better speaker in formal settings, your local acting troupe's improv classes will help you be better at feeling comfortable when new things are thrown your way. Just like I always tell new and soon-t-be educators that one of the most crucial texts they should have in their libraries is Stanislofki's "An Actor Prepares," improv classes help you perform, and what is public speaking if not a performance? They can even help you be better at other social events, which is a nice bonus.

Either way, anything you do will translate to an improvement if you work at it. It's scary, I know.

And the truth is... even someone like me that does this almost daily, I still get nervous. I still worry that I'll disappoint the people I'm talking to. I just have to remember that a) they most likely want to hear what I have to say, b) they want me to do well (because nobody enjoys listening to a bad speaker), and c) even if I do mess up, it's not the end of the world. Let that bolster your confidence because, at the end of it all, it really, actually, pretty much is all about confidence. 

(Outro)

Once again, thank you for listening to this little podcast-thing of mine. If you found it entertaining or informative or useful, please do subscribe and rate it on the podcatcher of your choice, whether that's iTunes, Stitcher, Google Play, Spotify, or however you listen. And, as usual, I'd love to hear from you. You can find me on Twitter at newprofcast. Show notes, transcripts, and more can be found on the website at thenewprofessor.com. Until next time.