How to get that confidence to speak?

To get that confidence to speak, I would recommend three ways.  These three ways you need to do consistently:

1) You need to be on top of your materials - Whatever topics our are presenting on, you need to know your stuff.  The more content you know, the fluent you'll be in your delivery.  Let's take for an example, if I were to ask you to share with me some highlights that you experienced the last 24-hours (by the way, this is one of the theatre-based games we use in my workshop!), chances are you can share it convincingly.  Why, because you experienced it yourself.  You are on top of the material. 

2) Rehearsals - Nothing can go without rehearsals and practice.  Even world athletes who won Olympic Golds practise daily; so there is no reason for us not to practise and rehearse on our presentations.  The more we rehearse on our topics, the fluent we will be. 

3) Do more of it.  Beat your own benchmark & personal record! - An world-class athlete would not be a world-class athlete in just one race.  A world-class chef would not be a world-class chef in just one cooking session.  To be confident and be good, we need to do more of it.  And along the way, break your own benchmark.  For example, in one presentation, you would have 20 time fillers (aahhs, eermms, eerrs).  In the next presentation, beat the record, go for just 10 time fillers.  In the next one, beat it again.  Go for 5.  In a matter of time, your time fillers will be gone and you will be more confident of yourself.


Yours,

Hazriq Idrus
Author, The Stage Fright Antidote!
Founder, The Speaking Factory Pte Ltd.

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