Does Public Speaking Make You Nervous? Here Are Some Helpful Tips

Many people get nervous when having to speak publicly.  This can happen when you have to give a speech or when you simply want to contribute to a discussion during a meeting at work.  If you are doing the five minute self-hypnosis exercise that I recommended, by now you have developed a conditioned response to relaxing whenever you mentally count backwards from 50 to 1.  This simply means that your mind now associates relaxation with counting backwards, thus allowing you to begin to relax very quickly.  You can use this basic technique to help you with public speaking.  First, make your affirmation,  "Whenever I begin to count back from fifty, I feel peaceful, calm and relaxed."  Use this self-hypnosis technique with that affirmation for at least three weeks before using it to help you when you are called upon to speak publicly.  Once you have completed this, you can begin to use it in the following manner:  Before you are about to begin your talk, mentally begin counting back from fifty.  You will immediately begin to relax even though you will not go into self-hypnosis.  You can do this right up until you begin speaking.  This will definitely take the edge off and the more you use it, the more effectively it will work for you.


Another useful tool to use is to practice taking a deep breath and speaking on the exhalation.  If you're practicing your speech, try doing it that manner  When you actually begin your talk, begin by speaking on the exhalation.  You will sound very calm, even if you don't feel as calm as you would like.  Once you hear how even you sound, you will begin to feel calmer and more confident and will probably be able to continue breathing as you normally would for the remainder of your speech.


These two tools together should work very nicely for you if practiced regularly.