There's this anxiety that comes with public speaking. I used to think it had to do with eye contact - that eerie feeling you get when it looks like people are staring into your soul. Fun fact is, it's not limited to eye contact, we get nervous when are expressing ourselves publicly; either it's a stage or a zoom meeting.
How to not feel nervous again
Okay first, do a bunch of pushups then meditate for 30 minutes to get your ....
TRASH TALK 🚮
This tweet isn't really related to this post, but it adds spice to what I'm about to say next.
You need to acknowledge how you feel
If you're nervous, don't lie to yourself that you're fine, see it's totally fine to be nervous, it shows that what you're about to do is important to you.
Don't plan what to say
Every conversation can go a million ways. When you plan you want to say, you limit your creativity and inevitably get stuck multiple times in the conversation.
Break the ice with a good opener
An opener doesn't necessarily have to be a catch phrase or a pickup line. A question is one of the best ways to start a conversation.
Avoid making it one-sided
If you ask too much questions, you risk making it look like an interview; and if you talk lengthily without involving your audience, you risk boring the person out.
Mix it up
Depending on the person or people you're speaking to and the setting, you might want to sound a bit formal. But every once in a while, switch it up: people like a mix of emotions, keeps things interesting. Say something serious, ask a question, give a funny remark based in their answer, tell a very short story relating to what you're saying.
What you say last sticks
We all tend to remember the last thing someone said or did. So if we were having a great conversation and ended up arguing, you'll remember that as a bad conversation. First impressions matter, but in case you missed making a good first impression, this would still make it a big WIN for you.
Okay, that'll be all for this article. I hope you found this useful; if you didn't, then you might need to do pushups and meditate for 30 minutes 😂.