How to overcome the fear of public speaking? 5 keys

Public speaking is a widespread concern It occurs in almost all people, even those used to doing it for work or academic reasons.

We know that repeated exposure to those stimuli that they generate anxiety It is one of the most effective psychological techniques to combat fears due to the effect that continued practice has on our competence and feeling of self-efficacy, but... What can we do when we do not have this possibility and yet we need to make a successful presentation?

Understanding the fear of public speaking

Before starting, it is important to know what happens to us in those moments. As in any situation in everyday life, when speaking to many people there are three registers that come into play: the physical part (in this case the nerves that can manifest themselves through various symptoms: sweating, facial flushing, increased heart rate), the cognitive part (composed of what we think, which may be led by an anticipation of failure such as: "I am going to be confused, they are going to laugh at me, I am going to do it wrong") and the behavioral part: what we do (how the presentation).

However, what we are interested in here is to distinguish the line that separates the objective from the subjective part, which often tends to get mixed up. I explain. The only thing we can manipulate when preparing to speak in public are objective questions.

For example, We must ensure that the concepts are clear, that the expression is adequate or that the graphic support is relevant. Therefore, the result is in relation to the amount of time invested in preparing the material, our knowledge on the subject or the consideration of the audience we are addressing. The rest, the subjective part, such as the opinion that others have of my competition, if they get bored with what I say or if they realize our nerves, it is the one we must renounce from the first moment we stand in front of an audience. The trap is served as long as we try to manipulate that part of the equation, the one that does not depend on us.

The cognitive side of fear

Before we said that there are three registers to consider: the physical, the behavioral and the cognitive part.

As well, although they are all interrelated, the greatest influence is orchestrated in the last, so that will be where we focus, demystifying some erroneous beliefs that can be useful for our purpose.

The two fallacies of nervousness

First fallacy: one of the most widespread fears is that attendees easily perceive the nervousness of the speaker. However, these signals are not interpreted by others as we think, and most likely they will not be aware of them. The sweat of the hands, the heart rate, or the fear of not doing it well are imperceptible.

The only “detectable” signs are tremor (of the hands or voice) and facial flushing, and even these factors are often partially masked by the distance that separates us. In general, in lectures the interpersonal distance is at least 5 meters from the audience. If it is already difficult to detect in the vicinity, several meters away it is almost impossible.

We perceive all the details of what we do, but others stay with the general image. The external correlate they have is less than half of what we perceive. In fact, the most useful thing we can do with the nerves is to "encapsulate" them, that is, to let them be, having realize that we have the ability to think and speak even in their presence, which brings us to the second fallacy.

Fallacy of direct state manipulation

The most common mistake when we perceive that we are nervous is to try to reduce our tension, saying to ourselves: "calm down, don't be nervous." But our mind works under the mandate of paradoxical intention. Namely, it is enough for us to say "try not to think about your nerves", "try to calm yourself down" for the opposite to happen.

With which, the most effective strategy to avoid getting nervous or not increasing our nerves is not to try to convince ourselves that we do not have to get nervous, but accept and tolerate the symptoms of our restlessness leaving them be so that they go before.

Fallacy of perfectionism

We tend to perceive the elements that surround us from their globality, instead of interpreting the details separately.

Therefore, the mistakes made during the presentation (which represent the details within a whole) and the words not found at a certain moment, go unnoticed by the audience, as does the number of stairs to climb to reach the room or the plates contained in the paintings that adorn the auditorium. Which brings us to the next point.

Selective attention

As if it were a salad of letters, our exhibition works like reading a text: what is underlined or in bold will attract more attention than words in plain format.

Therefore, if we do not emphasize our mistakes (following the analogy: if we do not “underline” them) neither will others in their “reading of the exhibition”. In the same way that it happened with nerves, accepting and tolerating failures reduces the probability of repeating them, fosters our safety and redirects the public's attention to other aspects.

A final trick to get our nerves off of us

If you want to feel safer or more secure and avoid the fear of speaking in public, one last proposal.

Look between the eyebrows: eye contact is essential to generate a sense of security and trust in our interlocutors. However, in assessment situations it can be a distracting or intimidating element that reduces concentration and increases nervousness. Therefore, If we look into the eyebrows of our examiners, they will believe that we are looking into their eyes and we maintain a neutral fixation point devoid of undesirable emotional reactions.